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Building high-quality probing technology, that is what A.P. van den Berg has been doing for more than fifty years. With ever new and not infrequently revolutionary developments, the Friesian company anticipates changes in the market. An interview with managing director Mark Woollard about the themes of automation, robotization and electrification in the world of probing.
A.P. van den Berg has an impressive portfolio of high-quality probing equipment. "The world around us is changing, even we as a manufacturer cannot avoid that and will have to anticipate it," Woollard acknowledges. "In the first place, 'working with your hands' is becoming less and less popular, especially also with the younger generations, while probing is by nature really hand work. On the other hand, there is a clear trend toward electrifying construction equipment. We recognized both developments early on and form the basis for our latest equipment: a fully automatic hands-free CPT and a plug-in hybrid CPT vehicle."
A.P. van den Berg is no stranger to the phenomenon of automation and robotization and, as a first step, further developed the ROSON seabed system, which is suitable for a water depth of up to 4,000 meters. Integrating ST technology into the ROSON optimized safety and increased productivity. "That knowledge came in handy for the development of our COSON-ST, a fully automatic land probing application. It is basically a continuous indentation device fed by a folder with probing rods that unroll and unite to form a stable probing line. All with just the push of a button from the cab," Woollard explains. "The CPT master's workshop transforms into a kind of office-like environment." And that's just the beginning. Woollard expects that in the distant future, a CPT vehicle will move from its home base to the site completely autonomously, perform probing there and return.
Around the topic of electrification, A.P. van den Berg sought cooperation with Wierda Hybrid Technologies of Drachten. "Together we have electrified the entire probing cycle and driving on the 'tracks' of our probing vehicle," says Woollard. "The vehicle has been extensively tested and is already being used successfully. Practical experience shows that on one battery charge about a day and a half can be worked. The mobilization distances in the Netherlands are so short that overnight recharging is sufficient to work an entire day electrically. Driving to and from the sounding site is still diesel-powered. Truck manufacturers do not yet have a suitable type of vehicle for probing available with a hybrid or electric drive."
With both the COSON-ST and the electrified probe vehicle, A.P. van den Berg is responding to changes in the market. Woollard concludes, "The first customer experiences are extremely positive. In addition to the Netherlands, there is also great interest from abroad. This also applies, incidentally, to our ROSON-ST CPT for offshore."
