“We’ll go just about anywhere to crush a minimum of 25,000 tons of concrete or asphalt rubble, demolition debris, limestone, even slag in steel mills,” noted Scott Weber, vice president, Weber Sand & Gravel Inc., of Lake Orion, MI, near Detroit. “On the average, we move our entire operation about once a week: crusher, screen, conveyors and stackers. Most of our business is in Michigan, northwestern Ohio and northern Indiana; but we are bidding jobs right now in Florida, Alabama and Arizona. To more that often, go that far and still be competitive, you need equipment you can move quickly and economically, and your production has to be extremely efficient and dependable.”
Weber Sand & Gravel Inc. was established in 1946 by Scott’s father and mother, Jack and Gerry Weber. The company has been family owned and operated ever since. Scott said he credits the company success to family effort and having quality equipment that is right for the job. Scott’s brother, Greg, also a vice president, operates the sand and gravel business. Gerry Weber is president and still very much involved in the company.
“Dad and I used to work together a lot in the contract crushing operation,” Scott said. “There were times when he’d object to my bidding a certain type of job or bidding at a certain price and say it wasn’t worth it; we just couldn’t make a profit on it. I’d insist that we could. Finally he’d usually give in; we’d gets the job and do just fine.
“Don’t misunderstand — we’re not always the lowest bidder. But when we are underbid and somebody else gets the job, I don’t fret over it because so often the customer ends up being disappointed and we get his next job. Once we get a customer, we keep him.
“We’ve never done any advertising. But if you make customers happy, the word gets around. We’re known as being very professional. That’s the result of three key factors. First, our family name and reputation is on the line with every job; so we always do what we say we will. We guarantee price, tonnage, specifications and schedule. Second, we don’t just stand around and supervise. We do the work, and nobody works as hard or efficiently as the owner does. Third, we use top quality equipment designed for our needs. That’s absolutely essential,” Scott Weber said.
For Weber’s contract crushing operation, it has a complete system engineered and manufactured by Grasan: KRH1515 primary impactor plant, 7 by 20 screen plant, return conveyor, radial stackers, and generator and controls housed in a 30-ft. (9 m) trailer. Everything is road portable. The impactor itself is a Hazemag APPH type with the automatic hydraulic cylinder system for greater crushing capacity, smoother operation and more uniform products. “We can stack crushed materials in standard conical piles, or we can stack in windrows with a telescopic radial stacker for a more uniform material mixture,” Scott Weber said.
The company can crush as much as 900 tons (816 t) per hour of limestone or concrete rubble down to 1 by 3 in. (2.5 by 7.6 cm), or 500 tons (453 t) per hour of asphalt rubble down to five-eighths minus while using only two blow bars instead of the possible four. “We can tear the plant down, blow it clean with compressed air, move it to a new location within a reasonable distance, set up and be crushing again in 12 hours or less, as a rule. That comes from two things: one is practice; the other is the custom design,” explained Scott Weber.
Weber Sand & Gravel had Grasan engineer both the crushing plant and screening plant with quick-disconnect pins instead of bolts for almost anything that has to be dismantled or taken off for over-the-road travel. “That saves a lot of time and hassle. It takes longer to work with bolts, the threads get worn after a while, and it’s easy to lose a nut or washer. The pins are quick, simple, and chained to the equipment so you won’t lose them. Grasan also designed a dust cover for the screen plant to make the whole operation cleaner and keep people in neighboring areas happier.
“Grasan is easy to work with and gave us exactly what we need. They aren’t the cheapest — I don’t want the cheapest. The cheapest is actually the most expensive in the long run, if it lasts long enough for that. Grasan offers the best quality and value we’ve found anywhere. Our Grasan system is six years old. We’ve crushed about four million tons so far and all the equipment still runs extremely well with simple maintenance. That’s crucial in a business where downtime is often the most important factor in profit or loss,” Weber commented.
He added, “Everyone knows a primary impactor is better than a jaw for crushing concrete and asphalt. But we’ve found it better for limestone, too. The impactor is much faster, more efficient and therefore more profitable, even considering its somewhat higher maintenance cost. We use our jaw and cone crushers only if a customer has extremely hard rock.
“Custom crushing is a tough, competitive business,” Weber said. “But you can do well if you work smart and know your markets, work hard at being efficient, persevere to build up your customer base, and get the best quality equipment you can so the hard work, smart work and perseverance can pay off.”
For more information, call 419/526-4440 or visit www.grasan.com.
