PHPD discovers how Bobcat’s new 13m telehandler is assisting a Scottish building firm on a steeply sloped new residential development.
Building on a sloping site comes with a variety of challenges, not least moving materials around from where they are delivered to where they are needed.
It is a challenge that builder Fraser Joinery & Builders had to solve on a new development near Edinburgh. The firm turned to Bobcat and hire company MTS Group, selecting the company’s T35130S 13metre telehandler – which Bobcat believes is the first example of its use in the UK.
Against the backdrop of the stunning views the new development offers across the Firth of Forth to Kirkcaldy, the new Bobcat 13m telehandler has proved to be a key piece of equipment for Fraser Joinery & Builders in dealing with the rough terrain and the steep slopes on the site.
Fraser Yule, Managing Director of Fraser Joinery & Builders, said: “We are delighted with the performance of the new Bobcat telehandler. We have been using it to carry pallets and materials from the bottom of the steep hill up to the construction site where the new build is taking place, which would have been a much more difficult task using a smaller or less able machine.”
Later in the project, the company plans to use the Bobcat telehandler to help install some of the larger joists and supporting beams for the roof of the house.
The new T35130S telehandler has been hired from the MTS Group depot at Cumbernauld in Scotland. It is part of the substantial investment MTS Group has made in new Bobcat equipment to meet increasing hire requirements.
Heavy lift
The new Bobcat T35130S 13 m telehandler was launched in 2015 and, alongside the new T35140S 14 m model, has been designed specifically to meet the needs of the construction and rental industries, with both telehandlers offering a 3.5 tonne maximum lift capacity. 
The introduction of the new 13 and 14 m models follows on from the launch of the new generation 10, 12, 14 and 18 m lift height telescopic handlers over the last two years.
Features include easy-to-use compact stabilisers to ensure that the full capabilities of the new telescopic handlers can be utilised in the most confined working areas and close to walls.
Window on the world
Other features include the new Panoramic Cab which has a large parabolic windscreen providing panoramic visibility especially when handling loads at height. In the cab, there is a new dashboard with digital display and intuitive controls including a joystick with integrated forward/reverse (FNR) control for improved productivity and safety.
The working envelope for the T35130S telehandler has a maximum lift height of 12.55 m and a maximum forward reach of 8.6 m. The Bobcat T35140S telehandler has a maximum lift height of 13.6 m and a maximum forward reach of 9.8 m.
