Uplifting Electric Telehandler

As part of JCB’s “Road to Zero” programme, the Staffordshire based manufacturer has added an all-new electric telehandler to its ever-expanding range of electric machines, which includes a mini digger, 1 tonne site dumper and the Teletruck forklift.

The 525-60E is said to have the same power levels as it’s diesel equivalent. The machine offers a maximum lift capacity of 2.5 tonnes, and can hoist 2 tonnes to its maximum full reach limit of 6 metres.

Under the bonnet, where we would have normally expected to find the 75hp Kohler diesel engine, in this version, we discover a 96v lithium-ion battery pack, which the manufacturer claims should be good for around 10 years, which equates for around 5,000 charges.

The primary means of charging is via external power sources such as JCB’s 18kW Universal Charger that can fill the cells in less than two hours, or get them from 25% to 80% in an hour. There’s also an on-board regenerative system that provides very light battery top-ups by harvesting energy when the Loadall brakes.

We expect to see more machines joining JCB’s electric revolution in due course, with loading shovels clearly a potential next step.

We recently got the chance to take a look around the 525-60E at JCB’s demonstration quarry and to spend some time behind the wheel. In the following video my friend, industry colleague and one of the founding members of the Construction Collective, Peter Haddock, talks to JCB’s Product Director Richard Brooks about the new machine who gives us an interesting insight into this product.