The telescopic handler has a 3 T lift capacity and a 10.5 m boom for extra reach. PHOTO: JCB

Lining Victoria, a specialist installer of geo-synthetic linings, has bought a JCB Loadall telescopic handler to improve its handling system for heavy rolls.

According to manager Adam Ward, the rolls of plastic lining used for liquid containment can weigh up to 1.5 T.

They are used in the construction of landfill cells and caps, irrigation dams and channels, tailings dams, sewage ponds, farm dams, fuel containment bunds, wetland areas and contaminated soil sites.

The telescopic handler has a 3 T lift capacity and a 10.5 m boom for extra reach. "It is the first JCB telehandler we have bought and it is about 20% more powerful than the telescopic handlers we have hired in the past," says Ward. "It has proved to be an exceptionally versatile machine."

The company uses the unit with front stabilisers for added safety when working on angled and sloped areas such as the sides of dams and channels.

"We can stabilise the machine at the top of the slope with the roll of lining and then pull the lining down by hand. It is a much safer way to handle the plastic rolls," says Ward.

He adds that the ability of the JCB machine to manoeuvre sideways, or "crab-walk'', makes it ideal for accurately aligning adjoining strips of plastic.

"It allows us to line up our rolls more precisely, which makes the plastic rolling faster and more efficient, with less wastage. We used to use loaders for this job, but it was very easy to go off course. With the JCB, it has become a very precise operation that is much quicker."

He says the service and back-up from JCB dealer JCB Construction Equipment Australia has been excellent and the company plans to buy another telehandler in the near future to boost productivity further.