Alliance, Ohio, Receives Community Facelifts Courtesy of City's Water, Sewer Department, Screen Machine

Mon September 14, 2020
CEG

On paper and in practice, the Alliance Water and Sewer Distribution Department is exactly what the name implies. At various job sites throughout the city however, the department's employees also are a skilled construction team working on a wide range of projects to enhance the city.

While maintenance of the city's water mains and sanitary sewers is the primary focus of the Water and Sewer Distribution Department, it also seeks out ways to employ skills, equipment and resources toward contributing to the city's ongoing development. According to Doug Hastings, Alliance Water and Sewer Distribution superintendent, most of the crew working for the department have a construction background and are extremely proficient at the construction work they've taken on throughout the city.

An example can be seen in the department's construction of a municipal soccer complex on a former industrial site donated by the Jim Wallace Company of Sagamore Hills, Ohio. Prior to being converted into an open lot, the 15-acre site was home to the Transue and Williams Stamping Co. plant.

Significant site work was required to get the property into shape for the soccer complex, including the separation and removal of 4 ft. of slag, bricks and rocks from the lot as well as treating the soil in preparation for the grass playing field. In all, the department has taken out and processed 5.5 ft. of materials at the site to level the field.

According to Hastings, the department is uniquely suited to the task. As he explained it, by converting biosolids, a by-product from the city's wastewater treatment facility, into usable materials to create topsoil, Alliance realized a savings of approximately $350,000 per year in avoided landfill disposal costs. The process is a win/win for the municipality, operation cost savings plus a product to be used at the department's various projects, including the new soccer complex. To process the topsoil, the Water and Sewer Distribution Department maintains a 25-acre field where the materials are prepared for use.

To blend the biosolids with dirt to create the topsoil, the department purchased a Screen Machine 612W portable trommel screen from Ohio CAT. The Screen Machine 612W trommel is a portable screening plant designed to separate green waste products, including topsoil, compost and wood chips, making it highly effective for the machine's primary service at the wastewater treatment facility. The unit's portability also makes it ideal for jobs like the one it's currently performing at the soccer complex.

Ultimately, when the soccer complex is completed, topsoil produced by the department will top off the final surface layer, providing a rich base to grow the field grass. Hastings stated that the topsoil is so rich, the city's maintenance department claims they have trouble keeping the grass cut at locations around the city where it's been used.

Always on the lookout to make the most of the resources they have to work with, the department plans to use the 612W portable trommel screen's tailings generated at the soccer complex site as a base for a roadway leading to the city's police shooting range. Hastings estimated that the soccer complex will be under seed this September and will be ready for games by the 2021 spring season at the latest.

Hastings is highly impressed with the 612W portable trommel screen, saying he appreciates the way everything folds up to move from site to site and once placed, set up is accomplished in a matter of 15 to 20 minutes. He said controls for the unit are easy to understand and the accessibility of the grease fittings make maintenance a simple and quick task. Hastings finds the production of the 612W portable trommel screen impressive as well, stating that it keeps up with all the material that the department's Caterpillar 320 excavator can feed it.

On the soccer complex job site, the setup includes a Woolley transportable conveyor, also purchased from Ohio CAT, which, paired up with the Trommel, can create a full stack within a couple of hours. The 612W trommel screen is self-contained, diesel-powered and features a direct open feed hopper with a large 6- by 12-ft. (1.8 by 3.6 m) rotating drum delivering 160 sq. ft. (48.7 sq. m) of screening area. The pile heights created by the side discharge conveyor and oversize conveyor offers operators hours of high-capacity processing time without interruption. The fact that the trommel screen was manufactured by Screen Machine, an Ohio-based company, is an added bonus.

Charlie Vance, the Alliance Water and Sewer Distribution Department's construction foreman, also is impressed with the Screen Machine 612W portable trommel screen. Vance said that with Ohio CAT as Screen Machine's authorized dealer, they get the whole package. The department has a great deal of experience working with Ohio CAT, as the city has purchased a wide range of Caterpillar equipment from the company.

Vance added that the combination of outstanding equipment, a knowledgeable and dedicated sales team and unparalleled service are the reason they choose to do business with Ohio CAT. In Vance's view quality always pays off in the long run. According to Vance, Tom Seefried, Ohio CAT's machine sales representative, is one of the best in the business.

For his part, Seefried has found working with the Alliance Water and Sewer Distribution Department extremely rewarding. He stated that the department has an incredibly positive attitude and work ethic and is always eager to tackle whatever tasks are required to get the job done.

Chris Harris, Ohio CAT Con/Agg manager, agrees with Seefried's assessment. Working with Seefried, Harris recently designed a new conveyor system for the Alliance Water and Sewer Distribution Department, which combines the Woolley transportable conveyor currently in service at the soccer complex with a stationary conveyor system to be installed at the plant. When Harris stopped in to provide advice on installing the stationary conveyor system, he was surprised to see that the department crew had much of the installation already completed.

As well as the recently-acquired Screen Machine 612W portable trommel screen and conveyor system, the city of Alliance recently took delivery of a new Caterpillar 289D3 compact track loader and a new Caterpillar D5K2 dozer. These recent purchases add to the department's fleet, which includes a new 308 Next Gen excavator; a new 320 Next Gen excavator; a new 24DTA Interstate trailer; and a 926M wheel loader out of the rental fleet all acquired in the past year. The city also owns a Caterpillar IT14G wheel loader and Caterpillar 924Gz wheel loader. CEG

This story also appears on Construction Equipment Guide.