The machines which were purchased from Barnsley based dealer Warwick Ward are helping to improve productivity and reduce maintenance time by up to 20 hours a week.
Working across the company’s three main business areas at their two quarries in Wroot and Armthorpe, the machines join the two existing 821E’s in handling a variety of material which includes everything from heavy recycled aggregates to turning compost winrows and bagging rock salt. Combined, the two sites generate nearly 200,000 tonnes of material to be handled each year
At Armthorpe Quarry the depot for recycled aggregates. The composting work involves the CASE 821E machines being used for turning the material in winrows as it decomposes, as well as loading it into hoppers for shredding and screening. Because of the low density and high volumes of the materials involved, one of the CASE 821E machines has been fitted with a modified bucket. The bucket has been enlarged to allow the machine to be able to carry more material in one scoop therefore improving operating efficiency. This modification was undertaken on behalf of Yorkshire Aggregates by Warwick Ward, thus ensuring that warranties and service arrangements remained valid.
At Wroot Quarry the bagging plant sees the CASE 821E machines loading material – from compost to rock salt – into bags for delivery to customers. The machines can also be used to load material directly into lorries. At the recycled aggregates site, the machines are used to load material as well as for the heavy-duty work of pushing it up into stockpiles.
The CASE 821E comes with a Tier 3 compatible engine that produces 159kW, more than adequate for its standard 17,166kg operating weight and a bucket capacity ranging from 2,800 to 3,300 litres, allowing it to be both nimble and surefooted. Alongside this excellent power-weight ratio, the machine has an excellent reputation for design quality and reliability.
“We like the configuration of the cooling system in particular,” explains Paul Bird, Yorkshire Aggregates composting manager. “Previously we’ve had major problems with overheating, and the CASE system has gone a long way to resolving them. There has certainly been a big increase in productivity now we’re not stopping to clean the radiators. It’s difficult to say exactly how much, but we’d probably have cleared the radiators out twice a week on each machine previously, taking two hours a time to do it, so that’s four hours per machine per week, or twenty hours across all five machines.”
These efficiency savings have been complimented by the reliability of the machines. “I always assume there will be some problems on any machine as they’re put to very hard work, but there have been no real issues,” says Bird.
“We’d never had a CASE machine at Yorkshire Aggregates before, but we knew of CASE’s reputation in the market and also Warwick Ward’s good standing and that helped us,” says Paul Bird, composting manager. “Their backup service has proven very good, and it’s reassuring that they’re located close by – the dealers for rival machines are further away so it takes longer to get someone out if there’s a problem or even just for a service. The decision to buy is about the whole package, not just the machine or the price.”
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