Posted on May 1, 2018
By Dag Pike, MJ
What is claimed to be the smallest amphibious dredger in the World has been launched by a Dutch company, Waterking.
This compact dredger is designed to facilitate the clearance and deepening of small waterways and lakes and it has been made compact enough to allow it to be road transportable thus widening the use of the dredger.
The WK 20 NG-A has an overall length of just 4 metres and the width of the chassis is adjustable between 1.5 and 2.5 metres which is the main feature that allows the unit to be transported by road. The adjustable width also facilitates the use of the dredger on narrow waterways and drainage channels. The width adjustment is done hydraulically.
The pontoon hull is constructed from tough Corten steel with the bottom plate of the hull made from Hardox to reduce wear when used on rough terrain. Mounted on each side of this hull are the tracks that provide the motive power on land and also allow the dredger to make progress when afloat. The pontoon height is 1.2 metres and the dredger normally operates with a draft of 1 to 1.1 metres.
The pontoon base of the dredger and its tracks are a self contained unit and it is possible to equip the top platform with a canopy upper structure or with a cabin. The dredging unit that is fitted to the top of the pontoon would be a Hitachi ZX 19-5A excavator as standard but the dredger can be adapted to accommodate other makes of excavator. The Hitachi unit is in the 2 ton class and the power rating is 10.6 kW and it can be fitted with a 94 litre tilt bucket for dredging work.
With this new compact dredging unit the builder hopes to open up new markets with the unit capable of operating in challenging areas where larger machinery cannot operate due to difficult access. In addition to small waterways the unit can operate on moats and ponds and it could also find application on construction sites. Its versatility is widened by being able to operate both from the land and when afloat.
Waterking, the makers of this new dredger offers a wide range of tracked and amphibious dredging units.
Source: MJ
