Success in niches– as a service provider for smaller projects
EBERSHEIM/France. The trend towards mobile recycling in France is what prompted the Alsace based company VVK Recyclage to invest in a high-performance, easily transportable RM100 RUBBLE MASTER Compact Recycler. The new class in mobile recycling has been in use with great success since September 2008 – mostly for the Vogel TP SAS Group – in road building and demolition projects. There have also been increasing orders for contract crushing for smaller companies in the east of France. VVK Recyclage has occupied a lucrative niche in the process: as a cost-effective provider of high-value recycled building materials for small to large-scale applications.
Founded in 1979, Vogel TP SAS in Scherwiller in Alsace has become established as a specialist for earthwork, demolition work and civil engineering. VVK Recyclage has been a competent supplier within the Vogel Group since 2001, offering cost-effective, high-quality recycled building materials.
Professional service and regional customer care essential
In 2008 VVK Recyclage was searching for a high-performance but easily transportable crusher, says Managing Director Jean Luc Vogel. "We recognised the trend toward mobile recycling and were in search of a suitable crusher. It was above all a visit to HMH / RUBBLE MASTER in Linz, Austria, that convinced me. During this visit I was able to get to know the organisation and also the people behind it. I attach particular importance to professional customer service and a reliable spare parts service. And this is why I buy machines only from reputable suppliers who concentrate on service aspects and also offer it close to where we are. RUBBLE MASTER puts all their energy in to precisely this approach in the form of the "RM Lifetime Service" – i.e. expert support and customer service throughout the entire service life of the machine.
The company BULOC in Alsace handles the regional service in our case. Together with them we visited the RUBBLE MASTER headquarters again and were highly impressed by the competence of the RM Customer Support and the extensive technical documentation. The RM100 was delivered in September 2008 and has handled 5 jobs with around 300 operating hours – to the complete satisfaction of the operators and the customers. A service engineer from BULOC has in the meantime already visited us for the 100-hour on-site service and for the first checks of the machine. It is good to know that everything is OK with the crusher and, what's more, it saves time - also when it comes to spare parts supplies."
Decision in favour of high-performance, easily transportable crusher
The decision fell clearly in favour of the new class in mobile recycling: the robust RM100 impact crusher. Dynamic automatic operation and optimised crusher hammer geometry ensure the highest possible continuous throughput and uniform aggregate. RM100 crushers are operated safely and cost efficiently by a single person – thanks to the radio control system for simultaneous remote operation of the crusher, crawler gear and Release System for removing blockages at the touch of a button. At just 28 tonnes the crawler-equipped RM100 is a typical RUBBLE MASTER Compact Recycler that is easy to transport. The system, which has been cost-optimised from the ground up, stands out through impressive service life, well below average wear costs, long maintenance intervals and optimum ease of operation. The machine is set up quickly thanks to quick-release connections and perfect accessibility from the ground. Magnetic separator, side conveyor belt and mobile oversize grain screen are also available as proven RUBBLE MASTER add-on modules.
"Besides the high performance of this compact crusher, the easy transportation was a key argument in its favour," explains Jean Luc Vogel. "Because this machine can be transported and put on the job site just like a 24 tonne excavator loader. Assembly times are also very short. You just have to clean it, put the belt back in place and off you go to the next job! Instead of laborious applications for special permits and also the costs incurred, all that is required for transportation with a low-bed trailer is a permanent special permit (basic class)."
"It is also a bonus that the crusher can be loaded with a wheel loader and excavator loader because it is extremely compact," says the entrepreneur, summarising his first experiences. "But the throughput really impressed us as well. And by using four long hammers we are able to produce fine 0/20 mm material, which is important for many of our projects and our customers. The hammers can also be changed over very quickly and easily – which is a huge benefit – thanks to the quick-action system on the crusher housing. Another reason why I invested in a RUBBLE MASTER: because technical modifications can also be retrofitted to existing machines, increasing both productivity and the service life of the machine as a result." In the end it was also the exceptionally low consumption thanks to the diesel-electric drive concept that was a convincing argument!
Success in niches– as a service provider for smaller projects
The crusher is kept busy by numerous projects handled by Vogel TP SAS – whether in road building or demolition jobs – and customers in the region. Often the material is taken to VVK Recyclage's recycling yard in Ebersheim, where it is sorted, stored and then processed as required. VVK Recyclage is also turning more and more to a successful concept that many other RUBBLE MASTER recycling specialists benefit from: hiring out their machine together with loader and experienced machine operator for on-site projects. Producing classified recycled building materials through mobile recycling is becoming an increasingly lucrative business in Alsace (besides the crushing, VVK Recyclage also offers on-site classification using a screen).
"Our customers are mostly smaller companies with their own, small yards," says Jean Luc Vogel, describing his customer profile. "We have the perfect solution for them and are one of only a few service providers with such a compact, mobile machine in the Alsace region. Elsewhere you will only find large crushers in use. However, they cannot take on small orders for 1,000 or 2,000 m³ on grounds of cost. The transport costs and long set-up times alone mean that it is not worth their while."
The RM100 was in action for six days on a demolition site of the Vogel TP SAS Group at the end of September 2008. An old textile factory was to be demolished and the debris crushed down to around 600 mm. The material – around 5,000 tonnes of general rubble containing bricks and concrete – was processed on-site by the RM100 impact crusher down to 0/60 mm and then reused as a base layer for the road (see photo).
The crusher was also used to recycle 5,000 tonnes of gravel in the course of refurbishing the firing facility on VVK Recyclage's yard. If this had not been possible the material would have had to be taken elsewhere and replaced with new material. ´The first hire contract took the RM100 to the recycling yard of a small road building company in the surrounding district to crush 500 m³ of asphalt down to 0/20 mm fine grain. The customer was extremely satisfied with the performance of the crusher, which was used here with 4 long hammers. The fine grain was used as a black cover in road building.
Resident-friendly thanks to integrated noise and dust protection
"These days most demolition projects require on-site recycling with the product then being reused on-site as well, wherever possible," says Jean Luc Vogel, describing what is probably the biggest benefit of his RM100. Thanks to the comprehensive RM Enviro concept, the crusher works very quietly and dust is minimised through the water spray – protecting both the people near the job site and the machine as well!" Three large construction projects now await the RM100, one of which includes the demolition of a three-storey residential building where the debris is to be recycled on-site.
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Approx. 8,000 characters / 1,300 words. Photos to be used with copyright. Proprietor: RUBBLE MASTER HMH GmbH, Austria
Published: January 2009