UniQa - Spreaders | Bucher Municipal | United Kingdom

UniQa 

Chain conveyor
spreader system

UniQa
The pioneering spreader built around the customer needs

Automatic spreader for heavy trucks, from 4m3 to 16 m3

UniQa represents the experience of 60 years of innovation in winter maintenance and it aims to offer the best possible operative conditions for each customer specific requirements.

UniQa incorporates all the characteristics a winter maintenance spreader require such as consistency and precision regardless of salt quality, salt storage method or environment temperature, a smart control systems, customisable modular design, cost-effectiveness over time as well as long lifetime expectancy thanks to quality manufacturing and materials.

Get to know the UniQa spreader

Performance
Built around the customer needs
Built around the customer needs

 

The large number of solid and liquid capacity combination allows it to fit every kind of heavy truck, always with the correct solid to liquid ratio and a balanced axle load distribution. 

Furthermore UniQa is perfect for road sanding, de-icing or anti-icing winter maintenance application. In fact UniQa can be configured to apply all kind of spreading material, from pure sand to pure brine, accordingly to your techniques. The driving system can be customised to meet the requirements of a dedicated winter truck or of a standard transport truck.

The smart control system can be implemented over time with automated functions offering step-by-step upgrade and a great re-selling value.

Three different demounting system and our custom built sub-frames complete the comprehensive offer, delivering outstanding flexibility in personalisation.

Cost
No matter what the conditions are, UniQa will always give you extraordinary performance and cost-effectiveness
No matter what the conditions are, UniQa will always give you extraordinary performance and cost-effectiveness

 

A large use of stainless steel and durable polyethylene components ensure high protection degree over it entire lifespan while reducing maintenance costs. To further extend the corrosion protection all steel and stainless steel assembly are shoot blasted and powder-coated with a specific double layer treatment or galvanised.

The hydraulic pipes ends and the couplings are protected with a special wax whether hydraulic valves, motor and mechanical gearbox, which are subject to heat expansion, are treated with a specific painting cycle to ensure protection and elasticity.

The UniQa chain conveyor is designed to last the entire life of the spreader requiring minimal maintenance over time.

The all welded drive shaft, through the parallel driving sprocket, ensure a linear and synchronous advancement of the chain hence avoids any side deviation which can occur on the conveyor belt.

To help maintenance process we also deliver as standard a centralised greasing system allowing to reach all the stainless steel bearings from one easy-access greasing point.

Whenever possible the consumption parts are engineered to minimise maintenance costs avoiding replacing the entire assembly but only the wearer part.

Technology
Eco-friendly and sustainable
Eco-friendly and sustainable

 

We believe in a sustainable growth of our generation permitting the future generation to fulfil its needs without restriction. In fact more than 90% of UniQa weight can be recycled and some of its components are made of recycled materials too.

The most accurate spreading pattern available on the market combined with the highly automated functions optimise the spreading material application reducing costs and environment pollution.

Also in our production factory we care about the environment: the production location are ISO 14001 certified and in our paint shop we are using from many years the powder recuperation system which ensure the primer is recycled and reused reducing waste of resources.

Also the energy supply consumption source from our photovoltaic system and a certified supplier of renewable energy because we believe in a cleaner world.

Key specifications

  • Large chain conveyor,
    immune from bridge effect

  • Modern painting process
    guarantees higher resistance
    and lower maintenance costs

  • Versatile configurability
    on the base of customer needs

  • The roller breaker allows constant
    and homogeneous flow to the disc

  • Suitable for all spreading technique,
    from sand only to pure brine

  • Intuitive control panel interface

  • autonomous spreading operations
    with Bucher Assist
     

Key Features

The chain conveyor system
UniQa can be assembled to meet your individual requirement
Smart control system
UniQa can be assembled to meet your individual requirement truck
The true roller breaker
Advanced control system
Built to safely perform over its entire lifespan

Regardless of salt quality, salt storage method or environment temperature the UniQa chain conveyor ensure consistency, precision and it’s immune from the bridge effect.

The most spotted spreading material tends to compact in presence of high humidity and low temperature as its intrinsic physical property. In this scenario every small gap or low inclined surface it's an anchor point to create a solid bridge into the hopper and stop the salt from flowing on the conveyor. In case this "bridge effect" occurs it’s necessary to break manually all the material compacted inside the hopper with high economic costs, safety issue and the problem connected to an unexpected stop during a snowfall.

The Bucher chain conveyor is really wide, almost the double of the other systems, therefore the hopper has virtually vertical sidewalls. Moreover the chain concept let the material to lay down on the hopper bottom and not on the conveyor requiring only a minimal lightening plate. Vertical sidewalls combined with a small lightening plate in large space for the material totally avoiding the bridge formation and therefor guarantying a free flow to the disc.

This unique conveyor system has an additional benefit: the large transportation width allow the conveyor to turn slow requiring only a minimal power while ensuring high starting torque. Conversely to the auger conveyor you will never have to move manually the chain before starting the equipment, even if it’s left fully filled outside for many days.

Ready for any anti-icing or de-icing task

 

The design of UniQa allows it to be equipped to any kind of heavy truck thanks to a variety of solid/liquid capacity combination. 12 different hopper size and many combination of lateral and additional front tanks allow to achieve the capacity the customer require while maintaining a perfect truck axle load distribution. With the application clear in mind UniQa is engineered to fulfil any anti-icing or de-icing task, being capable of delivering from pure sand, to adjustable ratio pre-wetted salt and even pure brine by disc.

Four different spreading group, dedicated to different spreading materials, ensure a perfect spreading pattern, high protection from blocking and great reliability.

All our spreading group features the disc feeding chute in polyethylene, completely closed and with rounded shape. This combination ensure supreme material flowing thanks to the polyethylene slippery characteristic and, being closed, avoid humidity and cold air raised from the truck to negatively affect its slipperiness. Led light, road approved signalisation, fully corrosion resistant tarpaulin cover and a hot galvanised screening grid completes the most spotted configurations.

UniQa control system make the complex easy

Stick to operational procedure while driving in the worst conditions possible and also respecting the environment is a challenging task.

EcoSat10 control system is specifically designed by Bucher with a practical and operator-oriented conception to help achieving this challenge. The easy-to-use interface includes a large 7” colour display, 3 programmable encoder and 7 smart buttons enabling a comfortable and trouble-free use.

While working EcoSat10 automatically denied the operation which cannot be done in the actual condition and, together with its functional design, allows the driver to be focus on driving and not continuously looking on the control panel screen.

The EcoSat10 smart conception combine in a single device a powerful, micro-processor based, control panel, a data transmission module and a complete satellite navigation system as an option.

A multilevel password system protects the system from unexpected parameter modification and the driver identification ensures the complete control of the spreading operation even if one spreader is used on three-shift working by several operator for long snow falls.

Adaptable to every kind of heavy truck

UniQa is moved from a powerful hydraulic system which can be powered from the truck hydraulics or by an on-board auxiliary engine, to fit both standard transport truck and dedicated winter maintenance truck.

The UniQa powered by the truck hydraulics conform to European standard ensuring performance and adaptability between different vehicles.

Load sensing hydraulic system are becoming more and more popular for multi-purpose trucks and we are ready for it.

The on-board auxiliary engine is designed to guarantee the maximum efficiency thanks to an automatic acceleration based on energy consumption. This allow to start the engine on low RPM and then accelerate only as much as or when required, saving precious fuel over the long life of the spreader.

The demounting option includes the most classic handle telescopic supporting feet and the automatic tipper system available in two version for empty or fully charged spreader.

The hopper it’s a self-supporting frame which don’t need additional sub-frames for fully charged demounting system reflecting the robust design of this machine.

 

The truth about the roller breaker

Narrow conveyor system needs a device inside the hopper to try preventing the bridging effect by constantly moving the material. This device acts as an agitator and sometimes is mistakenly called roller breaker.

The UniQa chain conveyor is immune from the bridge effect hence it doesn't need an agitator. The intention of the UniQa true roller breaker is to guarantee a constant and homogenous material flow to the disc.

The UniQa system avoids the flow pulsation regardless of salt quality, salt storage method or environment temperature ensuring a perfect material distribution over the entire spreading pattern. The true roller breaker it’s located transversally to the conveyor right above the disc in a closed compartment outside the hopper. It is fully hydraulic driven and, if necessary, it could absorb all the available power to break even the largest clumps. Moreover it rotates in the opposite direction of the conveyor reducing the blockage possibilities and unexpected down-time. In case a block occurs only a small compartment has to be emptied conversely to auger conveyor or dosing-gate based systems where the entire hopper should be emptied.

Human machine cooperation for the best results

EcoSat10 can be customised adding features such as data logging, vehicle tracking and data transmission but also the complete automatisation of the spreading operation using the IRT05 thermal sensor and Assist. The data transmission module can be integrated directly into the control panel simplifying the cabin wiring installation and reducing the space necessary for additional device. Moreover the integrated solution provides peace of mind when in use and doesn't need any configuration from the customer saving valuable time.

The Assist IRT05 allows the control box to acquire the road temperature. It can be used as a road contactless thermometer or to automate the dosage parameter accordingly to the real road conditions. Controlling the dosage function if required it can also be used to start/stop the spreading operation.

Assist RouteReplay technology is based on geo-referenced spreading parameter which are automatically operated by the spreader along the road.

Using the EcoSat10 precise navigation system the driver is guided along the road with, in meantime it works also to recognise the vehicle position and then the control panel operates always the correct pre-set parameter.

 

Built to safely perform over its entire lifespan

Having the safest driving possible on slippery surface and low visibility should be one of the main concern for a winter equipment. For this purpose the conveyor and the hopper shape combination enable the lowest hopper profile and material centre of gravity compared to any other conveyor system enhancing the stability of the vehicle.

The available automated functions even raise this safety level, in fact the driver isn’t oblige any more to look at the control panel screen when driving to know which function he has to operate thanks to Assist.

UniQa is also totally immune from bridge effect reducing the risks over traditional spreader associated to entering inside the hopper removing the compacted salt and the unexpected downtime meanwhile treating the road surface.

Almost all the maintenance operation can be done on ground, moving parts are protected from covers or safety sensor which protects and secure the operator.

The spreading operation is controlled by a sensor on the disc in order to inform the driver if any blocks occurs stopping the salt from being spread to the surface.

Get to know the UniQa Combi spreader

UniQa Combi (FS100 by nozzle)

With the application clear in mind UniQa is engineered to fulfil any anti-icing or de-icing task, being capable of delivering from pure sand, to adjustable ratio pre-wetted salt and even pure brine by disc or multiple nozzle system.

Beside the brine delivery system this kit can be assembled to meet your specific requirements combining different size of additional tank, for an additional capacity up to 7,5 m3 over the standard form.

The multiple nozzle system has proven its effectiveness over time and can spray up to 3 lanes in standard form.

The brine pumps are hydraulically driven, high performance gear pumps with specific design for highly corrosion material engineered by Bucher from its long experience.

The delivery system is completely automated and controlled from the control panel, which adjusts flow and control the valves accordingly to the parameter set from the driver for a total peace of mind while driving.

The nozzle are all in stainless steel and require only a minimal cleaning over time ensuring full operation even in the worst conditions.

Conversely to jet nozzle commonly used in agricultural field the fan nozzle ensure maximum precision in width and dosage application of brine.

This converts in saving materials, carry out a better job and, thanks to the mechanical action, it is the most effective de-icing method on ice or hard compacted snow layer. 

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