Trencher (machine)
Encyclopedia
A trencher is a piece of construction equipment
used to dig trench
es, typically for laying pipe
s or cable
s, or for drainage
. Trenchers may range in size from walk-behind models, to attachments for a skid loader
or tractor
, to very heavy tracked heavy equipment.
Thanks to the wheel it is possible to work in hard or soft soils, either homogeneous (compact rocks, silts, sands) or heterogeneous (split or broken rock, alluvia, moraines). This is particularly true because a cutting wheel works by clearing the soil like a bucket-wheel
does but not like a rasp (chain trencher). Consequently it will be less sensitive to the presence of blocks in the soil. They are also used to cut pavement
for road maintenance and to gain access to utilities under roads.
Due to its design the wheel may allow to reach with the same tool variable cutting depths while keeping a constant soil working angle with a relatively small wheel diameter (which allows to reduce the weight and therefore the pressure to the ground and the height of the unit for transport purposes in particular).
Last but not least advantage is offered by the cutting elements. These segments (6 to 8 depending on the diameter) which are placed around the wheel, bear the teeth which will more or less densified depending on the ground that they will encounter. These tools which can be easily changed manually allow to adjust different cutting width on the same wheel. The teeth are placed in a semi spherical configuration in order to increase the removal of the materials from the trench. The teeth on a rockwheel are removable and made of high strength steel
(HSLA steel
, tool steel
or high speed steel
) or cemented carbide
. When the machine is under heavy use, the teeth may need to be replaced frequently, even daily.
A system of spacers and ejectors makes possible to move the excavated materials away from the edges of the trench and therefore to avoid a possible “recycling”.
Wheel trenchers may be mounted on tracks or rubber tires.
. This type of trencher can cut ground that is too hard to cut with a bucket-type excavator
.
This type of trencher can cut narrow and deep trenches.
The angle of the boom can be adjusted to control the depth of the cut. To cut a trench, the boom is held at a fixed angle while the machine creeps slowly.
The chain trencher is a great tool for trenching for large diameter networks (telecommunication, electricity, drainage, water, gas, sanitation....) especially in rural areas. The excavated materials can be removed by conveyor belt reversible either on the right or on the left.
There are various methods for excavating trenches in rock – principally drill and blast, hydraulic breakers and chain trenchers. Selection of trench excavation method must take into account a range of rock and machine properties. It is suggested that the advantages of using chain trenchers in suitable rock outweigh the limitations and may have cost benefits and fewer adverse environmental effects compared with alternative methods.
With a micro trencher, the structure of the road is maintained and there is no associated damage to the road. Owing to the reduced trench size, the volume of waste material excavated is also reduced.
Micro trenchers are used to minimize traffic or pedestrian disturbance during network laying.
It may also be used to install FTTx
connections. Indeed, a Micro Trencher can work on sidewalks or in narrow streets of cities, can cut harder ground than a chain trencher, including cutting through solid stone. They are also used to cut pavement
for road maintenance and to gain access to utilities under roads.
blade oriented so that it rotates in a vertical plane.
feeder unit and backfiller, so drain or textile may be placed and the trench filled in one pass.
Construction Equipment
Construction Equipment is a trade publication and web site serving the information needs of construction contractors, materials producers, and other owners and operators of construction equipment....
used to dig trench
Trench
A trench is a type of excavation or depression in the ground. Trenches are generally defined by being deeper than they are wide , and by being narrow compared to their length ....
es, typically for laying pipe
Pipeline transport
Pipeline transport is the transportation of goods through a pipe. Most commonly, liquids and gases are sent, but pneumatic tubes that transport solid capsules using compressed air are also used....
s or cable
Cable
A cable is two or more wires running side by side and bonded, twisted or braided together to form a single assembly. In mechanics cables, otherwise known as wire ropes, are used for lifting, hauling and towing or conveying force through tension. In electrical engineering cables are used to carry...
s, or for drainage
Drainage
Drainage is the natural or artificial removal of surface and sub-surface water from an area. Many agricultural soils need drainage to improve production or to manage water supplies.-Early history:...
. Trenchers may range in size from walk-behind models, to attachments for a skid loader
Skid loader
A skid loader or skid steer loader is a small rigid frame, engine-powered machine with lift arms used to attach a wide variety of labor-saving tools or attachments. Though sometimes they are equipped with tracks, skid-steer loaders are typically four-wheel drive vehicles with the left-side drive...
or tractor
Tractor
A tractor is a vehicle specifically designed to deliver a high tractive effort at slow speeds, for the purposes of hauling a trailer or machinery used in agriculture or construction...
, to very heavy tracked heavy equipment.
Types
Trenchers come in different sizes and may use a different digging implement, depending on the required width and depth of the trench and the hardness of the surface to be cut. Trenchers must be handled with extreme care because they are very dangerous equipment.Wheel Trencher
A wheel trencher or rockwheel is composed of a toothed metal wheel. It is cheaper to operate and maintain and can cut harder ground than chain-type trenchers.Thanks to the wheel it is possible to work in hard or soft soils, either homogeneous (compact rocks, silts, sands) or heterogeneous (split or broken rock, alluvia, moraines). This is particularly true because a cutting wheel works by clearing the soil like a bucket-wheel
Bucket-wheel excavator
Bucket-wheel excavators are heavy equipment used in surface mining and mechanical engineering/civil engineering. The primary function of BWEs is to act as a continuous digging machine in large-scale open pit mining operations...
does but not like a rasp (chain trencher). Consequently it will be less sensitive to the presence of blocks in the soil. They are also used to cut pavement
Pavement (material)
Road surface or pavement is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past cobblestones and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete. Such...
for road maintenance and to gain access to utilities under roads.
Due to its design the wheel may allow to reach with the same tool variable cutting depths while keeping a constant soil working angle with a relatively small wheel diameter (which allows to reduce the weight and therefore the pressure to the ground and the height of the unit for transport purposes in particular).
Last but not least advantage is offered by the cutting elements. These segments (6 to 8 depending on the diameter) which are placed around the wheel, bear the teeth which will more or less densified depending on the ground that they will encounter. These tools which can be easily changed manually allow to adjust different cutting width on the same wheel. The teeth are placed in a semi spherical configuration in order to increase the removal of the materials from the trench. The teeth on a rockwheel are removable and made of high strength steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
(HSLA steel
HSLA steel
High-strength low-alloy steel is a type of alloy steel that provides better mechanical properties or greater resistance to corrosion than carbon steel. HSLA steels vary from other steels in that they are not made to meet a specific chemical composition but rather to specific mechanical properties...
, tool steel
Tool steel
Tool steel refers to a variety of carbon and alloy steels that are particularly well-suited to be made into tools. Their suitability comes from their distinctive hardness, resistance to abrasion, their ability to hold a cutting edge, and/or their resistance to deformation at elevated temperatures...
or high speed steel
High speed steel
High speed steelMost copyeditors today would tend to choose to style the unit adjective high-speed with a hyphen, rendering the full term as high-speed steel, and this styling is not uncommon . However, it is true that in the metalworking industries the styling high speed steel is long-established...
) or cemented carbide
Cemented carbide
Cemented carbide, also called tungsten carbide, hardmetal, or widia, is a hard material used in machining tough materials such as carbon steel or stainless steel, as well as in situations where other tools would wear away, such as high-quantity production runs. Most of the time, carbide will leave...
. When the machine is under heavy use, the teeth may need to be replaced frequently, even daily.
A system of spacers and ejectors makes possible to move the excavated materials away from the edges of the trench and therefore to avoid a possible “recycling”.
Wheel trenchers may be mounted on tracks or rubber tires.
Chain Trencher
A chain trencher cuts with a digging chain that is driven around a rounded metal frame, or boom. It resembles a giant chainsawChainsaw
A chainsaw is a portable mechanical saw, powered by electricity, compressed air, hydraulic power, or most commonly a two-stroke engine...
. This type of trencher can cut ground that is too hard to cut with a bucket-type excavator
Excavator
Excavators are heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom, stick, bucket and cab on a rotating platform . The house sits atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. A cable-operated excavator uses winches and steel ropes to accomplish the movements. They are a natural progression from the...
.
This type of trencher can cut narrow and deep trenches.
The angle of the boom can be adjusted to control the depth of the cut. To cut a trench, the boom is held at a fixed angle while the machine creeps slowly.
The chain trencher is a great tool for trenching for large diameter networks (telecommunication, electricity, drainage, water, gas, sanitation....) especially in rural areas. The excavated materials can be removed by conveyor belt reversible either on the right or on the left.
There are various methods for excavating trenches in rock – principally drill and blast, hydraulic breakers and chain trenchers. Selection of trench excavation method must take into account a range of rock and machine properties. It is suggested that the advantages of using chain trenchers in suitable rock outweigh the limitations and may have cost benefits and fewer adverse environmental effects compared with alternative methods.
Micro Trencher
A micro trencher is a "small rockwheel" specially designed for work in urban area. It is fitted with a cutting wheel that cuts a microtrench with smaller dimensions than can be achieved with conventional trench digging equipment. The trench dimensions are widths ranging from about 30 mm to 130 mm, and a maximum depth of about 500 mm. These machines are sometimes radio-controlled.With a micro trencher, the structure of the road is maintained and there is no associated damage to the road. Owing to the reduced trench size, the volume of waste material excavated is also reduced.
Micro trenchers are used to minimize traffic or pedestrian disturbance during network laying.
It may also be used to install FTTx
FTTX
Fiber to the x is a generic term for any broadband network architecture using optical fiber to replace all or part of the usual metal local loop used for last mile telecommunications...
connections. Indeed, a Micro Trencher can work on sidewalks or in narrow streets of cities, can cut harder ground than a chain trencher, including cutting through solid stone. They are also used to cut pavement
Pavement (material)
Road surface or pavement is the durable surface material laid down on an area intended to sustain vehicular or foot traffic, such as a road or walkway. In the past cobblestones and granite setts were extensively used, but these surfaces have mostly been replaced by asphalt or concrete. Such...
for road maintenance and to gain access to utilities under roads.
Portable Trencher
Landscapers and lawn care specialist may use a portable trencher to install landscape edging and irrigation lines. These machines are lightweight (around 200 pounds) and are easily maneuverable compared to other types of trenchers. The cutting implement may be a chain, or a blade similar to a rotary lawn mowerLawn mower
A lawn mower is a machine that uses a revolving blade or blades to cut a lawn at an even length.Lawn mowers employing a blade that rotates about a vertical axis are known as rotary mowers, while those employing a blade assembly that rotates about a horizontal axis are known as cylinder or reel...
blade oriented so that it rotates in a vertical plane.
Applications
A trencher may be combined with a drainage pipe or geotextileGeotextile
Geotextiles are permeable fabrics which, when used in association with soil, have the ability to separate, filter, reinforce, protect, or drain...
feeder unit and backfiller, so drain or textile may be placed and the trench filled in one pass.
See also
- Bucket-wheel excavatorBucket-wheel excavatorBucket-wheel excavators are heavy equipment used in surface mining and mechanical engineering/civil engineering. The primary function of BWEs is to act as a continuous digging machine in large-scale open pit mining operations...
, a larger cousin of the trencher. - Plate compactorCompactorA compactor is a machine or mechanism used to reduce the size of waste material or soil through compaction. A trash compactor is often used by homes and businesses to reduce the volume of trash....
, a type of trench compactor.
External links
Notable Manufacturers
- Ditch WitchDitch WitchDitch Witch is an American brand of underground construction equipment built by The Charles Machine Works, Inc., which has been in operation under the current name since 1949...
- Digga Machinery AttachmentsDigga Machinery AttachmentsDigga is an Australian brand of Machinery Attachments to suit Heavy equipment , Tractors and Mini Machines. The Company is based in Yatala, Queensland with 5 Branches Australia wide....
- MARAISMaraisMarais means "marsh" in the French language.Marais may also refer to:* Marais , a manufacturer of wheel trenchers, chain trenchers and micro-trenchers based in Durtal, France* Marais des Cygnes...