Coles Earthmoving invest in new E series Cats

by Nick Drew | Tue 16 Apr 2013

Coles Earthmoving invest in new E series Cats

This year Devon based Coles Earthmoving are celebrating an impressive 50 years in business. They have recently purchased two new Caterpillar E Series excavators, which are emblazoned with special 50^th anniversary signage on the rear end of the machines.

I made a short trip from my home to the company’s depot in Langtree, Torrington, Devon, to take a look at the latest machine, which is a Caterpillar 312E model. Coles have always been big supporters of the Caterpillar brand over the past 50 years, during this time they have run many of the American brands excavators in their fleet. Indeed they were one of the first customers in the UK to purchase the famous 215 model. Since then they have run a massive variety of Cat excavators, from the 200 and 300 series. Some of these 300 series machines are now being replaced by the latest models and so far this year they have taken delivery of a 320E and this 312E, which has replaced an outgoing 312C machine. 005

The new machine has been working in the surrounding fields adjacent to Coles Earthmovings depot, and one of the son’s, Matt Coles, put the machine through its paces for me to snap some shots of the new addition. 007

The 312E weighs in at 13.6 tonne, it is powered by a 95hp (70kw) Cat C4.4 ACERT electronically controlled diesel engine, as opposed to the C4.2 engine that was fitted to the D Series machines. The new engine uses some of the latest technology, including the Cat Electronic Control Module (ECM) and the Cat Clean Emission Module (CEM) to meet the EU stage IIIB emissions standards. These engines, Clean Emission Modules, incorporate a Diesel Oxidation Catalyst (DOC) and a Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) which perform throughout the working cycle of the machine, cutting down costs for the machine owners without causing disruption or downtime. 013

There was a fair bit of banter about the machine and the way it looks, as has become customary since the launch of the E series models, but as the operator of the other E Series 320E machine in the fleet, Steve Coles said, “you have to look beyond the looks, they are great machines and my only complaint is the hardness of the seat”. 006

Towards the end of this week, I will be visiting the site in Hooe Lake, in Plymouth, where the 320E is currently working, so lookout for a report from that job in the future.

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