Contractors need innovative equipment to move forward into an enduring system that allows road crews to catch up and stay on top of their crumbling roadways.
Utilizing attachments to dispense aggregate instead of self-propelled machines and large crews unlocks a host of benefits for contractors, like lower maintenance and costs. Here’s why contractors should opt for an attachment approach.
Gravel, asphalt or topsoil feeds into the hopper at the top of the attachment. From there, the aggregate can be dispensed along a roadway in variable lay down widths, with certain models ranging from 1 to 6 feet. Some attachments offer the choice of single, left side, right side or dual discharge options to place aggregate exactly where it needs to go without additional scraping or sweeping. Attachments with remote-controlled options are also available so the entire operation can be controlled by a single person.
Utilizing the attachment method instead of traditional methods streamlines the jobsite, allowing a small crew to dispense tons of aggregate in just minutes while reducing the need for multiple machines, extra operators, and additional crews for cleanup.
| Your local Gomaco dealer |
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| Closner Equipment Co Inc |
| Romco Equipment Co |
| Sierra Machinery |
Additionally, attachments often only have a handful of grease fittings to maintain. Universal mounting pads and adapter plates available from some manufacturers ensure that this innovative equipment is compatible with the host machine crews are already familiar with maintaining, making for a smoother maintenance process. After connection, and a quick hydraulic hook up and remote pairing, these attachments are ready to work.
The compact design of attachments reduces maintenance elsewhere, too. Most shouldering attachments can fit on the same commercial trailer as the host machine or can be towed by a common pickup truck, cutting out the logistical frenzy of multiple trucks to transport multiple machines to the jobsite. This efficiency over alternative methods carries over to pricing and labor, as well.
Self-propelled shouldering machines are expensive, costing around $250,000. A shouldering and paving attachment is just a fraction of that, saving customers up to 80 percent off the purchase price. Additionally, attachments can provide long-term labor savings by reducing crew requirements by half with remote-control operation and precise aggregate dispersion. That means crews can safely and efficiently knock out other tasks at the jobsite instead of pushing, scraping and sweeping aggregate.
Photos courtesy of Road Widener LLC
