SnowPro September/October 2019

Ways to Meet Client Expectations with Less Labor Finding Solutions to Rock Salt Challenges

NO. 3 2019

HOW TO

SELECT A SPREADER IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE An AC Business Media Supplement

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B O B C A T. C O M / D O N E T O U G H

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Bobcat ®, the Bobcat logo and the colors of the Bobcat machine are registered trademarks of Bobcat Company in the United States and various other countries. ©2019 Bobcat Company. All rights reserved. | 1381

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TABLE OF CONTENTS GH

d ge.

What Will Winter 2020 Bring?

Number 3 - September/October 2019

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he Old Farmer’s Almanac uses a unique, age-old formula that’s traditionally 80% accurate to predict weather conditions.

The weather forecast methodology stems from a secret formula that was devised by Robert B. Thomas in 1792, when George Washington was president. Thomas believed that weather on Earth was influenced by sunspots, which are magnetic storms on the surface of the Sun. Over the years, the company has refined and enhanced that formula with state-of-the-art technology and modern scientific calculations. To calculate the weather long-term, the company uses three scientific disciplines to make predictions: » Solar science, the study of sunspots & other solar activity » Climatology, the study of prevailing weather patterns » Meteorology, the study of the atmosphere From there they predict weather trends and events by comparing solar patterns and historical weather conditions with current solar activity. For the forecast predictions, the Untied States is broken down into 18 different regions.

If you supplement your summer lawn care business with snow removal during the winter months, you’re hoping for a lot of snow this year.

Here’s the simple summary of what the Farmer’s Almanac is saying: Winter will be warmer than normal on average and it is likely to snow between November and March.

Not exactly breaking news that it’s going to snow more in November than January but these early predictions still give you an idea of what to expect this winter.

Now is the time to start a conversation with your customers about snow and ice removal. It can give you an idea of the amount and type of equipment necessary to get through winter. It can also give you a chance to attract landscaping customers who may be new to using snow removal services, looking to consolidate contractors or thinking about switching service providers.

It is the time to start preparing for your and your customers’ needs this winter. The following articles can help. Enjoy the read!

Now is the time to start a conversation with your customers about snow & ice removal.

Ryan Whisner (920) 542-1238 rwhisner@acbusinessmedia.com

04 IN THIS ISSUE

04 How To Select a Spreader Is Not Rocket Science

Stainless or poly, gas or electric, auger or chain?

10 Ways To Meet Client

Expectations With Less Labor Redefining contractors’ approach to certain labor-intensive tasks.

14 LED Headlamps Are Lighting

the Way for Snowplow Drivers

With heating options, LEDs are viable for winter driving.

20 Finding Solutions to

Rock Salt Challenges Supply, acquisition and pricing are all factors in salt use during the winter months.

24 Why Contractors Add Liquids to Their Winter Toolbox

ASCA panel offers frontline perspective on adding liquids to snowfighting efforts.

28 Fleet Management Software Can Help Maintain Safety & Increase Productivity During Winter Learn to track assets, monitor weather and comunicate with drivers safely.

32 Snow & Ice Removal Products SNOW PRO | SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2019

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By Ryan Whisner

T

How To Select a Spreader

IS NOT ROCKET SCIENCE

Stainless or poly, gas or electric, auger or chain?

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n the surface, material spreading doesn’t seem all that complex. Buy a spreader, fill it with deicing material and go to work. Simple, right?

Yes — provided you have the right equipment for the job. But too often contractors fail to consider the big picture when selecting a spreader, leading to anything from minor headaches to major issues.

“Right, wrong or indifferent, we try to cater to every single customer,” said Bob Iverson, Snow Ex product manager.

With spreaders it’s stainless steel or poly, gas or electric and chain or auger delivery system. “Those are the choices that are out there, and you can mix and match all of those different variables and it gets really confusing,” he said.

Selecting a material spreader is hardly rocket science. But it does require one to examine a number of factors to correctly determine which model will enable a winter maintenance business to be efficient and profitable, both initially and for the long term.

Material World Many contractors go about the spreader selection process by considering capacity, and sometimes they never get around to thinking about anything else.

Obviously how much material a spreader can hold is a major piece of the puzzle, but it’s a consideration that must wait its turn in the selection hierarchy.

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The snow and ice management industry remains divided as to spreaders made of polyethylene (poly), steel or stainless steel. Poly can be as strong as steel and uses way less material to get to the same strain. In terms of pure material strength, the debate among poly, steel and stainless steel has essentially been reduced to a tossup, with neither material offering an actual advantage.

First and foremost, the contractor should determine what kind of material they will be spreading.

“In an urban environment, the name of the game is efficiency,” Iverson said. “Everybody’s using salt, right?

It’s about safety and lawsuits and those types of things.

So salt is the game. And when you’re talking large contractors, the game is even bigger.”

Bulk salt is generally regarded as the industry mainstay because of its ability to melt ice quickly and effectively. Bagged salt is the primary choice for smaller spreaders for the same reason.

Some geographic areas of the country prefer sand because of the traction it provides on a driving surface, although it doesn’t melt ice. “If you live out in the country where there’s fewer population, or if you are out west in the mountains, the roadways are too much and there’s not enough money to maintain all that stuff.

They don’t want it crystal clear, it’s about getting hard pack and maintaining it, it’s about traction,” Iverson said.

Many contractors utilize a salt/sand mix to get some of the benefits of both materials at once. Certain customers or locations may want their winter maintenance contractor to use specialty deicing materials for

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various reasons. Magnesium chloride is spread in parking garages because it doesn’t corrode the rebar in the structure’s precast concrete panels. Calcium chloride pellets are usually called upon for sensitive concrete surfaces, around doorways or on brick pavers.

“When you know the material that you want to spread, that helps you determine basically what kind of spreader you want,” Iverson noted.

Spreaders are available in just about every capacity imaginable, but material matters first.

“When you’re talking about salt and government regulations, people are starting to really pay attention to how much salt they put down and trying to measure it or calibrate their machine,” Iverson said. “When you have an auger, it’s a lot easier to do that.

“If you have a conveyor system, those things put out slugs of material and it plops it on the spinner and throws it out,” he said, noting if you are looking to build a dirt road, a conveyor system is what you want.

A seemingly correctly sized unit can be extremely wasteful if it allows too much of the wrong material to flow. It could also be worthless if it’s unable to put out any material at all. Many spreaders can handle a variety of materials, but even the most versatile spreader won’t effectively apply every type of available material.

“It’s totally different depending on the business model, such as if you’re a contractor trying to salt a parking lot and put down just enough to make sure that it melts off the accumulation versus providing traction in those more rural areas,” Iverson said. “Material, again, is the first thing that you really must consider.”

Contractors must understand up front that if they have a wide array of clients, it’s possible that deicing material requirements may dictate they purchase several different spreaders to service them. The simpler and more cost-effective alternative, of course, is lining up similar accounts that utilize the same type of spreading material.

Sizing Up Capacity It’s certainly wise for a contractor to bunch his clients closely together instead of chasing all over town to provide service. It’s also helpful for those clients to be of similar size. This can’t always be perfectly accomplished, but giving due consideration to

both factors should allow a winter maintenance company to operate more efficiently.

For a new contractor simply spreading salt in a residential capacity on a driveway or sidewalk application, a smaller tailgate spreader would likely be sufficient.

For larger jobs, such as big parking lots, a V-box style spreader will be more effective. Many contractors try to save money by purchasing too small of a spreader, but they can quickly find themselves incurring far more in unnecessary costs. The biggest problem with inadequate capacity is the need to constantly stop and refill the spreader. This equates to less time on the job, reduced productivity and potentially a group of unhappy clients. This is also another situation where more fuel will be consumed in the process of driving around to get more material.

“You can see the natural progression,” Iverson said.

“You’re going to pay more money for more capacity; that’s all there is to it. So, as your business grows, your equipment grows with it.”

The gamut of spreader sizes runs from 75-pound capacity push spreaders all the way to 4-cubic-yard truck-mounted units that hold nearly 8,000 pounds of material. In between, styles range from smaller tailgate units that connect to a vehicle’s 2-inch receiver mount or three-point hitch mount, to an assortment of V-box style models that rest inside a truck bed.

In addition to determining what equipment is appropriate for the size of each job, a contracThe gamut of spreader tor should consider the sizes runs from 75-pound total amount of material capacity push spreaders needed over the entire all the way to 4-cubic-yard truck-mounted units that customer route. If the hold nearly 8,000 pounds of total is just 1 cubic yard, material. Contractors must for example, it wouldn’t determine the proper size that fits the route. make sense to buy a spreader with a capacity of 2 cubic yards.

Conversely, if the route requires 8 cubic yards, a spreader that holds just 1 cubic yard isn’t big enough.

Both the individual jobs and route as a whole need to be considered with the other in mind to strike the right balance of operating efficiency.

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“It’s just sizing it right for your operation,” Iverson says . “It becomes about logistics. I don’t want to have to travel back and forth if my route takes me 20, 30 miles away from my salt pile and then I run out and I still have to go even further. They try to size a hopper that will get them through the route before they run out.”

Some contractors will place a fair amount of importance on their plan for reloading the spreader.

In the case of spreaders that occupy the entire bed of a pickup, there’s no option for carrying extra deicing material outside of the spreader. Instead, contractors will either have their own supply of bulk salt or other material at their headquarters, or they will visit a landscape supply center each time they need to reload.

“Complications grow, but that’s just the way it is,” Iverson said. “Once they can see how it works for tailgates, it’s really just buying the right size for their operation.”

SnowEx HELIXX poly and stainless steel hoppers feature an advanced material delivery system. Combined with a multidimensional tub design, the hoppers offer the triple threat capability to spread, pre-wet or spray with one machine.

Stainless or Poly Though the industry trend increasingly has been toward spreaders made of polyethylene (poly), steel and stainless steel units remain options on the market.

“I’m told that people select stainless steel just because they like stainless,” Iverson said. “It’s a perception. It’s stainless steel. It’s not going to rust.”

The truth is, poly can be as strong as steel and use way less material to get to the same strain. In terms of pure material strength, the debate among poly, steel and stainless steel has essentially been reduced to a toss-up, with neither material offering an actual advantage. When considering overall durability, steel spreaders are naturally the most susceptible to rust and corrosion issues.

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Steel and stainless steel share the disadvantage of incorporating several moving parts — such as belts, sprockets and chains — and an engine that must be maintained. Necessary maintenance is more than just a time stealer; it can also translate into a major expense over the lifetime of a spreader.

Spreaders heavy on parts like belts, chains and pulleys rarely can be put right to work after the offseason. They almost always require preseason maintenance, whether it’s engine repair, parts replacement or a paint job Many poly spreaders are electric powered and don’t typically require such parts, nor the need for the maintenance that goes along with them. Also, poly spreaders with fewer parts require less work to get going after the off-season, and in many cases, require almost no tune up at all. And as the number of spreaders in a contractor’s fleet grows, so does the gap in maintenance costs from one style to the next.

Iverson notes that poly is inherently smoother so the materials tend to slide easier inside the V-box hoppers. “It doesn’t bridge or create voids, and it does a nice job of flowing material down into the auger and coming out,” he said. Steel and stainless steel are much rougher by comparison, and material will catch more easily on the sides of spreaders constructed of these metals. Material flow is further restricted by any rust that appears on steel spreaders.

Also, poly can be molded, which allows manufacturers to put special geometry into it. With steel, typically they are dealing with flat pieces that need to be welded. Iverson said with poly, you can mold the different pieces and create steeper angles within the hopper than they might be able to piece together with steel.

Equipment weight is another issue for comparison.

Poly weighs significantly less than steel, offering poly spreader users the opportunity to load greater amounts of deicing material — up to 500 pounds in many cases — before reaching the designated gross vehicle weight rating (GVWR) for a particular vehicle.

With law enforcement cracking down on overweight vehicles, it’s important for contractors to ensure they’re in GVWR compliance when traveling with a loaded spreader. And by allowing for more material to be carried every time the spreader is loaded, a lighter weight poly spreader enables contractors to spend more time servicing clients and less time driving back and forth to reload.

Less weight on a truck also means better gas mileage and lower fuel costs. According to fuel economy statistics published by the Environmental Protection Agency, eliminating 10 percent of a vehicle’s total

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For a new contractor simply spreading salt in a residential capacity on a driveway or sidewalk application, a smaller tailgate spreader such as this SnowEx model would likely be sufficient.

weight can improve mileage by 7 percent. Over the course of several snow events, and depending upon the total number of vehicles in a contractor’s fleet, fuel savings can really add up with a lighter weight spreader.

Performance and Delivery “Back in the day everybody in our industry knew how to work on gas engines,” Iverson said.

In the past, contractors would just take apart the engine and clean it when the carburetors would get gunked up or other issues occurred. Today, he said when the engine doesn’t start, they panic and go “now what do I do?”

The alternative is an electric motor that is connected to the vehicle’s electrical system.

“It’s a motor and wires, so if it’s connected it should work,” Iverson said. “It’s a simpler system, but there are constraints on electrical.”

With the truck providing the ultimate source for the electric motor, it limits the size motor available.

Generally, the largest is going to be a 3/4 horsepower electric motor because the draw to operate the equipment adds that much more capacity to the vehicle.

“If you take that variable and line it up with the size of the hopper and how much weight and everything else that’s in there to drive that, it’s safe to say that once you get above a 4 cubic yard hopper an electric motor will struggle depending on the material to push it out,” he said. For a 4- to 6-yard hopper with salt, sand or all sand, it is likely to require a gas engine to drive that.

From a drive perspective, it becomes more about maintenance. Electric is simpler with fewer parts, but if the needs for material and hopper size are larger, a gas engine is more in line.

The next piece is determining if you want a chain or auger delivery system and the different abilities when it comes to controlling how the material is applied.

Iverson said the chain-driven conveyor system is a material fed conveyor that rolls the material through.

A gravity-fed spreader can get the job done when applying dry, smaller-sized bag material; a spreader needs a system to keep material flowing when clumpy bulk material is being used. But not all material movement methods are created equal.

Some conveyor belt systems will pull too much material and overload the discharge shoot. And because conveyors drop material in sporadic sheets,

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they often end up wasting a lot of material. As a drag chain conveyor goes underneath after dumping material, it also tends to pull material back into the truck bed, creating further waste.

Because material clumping together is the biggest obstacle in material flow, some more efficient designs use a vibrator as part of a multi-angled hopper to help chisel and break up the material. These spreaders also feature an auger system that delivers a consistent flow of material to a precise spot on a spinner. The result is an ideal spreading pattern with almost no wasted deicing material. The efficiency of the auger system directly cuts down on unnecessary cost to the contractor.

Iverson noted that it depends on the type of material being spread as to what style of delivery system to utilize.

Control systems also vary by manufacturer, with some being a single level used to control both the flow rate and spinner speed. Other systems have independent controls for the auger and spinner in the truck cab, allowing for faster adjustments on the fly. Being able to control these two aspects of material application independently allows for more variation and flexibility, whether it’s adapting to the varying degree of snowfall throughout the course of an event or simply making logical adjustments to account for the differences from job to job.

The Right Choice So considering these differentiating factors, what’s the right choice for your operation? The most critical thing a contractor can do when selecting a spreader is to remember that it’s a business investment. Cutting corners on purchase price and failing to meet the basic needs of a winter maintenance program will only lead to a smaller return on investment and a lot of dissatisfaction. Take the time up front to examine each aspect of a spreader — from capacity and the materials it can handle to how it’s built and how it performs — and you’ll be ready to make a choice that will reward you for many winters to come.

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By Ryan Whisner

Redefining contractors’ approach to certain labor-intensive tasks

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Ways To Meet Client Expectations With

LESS LABOR S10

now and ice management companies continue to seek solutions for an assortment of problems that arise from an ongoing labor shortage.

A panel of industry leaders discussed how companies can meet client expectations despite the labor shortage during a session at the 2019 Accredited Snow Contractors Association (ASCA) Snow Show in Pittsburgh in July.

Panelists included Jerry Schill, owner of Schill Grounds Management of Cleveland, OH; Matt Scott, director of operations, Troy Clogg Landscape Associates, Wixom, MI; Mike Voories, COO, Brilar, Oak Park, MI; and Joe Kujawa, strategic adviser, Kujawa Enterprises inc (KEI), Milwaukee, WI. Each represent contractors that have anywhere from 100 to 350 employees during a given snow event.

All agreed that, despite the clear labor shortage, clients are not typically sympathetic to the issue.

“The knowledge of the risks that they’re exposed to has heightened the awareness of the importance of the snow and ice removal,” Schill said. “They still tend to want to press pricing as low as possible, but I think that’s changed considerably. I think they are a much savvier buyer too, because they’re exposed to a lot more information with the internet.”

Scott and Voories also acknowledge that clients are better educated as they have access to the same industry information that the contractors have.

“Our goal is to educate them, it’s to make them understand what it is that we’re going to provide to them,” he said, noting that as time has gone on and more slip and fall lawsuits are filed, the higher the expectations of crews on sites.

Voories believes expectations are up because contractors are better at providing services and the clients know it. “We sell them on all the cool stuff we’re doing now and sell them on all the fancy equipment we have,” he said. “We can do all sorts of things, and we sell this to them as how awesome we are.”

That selling point is among the number one issues for contractors as they have less labor and are not able to always offer the same services as before.

The ultimate challenge for snow and ice management contractors is to continue to attract new employees and keep providing the same services to all their clients.

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“It’s our number one issue,” Kujawa said. He noted that KEI has more subcontractors in the field than full-time employees. “We’re limited obviously by what we can do. It’s always been a challenge for me with my brother arguing, ‘Don’t sell that; we can’t deliver it,’ and, ‘Do we want to get the calls with an upset client or get the call from someone else’s upset client.’”

The Ultimate Challenge It is the ultimate challenge for contractors to figure out the latest and greatest thing to attract new employees.

Scott suggested the current method is to be on Facebook and Instagram and other social media sites to attract new hires.

“Those are the things now that you ramp up, to try and attract people and showcase to them that you are in those areas,” Scott said.

Within the last few years both Schill and Voories have hired full-time recruiters and developed more clear human resource departments. Each stated that the hiring and recruiting process is a daily activity.

It’s getting our employees who like it here to get their friends to come work with them. We often find that one guy comes from another company, he likes it and all of a sudden a whole bunch of people start applying from that company.

“We’ve got people that are constantly looking for labor every single day, not only for our green business but for the white business,” Schill said.

The entire panel appeared to agree that the process was a challenge that they try and stay ahead of.

Kujawa said for KEI, the number one recruiting tool is internal referrals.

“It’s getting our employees who like it here to get their friends to come work with them,” he said. “We often find that one guy comes from another company, he likes it and all of a sudden a whole bunch of people start applying from that company.”

Tools and Technology Scott acknowledges the benefits of technology in circumventing the need for labor. He uses a weather service, for example, that allows him to better plan out what the operation is going to be for a given snow event.

Snow and ice contractors are focusing on hiring employees that will stay year-round because the cost of labor acquisition and revenue lost from not having the person is not worth it.

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Whether it be a machine with an enclosed cab or simple comforts such as hats, jackets or gloves, it is important to keep crews comfortable while doing their job in the colder conditions.

Similarly, he said equipment can also play a role.

Within Detroit, he has multiple crews operating on side-by-sides, ATVs or utility vehicles to clear sidewalks going site-to-site. Work that was once completed by a crew of 12 or more people has been reduced and is finished faster.

Voories and Schill also stated that technology or mechanizing services was an ongoing benefit to counter the labor issues. Each indicated that they have implemented equipment to provide better service with less people.

Whether it be a machine with an enclosed cab or simple comforts such as hats, jackets or gloves, Scott pointed out that it is important to keep everyone comfortable while doing the job.

“Everyone’s having the same problem with finding people. It’s what you’re going to do with the technology, not only in the field prior to the event, but getting yourself set up, making sure everybody on your team is really trained, knows what they’re doing and has everything they can possibly do to make their job easier,” he said.

On top of equipment and technology, with labor being in short supply, he does not deny that prices for services are going up. Schill stressed that it is important to have the conversation with clients about the labor situation and the ability to provide those services.

“Clients jokingly act like they don’t really care that you’re short staffed, but the reality is it’s an issue and it’s an issue that they have to contend with as much as we do,” Schill said. “I think having meaningful conversations and productive conversations about the cause and effect of what’s going on in the labor market is super important right now.”

The labor shortage has not led the panelists to alter scheduling other than determining what types of sites they are working on.

Employee Morale Outside of technology, Kujawa suggested that it is not only important to address comfort during the

Clients jokingly act like they don’t really care that you’re short staffed, but the reality is it’s an issue and it’s an issue that they have to contend with as much as we do. I think having meaningful conversations and productive conversations about the cause and effect of what’s going on in the labor market is super important right now.

“We’re always tinkering with and exploring new technology,” Schill said. “Anything that can streamline a process or any process that we could mechanize and reduce labor or improve operator comfort so folks can work longer or we can do a certain projects with less labor.”

He said his company never stops experimenting with new ideas.

Scott reiterated that the most important part is retaining the employees you already have.

“It’s so much harder to replace the guy that knows how to operate the plow truck or the loader or the side by side or any of those things,” he said. “That’s incredibly difficult to do, especially midwinter.”

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event, but the overall employee morale throughout the season. He said cook-outs, breakfasts and other incentives at the shop can keep them coming in and keep them going throughout a season.

“It’s easy to get distracted by spending a ton of your resources and assets on recruiting instead of working on your staff,” Schill said. One of the things he tries to sell to new employees is longevity.

“We’re really talking about our culture and the internal things that makes us tick,” he said. “We’re not a snow company that does landscape maintenance or a maintenance company that does snow. It’s the balance of those two services that we provide to our clients, and we’ve figured out ways to expand the growing season, if you

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will, and work longer into the winter instead of trying to flatten out some of the ebbs and flows or the spikes during the summer work.”

Through the course of any given season, Schill said an effort is made to not lay employees off because the cost of labor acquisition and revenue lost from not having the person is not worth it.

Conversely, Kujawa will lay off employees as they’re also a four-season company. In Wisconsin, if the employees are put on temporary lay-off, they are able to collect unemployment and don’t have to seek other work.

“We’re trying to really focus on yearround career minded people,” Voories added.

“That’s not to say we don’t have a percentage of our workforce that gets laid off or who is inactive between snow events in the wintertime. We give preference when we’re hiring to people who want to come on board and work year-round.”

We’re trying to really focus on year-round career minded people…

We give preference when we’re hiring to people who want to come on board and work yearround.

Continuing, he said they have started offering healthcare and other benefits that previously were unheard of among the green industry and snow companies. The challenge remains in keeping a larger staff busy throughout the year.

Voories noted that temp agencies are not a viable solution either.

“It’s not just hiring enough people and taking care of them to make sure that they’re reducing turnover,” he said, noting that it is also about hiring the right people.

“Your staffing nightmare gets further compounded and it gets more stressful for everyone when you bring in guys who should not be part of the team because you’re trying to fill the seats,” he said. “Then you’re delaying with finding a permanent solution for that position, or you keep making smart hires and making smart terminations when necessary.”

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By Ryan Whisner

LED HEADLAMPS

Are Lighting the Way for Snowplow Drivers With heating options, LEDs are viable for winter driving

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ost snowplowing is done at night, and all of it is done in bad weather, during which roads can be treacherous. Snow and ice management contractors must be able to see things in time to stop their plow vehicles.

“You’ve got a snowplow driver that really would like to see everything all the time and that in turn means you’ve got to have the best possible lights,” said Doug Clark, product manager for Western Products.

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Lighting for winter driving, specifically plowing, has evolved over the past several years. Like car or truck headlights, it started with the sealed beam headlights, which Clark describes as not being much better than taping a pair of flashlights onto the dashboard. From that point, technology advanced to the development of the halogen lights and eventually LEDs. “Halogens were pretty good because they were fairly bright, fairly efficient headlamps But they were still incandescent lamps, and there was sort of an upper limit pushing up power through them,” Clark said, noting that the halogens also tended to burn out too quickly.

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For the snow and ice management market it is about the light output and beam patterns that lend themselves to snowplowing.

Historically, pickup trucks have had clunky halogen lamps on the front ends of snowplows. Being halogen, it’s a bulb in a filament that is prone to breaking.

“Halogen is not very long lasting, it doesn’t survive well in that cold environment, and it’s not that bright,” said Michael R. Stoeckel, J.W. Speaker director of aftermarket sales. “The only positive with halogen is that they get hot. The downside to that is that they also don’t last very long, but they get hot and they just naturally de-ice.”

It leads to the challenge of running a brighter light versus a long-lasting one.

“One of the things that is really attractive about LEDs is that they are not incandescent bulbs. Because they use electrical luminescence, the more power you push in, the more light comes out,” Clark said.

He said the LED headlamps are roughly two-times the brightness of the halogens because of the updated technology.

Instead of being a single point source with a big reflector, the LEDs are much more concentrated sources of light.

Instead of having one bulb, you have a whole bunch of LED elements. This allows the headlamps to have The J.W. Speaker Model 274 has five different versions to add SmartHeat technology to every side of a vehicle. Each 274 signal light is DOT-compliant for legal on-road use, and can be installed on a vehicle vertically or horizontally.

a wider, fuller pattern in low and high beam so that operators have better visibility while driving and plowing.

The Nighthawk headlamps at Western have been in development for nearly two years.

“We didn’t want to give our customers just another LED headlamp option; we wanted to give them what we feel are the best LED headlamps available in the industry,” Clark said. “I believe our customers will agree when they use them out in the field.”

We didn’t want to give our customers just another LED headlamp option; we wanted to give them what we feel are the best LED headlamps available in the industry.

Built with durability in mind, the Western headlamps offer a compact design that is less prone to shock and vibration while plowing. Featuring a completely sealed, weatherproof housing to stand up to harsh weather conditions, the headlamps have undergone thorough testing, including hot and cold thermal shocking, cold water submersion, corrosion tests and impact simulations.

Clark said another benefit to using LEDs is the precisely tuned patterns and very defined horizon line.

“The low beams have a very defined horizon,” he said.

“What’s good about that is it keeps it down below the Brake, turn, and hazard lights are critical visual signals to drivers on the road. The J.W. Speaker Model 274 has 5 different versions for contractors to add SmartHeat technology to every side of their vehicles. Powerful and long-lasting LEDs in the Model 274 signal lights give them confidence that their trucks or trailers are clear of snow and ice and visible to other drivers.

horizon, and the driver doesn’t get as much glare off the snowflakes. You get a better view down the road when you’re getting those lights scattered off the weather.”

In recent years, more companies are seeking winter lighting packages for plowing or just general winter transportation. Some have considered use of LEDs

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The Model 9900 LP by J.W. Speaker is an all-in-one headlight with low and high beam, front position, turn signal, and DRL. This LED snow plow headlight can easily be installed on the snow plow frame and works with a single OR double stud mount. At only 3.25″ tall, the Model 9900 LP ensures a clear line of sight of the road compared to conventional lights that range for 5 to 8 inches tall.

but fear the perception that LEDs do not function well in winter. While brighter, LED lights produce no heat where it is needed.

“They produce a ton of heat where you don’t want it on the back of the circuit board,” Clark said. Western has ridges or heat exchangers on the back of the lights to pull off the waste heat from the electronics.

Stoeckel noted there is also a perception that LED lights will freeze over and not function in winter. With a variety of heating options from the various manufacturers, there is an option for LEDs to be utilized in winter driving.

For example, to combat snow and ice build-up, the Western Products Nighthawks LED headlamps boast an intuitive heating system that senses temperature on the lens and only heats when necessary.

To help prevent ice bridging, the headlamp structure is designed with a forward sloped lens and has no bezel, a common point for ice to begin forming on other lamps.

In addition, Stoeckel said the J.W. Speaker plow lights have custom-designed SmartHeat technology, allowing each light to automatically de-ice the surface of the lens using a thermally conductive grid system.

The system reacts to temperature changes on a realtime basis with no action required by the driver.

“The driver doesn’t have to worry about anything; it just works,” Stoeckel said. “Now that we have the deicing going on and it’s efficient and it’s cost effective, it’s making a big difference.”

Another option offered by Western and other Douglas Dynamics headlamps is Edgeview technology.

Western worked with the manufacturer to produce this particular light with an element that’s on the side and shoots to the side and down. “The purpose of that is so that the plow drivers can see where the edge of their plow is and also see those pedestrians with poor self-preservation skills because it will light up the sidewalks on either side,” Clark explained.

Even without EdgeView active, Clark said LEDs in general offer a superior light pattern that illuminate wider and farther than other headlamps.

“When you put all of this together, you can see from your far right, your far left and everything in between. And when you turn on the high beams, you can see very, very far down the road,” he said. “You can see stop signs, lights and read a hundred yards away, which is highly valued to a guy in a truck at 3 a.m.

“They’re just better than anything else floating around out there right now,” Clark said. “In the future, it will be something else. This is the revolution we’re in the middle of right now.”

The light will work on a range of plows, but Clark added that it is expensive. “A really well-made LED light is probably about three times as expensive as a comparable halogen,” he said.

Stoeckel suggested it is worth the additional cost as contractors consider a winter lighting package when buying a plow.

“Now there’s a way for them to get these on because if an LED is rated for up to 50,000 hours versus a sealed beam or a halogen lamp at 300 to 500 hours, that’s a big difference,” he said. “That is definitely a payback you can calculate.”

Western Products unveiled its Nighthawk LED headlamps this year that provide a full 180 degrees of light visibility from plow edge to plow edge as well as an intuitive heating system.

Western Products

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SNOWED IN? TAKE ONE OUT.

SEASON AFTER SEASON, FORD SUPER DUTY IS THE HEAVY-DUTY PICKUP YOU’LL WANT ON YOUR CREW. ®

It stands up to salt with a corrosion-resistant body composed of high-strength, military-grade, aluminum alloy. For upfit convenience, it offers six available factory-installed electrical switches for aftermarket accessories. And the class-exclusive* available live-drive power takeoff (PTO) provision with mobile mode* lets you power either a plow or a spreader, while either parked or driving. In all, it’s no wonder why the 2019 Ford Super Duty F-550 is the winner of Work Truck Magazine’s Commercial Truck of the Year award.

*Requires aftermarket power takeoff (PTO) accessory. Class is Full-Size Pickups over 8,500 lbs. GVWR based on Ford segmentation.

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By Ryan Whisner

FINDING SOLUTIONS TO

ROCK SALT CHALLENGES Supply, acquisition and pricing are all factors in salt use during the winter months

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ext to labor, salt is one of the most significant components to snow and ice management.

Suppliers and contractors have been discussing the topic at recent events including Snow and Ice Management Association’s (SIMA) 22nd Annual Snow and Ice Symposium in Grand Rapids, MI in June and the 2019 Accredited Snow Contractors Association (ASCA) Snow Show in Pittsburgh in July.

At both event, panelists discussed the current climate of salt acquisition for winter services in terms of material flow, availability and prices as well as highlighting some of the challenges of a contractor and supplier relationship.

One scenario that is completely false across the industry is any likelihood that contractors will have no problem with salt this year or in the future.

Too Many Variables “Salt is the most abundant and one of the cheapest commodities on the planet,” said Rob English, president of Chemical Solutions, Inc. He was among five panelists at the ASCA show which included Troy

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Clogg, owner, Troy Clogg Landscape Associates, Ellen Pouthier and Jerome Kowal, vice president of sales and operations, Apalachee Salt and Jeff Sneller, president, Sneller Snow & Grounds.

English noted that there are countless factors from government regulations to weather that can affect how salt flows when weather comes in.

“We have weather events that sweep across the whole country,” English said. When its early in the season, such events can put a dent in salt supplies and begin to set the stage for problems further into the season.

One of upcoming issues he referenced during the ASCA panel was the upcoming International Maritime Organization’s 2020 regulation relating to sulfur emission. As of Jan. 1, 2020, the limit for sulfur in fuel oil used on board ships operating outside designated emission control areas will be reduced to 0.50% m/m (mass by mass.” This is expected to significantly reduce the amount of sulfur oxides emanating from ships and should have major health and environmental benefits for the world, particularly for populations living close to ports and coasts. To date, English said many vessels do not have scrubbers or the capacity to burn fuel that will go that low sulfur level.

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“Everyone has been putting it off saying they are not going to do anything,” English said. As a result, for the snow and ice management industry, there could be vessel availability problems in terms of the flow of salt supply on the waterways.

“There are just an awful lot of variables,” he said. “It comes down to risk management and who’s going to take the risk: the end user, the customer, the distributor or the supplier. Somebody has to step up and pile it up and take the risk as to whether or not it snows. That’s the person who stands in line to be in the best position if the weather turns favorable and is going to take the biggest sting if it doesn’t, but it’s the nature of the business.”

Suppliers and contractors have to take those factors and more into consideration when determining salt amounts.

“First of all, we weigh in those factors and hopefully we get lucky and we don’t have to deal with that,” Kowal said. “In the coming years, water, rail and shipping is going to become a strong factor. From the point where we have our stockpiles and delivering it from the stockpiles directly to you, it’s trucking and depending on where the contractors are all that plays a factor into how long it sits there and how quickly you need it.”

“It’s a, it’s a up and down variable, but you’re at the mercy of what the weather does, everything from the top all the way down,” Kowal said.

A similar sentiment was shared at the SIMA salt panel discussions.

“Salt and chloride are the tools of our trade. If we don’t have that tool, we are in trouble with our clients,” said Carl Bolm, president of BSR Services. “The challenge is that we are in an industry where change is happening and one would say that it’s moving faster than we are moving.”

Balm was joined at the SIMA Snow and Ice Symposium by Phil Sexton of WIT Advisers, Tony Johnson of Midwest Salt, Nate Clemmer of SynaTek Solutions, and Jim Gregor of Sullivan Corporation.

Both English and Johnson referenced the impacts of the flooding this year on the Mississippi River which closed ports and prevented some shipments.

At the end of the day, salt is inventory management. Are you going to manage your inventory or are you going to count on your supplier to manage your inventory?

“Imports were coming in, but there are only so many vessels that could get through, and you can’t really bring in vessels with (shallow water) and the rocks to get salt to the right places,” Johnson said.

Also, as a supplier, he acknowledged that the big companies would be looking at the government contracts first. Johnson said there would be a shortage for the public roads if the suppliers focused on the private contractors first, leaving the roads unsafe and the parking lots safe.

Winter’s Over, Time To Order Salt Pouthier told attendees at the ASCA salt challenge panel that contractors should begin having conversations with suppliers as soon as possible.

“I think it should be an open conversation,” she said. “We sort of base what people are going to buy based on what they did the year before. I know it’s hard to gauge what the season’s going to be like but, sometimes there are new accounts or they lose contracts and we like to keep the conversation open.”

Sneller noted that they started talking about salt acquisition in March and April.

“Salt is exciting to me,” he said. “In the off season if we were to run out of a product it doesn’t get people’s adrenaline going. Not that we don’t have issues running out of product in other seasons, but snow is our lifeblood and salt is such a critical part of that.”

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...We round up about 40% is a significant operaSneller added that as well. and then we know our costs, we tional tool. Both have when there is a shortcommunicated with our clients. We get in front experienced the trials of age, a supply issue of more and more clients every year to attempting a long-term or pricing issues as share in the cashflow burden of that. relationship with a suphas been occurring in plier who appeared to the Midwest, it only be in position to mainincreases the excitetain a consistent supply ment and rewards and the came up short those contractors who or raised prices for lonplan ahead. ger shipping distances.

Contractors on the ASCA panel said After being hit with they measure every the additional truckproperty to determine ing fees as the salt was the salt usage. Each shipped from greater property has its own distances, Clogg vowed budget for home much never to face that lack application and at what of control again and is service level. now importing his own salt while continuing to “At the end of the grow the size of his business and salt stockpile. day, salt is inventory management,” Clogg said. “Are “Share that story with the clients, share that cost you going to manage your inventory or are you going with the clients,” Clogg said. “If they don’t want to play to count on your supplier to manage your inventory?” that game, I would suggest they’re probably not a good He prefers to manage his own inventory like Sneller and business partner or client for you.” plans well ahead of schedule and already has salt for the upcoming 2018-19 winter season.

“I would not want to fall prey to whatever could Proper pricing happen between now and November,” he said. “I want From a contractor perspective he stressed the to know my number, I want. And, and to the same importance of having contracts that have an allocation with Jeff. Each site has a calculation. We round up amount for salt and for the labor portion, because it’s about 40% as well and then we know our costs, we based on volume. communicated with our clients. We get in front of “There are enough weather departments and more and more clients every year to share in the cash enough sanctioned areas to measure how much snow flow burden of that.” happens in your market,” Clogg said. “If there is less, give something back to the client, if there is more, they pay you more. Educate the clients and share the costs.”

Sharing Your Story Sneller notes that his company has eliminated any Clogg noted that there are only two groups of all-inclusive contracts so everything is written with the people to educate customers and the crew. understanding that as the price of salt moves so does “Our customers need to learn these things and the contract price. learn that we need to go buy salt and talk to suppli“We have to ask ourselves do we want it to be coners early and give them deposits or pay for the whole tractors or do we want to be in the insurance industry,” thing,” he said. “Whatever it may be, that should never he said. “I don’t want to be in the insurance industry. be hidden from a customer.”

It’s not my job to insure the client. It’s my job to be a Other panelists agreed. contractor and provide a quality service so we want to “I think it’s a very important component of it to let make sure that we’re getting paid for it.” the customers know, these are the things that we need from you and we need these commitments and don’t In June at the SIMA symposium, Gregor stressed give me estimates that aren’t realistic,” English said. the importance of the contractors reviewing their overall needs when making decisions on purchases and pricing.

Clogg and Sneller each indicated that they maintain relationships with multiple suppliers throughout “We’re all in this together making sure the snow the season and “not having all your eggs in one basket” and ice industry is moving forward,” he concluded.

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By Ryan Whisner

Frost Inc. introduces its liquid icecontrol truck skids with dual-nozzle technology with automatic rate control and GPS speed sensing.

WHY CONTRACTORS ADD LIQUIDS to their winter toolbox

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ver the last decade, snow and ice management contractors have begun introducing brine and liquid deicing and anti-icing product into their overall operations to cut costs, increase profits and improve sustainability.

A pair of industry leaders offered a frontline perspective on how and why to move forward with use of liquids during a session at the 2019 Accredited Snow Contractors Association (ASCA) Snow Show in Pittsburgh in July.

Jerry Schill, owner of Schill Grounds Management of Cleveland and Darren Rafferty, president of Darren Rafferty Inc. Landscape Contractors were asked to address the latest advancements in deicing and how contractors can integrate them into their strategies.

Reality Versus Fantasy A common misconception by contractors considering using liquids is the idea that the liquids will replace use of salt completely and be a cure all for deicing.

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“The reality of it is it’s just there to prevent the bonding for the start and help them plow and get the site clearer and faster,” Rafferty said, noting that there will events where the liquid works to the expectations and others where sleet or rain washes out the liquid and sets them back to square one.

Before liquids got introduced, snow and ice contractors, were basically fighting from the top down.

A snowstorm would come through, they plowed and cleared and put ice melt down. With liquids, the idea is to work from the bottom up.

“What that liquid layer does is prevents that hardpack layer, allows you to get the snow and ice cleared much quicker and efficiently,” Rafferty said. “We still do one basic job, we take the white stuff off the black stuff, so in essence we’re removing the snow and ice.”

The added benefit of using liquids is a reduction in the amount of solid ice melt or bulk salt materials being utilized. Schill said he approached the use of liquids from a sustainability perspective, based on the

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use of those bulk salt materials and the impact on the infrastructure including sidewalks, sewer systems and waterways. In addition, he noted that labor savings played a role in his decision to use liquids.

“We’ve realized that liquids have allowed us to go out and do some preventative care, which buys us time,” he said. “We can actually reduce the amount of manpower we need post event to from a cleanup standpoint because of the bonding or the lack of bonding on pavement.”

Having used liquids since 2005, Rafferty similarly learned through trial and error that when used properly, liquid deicer or anti-icing products can help tremendously in snow fighting efforts.

“It’s another tool in our toolbox,” Rafferty said, noting that use of liquids will save money and get the blacktop blacker and cleaner faster and increase the operations overall efficiency.

Choosing A Liquid Options for liquids to purchase are pre-made or for a contractor to create their own if their infrastructure allows for it and based on what is more cost effective.

“There’s a lot of different liquids on the market, do your homework, see what works best in your market,” Rafferty said.

Getting Started Combined, a contractor is looking at a minimum of approximately $8,100 to get into the use of liquids.

“When you factor in this amount of cost compared to what your savings may be later on, it really isn’t a lot to get invested into,” Rafferty said.

“What I would suggest is do your homework, study, learn from somebody so that you can implement this properly into your operation.”

For contractors looking to utilize liquids in their winter operations, Schill suggests reaching out to resident experts in the market for some help and starting small. He also recommends a review of existing assets from an application standpoint and figure out what could be utilized before making a huge investment.

“Liquids aren’t a one size fits all, there are so many mad recipes and things that you can add and not add things you should or shouldn’t add,” Schill noted. “It is a very trial by fire kind of exercise because it doesn’t always work.”

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Entry ice melt—a chloride-free, biodegradable deicing and anti-icing fluid is manufactured by Branch Creek

The starting point with liquids is a sodium brine, which is salt mixed with water. What is commonly seen in the market is products being added to that mixture such as magnesium chloride, calcium chloride or any of a variety of agricultural-based products in effort to reduce the freezing point of water and allow the brine to work at lower temperatures and get more pushes at a site.

Generally, working temperature for basic brine is 18 degrees. The various additives help reduce that working temperature to below zero.

Both Schill and Rafferty seemed to agree that the best methodology for a contractor is to do some research and figure out what is best for their market and what is going to be the most cost effective.

The Right Stuff For starters, a storage tank of some kind is required to store any liquid that is going to be used for the antiicing and deicing operations. In conjunction with the tanks themselves is the various hoses, plumbing and gas or electric transfer pumps to connect the tanks to the equipment being used to disperse the liquid.

Size of the storage tank or tanks should be determined based on the size of the sites being serviced.

“The last thing you want to be doing is looking for liquids during a storm,” Rafferty said. “Also, depending on distance that you’re traveling in between sites that may determine if you’re going to need satellite tanks out in different areas to help you refill.”

He recommends plastic over metal tanks due to the corrosiveness of the brine. However, he cautions that plastic tanks can get brittle in the cold temperatures.

When it comes to the pumps, which are a mix of gas or electric, Rafferty leaves it to the contractor. “Anything that’s going to get you from point A to point B, the storage tank through the pump into the spray vehicle,” he said.

For the spraying application, that is going to be trailer-mounted, truck-mounted, a separate vehicle. As with most of the other decisions, it depends on the size of the operation and the size of the sites being treated.

With the use of liquids, maintenance becomes major factor on the equipment due to the additional wear from the corrosive materials.

Rafferty noted that brine by itself is corrosive by nature and typically any additive just make it more so.

If anything sees wear from the use of the liquids it’s the equipment or trucks, including brakes, rotors, drums, metal on frames and truck bodies.

He and Schill both indicated the importance of regular washing and cleaning of equipment after a storm. Also,

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Liquid Ice Control Equipment it’s important to ensure everything is kept lubricated and to regularly check nozzles and fittings prior to an event so equipment or product failure does not occur during a storm.

The widest variety to fit any vehicle

Application Ground and air temperatures are key factors in the liquid application process. Rafferty provides infrared thermometers to his foremen to ensure both of those are within the working range of the products being utilized.

“It is crucial to have that information out to your crews because you don’t want your crews putting material down at the wrong temperatures,” Rafferty said.

Not all liquid products are created equal in terms of temperatures ranges that they are effective at.

“What that infrared thermometer is going to do is very quickly give you ground temperature shot, air temperature shot, and you’re going to know what range you’re in very quickly,” Rafferty said. “You can always use the swag (scientific wild ass guess) method instead but sometimes that could come back to bite you so I’d definitely suggest getting an infrared laser thermometer.”

Sea ~Mix Brine Station

Reluctant Clients Transitioning to use of liquids as part of a snow and ice management contract can be challenging to explain to clients. Many property owners or managers are adverse to use of liquids and want the more common sight of salt on the ground as proof that the contractor was present.

“It’s all about educating the clients on the benefits of how the products work, particularly from the safety aspect,” Rafferty said.

During his company’s initial use of liquids, he struggled to practically give it away. By the second year, when the property managers were seeing the results, use of the liquids became more a premium service and now through continuous education within the New Jersey market he serves, the property managers now ask about or for liquid use at this point.

“None of the property managers are willing to take the chance of the contractor recommending a better, safer way to do things and saying no to it,” Rafferty said, adding that it is all about educating the property managers how use of liquids will save time at their site.

Schill said another benefit to clients is the reduction of post season damage to turf, plants, trees and other assets.

“A lot of those are other intangible things that people don’t often think about that could be used as a differentiator in your market and your process for going to market with liquids,” he said. “When you can take a case study, literally put it in front of somebody and kind of share a local story or a local property where they’ve seen significant benefits, it becomes a much easier sell.”

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By Kevin Aries

How Fleet Management So HELP MAINTAIN SAFETY & PRODUCTIVITY DURING TH W ith the summer officially over, landscaping and construction companies are already looking into how they can improve the utilization and productivity of the team when the temperature begins to drop in the fall and winter seasons. The colder seasons bring unique challenges like winter lawn prep, leaf removal and snow plowing, which use teams and assets in very different ways. It can be challenging for businesses to not only plan equipment maintenance and replacement in such variable weather, but to also keep their drivers and vehicles safe on the road when bad weather hits.

The uncertainty of the winter weather and the tough jobs that crews may need to be prepared for means fleet managers need to be even more prepared.

Moreover, fleet managers are increasingly relied upon to mitigate business risks that come with maintaining and tracking assets and keeping their drivers and the communities they operate in safe. This is where advanced fleet management software with robust analytics can help. Landscaping companies of all sizes can use this technology to monitor weather and traffic conditions on the road and communicate with drivers in near real time. Additionally, as fleet management software leverages GPS tracking, the technology can be used to help managers alleviate the risk of maintenance issues with predictive analytics and alerts by tracking vehicle history.

Summer’s swan song is officially here, and fleet managers in the landscaping industry have the opportunity to begin planning after a high-volume season for the winter to come. Here are three reasons to invest in fleet management software this cold-weather season.

U.S. Department of Transportation, on average, there are 5.8 million vehicle crashes each year with nearly 21% of these resulting from weather-related conditions.

It is important to be overly prepared and ready for anything. With ice and snow on the streets, fleet managers need to play the role of both navigator and meteorologist in order to help drivers make smart choices while en route with safety and productivity top of mind.

Utilizing GPS tracking technology within fleet management software, fleet managers have the near-real time location information of all vehicles in their fleet, overlaid in the software with traffic and weather condition information. During a winter storm for instance, a fleet

Making the right calls on the road The winter brings snow, sleet and above all, it makes conditions more difficult for workers on the job. Winter storms can also impact the roads crews are using to get to-and-from jobs, increasing danger and exposure to hazardous conditions. According to the

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nt Software Can Y & INCREASE G THE WINTER

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manager can quickly alert drivers to road conditions while they are on their way to a job or on their way back after completing it. A fleet manager can make assumptions about the roads that haven’t been plowed yet by seeing where congestion levels are the highest. Moreover, if an accident occurs on a main thoroughfare, a fleet manager can use the technology to create geofences, so that when their fleet vehicles cross into a demarcated area, they get an alert. Managers can also use geofencing to direct fleets away from perilous situations and to confirm when they’ve reached designated zones.

Having this kind of visibility is invaluable to maintaining safety of the business’ most important assets

– the drivers – while also helping boost productivity during the slower winter months.

Overall, having the ability to reroute or better plan a route with the technologies of advanced fleet software can help fleet drivers get to job sites faster and safely – snow, sleet or shine – and, it empowers fleet

Landscaping and construction companies of all sizes can use fleet management software to monitor weather and traffic conditions on the road and communicate with drivers in near real time.

Utilizing GPS tracking technology fleet managers have the near-real time location information of all vehicles in their fleet, overlaid in the software with traffic and weather condition information. Crews can be alerted of bad road conditions or weather while en route or returning from a job site.

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managers with information and tools to help their drivers when winter weather strikes.

Providing the tools for improvement

Advanced fleet management software provides fleet managers with empirical data on their individual drivers’ harsh braking, harsh acceleration, excessive speeding and seat belt utilization. These data points provide managers with an understanding of an individual driver and their safety score.

not all edges are created equal FallLine® Polyurethane Cutting Edges are the clear alternative to steel and rubber edges for applications where surface damage is a concern.

Most drivers know to expect slick roads and shorter daylight hours during the winter. According to the Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration, speeding is also a major factor in many trucking accidents, and when winter weather seems imminent, drivers may make quick decisions, especially when safe driving is not frequently communicated as a core priority of a business. However, fleet management software can help provide managers with the advantage of tracking unsafe driving behavior where they can use the information to help educate their team ahead of the winter weather, so that when snowflakes begin to fall, the crew and drivers are ready.

Before telematics data, fleet managers had to rely on second-hand accounts of driver behavior and the eventual reckoning from insurers when accidents happened. Correcting driver behavior behind the wheel was reactive rather than proactive, and data points for

Contree, has over 75 years of combined experience designing, fabricating, installing, sell parts and servicing spraying equipment.

Be ready for Winter Maintenance with our Stainless Steel Brine/De-icer Sprayers. Call Contree to design a

FallLine polyurethane edges feature several performance advantages over their steel and rubber counterparts.

Using our proprietary formulation, every > Minimize Surface Damage FallLine edge is engineered for superior > No Unsightly Rust Marks abrasion resistance, temperature range, > Safe on Pavers and/or and physical characteristics.

Textured Surfaces In addition to polyurethane cutting > Low Noise Operation edges, FallLine also offers a complete > Reduce Costly line of professional snow removal Equipment Repairs products.

1.800.325.5463 www.fallline.com

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driver improvement relied too much on one’s gut.

Advanced fleet management software provides fleet managers with empirical data on their individual drivers’ harsh braking, harsh acceleration, excessive speeding and seat belt utilization.

These data points provide managers with a holistic understanding of an individual driver and their safety score. The data can then be utilized to help pinpoint problem areas for specific drivers and provide managers proactive avenues to coach drivers and navigate particular road/driving situations.

Ultimately, drivers who operate vehicles safely will be better prepared to take on dangerous winter conditions while on the job. Fleet management software help take the guesswork out of fleet and driver readiness and safety.

Vehicle health when it matters the most When a winter storm hits, you don’t want to be kept awake at night thinking your vehicles may not be road ready. While fleet managers can’t predict or prepare for everything, they do have control of when fleet

vehicles get maintenance checkups. Even if the range of a fleet is within the city limits, constant use and wear and tear increases the possibility of worn out brakes, failing engines, un-rotated tires and unchanged oil, all of which can impact business outcomes.

Fleet management software can help provide fleet managers with peace of mind. GPS tracking technology can monitor fuel usage and mileage, which indicates how long a vehicle has been in service. These data points can be used to help develop vehicle health baselines so fleet managers can set alerts and track previous and upcoming maintenance. Managers can use this data as a guide to determine whether a vehicle is fit to be on the road, especially ahead of harsher road and weather conditions.

Making sure your drivers and fleets are safe during the winter can seem like an impossible task, especially as winters become increasingly extreme and unpredictable. However, with fleet management technology equipped, snow and ice management companies can help keep their drivers safe, their vehicles monitored properly and their communities consistently satisfied.

H A K K A P E L I I T TA T R I

H A K K A P E L I I T TA L O A D E R

The first winter tire for tractors, Nokian Hakkapeliitta TRI, makes sure your winter contracting has all the grip and control you need – with or without studs.

The first winter tire for wheel loaders, Hakkapeliitta Loader, offers you speed, stamina and control. Unmatched grip and durability in the market – both winter and summer.

800.565.2525

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PRODUCTS

SNOW & ICE REMOVAL

For additional snow-handling products and equipment, visit the Product Guide at GreenIndustryPros.com

Winter Equipment Universal Spinner for Snow and Ice Treatment Spreading D-Force expands to BOSS DXT 8’2” & 9’2” plows BOSS Snowplow continues to expand products offering D-Force, an accessory that improves scraping when backdragging by maintaining a consistent hydraulic down force powered by a hydraulic accumulator, leaving cleaner pavement in less time than conventional plows. D-Force will now be available on new BOSS DXT 8’2” and 9’2” snowplows, adding even more power to the already fully featured DXT lineup. www.greenindustrypros.com/21068948

SnowWolf ActivEdge Floating Sectional Cutting Edge SnowWolf has introduced its new ActivEdge, a floating sectional cutting edge with proprietary composite springs. Able to be retrofitted to previously purchased SnowWolf plows by replacing the trip edge, features include: • Sections that move up and down and pivot to clear a greater percentage of the surface under a particular section.

• Simplified maintenance with three or four bolts holding each section in place.

• Cutting edge is AR400 steel, an alloy created specifically for maximum abrasion resistance, toughness and durability.

• ActivEdge sections come in 18- and 24 inch lengths, depending on the length of the plow.

• Proprietary composite springs impervious to water and all other natural elements. Maintains a consistent compression strength through temperatures from below minus 40 degrees Fahrenheit to over 150 degrees Fahrenheit.

Winter Equipment offers its universal spinner that provides for spreading of snow and ice treatments. Constructed of durable, high-quality polyurethane. The spinner’s tough, one-piece construction resists wear, reducing costs and maintenance. Additional features include: • Constructed for durable, high-quality polyurethane.

• One-piec, 18-diameter construction resists wear, reducing cost and maintenance.

• 6 inches in diameter at its blank, undrilled table (the center mounting section), that can be easily drilled to fit specific specs, enabling it to fit a variety of hub types and sizes.

• Colored in high-visibility orange for safety.

• Six, universal, tapered vanes support clockwise or counter clockwise rotations and promote easy fill, even spread and high feed rates. www.greenindustrypros.com/21085415

V60 Hydraulic Snow Blade/Pusher Virnig’s V60 Hydraulic Snow Blade/Pusher skid steer attachment allows the blade to quickly transform from a straight blade to a snow pusher or any position in between.

• Electric control is supplied and allows independent angling of each wing from 0 to 60 degrees • Entire blade adjusts independently from the wings for infinite plowing configurations • Heavy-duty 3/16-in. moldboard features reversible, replaceable steel bolt-on cutting edges that allow 5.5-in. of total wear • Available in 10, 11, 12 and 13-ft. blade widths

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PRODUCTS

SNOW & ICE REMOVAL

SnowEx Power Pusher TE Snow Pusher SnowEx has introduced its Power Pusher TE snow pushers.

Meyer Products Super Blade Snow Plow • Expansion from 8’ to 10.5’ or anywhere in between at the touch of a button.

• Blade is 32” high in the center of the moldboard, while the outer adjustable wings measure 36” high.

• Free-standing jack allows adjustments on uneven or shifting surfaces.

• A pistol grip controller with self-diagnostics reduces downtime.

• Available in 8- and 10-foot-wide models with large carrying capacities • Interchangable among skid-steers, wheel loaders, backhoes and tractors..

• Steel trip-edges to handle heavy-duty loads and stresses.

• Side support posts to help prevent bending from hitting curbs or other accidental impact.

• Accessories including a top-mounted, rubber backdrag edge and other tight spaces. High-wear shoes are also available, to easily slide along the surface.

www.greenindustrypros.com/21082408

www.greenindustrypros.com/21075853

Extend your capabilities with the commercial-grade Meyer Super Blade plow. Features include:

Nokian Tyres Intuitu Digital Tire Monitoring System Intuitu, Nokian Tires’ digital tire monitoring system, combines sensor-equipped smart tires with a mobile app that records the sensor data from the tires including vital tire pressure and temperature data.

• System does not require modifications to the vehicle itself • Commercially available in 2020 www.greenindustrypros.com/21085468

ADVERTISERS INDEX Arctic Snow & Ice Control............ 36 Bobcat...................................................2 Buyers Products Co........................ 23 ClearSpan Fabric Structures......... 35 Contree Sprayer & Equipment Co.................................. 30 Fall Line Corp.................................... 30 Ford Motor Co............................18-19 Frost Inc..............................................27 GEICO................................................ 33 HLA Snow.......................................... 25 J.W. Speaker Corp..............................9 Nokian Tyres......................................31 Progressive Insurance.....................13 Select Source................................... 34 Verizon Connect.............................. 17 Wacker Neuson..................................7

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