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Summer 2007

Bobcat System Crunches Concrete

Imagine you have just three days to demolish, remove and pour new concrete in a factory with multi-million dollar machines surrounding your jobsite. It can be a stressful job with pressure from the customer to get the project done quickly and, most importantly, accurately. A Bobcat System helps one successful contractor do just that.



Bill Broach

Bill Broach says he "can complete a job faster with the Bobcat equipment than someone with a backhoe."

Bill Broach, Blythewood, S.C., relies on his versatile Bobcat® A300 all-wheel steer loader, powerful 442 excavator and attachments to complete complex concrete-removal jobs.

Broach's customers include commercial buildings and industrial centers in the southeast. He has completed projects for big-name companies including Honda, Pepsi Cola and Coca Cola; often with a complex schedule with short-turnarounds.

An unstoppable team
Teaming his A300 and 442, Broach removes concrete slabs and carries them to dump trucks waiting outside. If a truck can drive close enough to the 442, then the job can get done much faster.

"We use the Bobcat equipment to remove concrete because bigger equipment won't fit in the buildings," says Broach. "We move more concrete in two weeks than some people move all year because we can handle big slabs with the Bobcat loader and pallet forks.

"We pick up the concrete with the excavator if we can get the dump truck close to the work area. Then we'll use the clamp and the bucket and load the concrete directly into a truck, which is a faster way of working," he says.

In some cases positioning the truck next to the jobsite simply won't work. That's when Broach says his A300 is invaluable.

"Sometimes we have to haul the concrete a quarter-mile," he says. "With the two-speed on the A300, it helps us quickly transport concrete to the trucks."

Jobs finished faster
"We do a lot of jobs that are time-sensitive," says Broach. "The customer has to have the job done on the weekend and put back by Monday morning. We can complete a job five times faster with the Bobcat equipment than someone with a backhoe. There's no comparison. It used to take us four days, now we can do it in a day-and-a-half or less with our A300 and 442."

Broach is a hands-on guy, often spending much of his workday in the A300 or 442.

"I like the joystick controls in the A300," he says. "The all-wheel steer is the only way to go. A lot of customers don't want their concrete scuffed and it doesn't do it. If you're going through their yards, it doesn't leave ruts. It's an all-around better machine."

Before leaving a jobsite Broach cleans the area with an angle broom or sweeper attachment. He says his customers appreciate the extra effort to make the jobsite look good when he's finished.

442 brings peace-of-mind
The 442 excavator was a must-have for Broach because of its Zero Tail Swing (ZTS) feature combined with its power.

"The 442 is less than 8-ft.-wide, so it will go just about anywhere, and it will do anything we need it to do," he says. "The reason I bought it was because of the ZTS feature. Now I can work right next to something and know in my mind that I'm 'ok,' and it sure beats getting off the machine to check it out. If you are beside a million dollar piece of equipment, you don't want to hit it and shut down the plant."

With the exclusive features offered by Bobcat compact equipment, Broach has created a unique, concrete-removing system that's helped him grow his business in the 15 years he has owned the Bobcat brand. For more information on Bobcat products for demolition, visit www.bobcat.com/demolition.