30,000 operating hours, not out

AN early-model CLAAS telehandler has chalked up an impressive 30,000 operating hours on its original engine on an agricultural cooperative in Germany.

The RANGER 928 – a predecessor to the highly successful SCORPION series – was delivered to Langeln eG in 2000. The company operates a mixed farming enterprise, including cropping and beef production, on its 1100 hectare property in the Harz mountains west of Magdeburg.

The 105 hp telehandler has since been used for a wide variety of purposes, including handling grain, silage and straw, loading manure and construction work - clocking up 10,000 engine hours in its first four years alone. Langeln eG has since purchased another 10 CLAAS telehandlers, with its most recent purchase being a top-of-the-line SCORPION 9055, which is capable of lifting 5.5 tonnes to a maximum lifting height of 6.6 metres. The RANGER is still used for smaller ‘age-appropriate’ tasks.

CLAAS SCORPION Product Manager, Shane Barratt, says telehandlers are becoming increasingly popular on Australian farms.“Telehandlers are rapidly replacing traditional front-end loader tractors for handling and transport work, particularly in confined spaces,” he says. “Their compact design, manoeuvrability and high performance offer a far more efficient solution.”

Production of the CLAAS RANGER began in Grantham, England, in 1994.It was superseded by the TARGO and then the German-manufactured SCORPION series in 2006. The latter was developed in partnership with Kramer-Werke GmbH, a leading manufacturer of high performance telehandlers for the construction sector.