22.09.2021

Lithium-ion Snorkel boom

Snorkel will unveil a lithium-ion battery powered version of its 46ft A46JRT articulated boom lift at Vertikal Days today.

The A46JRTE is in essence a battery powered version of the diesel model and features three 111Ah lithium-ion battery packs. A battery management system constantly monitors each cell and works with the charger and the rest of the machine to achieve maximum efficiency. If it detects the temperature of an individual battery cell rising, it will channel the demand elsewhere while it cools a little. The smart charger will also sense what mains power output is available and adapt the charge programme to maximise it.
Please register to see all images

The new lithium battery powered Snorkel A46JRTE

The batteries power a high efficiency 20kw AC motor which in turn drives two hydraulic pumps. After that the machine is almost identical to the diesel model. It is however more powerful than the 18Kw diesel and offers higher torque and traction. Snorkel says that in tests the battery pack can last up to a week in ‘rough terrain conditions', and up to two weeks with light use. The company believes that, while the machine carries a premium sticker price, it has a fast payback with a lower cost of ownership. Annual fuel savings are as high as €1,250 a year, while the company claims the service and maintenance costs are reduced by as much as 93 percent compared with a diesel engine.
Please register to see all images

The new A46JRTE can last up to two weeks on a single charge

As to the overall service life of the battery pack, which uses locally manufactured Nissan technology, it is expected to be in the region of 10 years, at the end of which it can be returned for a new one. The battery manufacturer will apparently use it for domestic power supply and when it becomes too inefficient for that the company will full recycle it, recovering all of the base materials for reuse.
Please register to see all images

It has the same features as the diesel, with lower cost of ownership, emissions and noise

Xtreme Manufacturing and Snorkel chief executive, Matthew Elvin said: “The launch of our first lithium-powered boom lift is an exciting next step in our development of zero emission alternatives to diesel. The compact and mid-size aerial lift and telehandler segment is a sweet spot for electrification, and our lithium-battery technology is proving to be a zero-compromise solution in this product category, delivering zero emissions, reduced noise and equivalent or better performance than the diesel.”

The A46JRTE joins eight other lithium-ion powered models that have been introduced launched since 2019 (see: all electric Snorkel scissor lifts) – many of which will be on the Snorkel stand at Vertikal Days. We will run an update on this machine once it has been launched.