County Down-based P Smyth Digger Hire has bought a new JCB 3CX Pro and put it straight to work planting poles for electricity cables on behalf of Northern Ireland Electricity Networks (NIE Networks) outside the village of Moira.
Supplied by dealer Dennison JCB, the new 3CX Pro model features DualDrive – JCB’s latest backhoe innovation that allows the operator to drive and reposition the machine while facing the excavator end.
It is proving highly beneficial for pole planting operations, says Ricky Smyth, owner-operator of P Smyth Digger Hire.
He says: “We do a lot of work with NIE Networks and the JCB DualDrive feature is perfect for our work. We are able to move forwards and backwards from pole to pole without having to twist and turn. This means we’re not wasting time and we’re not blocking the roads as just the single lane closure is required, which minimises disruption to the public.
“We’re very impressed with it. It’s fast on the road which is fantastic too. We do lots of miles – some days nearly a 100-mile round trip – so it makes a huge difference. In this line of work we can’t afford downtime so the service and support we get from our dealer Dennison JCB is excellent.”
Other developments on the new 3CX PRO model include a single loader lever to reduce operator effort, revised direction control for quicker and easier use, a return-to-grade function, an upgraded quickhitch with wider fork carriage, and an electro-hydraulic de-bog system offering simultaneous control of excavator and loader controls.
