Ukrainian engineers have created a unique forklift that can move sideways (photo)
In the last days of May, the TDS plant in Brovary, Kyiv region, demonstrated a telescopic loader of its own production.
The event is significant not only for the TDS Group of Companies but also for the entire domestic production, as this segment of special equipment is largely ignored by our industry. The war has shown a great need for machines of this group, because when unloading cargo imported to Ukraine on wooden pallets, a telescopic forklift tractor has certain advantages over a conventional mast forklift.
According to the official report of the TDC Group, the manufactured TDC TH35.7 “telescope” with its own weight of 7 tons is capable of lifting loads weighing 3500 kg to a maximum height of 7 meters. Such working capabilities are encoded in the digital index of the model – 35.7.
This is a classic medium-sized loader/unloader. Its 3.5-ton capacity is the most common around the world. So the choice of the engineers of the TDS plant is justified. The machine is universal for logistics terminals, warehouse facilities, construction and industry.
If necessary, the working tools can be changed. The classic forklift gripper for palletized goods and BigBag bales can be replaced with a loading bucket. It can be used to load crushed stone, sand, coal, and other loose or lumpy or granular material, even in tall railroad cars.
In the side engine niche, the Brovary plant installed a 3.3-liter Kubota V3307-DI-T-E3B diesel engine, which has been proven in similar equipment. It is not a super-powerful engine – it is compact, economical, lightweight. It weighs some 268 kg, but it has a power output of 55.4 kW/75.3 hp for a hydraulic station, even with a reserve. It can be used to load crushed stone, sand, coal, and other loose or lumpy or granular material, even in tall railroad cars.
Hydrostatic steering allows the operator to choose any steering mode – straight, equal, opposite placement of the front wheels relative to the rear. Depending on the choice, the loader can even move in a diagonal direction, in the so-called crab mode. The operator can also perform several operations under load at the same time – extend and raise the boom while moving forward or backward.
By the way, the maximum horizontal reach of the boom here is also impressive – 3.9 meters. This allows you to pick up pallets from even the second or third row. The mast loader does not have this feature, it takes only from the first row, the truck needs to be unloaded from both sides.
And although the official press release emphasizes the logistics, industrial and construction applications, we can confidently say that such a machine will also be useful in agriculture and the municipal sector. There is work for such an all-rounder at any time of the year.
