Hillhead Exhibition, England, June 2024

Got room in your garage?

The biannual Hillhead Quarrying, Construction and Recycling Show is a must-attend event for British fans of heavy construction equipment. Held in a working quarry in the picturesque area outside Buxton, Derbyshire, the show attracts most of the large excavator and wheel loader manufacturers, along with a wide selection of crushing machines, dump trucks and construction-related commercial vehicles.

In addition to over 600 exhibitors, a major attraction is the live demonstrations which are held throughout the day at the quarry face. Richard Stanier sent us this pictorial report on a few of the vehicles on display.

The biggest truck at the show was the Komatsu HD 605-8 which had just been supplied to a local aggregates company. Powered by a Komatsu 23.15 liter engine which produces 778hp the truck is designed for a payload of 63 tons, with a gross vehicle weight of just under 115 tons. Like many of the exhibits at Hillhead, the interior of this truck was available for inspection for those people willing to climb the eight steps up to the cab.

Bell Equipment are a South African articulated dump truck manufacturer that are celebrating 70 years in business this year. Their trucks for the European market are now built in Eisenach-Kindel, Germany, and the company have had a significant presence in the United Kingdom since 1998, having acquired the former Heathfield – Haulamatic business. Although usually seen as an articulated dump truck with a Mercedes OM 936 LA engine with 348hp, this Bell B 30 E was exhibited equipped with a 27 000-liter water tanker for dust suppression duties with Collins Earthworks, one of the UK’s largest plant operators.
Billed as the “UK’s first autonomous articulated dump truck”, this Bell B 40 E has been operated by Chepstow Plant International Ltd in a China clay quarry in Devon since March, 2024. This machine has a 39-tonne payload and the autonomous driving system is said to have a positive impact on component and drive-train life. In a further nod to modernity, its 510hp Mercedes-MTU engine runs on hydrotreated vegetable oil.
The name “Develon” might be unfamiliar to some readers, but it is the new trading name under which Doosan construction equipment is sold, since early last year. If the truck itself looks more familiar, that’s because it is a product of the famous Moxy ADT plant in Norway, which was bought by Doosan in 2008. This Develon DA 30 machine is powered by a 5-cylinder Scania engine of 375hp and is seen here demonstrating its axle articulation at the exhibition.
The acquisition of the Doosan brand by Hyundai in 2021 led to the incorporation of the Doosan/Develon articulated dump truck model into the Hyundai construction range. This Hyundai HA 30 A is actually the same truck as the Develon DA 30 but with alternative Hyundai branding.
Hydrema is an interesting Danish company which was founded in Aalborg in 1959 and specialises in lighter and low-ground pressure articulated dump trucks. This 922 G model has a 296hp Cummins engine and a 20-ton payload.
Amongst the road-going trucks, Mercedes Benz UK were showing this 8x4chassis Arocs 3240 with the very popular lower-mounted cab and Meiller-Boweld tipping body. “Eight-wheelers” are very popular as tippers in the UK and many can be seen around the Buxton quarries.
Volumetric concrete mixers, which allow concrete to be mixed on site as an alternative to a delivery of ready-mixed concrete, have become increasingly popular in recent years and four manufacturers of these machines were exhibiting at Hillhead: Remarkably, all the examples were mounted on Renault chassis, as seen here with a body from Armcon of Stockport.
Volvo trucks can usually be relied on to provide a range of interesting trucks at Hillhead, and 2024 was no exception – this is the FH500 Aero model, previously seen at the Road Transport Expo earlier in the month, and looking no less futuristic for being parked in a quarry! This truck has the “I-Save” package which features the 13-liter Turbo Compound engine with enhanced engine management software.
While the Aero models attracted all the attention, Volvo’s FM has also undergone a revision and now features a revised “iron-mark” badge like its big brother, and mirror cameras. This 420hp model is fitted with a very smart PPG – Weightlifter insulated body. 

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