Erith Contractors Limited is investing in a fleet of new Cat® excavators as it aims to lower its carbon emissions by improving fuel efficiency.

The national demolition expert has already taken delivery of six new excavators from Finning since March 2022, the world’s largest Cat dealer, with more expected to be delivered during 2024.

All the machines already on site have been optimised with the support of Finning engineers to allow fast and efficient attachment use – including pre-programming the weight of equipment – and have been fitted with guards to help protect against the tough working environment.

To date three Cat 352 50 tonne excavators, one Cat 336 35 tonne excavator and two Cat 325 excavators have been delivered to Erith, with investment in a further eight machines in the pipeline for this year. The machines are backed by a service plan to minimise any downtime.

Due to the nature of demolition work, Erith upgrades its fleet frequently and works closely with Finning to ensure its Cat machines are running as economically and efficiently as possible. Recently representatives from the firm were invited to the Caterpillar demolition tools manufacturing facility in Den Bosch, Holland.

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Shaun Bean, Plant Director at Erith, said: "We conducted our own site test where we benchmarked one of the new Cat machines against one of our other machines on the same task. Based on the fuel savings made by the Cat machine, together with the high resale value, the investment will be recouped within a relatively short space of time.

"Prior to these new excavators, we were running two Cat dozers and the support we’ve had with those from the team at Finning meant I was confident in investing further with them. I haven’t been disappointed yet with the service we’ve had, and the assistance they have provided in setting up our machines has been second to none."

The new Cat machines have been fitted with bespoke guards, including belly guards, ram guards, cab guards, lighting and camera guards, as well as a removable screen guard to make cleaning easier.

Ryan Trafford, Territory Account Manager at Finning UK & Ireland, said: "Erith are the third biggest demolition company in the world, so we’re delighted to be supporting them in the replacement of their demolition fleet.

"Each of the excavators has been fitted with a quick coupler on the front for fast and simple tool attachment, and our team has supported Erith in measuring and weighing these tools and inputting the data into their machine controls. This makes it as simple as possible for operators to switch between tools while working, and to access all the safety features, allowing them to use the machine to its optimum."