Hardware, sofTware and serviceEiGhT-WhEEl<strong>PONSSE</strong> ErGO– mucH exPecTed addiTion To THe BriTisH macHine markeTsThe harvester's eight wheels improve its performance on steep hills anddemanding terrain. The world's first eight-wheel Ergo operates on a felling sitewhich is located 20 miles to the north of the Ponsse UK Lockerbie Service Centre.4Ponsse <strong>News</strong> 1 • <strong>2011</strong>
Hardware, sofTware and servicebobby dick on the left, his son alistair, harvester operator dave wilson, and Gareth williams, sales manager at Ponsse uK.Nowadays, it is extremely rare to find a sixwheelforwarder in British forests, but withregard to harvesters, the eight-wheel modelshave been scarcely available. Only somesmaller forest machine manufacturershave offered eight-wheel harvesters. "Onthe other hand, machine development isgoverned by the needs of markets that arelarger than those in the UK, which placeeven higher demands on the machines dueto their terrain conditions," says Dave Wilson,a machine operator at Dick Brothers,a company located in Galashiels, Scotland.This Ergo 8w operator is undoubtedlymore than pleased with his new machine."The machine is excellent in terms of itscomfort – compared to a six-wheeler, it ismore stable and able to suspend bumpsmore effectively," Wilson comments.uNdiSPuTaBlE BENEfiTSOf ThE EiGhT-WhEElErThe felling site, where the machine operates– 70,000 cubic metres of prematurecutting that needs to be cleared away fora wind power plant – does not have themost demanding of conditions, but thebenefits of the machine have been evidentright from the start. The machine startedoperating in a low-lying wet area, where itwas able to work without tracks. The machinecuts about 500 to 600 tonnes of Sitkaspruce a week. The trunks are sturdybut not of good quality. Most of the treeswere planted in 1971."The crane operation of the new machineis faster and smoother, and the harvesterhead and saw are much faster, evencompared to the previous Ergo," he says.Wilson also points out that one of the benefitsincludes the possibility to fine-tunethe crane operations with the computer.The Ergo 8w is equipped with a <strong>PONSSE</strong>H7 harvester head and a <strong>PONSSE</strong> C4 slidingboom crane with its ten metre reach.The machine is also equipped with balancedbogies, which are provided as optionalequipment. According to Wilson,this means that the machine is able toclimb the slopes more efficiently and witha better grip, and also prevents the tracksfrom rising off the ground even when thecrane's maximum reach is applied.There is one difference between theErgo with six wheels and that with eight– the six-wheel Ergo has an active suspensionsystem for the front axle. The systemkeeps the cabin straight on uneven terrainand eliminates the sideways movementsdirected to the operator. Due to its differentdesign, this is not possible in the eightwheelversion. However, this has beensolved by furnishing the machine with aSit Right seat leveller.The logs from the felling site are takento local sawmills. The site has alsobeen stripped of many of its stumps. Thestumps are delivered to Dick Brothers'wood chip mill, where they are first treatedin "drying drums" and then in a CBI MagnumForce 8400 chipper. The wood chipmill is located only a few miles from Eon'sbiomass energy mill in Lockerbie, which isthe final destination of the stumps.PrOPEr machiNES fOr TruEPrOfESSiONalSMeanwhile on the site, Dave Wilson continuesharvesting in high spirits. The newErgo 8w was introduced to him on hisbirthday. Coincidence? "I am a good employerto my subordinates," Bobby Dicksays, smiling. Dave's previous Ergo arrivedjust in time for Christmas Eve!Dick Brothers has already purchasedits next Ergo 8w, which is operating inNorthern Scotland. Ponsse has also manufacturedan eight-wheel version of itsBear harvester. The Bear is a significantlylarger machine: regarding its weight, it isabout eight tonnes heavier. The machineis equipped with a larger harvester head,<strong>PONSSE</strong> H8, and it is delivered with an11-metre parallel crane."It'll be interesting to see how thepopularity of eight-wheel harvesters willgrow. They have been available for years,but when a major machine manufacturerintroduces its eight-wheel version, it cancause the six-wheel harvesters to becomeas rare as the six-wheel forwarders in Britishforests in three to four years time,"Dick says. Time will tell.Ponsse <strong>News</strong> 1 • <strong>2011</strong> 5
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