The world's biggest tractor – the Tractomas - is now in operation at an Australian coal mine
For use in a coal mine in Australia, the French heavy-load and special vehicle manufacturer, Nicolas, has produced a new type of world's biggest tractor, the Tractomas.
The 1,000hp vehicle has twice the pulling strength than previous tractors on the market and has been purchased by the LCR company (http://www.lcrgroup.com.au) for moving convoys of lignite side tipper trailers at its mining facilities in the Australian state of Queensland.
The truck dimensions are impressive - more than 10 metres long, 3.5 metres wide and 4.6 metres high. Except for the driver's cab that comes from truck mass production, everything else is specially constructed.
The new Tractomas was delivered to the Australian company LCR that undertakes large-scale projects such as transportation and lifting technology especially in the mining industry. Here, the super truck pulls long convoys of oversized side tipper trailers with an overall towing weight of 535 tons.
Transport distances range between 10 and 40 kilometres and gradients of up to 5 per cent have to be mastered. The Tractomas scores here with 10 km/h when fully loaded, in this case with side tipper trailers that can each carry up to 87 tons of coal.
On straight routes without any gradients, a speed of 50 km/h (loaded) and up to 65 km/h (unloaded) can be achieved. This is made possible through the 1,000 hp engine with 27-litre capacity.
No loss of speed
However, this can be increased still further. In connection with the Nicolas PowerBooster auxiliary drive system, more performance can be achieved. The PowerBooster feature in the Tractomas prevents loss of speed when negotiating inclines.
As soon as the power output of the tractor on gradients is found to be inadequate, the PowerBooster cuts in automatically and provides sufficient driving force. An additional advantage is the improved cooling performance through the PowerBooster. Thus, transports can be carried out without any problems even under extreme climatic conditions, for example at 50°C in the desert.
These features make the Nicolas Tractomas the fastest and strongest heavy-load tractor currently available on the market and, as a result, ensure more economic efficiency in logistical operations in the mines. In July, the first vehicle was officially handed over to the LCR company in Australia. Orders for additional vehicles have been placed with Nicolas.
Video: For use in a coal mine in Australia, the French heavy-load and special vehicle manufacturer, NicolasI, has produced a new type of world's biggest tractor, the Tractomas. The 1,000 hp vehicle has twice the pulling strength than previous tractors on the market and has been purchased by the LCR company for moving convoys of lignite side tipper trailers at its mining facilities in the Australian state of Queensland
