Sandra Åberg drives HUDDIG 1260C for CaLi

Growing up on a farm sparked Sandra Åbergs interest for machines and when it was time for her to choose education for high school the choice to become a machine operator was easy.

- I went to an education called Banteknik at Liljaskolan in Vännäs, focused on railway. While growing up, I drove wheel loaders and agricultural tractors - the first time I encountered a HUDDIG was at school. They were the special and interesting machines in the machine park. The target was set on Huddig right from the start.

After high school she moved down to Stockholm and started working at CaLi where she has now worked for three years.

 - At CaLi, we work mostly with railway and the subway in the Stockholm area. The majority of our work is performed at night when there is no traffic. We perform mostly maintenance such as changing ties and rail. Right now, I'm driving a HUDDIG 1260C from 2017 with rail equipment.

When she reflects on the different Huddig models she has tried, what stands out the most to her is the technical development of the machine.

 - HUDDIG 860 was the first machine I drove. Then came 1260B and 1260C before I left school. The difference now is that the machine has become much more automated. There are more meters, you can keep track of most things and set up the rail pressure and other factors in the computer.

Huddig is the only choice for Sandra, especially given the versatility of the machine and its ability to maneuver in almost any terrain.

- The main advantage of a HUDDIG is versatility. The machine can replace a wheel loader to some extent, it is all-round, a real service machine that can perform most jobs. The accessibility in difficult terrain is much better then, for example an excavator. The HUDDIG moves in a completely different way. It is flexible, limber and powerful.

When pondering future developments, she wonders how machines with electric power will affect the industry.

– I believe that the environmental requirements will become even tougher. Soon there is no further modification that can be done in order to reduce carbon dioxide emissions with fossil fuels. The question that remains to be answered is whether Tigon will be as effective as today's machines or more effective. Will you be more mobile in your work or more stationary in order to use electric power? Maybe batteries will be invented that are so powerful that everything runs on electricity in the future.

In addition to Tigon, Sandra also dreams of becoming an even better machine driver and one day demo Huddig's machines in the US.

 –The HUDDIG is challenging, you have to know how to use it in order to maximize your efficiency and make full use of the machine, which is a constant learning process. It's fun to always have something left to learn. A big dream for me is to demo HUDDIG in the US. Huddig's machines are very technically advanced, they at the forefront compared to all other machines in the US. If you educate and train the drivers and show the versatility, I believe there is a huge market there. You can streamline much more with a HUDDIG. If you know all the possibilities with Huddig's machines, there are an incredible number of ways to work with and use them.