SPANISH contractor Excavaciones Rafael Gómez has purchased a new Doosan DX235LCR-5 reduced radius excavator for forestry work.

Excavaciones Rafael Gómez, based at Cos in Cantabria in Spain, works mainly in the forestry sector but also in public works, earthmoving and constructing breakwaters. The company regularly carries out work for a large forestry company that supplies wood to pulp, mining and sawmill companies from fast-growing woodland stands, including eucalyptus and pine along the Cantabrian coast.

Excavaciones Rafael Gómez also works locally for various official departments of the Cantabrian government as well as contracts in neighbouring communities such as Asturias or the Basque Country, and even in Castilla León.

"My company is specialised in the forestry sector, in land preparation, cleaning, clearing and access to forest plantations. Once the trees in the mountains are cut down, their remains must be cleared out, with the debris stacked for removal or for crushing," explained owner, Rafael Gómez Rivero.

He added: "In the mountains, a machine cannot fail on you - it is not the same as when you work in the centre of a city. I need a reliable machine and what made me opt for Doosan was, first, the service; I have the dealer, Adal Exclusivas Generales, right next to me - they provide excellent service, they are real specialists. They offer a complete management, advice and service solution. The second reason, of course, was the performance of the DX235LCR-5 and its reduced fuel consumption."

Forestry Journal:

The 24-tonne Doosan DX235LCR-5 reduced radius excavator has a minimum swing radius of 2310 mm. According to Doosan, the excavator meets the growing demand for reduced radius machines for work in confined areas.

The DX235LCR-5 is powered by a 6-cylinder, turbocharged Doosan DL06P water-cooled diesel engine, which meeds emission regulations without the need for a diesel particulate filter (DPF), through the use of cooled exhaust gas recirculation (EGR) and selective catalyst reduction (SCR) aftertreatment technologies. The DL06P engine provides an output of 180 kW (242 HP) at 1,900 rpm.

As well as the DL06P engine, features have been introduced to provide an overall 8 per cent increase in fuel efficiency compared to the DX235LCR-3, Doosan said.

According to Rafael Gómez Rivero, he chose this specific model because of its short turning radius, which makes it a perfect excavator for working in tight places. He has used other machines that did not allow him to travel or work as easily. The Doosan DX235LCR-5 excavator does much more in confined spaces, and with the dozer blade, the operator can also do the work of a small bulldozer. The articulated arm on the DX235LCR-5 allows the boom and bucket to be brought very close to the machine, which is a key feature for the forestry sector and also provides the digging force to work in stony ground.

Rafael Gómez Rivero added: "In the Doosan DX235LCR-5 excavator, I would highlight the turning force it has - the turning torque and turning force are very high. It means that travelling on slopes with a loaded bucket and turning the stones on the breakwaters with a bucket are no problem for this model. There is a lot of strength and stability in the tracks - it climbs all kinds of terrain without problem.

"Colleagues and friends who are using Doosan machines have recommended them to me for their reliability. They have Doosan machines in this area that have worked for over 20,000 hours with no problems. And that is essential for me and for other contractors in the sector. Avoiding downtime is very important, since it translates into productivity and profit.

"I have been working with machines for over 40 years, so I know them very well and I can say that the Doosan DX235LCR-5 excavator has a very good quality/price ratio. The hydraulic system that comes standard with this model is very appropriate for this class of machine - the smoothness of the movements is much better than that in machines from other brands. It is faster and more comfortable to operate with a system that allows attachments to be operated from the joystick or a two-way pedal."

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