January 2014, Vol. 241 No. 1

Features

CASE Torques Up Dozer Design With New M Series

CASE Construction Equipment rolled out its new M Series dozers at the company’s proving grounds in Tomahawk, WI with the largest in its lineup – the 24-ton 2050M – tailor-made for an oil and gas industry in need of brute push-power and versatility.

“We have been primarily known for our light equipment. Today, hopefully, we’ll change that,” said CASE Director of Marketing Athena Campos, during an Oct. 17 presentation to the media.

The 2050M, one of five M Series dozers unveiled, which range from 92 to 214 hp, offers 14% more power than its predecessor the 1850K, is a box-style C-frame designed to withstand extreme blade forces and nearly 81,000 pounds of drawbar pull (horizontal force available to pull a load).

The M Series dozers also feature a load management system that automatically reduces track speed in order to boost torque when heavy loads are on the blade or reduce it for lesser tasks.

In addition, the blade and steering sensitivity levels can be set to “smooth,” “moderate” or “aggressive.” This allows the operator to adjust setting to personal preference and ground conditions. Instead of partnering with one company on blade control, CASE will equip M Series dozers in a way that allows customers to pick from among Leica, Topcon or Trimble technology.

CASE has also increased operator visibility, while reducing both noise and dust penetration with an improved sealed, pressurized cab design.

“With oil and gas operators, these guys are running this size dozer for 10 or 12 hours a day, so we paid really close attention to cab vibration and improved it over the prior series,” said Eric Nettleton, CASE Global Products manager. “With the overall noise improvements (now 75 decibels), it’s a much more comfortable ride.”

In order to ensure its customers got what they wanted in the new line, CASE took pains to have equipment operators, including those from the oil and gas industry, involved in the development of the M Series while it was still in the conceptual stages.

Customers, even dealer service technicians, were brought to CASE’s Blueridge, IL facility to observe the early design through 3D virtual reality technology and give feedback before an actual steel prototype was built.

“We recognized that to get these machines into the hands of customers, we have to have the best dozers,” said Nettleton. “When we look at the horsepower rating and the drawbar performance top to bottom, it goes a long way toward getting the machines on job sites.”

Representing the oil and gas industry at various stages of the process were customers from South Texas, and the natural gas regions of Oklahoma, southwest Missouri and Arkansas. In all, CASE said, 78 customers logged more than 12,500 machine-hours on 45 development/customer machines during the process, some of which was done on actual job sites.

“We made sure we had diverse operators and many different applications in oil and gas,” he said. “You’re creating pads, building roads in various parts of the country. Different operators want different things, and it’s such a large segment of the 2050M market.”

CASE is the first heavy equipment manufacturer to build proven selective catalytic reduction (SCR) engine technology into a dozer to meet Tier 4 interim regulation standards.

“We felt SCR was the best solution,” said John Bauer, CASE business marketing manager. “There is no downtime for regeneration, and it is better from a horsepower standpoint.”

The engines on models 850M through 2050M are built by Fiat Powertrain Technologies and offer maintenance advantages (no regeneration or diesel particulate filter to maintain) and fuel savings. This technology allows the engine to run at peak performance under variable loads without sacrificing power or the drawbar pull required for the brute force needed to move earth.

In addition to durability, a big concern among customers, according to Bauer, was cab design, both in terms of comfort and the operator’s line of sight.

“We actually moved the cab forward compared to our previous models to have better visibility down on the corner of the blades,” he said. “We increased visibility by increasing the amount of glass in the doors, too.”

The M Series dozers were designed to withstand the harshest of environments. This includes the box-style C-frame built for heavy earthmoving and a new cooling system that is tested under maintained heavy load conditions and designed to enhance engine and hydraulic temperatures. Additional components, including cylinders, the electrical system and the rippers have been engineered to perform in the toughest conditions.

All daily service checks – including hydraulic components, filters and electrical components – are accessible from the ground and do not require hand tools for access.

M Series dozers come with CASE ProCare heavy machine coverage, which includes a three-year, 3,000-hour full-machine factory warranty and a three-year, 3,000-hour planned maintenance contract.

The M Series also offers CASE SiteWatch telematics system, which is a remote monitoring and data reporting solution that tracks machine maintenance, condition and use, so customers can optimize performance.

Using a control module that integrates with the machine, SiteWatch sends real-time data to a user through a web portal. An intuitive interface allows customers and dealers to review and analyze up to 18 months’ worth of information.

SiteWatch can also help conserve fuel and battery life through a variety of power-management settings, such as “hibernate,” “sleep” and “standby” modes. It can protect a company’s fleet in several ways, including curfew, geo-fencing and motion detection, even if the machines are turned off. When a dozer does leave the site, SiteWatch assists in tracking and recovery.

“Customers can more effectively budget their operating expenses over the next three years because warranty items and all scheduled maintenance costs are covered,” said Brad Stemper, CASE solutions marketing manager.