Taking advantage of its many years of experience in building machines for road construction, the French company Franex recently has introduced its new road widener unit, the F893.

Designed for road widening tasks, the F893 is a self-propelled machine that has a working width of up to 3.2 meters (10.5 ft.). It is equipped with a front hopper that is fed by dump trucks, with the emptying of trucks being continuous as they are pushed along by the unit. A transversal belt conveyor fitted under the receiving hopper extracts material out the side of the machine, and an adjustable offset blade then spreads and levels the material at the required height and width.

The belt direction is reversible and the blade can be fitted on the right or left side, allowing the machine to work offset on both sides. Its spreading blade is adjustable in length, by bolted extensions, for a working width of up to 3.2 meters (10.5 ft.). One section of the blade can also be hydraulically telescoped on a 30-centimeter (12 in.) stroke. The blade can be folded in the frame width for transport and has reversible wearing edges. Leveling height [30 centimeters (11.8 in.) above or below the road level] and slope (plus or minus 15 degrees) are both hydraulically adjustable.

The working width of the F893 is 3.6 meters (11.8 ft.), not including blade width, which can be easily reduced to 2.5 meters (8.2 ft.) for transport. To do that, the belt conveyor is quickly and easily removed, and the hopper sides hydraulically retracted.

The F893 comes with an operator station having a clear panel control which can be placed in offset position on the right or left side, offering the operator the best possible visibility on both the blade and emptying trucks. The unit can be optionally equipped with a hydraulic crane, which makes handling operations for conveyor or blade extension removal easier. Fitted with a rear transversal brush and a side brush that can reach up to 3 meters (9.8 ft.) in width, the F893 can also function as a sweeper.

Designed for high production, with its powerful engine, four wheel drive/steer axles and a strongly built frame, the F893 can achieve widening rates up to 1,000 metric tons (1,100 tons) per hour. With the addition of specific side mounted tools replacing the blade, it can also carry out numerous offset jobs. Franex is presently seeking North American distributors to assist with its international development.

For more information, visit www.franex.com.

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