A SUPERIOR MAT - SMS Equipment

AUGUST 2012
A SUPERIOR MAT
Unique features make Vögele’s 5200-series pavers
the right choice for large asphalt projects
Page 26
IN THIS ISSUE
ACI INC. ........................... 4
PIPEWORX LTD.................. 6
EBC................................. 10
TEXADA QUARRYING...... 14
PAVAGES ABÉNAKIS
LTÉE ............................... 18
ENGAGING
EXCAVATION
Komatsu’s KMAX tooth system
offers cost-effective solution
in a wide range of applications
Page 25
PROTRANS BC
OPERATIONS LTD............ 22
Pantone 072 blue
Bruce Knight
Dear Customers,
Innovation is one of the keys to leading the way in the marketplace,
and we believe the manufacturers we represent are the most innovative
in the industries they serve. Each sets the bar in terms of productivity and
efficiency. In this issue of your SMS Solutions, you can read about several
products that raise the industry standard, including our feature on the
Vögele 5200-series pavers.
Pavages Abénakis Ltée is one company that uses Vögele 5200 pavers,
which are designed for large paving projects. The Saint-Georges de Beauce,
Quebec, contractor also uses Hamm rollers, which, like Vögele, are part
of the Wirtgen Group of Products, an industry leader in paving products.
Wirtgen milling machines are also part of that group, and you can read
how ACI, another Quebec contractor, has put them to use for more than a
decade.
When it comes to construction and mining equipment, Komatsu is a
standard bearer in innovation, something our customers have known for
a long time. Our feature articles on Pipeworx, EBC and Texada Quarrying
highlight how these outstanding companies continue to build their
reputations for quality work with the help of Komatsu excavators, dozers
and haul trucks.
Innovation is part of the SMS Equipment culture as you’ll discover
within the article about how our Port Coquitlam branch helped
Protrans BC Operations LTD increase maintenance effectiveness and
efficiency with a creative and custom solution. We’ve also taken steps to
help customers reduce their downtime by streamlining our parts process
and expanding our service fleet with additional specialized trucks and
support vehicles. Learn more about these solutions within the current issue.
SMS Equipment is resolute in being your No. 1 equipment and solutions
provider. If there’s anything we can do to serve you better, please don’t
hesitate to call or visit any one of our branches throughout Canada.
2
Sincerely,
Bruce Knight
President and CEO
THE PRODUCTS PLUS
THE LOCATIONS TO SERVE YOU!
Head Office
IN THIS ISSUE
ACI INC.
Learn how this Quebec company, which specialises in road reclamation,
developed its own recycling “train.”
PIPEWORX LTD.
See how a nudge into business led this Alberta pipeline contractor into massive
success.
EBC
Read about this family business that grew to become a leader in each of its
fields of expertise, from construction and civil engineering to excavation.
TEXADA QUARRYING
Discover how an abundance of high-quality limestone has driven the success
of Lafarge North America’s Texada Island operations.
PAVAGES ABÉNAKIS LTÉE
With a focus on quality control, this Quebec asphalt-paving and aggregate
materials company has built its reputation and its customer base.
PROTRANS BC OPERATIONS LTD
Find out how SMS’ Port Coquitlam branch helped this Vancouver rail service
increase its efficiency by developing a specialized rail-car mover.
DIRECT DELIVERY
See how SMS has streamlined its process to get parts to its branches and
customers more quickly in order to reduce downtime.
ENGAGING EXCAVATION
Acheson (Edmonton), AB
(780) 948-2200
Eastern Region
Regional Office
Montreal (Dorval), QC
(514) 636-4950
Baie-Comeau, QC
(418) 296-6671
Chibougamau, QC
(418) 748-7615
Trois-Rivières, QC
(819) 375-9383
Val-d’Or, QC
(819) 874-3733
Fredericton, NB
(506) 457-5544
Chicoutimi, QC
(418) 549-0022
Moncton (Dieppe), NB
(506) 857-9513
Dorval, QC
(514) 636-4950
Goose Bay, NL
(709) 896-4904
Havre-St-Pierre, QC
(418) 538-1323
St. John’s (Paradise), NL
(709) 782-2151
Mirabel, QC
(450) 434-1992
Wabush, NL
(709) 282-3777
Quebec (St-Augustin), QC
(418) 870-1502
Timmins, ON
(705) 264-4300
St-Bruno, QC
(450) 441-1201
Western Region
Regional Office
Acheson, AB
(780) 948-2200
Acheson, AB
(780) 948-2200
Calgary, AB
(403) 569-1109
Kamloops, BC
(250) 374-6961
Prince George, BC
(250) 564-8841
Port Coquitlam, BC
(604) 941-6611
Edmonton, AB
(780) 451-2630
Surrey, BC
(604) 888-9700
Fort McMurray, AB
(780) 791-0616
Williams Lake, BC
(250) 305-1060
Learn about the unique features of Vögele’s 5200-series pavers that make them
the right choice for large asphalt projects.
Fort McMurray, AB
(780) 743-2622
Winnipeg, MB
(204) 487-1050
READY TO SERVE YOU
Grande Prairie, AB
(780) 532-9410
Looking for a cost-effective solution to bucket tooth replacement? Check out
Komatsu’s KMAX tooth system designed for a wide range of uses.
A SUPERIOR MAT
Read about the staff at SMS’ Saskatoon branch and how they are dedicated to
outstanding customer service.
Published by Construction Publications, Inc. for
Red Deer , AB
(403) 340-8343
Campbell River, BC
(250) 286-0694
Chetwynd, BC
(250) 788-7920
www.smsequip.com
Printed in Canada
© 2012 Construction Publications, Inc.
Elkford, BC
(250) 865-4651
Fort St. John, BC
(250) 785-8161
Houston, BC
(250) 845-7911
Yellowknife, NT
(867) 669-0738
Thunder Bay, ON
(807) 939-2262
Regina, SK
(306) 359-3121
Saskatoon, SK
(306) 931-0044
Whitehorse, YT
(867) 335-9742
ACI INC.
This paving company has partnered
with SMS from the beginning
I
In 1998, the job that Michel Bellerose had
held for nearly seven years with the milling
department of a company specializing in road
reclaiming and grading was eliminated. Shortly
thereafter, he informed his wife, Guylaine Filot,
that he intended to start his own business. With
the experience he gained in the road-recycling
and grading business, he founded ACI (Action,
Construction, Infrastructure) and set up shop in
the living room of the family home.
Partnering with his wife, Bellerose’s first
move was to purchase a CMI Pulvo and rent a
Wirtgen 1900 cold-milling machine from his then
partner, PRF. Shortly after, he hired a team of four
employees — two operators and two specialized
workers.
Michel Bellerose,
President of ACI
Inc., stands in front
of a Wirtgen W 250
cold-milling machine,
one of 10 Wirtgen units
the company owns.
Unfortunately, the company had no garage
facility. Any equipment that was sitting idle
between jobs and could not be left on a work site
had to be parked in front of the Bellerose house or
in the nearby churchyard. But that situation soon
changed.
In ACI’s first year of operation, a big ice
storm struck Montreal, leaving 150 to 250
millimetres of ice on the roads. The Town of
Mount Royal awarded ACI its first contract
ever, de-icing the streets. “We started by
‘grading ice’ in January, which is no small
feat,” recalled Guylaine Filot.
Demand for ACI’s services soon outgrew
Mr. Bellerose’s home workspace. So he
established the company’s new headquarters in
Anjou, on the premises of another construction
company, Excavation Anjou.
Just one year later, in 2000, Bellerose moved the
business back to Joliette where he had acquired a
building to house the company. In the meantime,
ACI had grown significantly and now had 20
employees on the payroll and quite a few more
Wirtgen milling machines, which required
leasing a nearby garage facility. Given the poor
state of the roads at that time, road repairs
became a booming business. The company’s
road-reclaiming activities, using pulverization,
stabilization and milling, expanded along with
the fleet needed to perform them.
Steady growth
In 2005, Bellerose bought back all the shares
in his company. At the same time, ACI outgrew
its office space just as the owners of the garage
facility reclaimed it in order to build a commercial
space. Realizing this was an excellent opportunity
to expand the business, Bellerose purchased an
empty lot and built a headquarters and garage
facility large enough to service all the ACI
equipment.
Progress continued through a five-year
period of continuous growth that brought more
expansion in 2010 with construction of another
building. ACI took over part of it and offered the
extra space to another company, Laboratoire 2000,
now named exp.
Today, ACI employs more than 60 people
and owns 10 Wirtgen milling machines and
4
The ACI recycling train is led by the Wirtgen W 2200 cold-milling machine. The company owns the largest fleet of milling machines in Quebec, which allows it to
meet the ever-increasing demand for replacing standard paving methods with cold recycling.
four Pulvos, as well as all of the accompanying
equipment, such as trailers, rollers, sweepers,
excavators, pavers, etc. ACI acquired much of
that equipment from SMS Equipment. Guylaine
Filot emphasized the close ties between SMS
and ACI since its inception. She gave particular
praise to SMS Sales Representative Dominique
Bérubé for his professionalism and dedication
and Pierre Turcotte, from Wirtgen America, for
his availability and expertise.
The recycling train — an
innovative idea
During the decade starting in the year
2000, ACI became specialized in cold milling
throughout Quebec, New Brunswick and in
Nunavut, notably at a project at the Rankin Inlet
airport in 2006. In most cases, ACI worked as a
subcontractor.
In Quebec, the majority of road-recycling
projects require correcting embankments
as well as a fast cure time that will provide
product stability until its surface can be sealed.
Meanwhile, traffic flow cannot be interrupted
during any part of the process. Because ACI
could not find any existing equipment that
met its criteria for product quality and work
function, it created an R&D team made up of
Engineer Michel Bellerose, Chief Mechanic,
Martin Bourgeois, Assessments and Assistant
Operations Manager Charles-André Pagé and, in
2011, Operations Manager Jim Thellier. Together
they worked to come up with a new way of
doing things that would enable them to deliver
a superior-quality finished product that met the
demands of the Quebec market.
After two years of research and experimentation,
the team came up with an innovative cold-recycling
train that used an approach unheard of in any
market. The process involves coating the material
as soon as it is pulverized, using energy generated
by the pulverizing drum to obtain a superior mix.
It allows the coated material to pre-cure while
continually drawing from a reserve of material. All
of these steps are executed simultaneously on one
lane so as not to disrupt traffic. To perform all these
functions at once, the ACI team modified various
electronic circuits and the hydraulic configuration
of a Wirtgen W 2200 with a 3.8-metre width. They
also added a computer and multiple sensors and
designed a hydrostatic tractor with task-specific
dimensions. Additionally, several other
components, such as an inventory management
system, were added, modified or adapted.
Martin Bourgeois,
Chief Mechanic
Basically, ACI reversed the action of a Wirtgen
milling machine, so that it will pulverize
in down-cut mode while still allowing a
rear-loading function. This inverse adaptation
also allows it to push the asphalt, water and
cement reserves forward. A Vögele paving
machine then uses the material to lay down a
continuous, single, 100-millimetre layer of the
new mix.
Using this unique recycling train, ACI became
a general contractor in the field of cold recycling
in 2010. Soon, the innovative integration of
the Wirtgen milling machine in the recycling
train caught the attention of the German
manufacturer’s engineers. They soon paid a
special visit to ACI to see how their machines
could be used in new ways — a real tribute to the
team’s inventive talent. ■
5
PIPEWORX LTD.
A nudge into business leads Alberta pipeline contractor to massive success
W
When Kelly Gillam, President and CEO of
Pipeworx Ltd., describes going into business for
himself, he jokingly says that he was pushed into
it by the oil company representatives for whom
he was working. Twelve years later, Kelly heads
one of the largest privately owned pipeline and
facility companies in western Canada.
“I worked for a few select companies for a
long time, and I talked about firing up on my
own for quite some time,” recalled Gillam, who
originally founded his own company under the
name of Kellam Pipelines Inc. in July of 2000.
“One day, an inspector called me up wanting
me to do a small pipeline and facility project for
him. I told him that I was not ready to take on
a project just yet. He swiftly replied, ‘I’ve heard
you say that you are going into business for
yourself for two years now, it’s time to step up
to the plate,’ so I took the plunge and did it.”
Kelly Gillam and his wife, Tracy, are owners of Pipeworx Ltd. based in Acheson,
Alberta. They started the company 14 years ago and now have about 500 employees.
Even before he took the initial swing, Gillam
and his wife, Tracy, who is the Office Manager
for Pipeworx, prepared for the transition from
employee to employer. They had saved money
to purchase supplies and materials required to
perform the work, as well as developed their
required safety manual, quality control manual
and weld procedures. In short order, Gillam
was working on his first $1 million-plus project.
Today, Gillam says projects of that size are
the norm for the Acheson, Alberta-based
company and states that they have completed
single projects in excess of $17 million within
tight time frames. Pipeworx is a leader in its
industry, performing work for many of the
established oil companies and specialising
in three-inch- to 20-inch-diameter pipelines.
Peaking at 500 employees, Pipeworx typically
runs 17 crews or “spreads” and attributes most
of its success and return work for its customers
to the high standard of quality, safe work that
all of its employees strive for on every project.
Pipeworx is currently performing projects
in all of the western provinces. In addition to
its head office located in Acheson, Alberta,
Pipeworx has offices and fabrication facilities
in Aldersyde and Grande Prairie, Alberta.
Pipeworx also has a shop in Hinton, Alberta, and
field offices in Dawson Creek, B.C., Stoughton,
Saskatchewan, and Waskada, Manitoba.
“Our niche is working in tough conditions
like muskeg, rock, and mountain-like
conditions, which separates us from many of
our competitors, as only a few specialise in such
rugged-terrain conditions,” noted Gillam. “For
instance, last year we installed 105 kilometres of
eight-inch pipeline in an area where the water
table was only inches from the surface. During
the bitter-cold winter months, we installed
6
Last winter,
Pipeworx used
its Komatsu
excavators to install
25 kilometres of
pipe in bitter-cold
conditions.
“Komatsu machines
give us outstanding
production, even in
the toughest ground
conditions,” said
Pipeworx President
Kelly Gillam.
25 kilometres of 18-inch pipe through the hills,
with multiple water crossings. We have also
been involved in the construction of some
rather large tank-farm and oil-battery facilities
within the past several years.”
Acquisitions bring strong
partners
One of the reasons Pipeworx can handle
such large projects today is because of the
acquisitions it has made. In 2007, Gillam
merged his very successful company, Kellam
Pipelines, with another successful venture,
Horseman Energy Services, essentially
doubling the company in size. The two
companies rebranded as Pipeworx. One year
later, the Pipeworx Group acquired another
very reputable facility-based company, Wolf
Projects. Pipeworx continued to grow both
through acquisitions and by expanding services
from within. The acquisitions brought new
partners into the business, including Kevin
Kutschinski, Garth Grubisich and Jason Ortt,
who heads up Pipeworx’s facility operations.
“They are not just my partners, they have
become my close friends,” Gillam stated.
“Pipeworx is an amalgamation of three
companies,” he pointed out. “Each brought
additional expertise, including very key people,
such as our three General Managers, Chad
Johannsen, Shane Cyrenne, and Darren Ward,
who collectively have made our business unit
much stronger. Our annual revenues have
increased substantially during the last few years
due to our reputation and quality of people.
While other companies were downsizing due
to the economic conditions in our industry, we
were growing.”
A Pipeworx
operator uses one
of the company’s
Komatsu D65PX
dozers to move
dirt at a tank-farm
facility.
Sold on Komatsu
With growth came the need for additional
equipment, much of which is Komatsu
excavators and dozers, purchased through SMS
Equipment with the help of Territory Manager
Kelvin Godin. Gillam began buying Komatsu
machinery about five years ago with an initial
purchase of three excavators.
“Three major factors came into play in buying
Komatsu equipment,” Gillam said. “The
warranty was better than on the competitor’s
machines we were previously running; the
overall purchase price was right and the
dealer service was outstanding,” he recalled,
noting that the latter factor played the biggest
role at the time. “What we have found is that
Komatsu machines also give us outstanding
production, even in the toughest ground
conditions in which we specialize, so it all adds
Continued. . .
7
New services, new markets offer growth opportunities
. . . continued
up to being extremely cost-effective equipment.
The acquisitions brought several brands of
competitive machines together in Pipeworx’s
fleet, and we are currently weeding those out.
Our plan is to be exclusively Komatsu.”
With about 100 pieces of heavy equipment
in Pipeworx’s fleet, keeping track of them can
be quite challenging. To assist in handling
this task, Gillam turns to the KOMTRAX
remote machine-monitoring system. “I can
pull up a machine on our secure Web site at
any given minute and see where it’s at, how
many hours are on it, idling time compared
to operating time, and the work mode in
which it is operating. It also makes scheduling
maintenance, which I am very aggressive about,
much easier. It’s a great fleet-management tool.
I am so impressed with the KOMTRAX system
that I am currently having the same tracking
tools installed on my sidebooms.”
Pipeworx handles service work on its
equipment, with help as needed from SMS
Equipment. “Kelvin has been terrific about
sourcing us the right equipment, whether we
need to purchase or rent a machine. Our Product
Support Representative Trent Daviduck offers us
great service as well. SMS really stands behind
the equipment and takes pride in its products,
and that is the largest reason we continue to
contact SMS for Komatsu machinery.”
Still growing
(L-R) SMS PSR
Trent Daviduck,
Pipeworx Ltd.
President/CEO
Kelly Gillam and
SMS Sales Rep
Kelvin Godin meet
frequently to assess
equipment needs.
A line of Komatsu excavators goes to work digging a trench for pipe installation in
Waskada, Manitoba. The machines are all equipped with KOMTRAX, Komatsu’s
exclusive, remote, machine-monitoring system.
“Pipeworx is not done growing yet,” Gillam
stated. “We recently started our own trucking
division, which has taken right off. We are
specializing in pipe and heavy-haul capabilities
and already have eight of our own Kenworth
units, along with 20 hi-boy trailers and a wide
variety of low-boys, jeeps, and boosters to
service all our own needs, as well as a rapidly
growing outside customer base. In addition,
we are currently looking into expanding our
business to incorporate directional drilling
services to assist in filling our own requirements
for this scope of work.”
“Our growth will be organic, meaning it will
come from adding services ourselves, rather
than simply acquiring a business,” explained
Gillam. “The other way we intend to grow
further is geographically. We have had requests
from select customers offering us opportunities
in the United States, so that is an avenue we
are evaluating now. Along the way, we have
developed strong relationships with many of
our clients, and because of those relationships,
we perform a large amount of prenegotiated
work on top of all our bid projects. If our
customers are asking us to expand into new
geographic areas, and it makes sense, we will
accommodate those requests to further expand
on those already ‘premier’ relationships. After
all, that’s how I got started on my own in the
first place.” n
8
D65-17
From Komatsu – The Dozer Experts
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productivity and operator comfort while lowering operating costs. All designed to
improve your bottom line.
• Efficient Komatsu Tier 4 Interim engine and automatic shift transmission with lockup torque
converter maximize productivity while saving fuel.
• PLUS (long life) undercarriage is standard, further reducing our already low operating costs.
• Komatsu CARE provides complimentary Tier 4 maintenance, including KDPF exchange filters.
Contact your Komatsu distributor for details.
www.komatsuamerica.com
EBC
This is one, big, family business
E
EBC has long been recognized as a leader in
each of its fields of specialty from construction and
civil engineering to excavation. Fernand Houle,
a 1961 civil engineering graduate of Sherbrooke
University, originally founded the company in
1968 as Entreprises Bon Conseil Ltée.
Martin Houle,
VP of Finance and
Administration
Martin Dubé,
Purchasing and
Logistics Manager
The company’s first publicly awarded contract
was for the expansion of the Quebec Academy
in Sainte-Foy in 1968. It completed the job below
the $1 million budget, which boosted confidence
among Mr. Houle’s backers as he was just starting
out in the commercial arena.
Riding on its success in construction, EBC
expanded into form work and concrete. In 1969,
the company obtained its first civil-engineering
project, working on the highway exchanges for the
Quebec City and Pierre-Laporte bridges. During
this time period, EBC also began diversification
into all fields related to civil engineering, such as
excavation; specialized underwater processes;
energy transport via GLR Inc., an affiliate
company; and in real estate, through Promotion
Immobilière Primum, also an affiliate.
This diversification in construction services
allowed EBC to work on $6 billion-plus of
contracts on more than 550 projects across Canada,
Sylvain Lortie,
Mechanical Service
Manager
This is EBC’s headquarters in
L’Ancienne-Lorette.
10
particularly in Quebec, Ontario, New Brunswick,
British Columbia and Labrador.
The EBC name was associated with a
majority of the large-scale construction projects
in Quebec in the ’80s, ’90s and 2000s. They
included Metro stations in Montreal and Laval;
hydroelectric work in James Bay, SM-3 (Sainte
Marguerite), Tulnustuk and Péribonka; wind
turbines; excavation and earthmoving; roads;
tunnels; waterworks and sewers.
According to Martin Houle, the company’s
Vice President of Finance and Administration,
2011 was a year of transition, as he recalled
several challenges the company had to
overcome this past year.
“The first was to take on new markets, such as
the mining industry. The second was to ensure
the availability of equipment and personnel
required to work in these markets. The third
was to maintain our personnel’s technological
know-how and their ability to master the
technology built into the new equipment.”
Moving toward new markets
From the start of 2000, construction activity
has been particularly intense for the industry as
a whole, but 2011 proved to be a very important
year for EBC’s growth. “We experienced
a significant increase in work volume and
we sought to develop new markets,” noted
Mr. Houle. “We focused on mining in particular
because this sector is constantly expanding in
Quebec, but we had not had a large presence
there. The increase in work load, significantly
increased the size of our equipment fleet, as it
nearly doubled this year.”
EBC is currently working on projects in
Fermont with Cliffs Natural Resources and
in Nunavut with Canadian Royalties. At this
time, its role is primarily providing mining
companies with support services, such as site
preparation, clearing mining residue, building
levees and embankments, etc.
This Komatsu
PC1250 excavator
is at work at Lac
Bloom’s jobsite
in Fermont.
“What sets EBC apart is that our services
are complete and comprehensive,” observed
Mr. Houle. “We can offer the entire array of
construction services from building completion
to site operation, including drilling, dynamiting
and tunneling. EBC can do it all, and few
companies can claim that.”
and Transports Québec, building dams and
roads,” observed Mr. Houle. “But with Plan
Nord and the increased presence of mining
companies, along with wind-turbine energy
production supported by private enterprise, our
customer base is becoming more diversified and
privatized.”
A changing environment
To meet their immediate needs while working
with a fluctuating market value for raw
materials, customers must often launch projects
quickly. Contrary to Hydro-Québec or the MTQ,
whose plans are complete prior to the start of a
project, private-sector customers will give the
go-ahead before plans are complete. Contracting
firms and their customers must work together
as a team to develop the project, which is often
an adjustment for the contractor as it must
adapt to customers’ demands in this new way of
operating. That requires flexibility and an ability
to adapt to the changes that inevitably arise
during a project.
“There will always be room for small and
medium-size businesses in construction, but we
can’t ignore the current trend toward big projects
that require vast financial resources,” continued
Mr. Houle. “Whether it’s a project like the Turcot
exchange or the super hospitals, the reality in
Quebec is that public-private partnerships are
now the norm and are composed of large, foreign,
financial groups with deeper pockets than most
Quebec-based companies. If the future is in
super-size projects, we have to acknowledge that
it’s a serious issue for Quebec contractors like us.
“The companies that own these megaprojects
are financing them, and that is something we
were not familiar with in Quebec. We will have to
master this process because it seems to be the way
the markets are going. These are turnkey projects
that include planning, design, financing and
execution. It’s a shift we must learn to manage. If
we want to participate in these big deals, we have
to envision partnerships,” he added. “Even large
financial groups will need Quebec contractors
and labourers to complete the work.”
In addition to projects involving
public-private partnerships, the evolving
marketplace is also affected by changes in
civil engineering and excavation. “Until
recently these sectors were the domain of
government entities, such as Hydro-Québec
Equipment challenges
With multiple projects coming together
simultaneously, the supply of heavy equipment,
both in terms of size and quantity, becomes
critical. Contractors and equipment distributors
alike have to forecast their needs and inventory
based on anticipated demand.
Developing new markets, especially in the
mining sector, has created some serious challenges
for EBC. Purchasing and Logistics Manager
Martin Dubé points out the difference between
contractors’ circumstances and the big mining
companies’ situations. “The latter plan their
investments over the long term and can order
Continued. . .
11
Efficient equipment provides higher productivity
. . . continued
equipment several months in advance, so they
are less worried about delivery delays. The same
can’t be said for contractors, who have little time
to order their machinery. Sometimes they have
less than a month between being awarded a
contract and having to start work on it.
“We are using equipment that we already
had in our fleet, such as Komatsu 50-tonne
(45-metric-tonne) trucks or PC750 and PC800
excavators, on current projects,” said Mr. Dubé.
“However, as we expand our field of operations,
we will need bigger and higher-performing
equipment. In 2011, we added a Komatsu PC1250
excavator to our fleet, and the next machines we
plan to purchase will be a PC2000 and several
HD785 haul trucks. Now we just need the
contracts to warrant the investment.”
“This is the type of situation we come up
against continually in construction,” reported
Mr. Houle. “We’ve dealt with it on other projects,
such as the Romaine River Dam, wind-turbine
farms or the Ultramar pipeline, where we
and our partners were able to manage a quick
turnaround to get the equipment needed to
complete the work. We were able to do that,
thanks to SMS and our Sales Representative
Michel Charest. It was a big challenge for us and
SMS because we required quite a few pieces of
equipment, many of which are hard to find in
Quebec. Plus, the deadline was very tight. For
EBC it’s critical to be supported by an equipment
supplier that can meet our needs quickly, and
SMS definitely fits the bill.”
The need for skilled labour
Faced with more complex tasks, contractors
must invest in training employees in new
skills. “We live in an increasingly technological
environment,” Mr. Houle pointed out. “This
holds true for our machine operators as well,
who must have the proper training to operate
the highly sophisticated machinery used on our
jobsites. We definitely need properly trained
personnel and training centres that provide them
with the newest techniques.
“However, the main issue is the general lack
of available labour throughout Quebec,” he
continued. “We also have to take into account the
difficulty of hiring in remote regions, especially
because of the quality of life young workers are
12
seeking. Most couples are two-income earners,
making them more independent and reluctant to
leave the city.
“Mining companies that want a quick return
on their investment also compete for workers,”
Mr. Houle explained. “They raise the pay scale to
attract the labour needed for their projects. That
puts huge pressure on contractors’ employee
salaries. For example, health and safety inspectors
are in high demand in the city and are very
difficult to attract to remote regions. These are
very important positions nowadays as the No. 1
priority on jobsites is safety, and inspectors must
be involved from the planning stage on. Starting
in 1989, EBC put a program in place that goes
beyond prevention; it is a safety management
program we use on all our sites. Our objective is
to have zero lost-time accidents. We believe safety
and prevention go hand-in-hand.”
Employee training is important
According to Mechanical Service Manager
Sylvain Lortie, another challenge is making
sure employee training keeps up with the latest
technology. That’s where SMS’ support is vital to
machine operator training. “In the last 10 years,
technological innovation has revolutionized
construction machinery,” he acknowledged.
“From the introduction of Tier 4 engines in all new
equipment to the KOMTRAX remote equipmentmonitoring system, SMS has been essential in
keeping us up-to-date.
“These technologies require information and
training for our operators,” noted Mr. Lortie.
“The improvements are necessary, but it takes
a while for us to be entirely comfortable with
them. Developing new markets brings the need
for a large quantity of new machines with new
technology. My role is to maintain all of this
equipment and to find qualified technicians to do
that or train them ourselves.
“EBC’s objective is to start and complete a
project as quickly as possible,” he continued.
“An issue for me is that the period between
the beginning and end of a contract is often too
short to completely master a new technology.
We’re always playing catch-up with technology
that evolves faster than we do, which makes it
difficult to recruit qualified personnel quickly.
More than ever, we need the support of our
EBC uses its
Komatsu D275AX
dozer to work on a
wind-turbine job at
the Plateau in the
Gaspé Peninsula.
equipment distributor, where previously we
were much more autonomous, working on
machines we knew well.”
To manage maintenance and repairs on a
continuously expanding fleet of equipment, EBC
has implemented specific maintenance systems,
first in Quebec City on a trial basis, and then on
other jobsites. Given that the fleet includes more
than 750 motorized units and grows to almost
4,000, when counting all of the accompanying
equipment in inventory, an efficient inventory
control is absolutely necessary.
Nearly half of the excavation equipment
fleet, such as excavators, wheel loaders, trucks,
and dozers, is Komatsu. SMS keeps a service
truck on site at all times to help manage the
rapidly changing equipment technology. Mr.
Lortie points out that he purchased three similar
excavators at three different times during the
past year, and each one had different technology.
“I can’t emphasize enough the importance of
our relationship to SMS and making the most
out of its technical support services. SMS also
keeps us informed on the latest technological
developments, especially with the Tier 4
engines.”
A Pan-Canadian relationship
Martin Dubé isn’t shy about complimenting
the SMS staff who work with EBC. “The quality
of service has kept pace with our company’s
growth curve throughout the last 20 years.
Because we work not only in Quebec but across
Canada, having a Pan-Canadian distributor like
SMS is important for us. SMS offers the entire
range of products we need, whether for mining
or construction.”
“We are very pleased with the relationship
we’ve built with SMS,” Mr. Houle added. “Our
expectations were very high, and they have been
able to meet our difficult demands.”
SMS Sales Rep Michel Charest pointed out the
satisfaction is mutual because Komatsu chose
EBC to participate in its Brand Management
program. The program targets strategic markets,
such as mining and companies working in
that field, focussing on Komatsu’s excellent
high-value-added services, including accelerated
product delivery, parts and service.
Mr. Houle emphasized that EBC is entirely
Quebec-owned and remains a family business that
upholds the values ingrained by its founder. “The
Houle family is no longer the sole owner, as several
key employees are now partners,” he explained.
“But the original founding values, such as
respecting our word, respecting people, planning,
thoroughness and maintaining budgets and time
lines, are still what guide our operations. These are
the values we pass on to our employees and we
will retain those values as we grow.” n
13
TEXADA QUARRYING
Abundance of high-quality limestone drives
Lafarge North America’s Texada Island operations
O
Shawn Holloway,
General Manager
One hundred kilometres north of Vancouver
sits one of the most significant mineral reserves
in all of Canada. For more than 100 years,
companies such as Lafarge North America
have pulled building and energy products and
precious metals from Texada Island.
then, companies such as Lafarge have mined
millions of tonnes of the products produced
there today. The company also imports coal,
gypsum and slag by barge to a deep-sea port
on the island and, in turn, exports its products
via ships to overseas customers.
Working from two pits with about 80 people,
including 30 staff, Lafarge North America
mines high-quality limestone, constructionand asphalt-quality aggregates from an area
where gold was mined a century ago and
iron was harvested until the 1970s. Since
“Between our aggregate and limestone
plants, we’ll move about 3 million tonnes of
material this year,” said General Manager
Shawn Holloway. “Limestone production
is by far the largest part of our operations
because the quality is so good. It’s used in
everything from cement and chemical plants
to agriculture and medical fields. Some
even goes into products such as makeup
and toothpaste. Each customer has its own
preference for the colour and gradation, so we
sort it out during the processing.”
Processing the limestone, known as “white
rock” at Texada Quarrying, involves several
steps. The quarry first blasts the material to
a large size, then breaks it down into smaller
pieces, using equipment such as its Komatsu
PC300LL excavator equipped with a breaker.
Crews then load those pieces into a crusher
where they go through cones of various sizes
to make several final products.
Texada Quarrying’s
limestone-crushing
operations begin at
its Jeffrey impact
crusher and end
after material travels
eight kilometres on
conveyor belts to
the deep-sea port on
Texada Island.
14
“Because we’re dealing with tough
conditions, we believe it is important to
have a machine that can stand up to the
challenge,” explained Maintenance Manager
Dan Anderson. “The PC300LL is actually
a forestry machine. It has the advantage of
a PC300 excavator upper structure on top
of a high, wide, heavy-duty, PC400-size
undercarriage. It’s proven to be a good fit. We
have a few thousand hours on it, and it’s been
relatively maintenance-free.”
Continued. . .
www.SMSSolutionsMagazine.com
online
video
online
video a new, Komatsu HD785-7 rigid-frame truck to its fleet to haul limestone from the quarry to a crusher. The
In 2011, Texada Quarrying added
truck carries its 90-tonne payload about 12 hours a day. “It hasn’t missed a beat,” said Maintenance Manager Dan Anderson.
Texada Quarrying
Operator Mick
Pansich sorts and
sizes “white rock”
limestone with this
Komatsu PC300LL
hydraulic excavator.
15
High product demand secures future for Texada Quarrying
. . . continued
Komatsu HD785 doesn’t
miss a beat
Lafarge North America’s Texada Quarrying
operation worked with SMS Equipment’s
Vancouver branch when it purchased the
PC300LL about four years ago. Last year it
added a 90-tonne HD785-7 rigid-frame haul
truck to move materials on site.
“The limestone is fairly lightweight after
it’s been crushed, so in order to get 90 tonnes
on the HD785, we have to pile it fairly high,”
said Anderson. “But whether we’re moving
that or heavier materials, the payload tonnage
is the same, and the truck has to handle those
payloads on average about 12 hours a day.
The HD785 hasn’t missed a beat.”
Anderson noted that the Texada Quarrying
drivers also like the HD785. “The drivers say
SMS Equipment
Account Manager Dave
LaRiviere (left) regularly
meets with Dan
Anderson, Maintenance
Manager for Lafarge
North America’s Texada
Quarrying operation.
Anderson notes that
the Texada Quarrying drivers prefer the company’s
Komatsu HD785 haul truck. “The Komatsu is much
quieter and they don’t feel beat up at the end of the
day like they do with other truck brands.”
Texada Quarrying ships 3.3 million tonnes of aggregate and limestone by barge each year.
16
they notice a significant difference in terms of
noise, compared to the competitive trucks on
site. The Komatsu is much quieter, and they
don’t feel beat up at the end of the day like
they do with other brands. That’s a real bonus,
on top of the high availability and production
we get with the HD785.”
Holloway said he expects to get that
availability and production for many years to
come. “We talked with other Lafarge operations
that use Komatsu trucks, and they had good
things to say about them. That played a role in
our purchase of the HD785. Based on what those
operations told us and our projections, we’re
expecting to get at least 40,000 hours out of the
truck during its lifetime.”
In it for the long haul
Although Lafarge North America Texada
Quarrying is already mining products from
as deep as 500 feet, Holloway said the site has
vast reserves with plenty of material to last
well into the future.
“The demand for our products, especially
limestone, remains high, and we don’t see that
changing anytime soon. With our expertise
and a good store of high-quality product,
along with the strong partnerships we’ve built
with our customers, the future looks as bright
as our past and present. We’ll be here for a
long time to come,” Holloway predicted.” n
100%
proven
If you want to move more material more cost-effectively, you want Komatsu machines.
Our complete line of rugged, reliable mining equipment—including trucks, shovels
and wheel loaders—is engineered to:
• Lower costs per ton
•Reduce cycle times
•Provide the longest life
We also offer exclusive customer support programs and services tailored to your specific needs.
When your success is measured by the ton, Komatsu delivers the productivity you need.
Komatsu is the proven solution.
100% Komatsu.
KA13
866.513.5778
www.komatsuamerica.com
PAVAGES ABÉNAKIS LTÉE
This Quebec asphalt-paving and aggregate materials company has built its success through quality control
I
In 1970, Russel Pouliot purchased Pavages
Abénakis Ltée in Saint-Georges de Beauce,
Quebec. At the time, the company specialized
in producing and laying asphalt pavement for
its customers in the Beauce and Bellechasse
areas. It had one quarry and one asphalt plant.
Since then, the company’s range of services has
greatly evolved, triggering impressive growth.
Today, its business horizons stretch well beyond
the province of Quebec.
A Pavages Abénakis
Ltée operator puts the
company’s Vögele Vision
5200-2 paver to work.
But one thing that hasn’t changed is the
company’s focus on quality. “The procedures we
follow for quality control are focussed on three
sectors: aggregate production, coated-asphalt
materials and contract execution for our
customers,” explained Pavages Abénakis
Ltée Technical Director Maxime Pouliot.
“Our customers’ needs and requirements
are the building blocks of the entire chain of
quality control. My role as Technical Director
is to ensure that quality-control measures are
established, applied and maintained throughout
the entire operation. I’m accountable to the
management team for the performance of our
Quality Management System (QMS) and any
needed improvements,” he added.
Along with Maxime, that management team
includes his father CEO Yves Pouliot, Maxime’s
brother Sébastien and their sister Caroline.
Maxime, a 2001 graduate in Geological
Engineering from Laval University, also
earned a master’s degree in Construction
Engineering from ETS (École de technologie
supérieure). Sébastien also graduated from
Laval University with a degree in Business
Administration. Caroline has a degree in music
but started working for the company during
her studies. She is particularly interested
in human resources and the application of
ISO standards. She works with Maxime on
implementing the company’s Quality Control
Policy manual.
Constant growth
The growth spurt for Pavages Abénakis began
in 1980, when the company acquired a second
asphalt plant in Saint-Georges de Beauce,
which allowed it to increase production beyond
what its first plant in Saint-Léon-de-Standon
was producing. In 1987, the company bought
a third asphalt-mixing plant with an even
higher production capacity that proved to be
quite profitable. With the new plant, Pavages
Abénakis was able to take on a large-scale
project in Nunavut a few years later. That project
involved paving the runway for the airport
in Iqualuit, which, at the time, was the third
longest in Canada.
When material from the company’s original
gravel pit in Saint-Léon-de-Standon was
exhausted, Pavages Abénakis opened a
quarry on the same site in 1987. The new pit
18
Pavages Abénakis Ltée operators use the company’s Hamm HD 140 roller and Vögele Vision 5200-2 paver. The company is currently involved in the construction
of Highway A-73 as a subcontractor for Roxboro Inc., working on the interchange and junctions linking the highway to Saint-Georges de Beauce (the future 74th
Street).
gave the company access to quality stone
and considerably increased the quality of
the raw materials it used for manufacturing
asphalt. The next year, in order to pursue its
expansion strategy and reinforce its position
as a market leader, Pavages Abénakis opened
a second quarry on the Saint-Georges de
Beauce site.
The company recognized the growth
potential in the aggregate market, and in
the early 2000s, acquired the most high-tech
mobile crushing equipment available. Since
then, it has continued to open and operate new
quarry sites and further develop aggregate
materials. Along the same growth tangent,
at the end of 2006, the company delved into
construction project management in the road
and municipal engineering sectors.
Today, Pavages Abénakis employs about
85 people. It operates three plants, producing
asphalt-coated materials, as well as two,
semi-mobile, independent, crushing facilities and
two mobile crushing units for manufacturing
aggregate materials for foundations.
A quality-control policy
As Pavages Abénakis began taking on larger
and more complex projects, the management
team implemented effective and recognized
business-management practices to help ensure
that the business continued operating smoothly
on its growth curve.
“One of our biggest challenges was to continue
satisfying our customers by providing quality
products, keeping production costs as low as
possible and ensuring continuous improvement
in company performance,” recalled Maxime
Pouliot. “To accomplish that, Pavages Abénakis
implemented a Quality Management System
that applied to all of our operations and earned
the company ISO 9001:2008 status.”
Mr. Pouliot emphasizes the importance
of quality control at every level of company
activity. Quality control procedures are laid
out in a Quality Control Policy manual, which
is the reference for the company’s Quality
Management System (QMS). The manual
includes the company history, its organizational
structure, production methods, and a stated
Continued . . .
19
Quality products, services lead to customer satisfaction
. . .continued
commitment to applying the system using all of
the quality-control procedures.
Quality equipment, quality jobs
In addition to the company’s specialization in
aggregate and coated-material manufacturing,
Pavages Abénakis’ expertise in construction
project management has earned it numerous
contracts with Transports Québec.
Currently, Pavages Abénakis Ltée is involved
in the construction of Highway A-73 as a
subcontractor for Roxboro Inc., working on the
interchange and junctions linking the highway to
Saint-Georges de Beauce (the future 74th Street).
To handle such projects efficiently and with the
high quality it’s known for, the company has an
impressive fleet of heavy machinery from SMS
Equipment that includes Komatsu articulated
trucks, two excavators (a PC400 and a PC200)
and paving and compacting equipment from
Vögele and Hamm.
“Our modern and efficient equipment allows
us to meet the standards set by Transports
Québec and Public Works Canada, as well as
individual municipalities,” noted Mr. Pouliot.
“Pavages Abénakis has created a niche in
road infrastructure that is tailored to a broad
customer base. At the same time, we’ve
developed an array of products requiring very
high quality standards. We have been able to
incorporate all that without neglecting our
loyal individual and commercial customers.”
Pavages Abénakis Ltée has made its mark
in the asphalt and aggregate industry, thanks
to the experience of its management team and
employees, along with strong support from CEO
Yves Pouliot. Also strongly supported by another
very valuable asset — its Quality Management
System — the company’s solid expertise in
aggregate crushing, manufacturing and laying
of coated asphalt, and project management has
solidified Pavages Abénakis Ltée’s enviable
reputation and secured its future success. n
Pavages Abénakis Ltée’s Vögele Vision 5200-2 paver and Hamm HD 140 roller work in tandem on the Highway A-73 job. “Our modern and efficient equipment
allows us to meet the standards set by Transports Québec and Public Works Canada, as well as individual municipalities,” noted Maxime Pouliot, Pavages
Abénakis Ltée Technical Director.
20
PROTRANS BC OPERATIONS LTD
SMS’ Port Coquitlam branch helps Vancouver
rail servicer increase maintenance efficiency
O
Dave Carpenter,
Manager of
Rolling Stock
Zenon Jalbert,
Vehicle Supervisor
Developed by SMS
Equipment, the electric car
mover that PORTRANS BC
OPERATIONS LTD uses is
more efficient, cleaner and
safer than its old diesel system.
Opened in August of 2009, the high-speed-rail
Canada Line began moving a few thousand
passengers a day around the greater Vancouver
area. Nearly three years later, the fleet of 20 trains
shuttles nearly 110,000 people a day between
downtown Vancouver, central Richmond and
the Vancouver International Airport.
One of the largest public-private partnerships
in Canadian history, the Canada Line is a
19-kilometre automated system. SNC-Lavalin
contracted the design and construction of the
rail system and provided partial financing. A
subsidiary, PROTRANS BC, oversees operation
and maintenance under a 35-year agreement.
Maintenance includes servicing trains —
typically two to three each day — which
involves tasks such as changing gear-box
oil at PROTRANS BC OPERATIONS LTD’s
Operations and Maintenance Centre (OMC).
When it was constructed, moving trains into
and out of the OMC for service was handled
with a propane car mover.
“That system had a number of drawbacks,
to say the least,” stated Dave Carpenter,
Manager of Rolling Stock. “Among them was
inefficiency. The car mover hooked to one end
of the train, and would only bring it into the
building so far. Then we had to hook it on the
back of the train to push it in the rest of the
way. It required two people. We considered
it a dirty system too, because of the use of the
exhaust, and to be honest, it was hazardous.”
Wanting a better system, Carpenter and
Vehicle Supervisor Zenon Jalbert contacted
SMS Equipment’s Port Coquitlam branch.
“I had a design in mind for an electric car
mover, and I literally drew it on a napkin,”
said Carpenter of the battery-driven car
mover. “The people at SMS took that idea
and developed it, so we can hook it up to a
car and pull it in and push it out. It saves us
a step on both ends, and one person can do it
using a tethered control. The battery-driven
car is safer, and we can allocate the second
person to other areas, such as inspection.
Needless to say, we’re extremely pleased with
SMS’ ingenuity.”
“We expected SMS would be able to
deliver,” Jalbert continued. “They helped
us with the lighting system on the trains,
providing a solution that gave us better
visibility without the mechanical problems
we were having. They assist us with motor
rewinds, repressing axles and wheels,
electronic components and anything else we
throw at them. They’re local and approved by
the American Association of Railroads. SMS
has become a great partner in our success.
The people at SMS have saved us valuable
time and expense, and we’ll continue to look
to them for many of our future needs.” n
22
LOADERS
From Komatsu - The Loader Experts
The WA380-7 Tier 4 Interim Wheel Loader is a class leading performer with
improvements in production, fuel efficiency, operator comfort and serviceability.
• Komatsu Smart Loader Logic reduces fuel consumption while maintaining production.
• Large capacity torque converter with lock-up provides 10% fuel savings.
• New 7” LCD multi-function monitor panel provides easy access machine diagnostics.
• Komatsu CARE provides complimentary Tier 4 maintenance, including Komatsu Diesel
Particulate Filter exchange. Contact your Komatsu distributor for details.
www.komatsuamerica.com
DIRECT DELIVERY
Streamlined process gets parts to SMS branches
more quickly, reduces customer downtime
I
Kitty Murphy,
Manager, Purchasing
& Transportation
In 2009, SMS Equipment streamlined the
process to deliver Komatsu parts to its western
branches from Komatsu’s Parts Distribution
Center (PDC) in Ripley, Tennessee. With
assistance from Komatsu and Manitoulin
Transport, one of SMS’ freight providers, a
system was developed to get the parts to the
branches more efficiently. It involves running
dedicated trucks from Ripley to Manitoulin’s
terminal in Calgary, where the parts are sorted
and shipped to the designated SMS Branch.
“Our direct-trucking system eliminates
multiple handlings and carriers, speeding
up our delivery times,” said Kitty Murphy,
Manager of Purchasing and Transportation.
“We’ve grown the number of deliveries each
year: in 2009 we shipped 74 loads for 2.6
In order to expedite parts delivery to customers, SMS Equipment runs dedicated trucks
from Komatsu’s Parts Distribution Center in Ripley, Tennessee, to the Manitoulin
terminal in Calgary for distribution to the SMS branches in western Canada.
million pounds and in 2011, 208 loads carried
7.4 million pounds. That’s nearly 300 percent
more than when we started.”
SMS anticipates moving approximately
276 loads of parts (9.8 million pounds) into
western Canada in 2012. For the increased
parts demand, SMS will rely both on its
direct-trucking system as well as on a PDC
in Edmonton, which now receives daily
shipments from Ripley containing parts
destined for western Canada. SMS and
Manitoulin will send out parts to places as far
away as Whitehorse and Yellowknife.
In addition to routine service items, some
of the most common items that SMS mining
customers need are ground-engaging tools
(GET), such as teeth, adapters and shrouds.
These come from Hensley (a Komatsu-owned
company) in Dallas, Texas. “We decided that
in order to keep up with demand, it made
sense to apply the same system to the Hensley
products,” noted Murphy. “So, we are running
dedicated trucks from the Hensley plant
to Calgary, where the parts are sorted and
shipped to the designated SMS Branch.”
Murphy also explained that dedicated
trucking not only saves time, but, it keeps costs
down as well. “In most cases, we are getting
the parts in half the time we used to, which
in turn reduces downtime for customers,”
Murphy pointed out. “Because parts come
on trucks, as opposed to air freight, the cost
is lower, too. Of course, if a customer has an
emergency, we’ll do whatever we can to get
the needed parts as quickly as possible. But,
if a machine is going down for scheduled
maintenance, and the customer can wait a
few days to get the parts in, the cost can be
significantly lower.” n
24
24
ENGAGING EXCAVATION
Komatsu’s KMAX tooth system offers cost-effective
solution in a wide range of applications
I
In 2003, when Komatsu introduced its
KMAX tooth system, it was limited to six
tooth styles strictly for excavators. Today,
those numbers have expanded to more than
20 ground-engaging tools for both excavators
and wheel loaders — PC120 to PC800 and
WA150 to WA800 — that handle a wide range
of applications.
“There’s a right fit for virtually anyone who
does excavation or similar types of work,
whether they need teeth for digging in clay
or rock, or they need something with good
penetration into a pile, such as quarry work,”
said Gary Jones, General Manager Product
Support & Marketing for Hensley Industries,
a Komatsu company that produces the KMAX
tooth system. “The number of styles we have
is a direct result of listening to our customers’
needs and cost-effectively crafting teeth that
meet those needs.”
The KMAX tooth system, which now
comes on Komatsu buckets, is cost-effective
for several reasons, said Jones. Chief among
them is durability, which is achieved through
superior heat treatment that hardens KMAX
teeth to the core, as opposed to some teeth
that have hard exteriors but are soft on the
inside.
“That gives our teeth a longer life, allowing
use to 60 percent of wear as opposed to the
usual 40 percent before replacement,” said
Marketing Manager Brent Dennis. “Heat
treatment to the core is one part of the equation.
Another is our streamlined design that allows
KMAX teeth to offer better penetration of the
material while staying sharper longer. That
means added efficiency and durability for
lower owning and operating costs.”
Fast, easy, safe
When teeth need to be changed, the
process is fast, easy and safe. Users simply
need a socket wrench to unlock the reusable,
non-load-bearing fastener in order to remove
the tooth from the adapter on the bucket. After
placing the new tooth on, it’s easy to tighten
it back down. In most cases, the process takes
less than a minute.
“We believe it’s the best system on the
market because there are no pins to be
hammered out,” said Jones. “Our teeth are
designed so that if users see uneven wear, they
can flip the teeth.”
“While KMAX teeth are first-fit on Komatsu
machinery, the KMAX system can adapt for
use on other brands,” Dennis pointed out.
“If you add it all up — durability, better
penetration of material, speed of tooth
changes, safety — we’re convinced the KMAX
system offers the best tooth value in the
industry.” n
Gary Jones,
GM Product Support
& Marketing,
Hensley Industries
Brent Dennis,
Marketing Mgr.,
Hensley Industries
www.SMSSolutionsMagazine.com
onlin
vide
online
video
Komatsu’s KMAX
tooth system offers
durability in more
than 20 tooth styles
for a wide range of
excavators and wheel
loaders. It’s easy and
safe because the system
requires only a socket
wrench — no pins to
hammer — to remove
and replace teeth from
the adaptors.
25
A SUPERIOR MAT
Unique features make Vögele’s 5200-series pavers
the right choice for large asphalt projects
T
Two keys to a successful and profitable
asphalt- paving project are a quality mat and
the speed with which you can lay it down.
You’ll get both with Vögele’s 5200-series
pavers that come in both wheel (5203-2) and
track (5200-2) models to handle large paving
projects, such as highways.
Vögele’s three-metre
(10-foot) pavers feature
ErgoPlus, which is designed
to simplify operators’ work
and put them in a position
that allows excellent
visibility to the hopper,
screed and auger tunnel.
26
Part of Vögele’s unique Vision Series, both
three-metre (10-foot) pavers feature ErgoPlus,
which is designed to simplify operators’
work and put them in a position that allows
excellent visibility to the hopper, screed
and auger tunnel. The ease of operation
and superior visibility allow contractors
to complete projects more quickly and
efficiently.
ErgoPlus places vital paver functions
in logically arranged groups on the
operator’s console, which has a modular
design. Located on the console is Vögele’s
NIVELTRONIC Plus, its efficient system for
automatic grade and slope control.
With 179-kW (240-hp), six-cylinder
engines, the 5200-series machines offer
Vögele’s 5200-series pavers offer paving speeds of up to 76 metres (83 yards) per minute, with ideal weight-to-power ratios. Their
fuel-tank capacity of 401 litres (106 gallons) allows for more paving between fillups.
paving speeds of up to 76 metres (83 yards)
per minute, with ideal weight-to-power
ratios. While powerful, the engines have
ECO mode that provides low noise level and
fuel consumption, meaning you’ll lay down
more asphalt between fillups of the 401-litre
(106-gallon) fuel tank.
High laydown rate,
consistent texture
The 5200-2 models have a laydown rate
of 1,200 metric tonnes (1,300 short tonnes)
per hour from the large material hopper
that holds 6.8 cubic metres (240 cubic feet)
and 14,243 kg (31,400 pounds). A sloped
inner design allows optimal flow of material
to avoid segregation. The hydraulically
operated hopper apron prevents material
spills during truck exchanges and sends
material directly to the conveyors,
minimizing hand work.
Individual hydraulic drives for the conveyors
and augers provide high laydown rates and
optimal material handling. Proportional
control and continuous monitoring guarantee
a constant head of material at the front of the
screed. Large-diameter (51-cm/16-inch) auger
flights with precision pitch ensure excellent
spreading of material when paving in large
widths with lower engine rpm.
A consistent surface texture is achieved by
uniform electric heating of the screed plates.
Three screed options are available, including
the Vögele VR600-2 with pre-strike-off
and rear-mounted extensions for mainline
applications up to 8.5 metres (28 feet).
Positive and negative crown can be paved
with all screed types.
Easy maintenance
With features such as auto tensioning of
the conveyors, Vögele made maintaining
its 5200-series pavers easier by virtually
eliminating daily maintenance. When service
is needed, it can be done by opening the
full-length side doors and the raised engine
cowling. There are also two maintenance
openings on the operator platform.
For more information on Vögele’s
5200-2 and 5203-2, or other Vision Series
pavers, contact your SMS Equipment Sales
Representative or your local SMS Equipment
branch. n
27
READY TO SERVE YOU
Veteran SMS staff dedicated to outstanding
customer service in northern Saskatchewan
S
Service Technician Adrian Roberts is
approaching 40 years with SMS Equipment and
its predecessor companies. He’s seen fellow
employees come and go, experienced major
changes in equipment and handled nearly
anything related to service on that equipment.
“What hasn’t changed is our approach
to keeping our customers’ downtime to a
minimum,” said Roberts, who works in the
shop and the field for SMS Equipment’s
Saskatoon branch. “Nothing is more important
than that, and so even an older guy like me
can’t skip training that keeps us up-to-date on
equipment. There are many more technical
pieces to machinery compared to when I
started in the 1970s. Of course, we have more
sophisticated diagnostic tools too.”
Roberts is one of seven technicians at SMS
Equipment’s Saskatoon branch, which services
northern Saskatchewan. Joining him are Ted
Blechinger, Dave Scott, Cody Kwasney, Shawn
Vessey, Cody Ulrich and Sheldon Martell. The
service staff also includes Service Manager
Cam Brown and Service Lead Hand Brandi
Solmes. The department is a mix of veterans
SMS Equipment’s Saskatoon branch serves northern Saskatchewan with sales, service
and parts.
and relative newcomers that Shop Foreman
Brad Heggestad says is critical.
“Our staff goes through 80 to 100 hours
of schooling a year, but sometimes the best
training for the newer technicians comes from
working with the guys who have done it for
years and years,” said Heggestad. “The goal
is for that to always be the case, because we’re
expanding and looking for new technicians all
the time. That mix gives us a solid long-term
staff and ensures we’re here to serve customers
for a long time to come.”
Experienced parts staff
That holds true when it comes to parts.
Although Parts Technician Terry Breehn has
only been at SMS Equipment’s Saskatoon
branch about a year, he brought with him more
than 32 years experience in the equipment
industry. Breehn was a product support
representative for another company before
joining SMS.
“Coming into this position with that
experience is an advantage over hiring
someone new that may not even know the
equipment industry,” said Breehn. “I know
when customers call for parts, they’re either
getting ready to do routine service or they’re
down and trying to get back up and running.
Either way, they want parts quickly. With
our inventory and the ability to get parts
from another branch or directly from the
manufacturer, we can have parts to them right
away or usually by noon the next day.”
Breehn is a member of the parts department
that’s led by Parts Manager Jeff Felix, who also
has more than 32 years experience. He’s been
with SMS Equipment since 1977, working in
various roles.
28
The Saskatoon branch has ample room to hold construction and mining equipment,
like this Komatsu D375 dozer, which SMS is fitting with Komatsu Mining Specification
Platforms, Jetco HID Lighting and Komatsu Potash Spec Roller modifications.
Technicians will also E-coat all radiators for corrosion resistance and apply silicone to all
electrical connections, including behind the cab monitor.
Service Technician Shawn Vessey reseals the cylinders of
a Komatsu WA220 wheel loader. Vessey is one of seven
highly experienced service technicians led by Service
Manager Cam Brown.
“We’ve added many models and product
lines in the past 14 years, so our inventory
reflects that,” noted Felix. “The other big change
is the ability to order parts online through
MyKomatsu.com. It’s a good tool for customers
because it allows them to place an order any
time of day and have it delivered to them.”
Tracking through technology
Technology, such as online parts ordering,
plays a much bigger role in the parts and
service business than it did six years ago
when Product Support Representative
Larry Kuznitsoff joined SMS. One area in
particular that is growing quickly is the use
of machine-monitoring systems, especially
Komatsu’s KOMTRAX system.
“I’ve worked around equipment all my life,
and I’ve never seen anything that’s as valuable
as KOMTRAX,” said Kuznitsoff, who’s
worked as a service manager for an equipment
dealer and owned his business in the lawn and
garden industry. “I have the ability to track the
hours on customers’ machines, as well as alert
codes and other information that gives me a
Technician Adrian Roberts uses the track press to rebuild the tracks and pads from a
Komatsu dozer.
picture of how they’re being used and when
they need service. Then, I can consult with the
customers and find solutions to get the service
done or find ways they can maximize their
time and reduce owning and operating costs.”
Kuznitsoff works with customers from all
types of industries, including construction,
mining and forestry. His territory covers
north-central Saskatchewan between the
borders of Alberta and Manitoba. “I really
enjoy helping customers get the most out
of their machines. I’ve built some good
relationships with them, and consider many of
them my friends as well as customers.”
Continued. . .
29
Saskatoon branch carries products among “the best in the industry”
. . . continued
Standing above the competition
Sales Representative Bob Arsenault has also
built many friendships in his territory, which
includes the northwest corner of Saskatchewan
and a portion of Saskatoon. He’s been with
SMS Equipment for 10 years, the last six in
sales.
Brad Heggestad,
Shop Foreman
Jeff Felix,
Parts Manager
Larry Kuznitsoff,
Product Support Rep
“I consider myself a partner in my
customers’ success,” stated Arsenault, who
has more than 22 years experience in the
heavy equipment industry. “I’m dedicated
and loyal to them, and what really shines
about SMS is that it has the same philosophy
companywide. Customers know when I tell
them something, they can trust it and SMS
will stand behind it.”
Both Arsenault and Sales Representative
Todd Martin enjoy meeting with customers
on the jobsite. Martin covers the northeast
corner of the province and has been selling
machinery for SMS Equipment the past four
years, working with Operations Manager
Grant Gardiner to identify the right machines
for customer needs.
Technician Ted Blechinger reseals a hydraulic drive motor from a Komatsu wheel loader
at the Saskatoon branch’s shop.
“Part of successful sales is believing in the
products you represent, and the lines we carry
are among the best in the industry,” insisted
Martin. “I’m very excited that we now carry
Wirtgen Group products, because they’re
the top of the line in terms of pavers, milling
machines, compactors and crushers. By adding
them to an already strong offering of Komatsu
construction and mining machines, I believe
we stand above the competition.” n
SMS Equipment’s Saskatoon branch carries a full line of equipment, including Komatsu excavators and haul trucks and Hamm compaction machinery.
30
EXPANDING SERVICE
SMS Equipment’s field service fleet responds to
wide range of customers’ around-the-clock needs
F
From a customer’s perspective, few things
are more frustrating than having a service
technician show up on site without the proper
tools to get the job done. SMS Equipment
understands that and has instituted a field
service fleet initiative to eliminate such issues.
Working with customers and its own service
technicians, SMS Equipment continues to build
its service fleet, allowing its personnel to do most
any task in the field that can be done in the shop.
The fleet includes more than 500 specialized
trucks and more than 100 pieces of support
equipment designed to increase efficiencies and
meet customers’ needs around the clock. Making
up half of the fleet are service trucks, nearly all of
which have 3,000- to 5,000-pound-capacity cranes.
“We’ve invested heavily in service equipment,
especially service trucks that allow our
technicians to perform routine and emergency
work in the field, saving downtime and the
cost of moving equipment,” said Kitty Murphy,
Manager, Purchasing & Transportation. “They’re
fully equipped with necessary tools to perform
any field-level repair.”
up to two to three weeks for maintenance,”
Fleet Coordinator Curtis Evans explained.
“We dispatch crews to the site, along with the
tool-crib trailers that have all the tools and
consumables they’ll need to work around the
clock. It’s a very efficient and cost-effective way
of keeping downtime to a minimum.”
SMS Equipment recently added a Mi-Jack
lifting system to its service fleet in its Elkford
branch, allowing the company’s service
technicians to more efficiently repair the dump
bodies on Komatsu haul trucks. The system
eliminates potentially long wait times for cranes in
areas that have a limited supply of crane services.
“The system is mobile and allows us to flip
the truck body over, realign it and repair it,”
described Evans. “It saves a significant amount
of time and, when working with a customer that
runs 24 hours a day, seven days a week, any time
saved makes a big difference to the customer’s
bottom line.” n
Kitty Murphy,
Manager, Purchasing
& Transportation
Curtis Evans,
Fleet Coordinator
SMS has more than 650 specialized service vehicles and support equipment to do most any
task in the field that can be done in the shop, saving customers money and downtime.
For routine maintenance items such as filter,
oil and other fluid changes, SMS Equipment has
a number of mobile lube trucks. In addition to
general service trucks, SMS Equipment’s fleet
includes specialty units, such as welding-deck
trucks, to provide welding repairs. Some of
those are specially equipped to allow welders to
work in confined spaces, for example, on large
mining shovels.
To benefit customers with larger service
requirements, SMS Equipment has portable
tool-crib trailers, which can be parked on site
for a number of days, and contain everything
needed to make a major repair. “Typically, a
mine shuts down a piece of equipment for
31
RETURN UNDELIVERABLE CANADIAN ADDRESSES TO:
SMS Equipment
MCCALLUM PRINTING
11755 - 108 STREET
EDMONTON, AB T5H 1B8
40730068
Eastern Region
Western Region
Head/Regional Office
Acheson
AB
(780) 948-2200
12no2
Campbell River
(250) 286-0694
BC
Surrey
(604) 888-9700
BC
Regional Office
Montreal (Dorval)
(514) 636-4950
St-Bruno
(450) 441-1201
QC
QC
QC
Trois-Rivières
(819) 375-9383
QC
Baie-Comeau
(418) 296-6671
QC
Chibougamau
(418) 748-7615
QC
Val-d’Or
(819) 874-3733
NB
Chicoutimi
(418) 549-0022
QC
Fredericton
(506) 457-5544
NB
Dorval Branch
(514) 636-4950
QC
Moncton (Dieppe)
(506) 857-9513
Goose Bay
(709) 896-4904
NL
Acheson Branch
(780) 948-2200
AB
Chetwynd
(250) 788-7920
BC
Williams Lake
(250) 305-1060
BC
Calgary
(403) 569-1109
AB
Elkford
(250) 865-4651
BC
Winnipeg
(204) 487-1050
MB
Edmonton
(780) 451-2630
AB
Fort St. John
(250) 785-8161
BC
Yellowknife
(867) 669-0738
NT
Fort McMurray
(780) 791-0616
AB
Houston
(250) 845-7911
BC
Thunder Bay
(807) 939-2262
ON
Fort McMurray
(780) 743-2622
AB
Kamloops
(250) 374-6961
BC
Regina
(306) 359-3121
SK
Havre-St-Pierre
(418) 538-1323
QC
Grande Prairie
(780) 532-9410
AB
Prince George
(250) 564-8841
BC
Saskatoon
(306) 931-0044
SK
Mirabel
(450) 434-1992
QC
Wabush
(709) 282-3777
NL
Red Deer
(403) 340-8343
AB
Port Coquitlam
(604) 941-6611
BC
Whitehorse
(867) 335-9742
YT
Quebec (St-Augustin) QC
(418) 870-1502
Timmins
(705) 264-4300
ON
St. John’s (Paradise) NL
(709) 782-2151