5 Experts Give Advice on Electric Construction Equipment
As the construction industry steadily shifts towards greener and more sustainable practices, the allure of electric-powered construction equipment becomes increasingly hard to ignore. Embracing this technology not only enhances environmental stewardship but also aligns with the evolving regulatory landscape and customer expectations for sustainable practices. Quickly, here are five pieces of advice to get you started on your journey toward electric.
Look closely at the energy flow through the jobsite. Where and how will you charge an electric vehicle? We often see people overestimate the amount of energy needed. Just because the workers are at the jobsite for 10 hours doesn’t mean that the machine is necessarily operating the entire time. — Brady Lewis, product manager, Case CE
Lithium is popular because it’s incredibly reactive and can store a lot of energy. Currently, our li-ion batteries are NMC (nickel, manganese, cobalt) because that chemistry has the most technological maturity, is the easiest to manufacture, has high energy density, provides a long battery life cycle and can be recycled. — Darren Ashton, product manager, Volvo CE
One often-overlooked benefit of electric is the significantly quieter operation. This reduced noise level facilitates better communication among workers, enhancing efficiency and accuracy, since there’s no need to constantly turn machines on and off. Quieter operation is also less disruptive to the surrounding community. — Marcus Suess, COO, Firstgreen Industries
When evaluating any electric equipment, carefully review the battery specifications, lifting capacity and charging time. One unique consideration is planning for electrical service capacity at the contractor’s main facility. Electric equipment can represent a significant electrical load when charging multiple units. — Sam Dando, senior product marketing manager, Toro
Many government entities offer EV grants, rebates and other programs that incentivize contractors to pursue electric equipment. We anticipate many of the government construction contracts to require the use of EV machinery in order to bid on projects. As you may have heard in the news, there is also a strong push for lithium battery recycling. With that, the price of the batteries may come down. — Geoff Robeson, sales manager, MTE Equipment Solutions
Keith Gribbins is the publisher of Compact Equipment.