Demolition Excavators: How Processing can Increase your Profits
For those who run high-reach demolition excavators, they know tearing down structures efficiently is the key to profitability — but it’s also the machines on the ground that can really add to the bottom line. Why not get paid for both?
To tear down and process sites efficiently and safely, you have choices to make. There are excavators with factory-fitted guarding packages (like Volvo), and ones that can be retrofitted to protect machines and operators. There’s also a wide range of demolition excavator attachments to consider.
It’s important to properly size and equip both your high-reach and cleanup excavators, whether you’re new to demolition, ready to take on bigger and more complex jobs, or if you’re ready to move into processing and recycling the material to increase your revenue stream. In this post, I’m providing some top tips on attachment selection to build your profitability, plus providing an overview of the guarding packages that keep everyone safer in the process.
SELECTING DEMOLITION EXCAVATOR ATTACHMENTS
Choosing the proper demolition excavator attachment for your job is crucial to improving efficiency and reducing costs. Here are some of the primary attachments that can help your construction site work more efficiently:
One of the most used attachments on demolition and cleanup excavators is a hydraulic hammer. Excavator operators use them to break rock for sewer lines, basements and so on, and demolition guys use them to break up large chunks of concrete. Putting different bits on the hammer provides a lot of flexibility — underwater demolition, breaking concrete and breaking rock all require different bits. On demolition sites, hammers help speed up processing by making chunks of debris more manageable for continued processing and separating.
A concrete processor takes the hammer one step further. It helps you do more of a controlled demolition by allowing you to slowly smash the concrete and whittle it down. A processor cleans a lot of the concrete off of the rebar, essentially prepping your scrap. Some brands even allow you to put different sets of jaws on them. That allows you to switch to a shear and cut steel, for example. It’s better to cut steel that has lead paint in it than to torch it. You can also use it to downsize your steel to fit in a trailer, or to wreck a steel building — you can literally cut the building down.- Hydraulic thumbs are incredibly versatile — they
can remain on the machine while you dig, plus you can grab and move material for sorting (concrete from wood, for example). Hydraulic thumbs are also great for demolishing and loading small structures, and even tearing down and loading trees on a site. These versatile attachments provide full movement of your bucket, plus the ability to grip your material at any position. Fixed mechanical thumbs are another less-expensive alternative and provide similar functions. - Shears are perfect for when you take on bigger projects. Not only are they ideal to tear down a
structure, but to cut and process steel for recycling, too. If you’re serious about maximizing what you make on each demolition project you undertake, consider recycling as much of the material as you can. The right tools can make quick work of demolition processing.
One final point to understand in demolition is that there are attachments — and then there are attachments for your attachments. For example, the average demolition contractor would likely start out with a processor with combination jaws (swapping out jaws for crushing, cracking and even shearing) for general concrete structures. There are multiple options for the type of demolition work you’re doing, and different sizes that ensure the tool will work properly with the excavators you’re running.
THE IMPORTANCE OF PROPERLY SIZING DEMOLITION ATTACHMENTS TO EXCAVATORS
The best rule of thumb: Don’t spend money for a new attachment if your machine isn’t equipped to run it.
In our business we talk a lot about efficiency and productivity because they’re key to profitability in demolition. Efficiency is having a nice, even keel day — you pace yourself to get a full day of work. If you have breakdowns, that breaks up your day and the costs add up quick.
Productivity comes from choosing the correct size excavator for the job. A lot of demolition projects are overnight jobs, and owners can’t afford to have breakdowns. When excavators are sized properly, you can help avoid breakdowns and the potential for additional future maintenance costs. With hydraulic hammers, for example, properly sizing the attachment to your excavator is critical because of the size and weight of the hammer, and also the working pressure and flow of the machine. If you’re trying to put a big hammer on a small excavator, it might pick it up, but it won’t have enough hydraulic pressure and flow to power it.
Proper sizing starts with how long of a stick or arm you’re using — that dictates the amount of weight you can put on your excavator. If you’re looking for extended reach and want to maintain stability, look for excavators tailor-made for demolition, like the Volvo EC380EL Straight Boom, which features a 23-foot straight boom and purpose-built arm.
Second is flow and pressure. Our excavators run at 5200 psi (working pressure), and typically the pressure we have available to send out to the tool is somewhere around 3000 to 3800 psi. Bigger processors use bigger cylinders that give it the force it needs to bust through the material — but it takes more flow to fill it up faster so the tool will work fast. If your excavator is too small, the processor may run, but it’ll be slow and inefficient — and as I mentioned before, the excessive weight can create unsafe working conditions.
Volvo excavators are popular for demolition because they come well-equipped for handling all these attachments. They also allow customers to store a lot of different attachments in the computer. They can name them, so when an operator punches the button, it sets the machine to the right pressure and hydraulic specs and they’re off and running.
PROTECTING PEOPLE AND MACHINES: DEMOLITION EXCAVATOR GUARDING PACKAGES
Productive tools are key, but safety is paramount. It’s obvious why high-reach excavators require solid guarding packages — but cleanup demolition excavators are also susceptible to damage from the fallen debris that sits underfoot. That’s why all Volvo demolition-specced machines have full guarding over all potential trouble spots. These are top-of-the-line guarding packages built with the demolition market in mind. If you happen to damage a guard, it’s easily removable to repair or replace. The goal is to keep you running — not repairing.
What does a Volvo factory-fitted guarding package look like? They include double thick doors, cylinder protectors, track guarding and more for models EC220E through EC480E.
With some OEMs, having to take excavators into the shop and guard it with aftermarket kits is expensive. You’re almost building the machine twice. And the cost doesn’t just go up twofold, it’s more like three. Our goal at Volvo is a one-time-build, direct from our factory — it’s more cost effective and easier for you to maintain over time.
Learn More About Demolition Excavators & Their Attachments
We’ve provided more information on our website about both Volvo high-reach excavators and crawler excavators used to tear down, process and clean up tough demolition sites. And if you’re a contractor considering making the leap to the high-reach demolition market, these tips on the advantages of high-reach excavators can help you in that decision-making process.
Danny Freeman – Training Support Manager