Aggregates company Holme Sand & Ballast says it has increased productivity by 10% since purchasing two new wheeled loaders from
The County Hampshire, England-based company took delivery of the L26206E wheeled loaders to operate in its Masters Quarry, near Wareham, County Dorset. The machines load raw sand into the plant and blend and stockpile the processed aggregate to produce high quality, engineered silica sand for the construction, horticultural, equine and industrial sectors.
“Masters Pit is an arduous application. Our deposit is predominantly a rounded grain silica sand that has high wear characteristics and needs careful selection, processing and blending to produce grades to exacting standards,” says Trevor Poole, managing partner of Holme Sand & Ballast.
“We do a lot of blending and our shovels are really on load and carry duties for most of the time.
“I am interested in the production cost of the sand per tonne. It’s as simple as that. The two Bells fitted with the biggest buckets I could use means we are much more productive and hence our costs are reduced.
“In real terms, it means that I can complete our weekly production in five days rather than five and a half days. A 10% improvement in production is a massive saving.”
“The Bell machines are a good size, nice balance when travelling on load and carry duties, and the Viby Jern 4.7m³ buckets Bell supplied with the loaders are great.”
This is the first time that Holme Sand & Ballast has purchased Bell wheeled loaders, but its sister is still operating a Bell B25D articulated dump truck that was manufactured in 2002 and has completed more than 12,000 operating hours in a sand and gravel quarry with no major problems.
Nick Learoyd, managing director of Bell Equipment UK, said: “It’s fantastic to hear our loaders are delivering such incredible cost savings for Holme Sand & Ballast LLP.”
