Cavan-based entrepreneur and apprentice mechanic William Ebbitt (20) has designed a hydraulically operated tractor step to aid less mobile operators when accessing the cab.

William, who grew up around tractors and helped his father Joe out in their garage from an early age, saw an opening for a simple lifting system to reduce discomfort while accessing the cab. So William and Joe invested time in engineering a solution. After building a prototype lift, William decided to work on the design for his school mini-company in 2015 which saw him reach the student enterprise awards.

Heavy duty

Since then, William has worked on the design. The latest iteration of the mobility step consists of a hydraulic ram linearly moving a star-shaped shaft profile within itself. The lifting mechanism’s base plate is mounted to the tractor’s loader bracket fixing points. Fitting of the system sees the removal of the original tractor step, leaving room to mount the lifting platform.

A nice feature William has integrated into the design is the ability to use the lift without having the tractor running. This is done using a 12V DC hydraulic power pack with its own pump and oil supply running independently of the tractor’s battery. The unit is neatly mounted in an obstruction-free zone underneath the tractor’s cab. Inside the cab door is a simple control panel with two switches, one to raise and the other to lower the platform.

So far, William has a number of units sold and fitted to various tractor makes and models, building and fitting each unit to suit the customer’s particular tractor.