National Pile Croppers introduces new PC 400
The new Pre-Cast 400 – PC 400 – from National Pile Croppers is a purpose designed hydraulic pile cropper designed to crop piles from 300-400mm. As its name suggests, it is designed to crop precast piles (PCC) with four or more reinforcement bars (rebar)...
NPC has justifiably been proud of the fact that the company is continuously looking at ways to improve the quality and performance of its equipment. The launch of the new PC 400 continues this proud development programme which has seen the company continuously invest in R&D and product development. Weighing in at only 550kgs, the PC 400 can be mounted on a 6t excavator for cost effective use and true mobility. It is designed to remove sections of concrete at approximately 250mm per crop. Equipped with four powerful rams and blades, it has been purpose designed to penetrate past the rebar and into the centre of the pile to leave a minimum of trimming.
“Although we are very proud of the PC 400, we cannot claim that it is all our own work,” explains NPC company director Lee Aston. “We’ve worked closely with some of the biggest civil engineering companies in the world to add features that makes the PC 400 a safer, more efficient and more productive solution. I also need to thank our technicians in the field as they’ve channelled feedback directly based on their real-world site experiences. It is this unique partnership that has enabled us to deliver high quality manufactured solutions with the features that are really required when cropping in the field.”
A proven solution
Despite its recent introduction, the PC 400 has already proven its worth. As its name suggests, the PC 400 is used for ‘larger sized’ precast piles (PCC) with four or more reinforcement bars and has been developed for flexible and efficient use. Weighing in at only 550kg, the PC 400 is designed to remove sections of concrete at approximately 250mm per crop, with the four powerful rams and blades penetrating past the rebar and into the centre of the pile to leave a minimum of trimming.
One of the first projects where the PC 400 has been used was by contractors Careys on a project for Holcim. “The PC 400 proved itself on this project. Careys reported high levels of productivity, and ease of use,” said Lee who added: “Being able to be used by a 6t excavator meant that cropping could be undertaken with existing equipment onsite. The cropping was undertaken in a timely and efficient manner, with the concrete and rebar being able to be recycled and reused in line with Holcim UK’s inspiring environmental goals.”
Added value
“The PC 400 further benefits from a new range of specifically in house manufactured chisels, designed with the purpose to not only penetrate the pile, but to leave a perfect finish with little or no tidying up. The new chisels effectively break up the concrete into pieces, and furthermore, the cropped unit can then easily be lifted off the pile enabling the removal and recycling of the cut away concrete in a safe manner,” added Lee.
The new PC 400 is now available for hire or purchase throughout the UK and will be introduced globally in the coming months. The NPC PC 400 pile cropper is just the latest development from the pile cropping company that has fast become the UKs, and increasingly Europe, North America and Australia’s leading supplier of pile cropping solutions.