Skidsteer design input

[skidsteernewb]

Hey guys. My team and I are in college working on a skid steer redesign project. We are currently researching skid steers and their consumer base.
We need your input to help us make informed decisions.
If you wouldn't mind taking a short survey we'd really appreciate it. The link is below. Thanks for the info.

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s.aspx?sm=e1SlfbQU2IYzwEeF_2fSdAaA_3d_3d

 

[Steve Frazier]

skidsteernewb, as I mentioned in the other threads you've posted in, we will need to know more about you and your team before our members are solicited to participate. Please elaborate more on who you are and what this project is about. If it falls within our guidelines I'll restore the link to your survey.

 

[pushcat]

Get yourself a Hydra-Mac, look at it, study it, and you have your answers. Yeah, I know, they don't make them anymore.:Banghead I don't understand that, they were, and still are one of the most rugged, reliable, and innovative skidloaders built.

 

[skidsteernewb]

I apologize for not mentioning earlier, I wanted to keep it short for maximum responses. We are a group of 9 college students working on a 10 week redesign project at our college. Any and all information is totally anonymous and will be used for educational purposes only. The design project involves exterior and interior features and aesthetics. We are hoping to learn more about the skid steer industry and the needs of its operators and owners. We are also looking at users perceptions, needs, and desires for the future and how they relate to branding. We have also posted this survey on the skidsteerforum board, we have received lots of good information.


Thank you for the replies.

 

[skidsteernewb]

Thanks Steve. Thanks for the replies. Keep em comin'.

-Winter 09' Skid Steer Group

 

[Bentworker]

Things I hate about skid steer loaders.

1) They seem to catch fire easily.
Causes...
Poor maintenance.
Difficult or nearly impossible to keep belly clean of leaves and debris.
No shielding to keep hydraulic leaks off of hot engine.
Small displacement turbo diesel engines that have very hot components.
Engine and pump drive belts seem to be able to rub areas of compacted debris and engine goop in older machines.

2) Horrible rear visibility.
New machines should have better visibility, their is no excuse for not being able to engineer that into a reliable loader.

Story... About 10 years ago
My old roommate was taking a level read with a laser transit in a swimming pool that was being excavated. The operator did not know he was in the hole, and could not see him. He was backed over, the Bobcat 763 knocked him over, traveled over his foot and up his leg to about mid calf. Luckily the pool was in soft loam soil and by some miracle he did not break any bones. He had incredible bruising and had to be seen twice a day until the swelling reduced to where his leg was no longer in danger.

3) Enclosed cabs that block out all exterior sound, even when you need to hear conversation. Also engine noise that is so loud on open cab machines that conversation is impossible.

To me the equipment should be engineered to be as quiet as possible for safety of the operator and others who need to work around it.

Also a neat feature for enclosed cab skid steers would be some sort of noise canceling feature on the radio where you could "tune in" to outside conversation when needed.

 

[Clayton M]

Decrease track wear and tear make more than one entry and exit and visibility and you will have my business!!

 

[Zach Adams]

looks like a good project, any positions for next year?

 

[sherrillsa]

Reminds me of that show... "Are you smarter than a 5th Grader".

Also, I'm a strong believer in the "KISS" method. Keep It Simple Stupid.

With all that being said, you don't have to get fancy designing something that looks good only to find that it doesn't perform.

Also an old college electrical engineering professor (ex LSU Fullback) that when he played football their team subscribed to the game plan that if an opponents player had been injured that they would run plays specifically at the injured player. i.e. "pick on the cripple". The college professor related this to how students should attack his exams. i.e. "pick on the cripple" that is answer the questions you know the answer to, and skip the questions you don't know the answer to, because you would waste time and not score any points trying to work through a problem you did not know the answer to.

So, when redesigning I would focus on the improvements that can be easily made.

 

[mouse]

we will need to know more about you and your team before our members are solicited to participate. .

steve, I reckon you probably have not bothered to do the survey.

my 2c, it is basically just an ad for the survey software that follows and as such is spam.

as for the 'survey' itself it will produce no useful results in any quantitative form as it is merely seeking an opinion of the user of what they know and what they perceive.

while i'm no expert in survey design i did study enough of it at post grad level to be able to model the results of such a survey and the likely statisitical relevance of the results (which is about zilch)

should, horror of horrors, anyone attempt to design the next best thing in skidsteers as a result of this survey please do not knock on my door looking for a test pilot...