Kubota is emerging as a serious player in the materials handling market as it pursues a growing interest from farmers in having specialist machinery to perform a range of tasks in the yard, and beyond.
Best known for its compact equipment, the company is finding itself obliged to produce larger machines if it wishes to become relevant in the agricultural materials handler market.
To be of any interest to most farmers, a loader has to be capable of performing one specific, but usually unmentioned task, and that is unload a lorry; if it cannot do that, then it will be left in the showroom.
Performance envelope
To do so it has to take pallets, which are often up to 1t in weight, from the truck bed and stack three or four high in a shed, and it has to do it quickly as time is of the essence both to the lorry driver and the farmer.
If it can pass this test then it will find itself a place within a farm’s machinery fleet where it will spend most of its life doing everything else it was bought for.
Kubota has covered this requirement with its latest pivot steer telescopic hander, the RT305T-2, which is its largest machine of this type to date.
It sits at the top of the RT portfolio offering a 1.2t lift capacity and a maximum lift height of 4.3m with a full out horizontal boom reach of 3m, at which it can lift a 750kg load.
Power is also a vitally important requirement for loaders as they will need to move themselves and the load over rough ground and up inclines, acceleration is also key if time is to be saved, especially in shuttle operations where a lively performance can avoid considerable frustration.
Kubota diesel
This latest Kubota is fitted with a EU Stage V compliant, four-cylinder turbocharged diesel engine from the company’s own range producing a healthy 66hp, which compares well with competing machines.
Like other models in the RT range, the driveline is hydrostatic. A Bosch Rexroth hydraulic motor drives both Carraro axles through mechanical driveshafts, and offers two speed ranges – 0-15 and 0-30kph.
The powertrain is equipped with multidisc brakes and permanent 4WD with the option of selectable differential locks on both axles, to further boost traction.
