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| Mobility is Key in Landclearing Effort Theft of grinder from jobsite leads to change in approach to processing. by Larry Trojak
Broad Range of Expertise "We offer everything from land clearing to landscaping to utility contracting to underground utility work, with a customer base that includes private contractors as well as municipalities, counties, the State of Florida, and work for Florida's DOT." Taylor says they are currently doing the land clearing phase of a 131-acre, 250-home residential development project in Vero Beach called "Woodfield at Vero Beach." On that particular project, his firm is doing only the land clearing, but in other instances, Sunshine Land Design can take it several steps further, handling the earthwork and beyond. Planning and Execution "As is generally the case, we take trees out with a track hoe and then we have another shear-equipped excavator that cuts the trees to a manageable length; they are then hauled by loader to a processing area. In terms of material density, this site has both extremes. It has 85 acres of groves on it which obviously don't require a lot of clearing. The remaining 46 acres, however, are extremely wooded and demand heavy clearing of oak, Australian pine, yellow pine, and an awful lot of sable palm. We have a fairly sizeable Clearing and Grinding division in the company - probably 20 people and roughly 17 pieces of heavy land clearing equipment - so we are easily able to meet those needs. It's getting to that point which is often the challenge." Vaughn says his crew generally stages a pile of wood debris every two acres, depending on the density of material on the site; the Woodfield site had no fewer than 30 such piles. "Getting a grinder from one pile to another can be a time-consuming process which involves stopping production, making the grinder ready for the move, bringing in a truck for the move, the relocation itself, and then the new setup. We felt it really ate into our level of productivity." Disappearing Act "Someone, however, apparently had other plans for us. While we were involved in some of the hurricane cleanup in Palm Beach County this past summer, we had a Morbark 1300 tub grinder and the Peterbuilt 99 tractor that hauls it, stolen right from the jobsite after hours. We went out immediately to look for it, hired a private investigator, and even went so far as to charter a plane to see if we could spot it from the air, but it was nowhere to be found. Whoever did this had their plans nailed down pretty well." New Directions "There are actually a number of benefits we are seeing as a result of the 6600 being on tracks," he says. "Obviously, mobility is key. We've gone from a move that, depending upon conditions and equipment availability, could take two to three hours, to one that can now be made in minutes. Considering the size of this site and the number of moves needed, that alone will probably gain us a couple extra days' production over the course of the project. And we've been extremely pleased with the performance we've gotten out of the grinder. Since taking delivery, it has handled everything we've fed it - including the sable palms which are usually tough on a grinder - without missing a beat." A Look at the Hog Vaughn adds that the unit's mobility also allows them to process in areas which were, in the past, cumbersome: wet or extremely sandy areas, for example. "There are areas in this part of Florida where the sand is extremely fine, like sugar, so getting a grinder into those areas was a real challenge. By not having to mobilize additional equipment for each move, we reduce the amount of wear and tear on that equipment. In addition, when the wind shifts, as it often does down here, residue from the debris sometimes blows directly into the unit's radiator causing it to plug. Now we simply reposition the grinder so wind is not a factor and, in less than a minute, the problem is solved." Going Horizontal in Florida
He adds that replacing the stolen tub grinder with the horizontal unit will probably have some long-term benefits as well. "In this area, there are real concerns about flying debris which can occur with an improperly fed tub grinder," he says. "In fact, there are municipalities in Florida which won't even allow a tub grinder to operate. So the move to replace tubs with horizontal grinders has gained a lot of momentum the last couple years. Adding the Morbark Model 6600 means our fleet now consists of three horizontal grinders; we've eliminated one more variable from our bidding process." Clearing is expected to continue at the Vero Beach site until roughly the second week of December. The "Woodfield at Vero Beach" development is expected to be ready for residential occupancy by late Spring, 2005. |
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One of the oldest adages around says that everything happens for a reason. And although it is hard to accept at the time, an unfortunate event can often turn out to be the proverbial blessing in disguise. Such apparently has been the case for Sunshine Land Design, which, since the theft of one of its main pieces of grinding equipment, has moved to a track-mounted horizontal grinder, dramatically improving the material processing facet of its operation. The company is seeing the benefits of that new approach proven out in a sizeable - and challenging - Vero Beach land clearing project. 
"We generally take the ground up material and, depending on the quality of mulch, either send it off for subsequent use, or dispose of it," he says. "On this job, the contractor is using all that material onsite to create berms and other features, so we are being asked to just leave it there. That's a real plus for us." |
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