Komatsu equipment boosts productivity
To move massive amounts of material
quickly, the North Central Iowa Regional Solid
Waste Agency recently invested in several
pieces of Komatsu equipment, purchased from
Road Machinery and Supplies with the help of
Sales Representative Doug Miller. The agency’s
purchase included two 389-horsepower HM350
articulated haul trucks that are paired with a
PC400LC-6 excavator.
“The combination of excavator and trucks has increased our production by about 125 percent compared to using scrapers alone, which had been the norm,” said Schmidt. “We decided to go with those because we had a large amount of dirt to move in a hurry, and the haul was longer than normal. It’s more efficient, and our ability to work in adverse conditions is better. The trash doesn’t stop when it rains or snows, and the trucks and excavator will work in those situations where scrapers can’t. They also will haul 25 percent more than the scrapers, and they’re twice as fast. The operators like them because the ride is much smoother and quieter.”
RMS Sale Rep Doug Miller (left) worked with North Central Iowa Regional Solid Waste Agency Director Gary Schmidt to fill the agency’s equipment needs.
Bomag landfill compactors have long been a staple at the landfill, which uses two Bomag units.
To push large quantities of dirt and rip frost, the landfill employs a new 354-horsepower Komatsu D155AX-6 Sigma Dozer with the patented Sigma Dozer blade. “The blade is utterly amazing,” exclaimed Schmidt, who often runs the machine. “Its shape forces the material to the center of the blade as opposed to the standard U-shape, so I can easily push 50 percent more than before with a machine that size. Plus, the fuel efficiency is tremendous. For a dozer that size, one would expect to use 13 to 15 gallons an hour, but we’ve been around 10 to 11 in most instances.”
Trash at the site is divided into two areas: municipal solid waste and construction and demolition debris. Each area is armed with a Komatsu D65EX-15SL landfill dozer that’s equipped with extra guarding and plating for the often rugged conditions. Additional machinery at each site includes Bomag landfill compactors, also purchased from RMS. “We had a D65 prior to buying the two new ones, and it performed exceptionally well,” Schmidt said. “It worked exclusively in the construction and demolition area, which can be very hard on a machine. We put 12,000 hours on it and didn’t replace anything other than normal wear items. That helped us in deciding to go with Komatsu this time around. We expect these new machines will give us thousands of hours too.
“Product support is every bit as important to us as the quality of machinery,” Schmidt continued. “RMS has been excellent. Gary Buttz is without a doubt the most dedicated service technician I have ever seen. The deeper the mud and greasier the machine, the more he seems to like it. I've even called him on Saturdays when he's out deer hunting, but if we have an emergency, he's willing to come fix it.”
Potential growth
The North Central Iowa Regional Solid Waste Agency came into existence as tighter state regulations forced smaller landfills to close. Schmidt foresees that continuing, which would mean even more materials coming to Fort Dodge. “I believe it will probably happen,” he predicted. “Fort Dodge is centrally located, so it was a natural fit for a regional landfill and recycling center. It’s likely that we’ll grow more as the years go by.”