One major effect of the Krupp purchase on Atlas Copco's hydraulic-breaker line, besides extending it over 5,000 pounds, is that there's now a 12,000-pound-class hammer with Krupp technology available in North America. When Allied marketed Krupp here, the line had a gap between 10,000- and 15,000-pound machines. Atlas Copco bought Krupp in 2002, though, putting an end to the Krupp/Allied marketing agreement, and at the first of this year began marketing big Atlas Copco hammers using the Krupp technology.
The 12,800-pound HB 5800 has been introduced with features new to the line, such as an overflow protection valve. The valve shuts the hammer down automatically if it receives too much hydraulic flow. The hammer accepts flows up to 103 gallons per minute at 2,610 psi, and delivers up to 460 blows per minute.
The HB 5800 comes standard with Auto-Control, a monitoring system that allows the hammer to adapt frequency and power output to match operating conditions. It begins by firing the first stroke at half power to create a pilot notch. Then the system adjusts power output to match the material density, which is meant to reduce shock on the hammer.
The StartSelect system manages hammer energy to reduce blank firing. In AutoStop mode, the hammer will not fire until the operator applies down pressure on the tool. In AutoStart mode, the hammer can begin operating as soon as the tool contacts the material, regardless of down pressure, but power is limited to 50 percent until the tool is fully seated in the hammer. These systems are selected using a valve on the hammer, and there is a manual mode that overrides them.
An energy-recovery system designed to prevent damage from piston recoil when breaking extremely hard material is standard equipment on the HB 5800. A shuttle valve detects piston rebound and a high-pressure accumulator stores recoil energy. Stored energy is employed to make succeeding strokes faster and harder.
The HB 5800 comes with the ContiLube II automatic lubrication system as standard equipment. A compact, self-priming pump on the hammer injects grease from a cartridge into the tool bushing. The DustProtector II, a reusable sleeve around the working tool at the base of the hammer, is an option designed to keep dust out of the hammer's inner mechanism in severe applications.
Representatives from Atlas Copco say the company is working to establish a name for itself among buyers of large hydraulic hammers. One strategy is reduced prices to dealers. Even though suggested retail prices haven't changed, they say Krupp technology is retailing in North America at lower prices than ever. If that's true, Atlas Copco full-featured heavy hammers should be breaking into the very competitive high end of the market.
