Smaller machines, more power from Valmet
More machine in a smaller package. That’s what forest contractors want and that’s what Valmet and Komatsu Forest supplied at Elmia Wood.
The major newcomer was the Valmet 931 harvester. Komatsu presented it as being in a class of its own. This flexible machine can handle both sparse and thick forests and has low weight relative to its capacity. It is one size category below Valmet’s largest final felling harvester, the 941, and has a boom almost as large as that of its big brother. The lifting torque is 220 kNm.
“The Valmet 931 weighs four tonnes less than the 941,” says Tobias Ettemo of Komatsu Forest.
Valmet also presented two new machine models with a TX designation added to the model number. TX stands for Thinning Expert. Together the models form a machinery system consisting of the 901TX harvester and the 840TX forwarder.
The system has been adapted for thinning in several ways. The harvester has an extremely high ground clearance and extra large wheels for better accessibility and lower ground pressure. The boom, which is up to 11 meters long, is said to be the strongest in its category. Valmet’s concept of a cab that swings with the boom also contributes to good thinning abilities.
The other half of the concept, the Valmet 840TX forwarder, has a significantly shorter nose than its predecessors. To put it another way – it has a smaller cab and can carry a greater load in relation to the machine’s length. New bogies with wider tires and high ground clearance contribute to better accessibility and low ground pressure.
Komatsu Forest also presented two newly developed harvester heads. The Valmet 365 is a flexible and highly productive head, with lower weight than the 360 model and functions that make it suitable for handling both round stems and slash. The Valmet 378 is a robust head that is also suitable for excavators.