Porter Press Extra: Moon Civil & Drainage
Moon Civil & Drainage's modern fleet of front earthmoving equipment saw the arrival of Hyundai's new HX130A LCR
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The new Hyundai HX130A LCR
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We last caught up with the Moon Civil & Drainage team in 2016. Over the last five years, the number of Hyundai machines on the fleet has increased as heavy construction equipment built by the Korean manufacturer remains a go-to.
"I probably said the same thing last time, but the Hyundai machinery just goes really well," says Moon Civil & Drainage’s Shane Macdonald. "The diggers offer consistent performance, and they represent good value for money. Our Hyundai machinery does what we need it to do with no issues, so there’s no reason to go anywhere else as far as I can see."
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Hyundai heavy construction equipment has remained a consistent go-to for Moon Civil & Drainage
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Shane says that, under the direction of company owners Rob and Kerrie Moon, Moon Civil & Drainage’s policy of investing in new machinery and retaining a modern fleet remains in place.
This helps to remove real risk by ensuring reliability, warranty coverage should something go wrong, as well as up-to-date machine technology and safety specification for the benefit of everyone out on the tools.
Investing in the latest machinery has led to the arrival of another new excavator recently— the first of its kind to be delivered to a Kiwi company. Moon Civil & Drainage’s new Hyundai HX130A LCR sees the Korean heavy machinery manufacturer take its updated HX line-up into the 12-tonne segment, providing construction entities with the advanced feature set of the HX range within a more compact footprint.
The Hyundai HX130A LCR is the company’s second HX-series excavator, following the arrival of a Hyundai HX145CR a few months back. Reflecting the challenges of working within the busy subdivision side of Moon Civil & Drainage’s business, the Hyundai HX130A LCR features a shorter tail swing profile (1500mm swing radius) adding to its manoeuvrability when working on house lots, without sacrificing performance.
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The HX130A LCR features a shorter tail swing profile, adding to its manoeuvrability when working on house lots
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The Hyundai HX130A LCR is also among the most fuel-efficient excavators Hyundai has ever built. Its 55kW Diesel Particulate Filter (DPF) equipped engine delivers optimum power and fuel efficiency, assisted by Intelligent Power Control (IPC) which regulates the machine’s hydraulic pumps depending on the job needing to be completed.
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The Hyundai HX130A LCR is among the most fuel-efficient excavators Hyundai has ever built
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Choosing between speed mode, balance mode, or efficiency mode prioritises fuel burn over maximum breakout force or vice versa. Other noticeable changes in the Hyundai HX range lie in the larger, more ergonomically designed operator cab.
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The Hyundai HX range features a larger, more ergonomically designed operator cab
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A new centralised instrument cluster with an eight-inch touchscreen brings in-cab technology up to date, while Hyundai’s new optional All-Around View Monitoring (AAVM) system provides a 360°-surround virtual operating view, using no less than five cameras.
Part of the AAVM system is Intelligent Moving Object Detection (IMOD), which senses and warns the operator when objects come within five metres of the machine. The AAVM system helps make the Hyundai HX130A LCR among the safest excavators on any jobsite.
"Another aspect we looked at was ease-of-transport and the new 12.7-tonner will give us the grunt of a reasonably big machine, but we can still transport it on an eight-wheeler, meaning machine movements are much simpler," says Shane.
Out in the field, the Hyundai HX130A LCR’s operator, Lance Savill, is enthusiastic about the new machine, saying that right from the moment he climbed aboard, he could see it was a big step up from what has come before.
"It’s a nice, smooth machine and really quiet in the cab. Both as far as my comfort in the cab goes and the capabilities of it on the house pads and fill work I’m doing with it, it’s really impressive. I reckon Hyundai is really taking it to the competition now," he says.
While the Moon Civil & drainage fleet remains consistent, another thing that hasn’t changed in the last five years is just how busy the Tauranga-based business is. With around 35 staff these days, the company has crews working on a number of projects throughout the Bay of Plenty, including Rotorua, Te Puke, and closer to home in Tauranga.
The Moon Civil & Drainage staff all look after their gear very well, Shane says, and take a lot of pride in making sure the excavators and other equipment are clean and tidy.
With so much work on in the busy Bay of Plenty, Porter Equipment has similarly been doing a good job keeping the Moon Civil & Drainage team on the move.
"They really are excellent to deal with," he affirms. "[Bay of Plenty sales rep] Steve Puddle continues to be a great source of knowledge and he’s very responsive. We can get a quick answer to pretty much anything, we have all our maintenance needs sorted under the service programme and unlike with some brands, we’re never stuck waiting for a part to arrive.
There’s too much to do around here to be sitting on your hands. But we have reliable machines and the experts servicing them, so we’re in a pretty good spot."
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