A new D8T was purchased by Site Concrete Inc., a Grand Prairie, TX-based heavy construction company with a fleet of more than 250 Caterpillar machines.

Site Concrete purchased the new D8T from Caterpillar dealer Holt CAT, and the machine was delivered almost 100 years to the day after Benjamin Holt, one of Caterpillar’s founders, first successfully replaced wheels with tracks on a large steam-powered machine in 1904.

“My great-grandfather developed the first practical track-type tractor which he named the ’Caterpillar,’ so it’s very appropriate that a Holt customer will be the first to buy the latest version of the Caterpillar track-type tractor,” said Peter M. Holt, CEO of Holt CAT. “ACERT Technology continues a long tradition of product innovation from Caterpillar, that combined with unmatched dealer support and service, makes Caterpillar equipment the best in the world.”

There is a January 2005 implementation date for Tier 3 off-road standards in the 300- to 750-hp range, while the implementation date for the 175- to 300-hp range is January 2006.

The D8T has 310 hp at 1,850 rpm, and by meeting Tier 3 standards, Caterpillar has reduced emissions in off-road machines by 70 percent since 1995 and, when meeting the Tier 4 regulations, Caterpillar will reduce emissions an additional 90 percent by 2014.

The EPA has designated more than 470 counties non-attainment areas in the United States, including several counties in the Dallas-Fort Worth, TX, region. A non-attainment county is identified as a location where air pollution levels persistently have exceeded national air quality standards established by the Clean Air Act.

“This is yet another milestone for Caterpillar, as we continue to show the value ACERT Technology offers to our customers and the public at large,” said Gary Stroup, Caterpillar vice president with responsibility for the Large Power Systems Division. “We have had more than 140 pre-production off-road machines in the field, and customer feedback has been very positive.”

In addition to a C15 engine with ACERT Technology, the D8T also includes a newly-designed operator workstation, putting machine controls and vital information at the operator’s fingertips. The D8T also features integrated electronic control and guidance systems to improve overall machine capacity utilization, allowing operators to get more work done in less time than ever before.

“Today’s new T-Series tractors were designed to improve operator comfort, enhance serviceability, and provide a tractor that can be used for future machine control and fleet management,” said Don Western, Caterpillar vice president with responsibility for the Track-Type Tractors Division.

For more than 75 years, Caterpillar Inc. has been building the world’s infrastructure and, in partnership with its worldwide dealer network, is driving positive and sustainable change on every continent.

Holt CAT sells, rents and services Caterpillar machines, engines and generator sets in a 118-county Texas territory spanning from the Red River to the Rio Grande. The company also offers total machine rebuild capabilities. Further supporting its broad range of products and services, Holt also fabricates its own line of landclearing equipment and Holt Spray King water tankers.

For more information, visit www.holtcat.com.

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