Job Story
Florida Ready Mix Company touts benefits of Badger Shredding System
A Badger Shredding System on the job, processing
concrete pieces up to 40".
Anyone in the business of recycling concrete knows that the daily
grind has always been by nature noisy, dusty and enormously
expensive. Maintenance fees alone for concrete shredding equipment
can make or break a budget. But that is changing, thanks to Badger
Shredding Products, Inc.'s innovative line of shredding equipment
that has been engineered to significantly reduce the cost, noise,
dust, and down-time.
The line of patented twin shaft Badger Shredders is winning over
customers across the nation, who’ve done side-by-side comparisons
against other shredders. Available in stationary, semi stationary
and mobile configurations, Badger Shredding Systems range from 200
to 700 hp, with custom dimensions available. The 100-percent
American-made machine is engineered and produced in Wisconsin, with
a slower rotation speed to keep wear to a minimum.
Above all of the cost and environmental benefits, it is human safety
and the cost of keeping employees from injury that is top priority.
For one Florida-based concrete company, the Badger Shredding
System demo made this difference crystal clear:
Safety first
For Terry White of Hudson, Florida, there’s one thing that beats
lower costs, less mess and happier neighbors, and that’s safe
workers. Since demoing and purchasing a Badger concrete shredder
last year, White is resting easier knowing workers at his B.e.t.-er
Mix Concrete Company aren’t putting themselves at risk trying to
un-jam chunks of concrete from the crusher.
“For years we’d been using a densifier on a track hoe with a set of
jaws to bust up concrete block into manageable pieces for our
crusher, but it was frequently getting jammed and we’d have to use
pry bars to get the pieces out,” says White, owner of B.e.t.-er Mix.
“This would happen up to four times a day in a 12-hour work period,
and each time these jams put us down for at least an hour while we
worked to remove the chunks from the blades, which posed a potential
injury risk."
White, who demoed a Badger Shredding
b2060-T
system last year, was immediately impressed with the equipment's
counter-rotating shafts that could easily and safely handle large
pieces with its patented tooth system within the blades.
“When I saw it could take big 3-foot sections the size of a coffee
table and break it down to 10-inches or into sand particles, we
purchased one,” White says. “While no one had been injured unjamming
our old equipment, the Badger Shredder has made our problems go away
and eliminated any worry.”
Cost benefits
Before purchasing, B.e.t.-er
Mix demoed several other shredding systems to crush concrete block
for aggregate. But in
the end, the Badger shredder proved to be a quieter, less dusty and
more cost-effective alternative.
White says that with considerably less downtime and reduced
maintenance costs, the Badger system has helped increased the
company's volume by at least 25 percent. The superior shredding
ability also saves time by eliminating the secondary densification
process used in the past.
Additionally, the slower RPM of the blades can produce less sand and
more rock, which in Florida is harder to come by and more expensive.
"I also like that it’s made here in the U.S.A., and that I can call
and get my questions answered directly from the person who makes
it," White says,
pointing out that his company is 100 percent American-owned and
operated, just like Badger Shredding Products.
Innovation in the teeth
With wear and maintenance costs a major factor,many Badger Shredding
customers are seeing a significant cost savings with the
newly-redesigned replaceable wear teeth. The ergonomically designed
blades are mounted on the counter rotating shafts, and each blade
has a patented tooth system which can be individually replaced.
"The heart of the
Badger line of slow speed, high torque shredding machines is in its
unique design of the shredding chamber, and that is what sets ours
apart from other shredding systems,"
says Gerry Lamer, president of Badger Shredding Products, Inc.
"While competitors' products need replacing more frequently, our
blade replacement tips last more than 500 hours and can be replaced
individually as needed rather than replacing the entire assembly."
The shredding system goes beyond concrete use, processing carpet,
rubber, wood, plastics and metal.
The Badger can also shred biomass
material to assist companies who are producing energy from products
such as food waste, green waste and many other waste products.
Especially attractive to concrete processing producers is the fact
that even steel rebar rods, a valuable scrap metal, can be
separated, salvaged and recycled.
"There are a lot of machines that process concrete, but our unique
slow-speed shredding system allows rebar to be run through without
worry that the steel will harm the equipment," says Bob Lamer, vice
president and general manager of Badger Shredding Systems. "With our
unique process, there is almost zero chance of damaging our machine
from rebar."
The combination of low speed and high-torque shreds the concrete and
shears the metal rods, which are magnetically separated for
recycling.
A good neighbor
No business works in a vacuum, and corporate stewardship of the
environment and of nearby residents is important to White. His
western Florida-based
ready mix concrete and concrete
block manufacturing
business
recently opened its sixth location, and now the Hudson-based company
has 93 mixer trucks and 10 block trucks in its fleet from Tampa Bay
to Sarasota.
Neighboring communities have noticed significantly less dust and
noise recently, another benefit of the shredding machine's lower RPM
speed.
In a nearby mobile home park less than a mile west of
B.e.t.-er Mix, residents say the difference is amazing.
"I am happy to say that the new Badger Shredding equipment helped me
to deliver on my promise to my nearby neighbors that I would correct
the problem. They were pleased with the result, telling me it's
noticeably quieter and the air quality is better," White says.
"It's a win-win for everyone."
