WHEN harvesting and forwarding in steep terrain, a traction aid winch is a useful complement to ensure a productive working day with low impact on the forest.
The Komatsu Traction Aid Winch is a "high-quality system" based on more than twenty years’ experience of winch use in the alpine regions of Europe.
The system – available as an option on the Komatsu 875 and the Komatsu 931XC – has now been boosted with anchor point monitoring to meet the requirements of the new ISO standard for traction aid winches.
Easy to use
According to a press release from Komatsu, the winch has a "well-considered design" that helps to simplify your working day, and, thanks to its compact dimensions, it impacts neither manoeuvrability nor visibility.
The harvester winch is easily removed during servicing or when driving on flat terrain. It also has a hydraulic tilt that makes it easy to tilt the winch downwards when opening the hood or adjusting the rope angle.
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The forwarder winch is designed to be well integrated with the rear frame. The Komatsu 875 has an integrated crane tilt option, which helps to compensate for any lean of the machine up to 22 degrees and thereby better maintains the crane’s slewing torque in steep terrain.
The winch is controlled with the aid of a remote control, and to optimise winch use it also offers several operating modes.
The capstan principle
The system is based on the well-proven capstan principle, which means that the winch has a separate drum for rope storage while the tractive force is provided by the capstan unit.
This solution provides even traction regardless of how much rope is left on the drum. It also causes less wear on the rope, resulting in a longer service life.
What’s more, the winch has a rope feeder unit that ensures that the rope is always tensioned inside the winch.
Anchor point monitoring
One new feature is that the system has been complemented with anchor point monitoring, which meets the requirements of the new ISO standard for traction aid winches. This system provides the operator with a warning if the anchor tree moves, so that the machine can be secured.
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