Vacuum excavators are one of the fastest-growing segments of the equipment industry. What started as a support machine for horizontal directional drilling (HDD) contractors for fluid management applications is quickly becoming the industry’s preferred method of digging in many environments. Driving the demand is the need to efficiently excavate in areas where underground infrastructure exists. These truck vacs can carry more water to the job and carry larger volumes of spoils away while digging at deeper depths than traditional trailer vacuum excavators.
Expanding the line
Vermeer is one of the industry’s leading manufacturers of vacuum excavators of all sizes. Its most recent area of growth is in the truck vacuum excavator side of the business. In addition to the truck vacuum excavators being built at the Vermeer MV Solutions Piedmont, South Carolina, manufacturing facility, Vermeer recently purchased a minority ownership in Vacuum X-Traction Products Inc. (VXP) to deliver an even greater range of truck vacuum excavator sizes available in the United States and Canada.
Not only does Vermeer offer a wide range of truck vacuum excavators for contractors to choose from, but each model includes exclusive features that help contractors optimize their productivity on the job and the road.
Vermeer truck vacuum excavator line starts with the 1,000-cubic-feet-per-minute (28-m3/min) HTV873 PTO truck vacuum excavator and JTV873 PTO truck vac with a jetter unit. The product offering grows from here and extends to the powerful 6,400-cubic-feet-per-minute (181.2-m3/min) VXT600 vacuum truck. Vermeer also produces the industry’s only vacuum excavator capable of separating liquids from solids on the job – the revolutionary XR2 vacuum excavator.
While each model has specific features and benefits to fit the operator’s needs, all the models are supported by the extensive Vermeer dealer network — something no other truck vacuum excavator can offer.
Taking a deeper dive
To determine which Vermeer truck vacuum excavator model is right for your company’s needs, here’s a deeper dive into some of the features and benefits of the most popular models.
HTV873 and JTV873 PTO vacs
These PTO-driven truck vacuum excavator systems have an 800-gallon (3,028-L) debris tank and a 400-gallon (1,514-L) water tank. These units can keep weight down compared to truck-mounted systems that use a pony motor. They are an ideal addition for contractors doing potholing or those looking for an efficient mud management solution.
ECO50 and ECO75 skid mount vacuum excavators
With a spoil tank options ranging from 500 gallons to 1,200 gallons (1,892.7 L to 4,542.5 L), Vermeer ECO skid mount vacuum excavators comes with a 4-inch (10.2-cm) suction hose and a 1,025-cubic-feet-per-minute (29-m3/min) (EC050) or 1,200-cubic-feet-per-minute (34-m3/min) (ECO75) blower. These systems are powered by a pony motor, can be mounted to a truck chassis or off-road crawler carriers, and can be outfitted with an optional hydraulic operated boom. They are an economical, efficient option for HDD contractors in a variety of applications.
VXT300 truck vacuum excavator
The 3,500-cubic-feet-per-minute (99.1-m3/min) Vermeer VXT300 efficiently digs and transports material from jobsite to dumpsites. It includes an 8-cubic-yard (6.1-m3) spoil tank, 6-inch (15.2 cm) dig tube and can carry up to 800 gallons (3,028 L) of water to the job, so your crew can spend more time digging and less time driving.
The VXT300 is a hydraulic PTO driven unit while other Vermeer truck vacuum excavator models have an OMSI gearbox delivering horsepower to the vacuum components. The VXT300 is one of the industry’s lightest 8-cubic-yard (6.1-m3) trucks on the market today to help manage weight when transporting spoils for disposal.
Also, the full-function, wireless CAN control operator remote is convenient to use to help operators work productivity.
The VXT300 is an excellent option for HDD contractors working in areas where a lot of excavation is required and/or they are using large volumes of fluid while boring. It’s also an ideal fit for municipalities and contractors working around solar farms or data centers.
VXT500 truck vacuum excavators
Also outfitted with an 8 cubic-yard (6.1-m3) spoil tank, the VXT500 8-inch (20.3-cm) hose vac has a 4,800-cubic-feet-per-minute (135.9-m3/min) vacuum blower for productive digging at deep depths. And with 850 gallons (3,217.6 L) of freshwater capacity and water pressure up to 11.5 gallons per minute at 3,000 psi (43.5 L/min at 20,684 kPa), this unit efficiently digs in challenging ground conditions too. If you’re working in the pipeline oil and gas industry or around industrial plants, this an ideal vacuum excavator to consider.
VXT600 truck vacuum excavator
When you need to dig deep and in challenging conditions, you will want to check out these powerful truck vacuum excavator models. The VXT600 is available with an 11-cubic-yard (10.1-m3) debris tank and 1,300-gallon (4,921-L) freshwater tank, or a 16-cubic-yard (14.6-m3) debris tank and 2,400-gallon (9,085-L) freshwater tank. The debris tank not only raises to dump but is designed with a 10-degree slope floor to make offloading quick and efficient. With the unit’s 8-inch (20.4-cm) dig hose, combined with a 6,400 cubic feet per minute (181.2 m3/min), it can do some serious digging.
This unit is an ideal option for non-hazardous cleanup for the oil and gas industry, industrial plant application, and environmental response companies.
XR2 vacuum excavator
The Vermeer XR2 vacuum excavator is the industry’s first vacuum excavator equipped with a shaker deck that separates liquids and solids to allow contractors to stay on the jobsite longer, work efficiently and reduce disposal expenses. Material excavated with the XR2 is fed through an onboard deceleration tank that exits through an airlock onto a shaker deck where solids and liquids are then separated. The solid material is moved by conveyor toward the rear of the machine where it is discharged and can be carried away or left on the jobsite, depending on the material. Used, slurry water is pumped into one of the four XR2 holding tanks for disposal. This concept in vacuum excavation allows contractors to carry 1500 gallons (5678.1 L) of water to the job, work longer on the jobsite and can reduce hydro-excavator transport weights.
Another feature of the XR2 that helps enhance jobsite efficiency is its unique power takeoff (PTO) that allows the XR2 to easily draw power from the truck with just the touch of a button. Crews no longer need to manually disengage and reengage the gearbox every time the vacuum excavator is repositioned.
The XR2 excels in potholing, stitch boring, slot trenching and general construction applications.
Choosing the right machine
As you can see, the Vermeer line of truck vacuum excavators is designed to fit whatever your application needs are, and they are backed by the Vermeer global dealer network. For more information, contact your local Vermeer dealer today to learn more about each specific model.
Vermeer MV Solutions, Inc. and Vacuum X-Traction Products, Inc. reserve the right to make changes in engineering, design and specifications; add improvements; or discontinue manufacturing at any time without notice or obligation. Equipment shown is for illustrative purposes only and may display optional accessories or components specific to their global region. Please contact your local Vermeer dealer for more information on machine specifications.
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