Fieldchief Log Forks have a reputation for quality and durability, and another Cat wheel loader sold recently in the central North Island features the rugged product.
Mark Lealand has just added a new Cat 950H wheel loader to his ground based operation in the Kaingaroa Forest. The Fieldchief log forks are custom designed by Gough Engineering and superbly compliment the 950H in its primary duties of loading the off-highway double and (to be confirmed)

 Mark Lealand is particularly impressed with the tight turning circle the Cat 950H can perform, as well as the single joystick controls in the operator station. He is also very pleased with the grab size of the Fieldchief forks.

This will be the first of this model fork to be sold in the Rotorua area, but as it’s based on our 966 design dating back to 1993, it’s a well proven design. This style of 950H Forks was first built in 2003 and includes sales in Australia.  Features include fully enclosed hydraulic rams and hoses, lined bored pivot and ram mounts, main pivot and rod eyes fitted with bearings and a screw headed ram with both ports at the base of the ram.

The tip-to-tip closed area is 1.6 m2  and we have used the 5” x 2.5” rams and pins that we specify on our 966G Forks to help with servicing.

Most cement silos are vertical structures that rely on gravity to discharge - the most common design being a cylindrical upper section with a lower cone. 

These silos are top heavy, requiring substantial support legs and foundations, which generally means that they are considered as permanent installations.

The alternative is the horizontal silo that uses a screw conveyor to discharge. The first horizontal silo built by Gough Engineering was used to provide cement storage for the Otira Viaduct project in 1997.

The potential was recognised and the first 35 tonne Gough Engineering silo was designed and built. The range has now been extended to 40, 55 and 70 tonne capacity. About this time Gough Engineering built its first Zengo batch plant, which being portable, also required a suitable silo to match. The current layout was selected because of its design flexibility.

To empty a horizontal silo a screw conveyor is fitted to the floor of the silo. With the aid of air pads and vibrators the silo can be fully discharged. To ensure safe loading using compressed air, vertical and horizontal silos are fitted with a filter, safety valve and a fill height gauge. Gough Engineering uses a heavy welded construction with an internal frame that limits movement of the structure.

Another consideration was to limit the size of flat vertical surfaces with the upper section being curved and the lower section angled, both reducing the wind load. The low profile of these silos means that they are less likely to result in resource consent issues.

With all these advantages it is not surprising that New Zealand sales for horizontal silos have grown. A recent sale in Australia is expected to be the first of many.

Horizontal silos can be supplied with a variety of discharge screw lengths, 6 metres being the most common. The screws are fitted with swivel joints allowing them to be positioned in a wide range of angles - a bonus when the silo may end up being used on a number of sites or applications. This is particularly important when the silo is required for an existing plant and the position of the silo is limited.

Modern building construction relies on concrete; hence the need to store cement. With the increase in regional projects, concrete batch plant and storage must be mobile. New concrete formulas, often calling for various bulk powder or fines additives, are frequently purchased without consideration of their respective silo storage requirements. A Gough Engineering portable silo can easily solve the storage problem.

Gough Engineering has specialised in concrete batch plants that are easily relocated - and with the plants comes the need for bulk cement storage.

Goughs Engineering has had a long association with Meadow Mushrooms Norwood site, having supplied quick couplers and attachments for Caterpillar 930 loaders and later for a  960F  loader.

When   the 960F  was replaced with a 950G it was decided  to standardise  attachment mounts and fit a  Goughs Engineering Fieldchief  950G Coupler.  A  Fieldchief Coupler was also designed to suit a second loader a Hitachi LX160 which allows both machines to used the same set of  Work Tools and a Bucket.  

The principle activity  that the loaders are involved in is  the processing of dry large square bales of  wheat straw to  compost.  The compost process  starts by transmitting  microbes and nitrogen  in a solution called "goody water" into the bale, at the end of the process the Wheel Loaders are used to load out the compost .

To improve the system Meadow Mushrooms has adopted a system where the  bale is dunked  for about 40 seconds in "goody water" or until the bale is saturated, previously using a injection system parts of the bale could remain dry and take 7 days before the bale had reached the desired temperature of 50 degs C .    Using the dunking system the time has been reduced to 3 days.  To get the system to work a  Bale Grab attachment was built by Goughs Engineering, the key factor being the position of the mounting hooks relative to the Quick Coupler. 

The system requires the bale to rotate 90 degrees in the forward position with the loaders lift arm above the container.  After some discussion with Meadow Mushrooms on the specifications and operational requirements, Goughs Engineering  was able to provide a computer-generated 3D Model of the Bale Grab and how it would work with a modified container. The computer model established that the system would provide enough lift height  using the existing loaders and  the modified 20ft container. The design of the Bale grab is determined by the dimension of the bale and the application so little chance here to be innovative. As this product is likely to be a one off, one factor to consider is to improve its serviceability. To do this  we used existing pins from our  938G Log Forks and  Rams from our 320 Excavator tilt buckets.  Replaceable bearings, seals and grease nipples should ensure that the moving parts have a longest possible life.

The Bale grab has been designed to fully support the bale, minimizing the chance that the  bale would break open during the operation.   The design features a box section structure with a hydraulic top clamp. The bale is carried on a set of spike tynes and  retained by a set of  curved tynes attached to the top clamp.   Meadow Mushrooms  are not only pleased that the system improves the time it takes to pre-treat the bales, but also the reduction in aerosols  in the air  that could result in unpleasant odours.