My

My name is Romain Chaigneau and I work for Fours A Chaux de L’Ouest (FACO). The company is based in the village of La Jaudonnière in western France. It employs 13 people in this quarry and was founded in 1910.

For two years, I have been driving a Hitachi EH750 rigid dump truck, which carries limestone from the quarry to the on-site crushing facility. The limestone is used to produce feed for cattle and poultry, fertilizer for use on fields and also to make concrete.

HITACHI

The company bought its first Hitachi machine five years ago and has a strong, 12-year relationship with the Hitachi dealer, Cobemat. The newest machine in the quarry is a Hitachi ZX870LCR excavator. FACO also has two Hitachi wheel loaders, an LX210E and LX145E, working on this job site. The EH750 has 4,000 hours on the clock.

Experience

This is the first rigid dump truck that I have driven and I am very happy with it. I like using the air conditioning and the other technologically advanced features in the cab. However, the most important thing for me is the vehicle’s transmission and gearbox. This makes the truck much easier to drive, especially when it is fully loaded and going uphill towards the factory.

Without the dump truck, the company would need two or three conveyor belts to carry rocks across the whole quarry. Conveyor belts can look dirty and spoil the local landscape. Using the Hitachi EH750 not only brings greater flexibility and increased productivity, but also contributes to a more appealing working environment.