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First Bobcat L85 compact wheel loader in Italy

The first new Bobcat L85 compact wheel loader (CWL) in Italy has been sold to Fiumeter, a supplier of gravel, sand and crushed stone for construction sites, based in Cles in the Trentino region of the country. The L85 was supplied by Fides Srl, the Bobcat Authorised Dealer for Trentino Alto Adige. The new L85 will be carrying out a variety of tasks at the Fiumeter plant in Denno, processing and recycling demolition rubble for reselling. Construction and road contractors deliver the rubble from their sites to the Denno plant and buy it back from Fiumeter once it has been sorted and processed.

At the plant, the new L85 meets multiple needs, utilising its high-performance hydraulic system, a powerful Bobcat engine and approved attachments that turn the machine into a multi-task machine. The loader also comes standard with Bobcat's Quick-Tach attachment system, which allows the operator to quickly mount and remove attachments. Equipped with a 190cm bucket, the L85 works at Denno, moving around the plant and handling inert materials (sand, aggregates and gravel). The L85 takes the materials from their respective heaps and loads them on to trucks for transport to customers. With the sweeper attachment mounted, the L85 is used to clean and maintain the access and internal roads at the plant, removing both small and large surface debris.

For work in the snow season, which is a constant in Trentino from October to May, Fiumeter has purchased a snow blade attachment, which transforms the L85 loader into a powerful snow plough thanks to the fact that it can be equipped with a high flow option, capable of providing a hydraulic flow of 100L/min. Finally, when equipped with pallet forks, the L85 can also handle bulky loads such as the bins for rubble and diesel tanks.

To take on all these tasks, the L85 incorporates Advanced Attachment Control. This system enables the operator to switch to an alternative machine control pattern at the touch of a button. This offers independent control of the engine speed (and maximum auxiliary flow) and the machine travel speed. Thanks to the 7-pin connector, the operator can control even the most complicated attachments intuitively and effectively.

In addition to the all-glass doors, the L85's visibility is further optimised by the lowered windscreen angles, short and vertical rear bonnet design, the rear camera view and the reduced turning radius. Designed around the operator, the cab on the L85 provides high comfort and easy operation, ensuring the operator can work for as long they want. Seat and hand controls can be easily adjusted to fit the operator’s needs. The joystick’s position is adjustable horizontally and integrated in the operator’s suspension seat to ensure the best operation experience and comfort. The steering column is also adjustable in two directions – horizontal and vertical – a feature unique in the CWL industry.

Soft switches to control the main functions of the L85 are located on the right-hand console. The direction-changing switch [Forward-Neutral-Reverse] is located on the front side of the joystick and is index-finger operated. Controls for differential lock, turtle/rabbit mode, boom float and auxiliary flow control are all at the operator’s fingertips on the top of the joystick. The jog shuttle is used to reach, navigate and confirm the set-up of the L85 on the 5-inch LED display, and also to switch quickly to the view provided by the rear-view camera. A 12V charger and several USB ports are also available.

The engine is generally started by the standard key, but for quick engine start and stop during the day, the operator can also use soft-touch buttons located on the right-hand console. The machine is also equipped with Automatic Parking Brake and Slope Assist features, ensuring the parking brake on the L85 is automatically engaged and disengaged as required. These automotive-style features are unique in the industry for this type of machine.

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