In 1979 Villager Construction was founded as a sewer and water construction company. Thirty years later the company, now involved in crushing and recycling of asphalt, concrete, and sub-base materials, won the 2008 Contractor Environmental Quality Recognition Award from the New York State DOT/NYS AGC for a reconstruction project on Route 15A from I-390 to Jarley Road in the towns of Brighton and Henrietta in Monroe County, N.Y.
The $9 million project involved several miles of Route 15A that varied in width from five to nine lanes. Because there was going to be a significant amount of asphalt, concrete and sub-base material excavated from the site, and because the site was proximate to Rochester, N.Y., it provided an opportunity for the site’s excavated materials to be recycled and re-used in the project and for the excess materials that were not needed on the site to be re-sold to area contractors and municipalities.
A 5-acre recycling site was established in Rochester. The site was located close to the Route 15A construction project, but also was conveniently located on Jefferson Road, a major thoroughfare for the resale of the recycled materials. Villager also made the site available to area contractors to bring recyclable construction materials, such as asphalt and concrete.
Through the course of the Route 15A reconstruction project approximately 80,000 tons (72,575 t) of material was processed and recycled, including existing concrete pavement, existing asphalt pavement, existing gravel sub-base material and existing stone curb.
Rubble Master RM100
For the actual crushing work Villager purchased a Rubble Master RM100 mobile tracked impact crusher from Cor Equipment Sales in Stamford, Conn., the Rubble Master dealer for Northeastern states.
“Cor has a great deal of experience in aggregate recycling and they have been able to give us tremendous support, starting with the on-site training of our staff,” said Dick Clark, Villager Construction president.
Identifying the right crusher for this project and its purchase was left in the hands of Andrew J. Osborne (AJ), a division manager of Villager Construction. The process of selecting the right machine took just about a year. During that time Osborne and Clark demoed and tested “just about every crusher on the market.”
“In the end we selected the Rubble Master [RM100] for multiple reasons,” Osborne said. “The biggest reason is its compact size. It gives us great mobility. At times when we are doing custom crushing for municipalities or contractors the stockpiles are located in hard to reach places. The low profile compact Rubble Master RM100 gives us a tremendous advantage when we need to access those tough spots.”
A compact machine with a low load height, top of the hopper on the RM100 is only 9-ft. 8-in. (3 m) from the ground, which allows the machine to be fed by smaller machines such as a loader. Typically no ramp needs to be constructed because of the low height.
“We were also impressed with the low fuel consumption provided by the John Deere 242 horsepower diesel plant. All of the engines in the Rubble Master are electric over diesel powered versus hydraulic over diesel powered. The electric motors make for very efficient operations. The Rubble Master as a whole had less down time than the other machines we demoed. Those electric motors are part of the reason why. The electric motors offer less wear and require less general maintenance,” Osborne said.
All Rubble Master recyclers are diesel powered, which drive an on-board generator. The generator then provides power to all the components of the crusher, such as the hopper, belts, screeners, etc.
“The electric motors also make the Rubble Master urban friendly, greatly reducing the machine’s noise levels,” Clark added.
Another feature Villager Construction appreciates is that the Rubble Master power plant produces enough excess power to allow it to run its conveying plant and/or electric screening plant, Osborne said.
Keeping Things Running
Clark and Osborne also found the RM100 easy to keep operational.
“This machine is designed so well that the basic scheduled maintenance, which takes two to three hours on other machines, takes only a half hour on the Rubble Master. The reduced maintenance time means that the Rubble Master is actually producing product two to three hours longer each day, all of which adds to our bottom line,” Osborne said. “All maintenance of the machine can be done from the ground, which is a tremendous safety feature.”
The impact chamber of the Rubble Master has a release system, which reduces the number of rotor jams, Clark said.
“The machine also has a unique feature; as the rotor slows down during the processing of heavy or large loads the hopper stops feeding material to the rotor. The belts also slow down, slowing the feed of materials to the rotor. All of this transfers power to the rotor, increasing its capacity to process the load. Once the rotor has worked through the heavy part of the load power transfers back to the hopper, allowing more material to flow to the rotor. This process increases the Rubble Master’s production capacities and is made possible only through the use of electric motors versus hydraulic motors,” Clark said.
Villager had its stacker conveyor equipped with a Belt Way load scale, which monitors how many tons of material have been processed over a given period of time. The Belt Way load scale on the stacker conveyor helps it assure its customers that they are being accurately charged for the materials processed. There is a second scale system on the loader that feeds the Rubble Master, which offers a printable ticket showing how much material has been loaded into the Rubble Master. These two combined features assure accuracy when invoicing customers for custom work, according to Osborne.
As happy as Clark is with the RM100, he’s just as satisfied with COR Equipment Sales.
“We really appreciate the service before and after the sale that we have received from DJ Cavaliere and his people at COR Equipment Sales. On the rare occasion that we have needed parts they have been able to get those parts to us in a very timely manner. On technical issues quite often their people are able to straighten out problems working over the telephone with our operator,” he said.
About Villager Construction
Clark founded the company in 1979 in Fairport, N.Y. From the company’s start it dabbled in asphalt work, typically doing patches when sewer and water projects demanded it. In 1981 the company started bidding road jobs, and now has evolved to being a major general construction company that specializes in heavy highway work, sewer and water work and milling. Most of its work is bonded municipal work, ranging in size from $1 million to $10 million per project, for municipal, state and federal agencies.
In 1998 it entered the milling business. Today Villager Construction owns 17 milling machines and at times, including its rental machines, operates up to 25 milling machines.
The scope of its work varies from supplying a milling crew to performing the milling, sweeping, and total cleanup in preparation of paving. After paving Villager also can install rumble strips if needed.
Villager’s total inventory of construction equipment exceeds 250 machines and during peak season it employs more than 250 people.
Villager Construction works up and down the east coast from Vermont to Florida and is an active member of the Associated General Contractors of America as well as Associated Builders and Contractors.
Clark also owns another company in Farmington, N.Y., known as American Equipment LLC. American Equipment buys, sells, leases and rents agricultural and construction equipment. It is a Caterpillar rental alliance store and a Massey Ferguson compact tractor dealer. The shop features a modern hydraulic repair shop and is home to a used equipment division that specializes in buying and selling used construction equipment.
For more information on Villager Construction Inc., call 866/MILLUSA or visit www.villagerci.com.
For more information on COR Equipment Sales, call 203/569-0339 or visit www.COR-EQUIP.com.
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