JCB Launches TM220

A new concept in farm materials handling for North America is being made available to more potential users with the launch of a small articulated telescopic by JCB Agriculture.

The new JCB TM220, with lift capacity of 4410 lb (2000 kg) from is central telescopic boom, joins the TM320 with 6390 lb (2904 kg) lift capacity in JCB Agriculture’s growing product range for the North American agricultural market. It is expected to attract a wider range of users to the idea of using a articulated telescopics, rather than fixed length wheel loaders with loading arms.

JCB’s articulated telescopic range offers the versatility, visibility and maneuverability of a wheel loader, but with the pick and place characteristics of a telehandler, offering the best of both worlds, making it ideal for agriculture.

JCB Agriculture Managing Director Richard Fox-Marrs said: “We had a remarkable response to the JCB TM320 articulated telescopic when it was introduced into the North American Market three years ago, with many more units sold in the first year than expected. Now, we are extending this versatile handling concept to more farmers with this compact model.”

In Europe – especially in the UK, France and Germany – the telescopic handler has long been an indispensable farm tool on livestock and tillage farms alike. The machines now come in all sizes and levels of performance, with handlers like the JCB Loadall – the World’s Number One telescopic handler brand – being used for a wide range of daily and specialty duties.

Durability, maneuverability, lift performance, power, ease of use and high productivity are the main attractions. But the key advantage over a traditional tractor-loader combination is simply that the telescopic boom lifts high into a hay barn, reaches over gates, fences and feed barriers, and fills high-sided trucks and bins with ease.

In short, it provides the ultimate materials handling versatility, resulting in very high machine utilization rates – on European farms, the telescopic handler is invariably the machine clocking the highest hours in the fleet.

While telescopic handlers with offset cabs like the JCB Loadall are by far the most popular, there is a strong following among dairy, beef, sheep and hog farmers in particular for articulated telescopics.

For one thing, its central cab location is more familiar to tractor drivers; for another, the cab position and relatively high-set driving position afford a great all-around view of the work area.

Articulated chassis steering provides neat and predictable maneuverability in and around farm buildings. It also provides the handy feature of enabling the operator to tweak the position of a grab or bucket sideways while stationary for precise placement of feed into a hopper or bales into a stack.

“These attributes are ideal for a machine working in the confines of a dairy yard, a hog farm, a small feedlot and horse stables,” said Richard Fox-Marrs. “Our TM320 established this concept in North America by combining the highly productive loading capability and durability of a traditional wheel loader with the versatility of a telescopic boom; now we’re broadening the concept’s appeal with a smaller, lighter, more nimble machine.”

The JCB TM220 will lift 4410 lbs (2000 kg) to a maximum height of 15 ft (4.57 m) with its telescopic boom fully raised and extended. It will support 2,535 lbs (1152 kg) when out-stretched to off-load a trailer or to place a hay bale over a fence into a ring feeder.

The machine’s boom and any attachments are controlled by a light-action joystick that incorporates a range-shift button and a direction change switch for the two-range hydrostatic transmission. That makes it easy to drive and operate the TM220 with one hand remaining on the steering wheel.

An informative instrument cluster is positioned in front of the driver without impeding forward visibility from the roomy two-door cab, where low noise levels and carefully managed cooling airflow make this a comfortable place to work.

The JCB TM220 is powered by a JCB Diesel by Kohler engine with 74 hp output and plenty of torque – peak output occurs at a modest 1500 rpm engine speed and almost 90% is still available all the way down at 1000 rpm.