If you are looking to add supporting equipment to your operation, there is no shortage of options for increasing your efficiency. Choosing a horizontal grinder and finding the right additional equipment will depend on the unique needs of your business.
By Erin Heisick
Streamlining and simplifying your operation provides a multitude of benefits, including improved efficiencies in workflows and processes, a decrease in operating costs and an increase in safety. To support these goals, ensuring you have the right equipment is the best place to start. However, every operation is different鈥攈ow do you determine which grinding and supporting equipment is 鈥渞ight鈥� for the success of your business?
working through unsorted C&D material.
Identifying Your Business鈥� Goal
Whether this is your first foray into the grinding equipment market or you are looking to upgrade your current waste reduction system, it is important to take a close look at your operation鈥檚 objective. In order to determine which equipment is right for streamlining your process, you first need to have a complete understanding of your business鈥� goals.
Overall, volume reduction can help reduce the cost of your landfill tipping fees. However, if that is your goal, the right equipment system may look very different from that of an operation that aims to produce a secondary product for sale. Both objectives offer worthwhile opportunities for improving efficiencies, but identifying your business鈥� goals early on will help inform decisions regarding equipment later down the line.
Once you understand your business鈥� goals, it is time to identify the inefficiencies in your current process. Maybe this includes old equipment in desperate need of repair or upgrade, which could decrease long-term equipment maintenance costs. Perhaps a gap in your workflow is resulting in wasted product, unnecessary downtime, or compromised safety. Or maybe, it is an opportunity to reduce labor costs and boost production by adding supporting
equipment to your lineup.
Right: Creating an inline grinding and conveying system will simplify your operation, create efficiencies, and increase productivity.
What to Consider When Purchasing New Equipment for Your Operation
With a full understanding of your operation鈥檚 goals and needs, you can start addressing the factors you will need to consider when streamlining your operation.
Size
The larger the horizontal grinder, the more feedstock it will be able to process in a timely and efficient manner. However, bigger does not always mean the better choice for every operation. If you are looking to meet a space requirement in an indoor operation, or you are looking to fit a new grinder into an already established workflow, a smaller grinder may be the right choice.
Also, consider the future of your operation. If there is a chance your operation will continue to expand, it may be more cost
effective to purchase a larger grinder and allow your operation to grow into it.
Right: Electric grinding equipment provides great options for inline processing solutions with the added benefits of using electric power.
Power Source
Choosing between an electric or diesel horizontal grinder can be fairly simple once you understand the unique requirements for each. Electric horizontal grinders do offer multiple benefits over their diesel counterparts, including decreased maintenance costs and steady operational costs, since the price of electricity tends not to fluctuate like that of diesel fuel. However, these benefits are really only applicable if your operation is stationary, as electric grinders need access to three-phase power.
Diesel horizontal grinders do require the maintenance costs associated with diesel engines, but unlike electric grinders, they offer portability. This makes them a better choice for outdoor operations that frequently move between grinding sites.
RIght: Rotochopper鈥檚 MC-266 grinds green waste at a landfill facility in California.
Particle Size Control
If your business鈥� goal is simply volume reduction, particle size control will not hold as much sway over your choice of equipment. However, if your goal is to produce a secondary product, you will want to ensure that your equipment helps you meet industry standards. Choosing a horizontal grinder that allows you to reach the correct size requirements in just one pass can save your operation valuable time by eliminating the need for a second grind.
Mobility
If it is more efficient to move your grinder to your feedstock rather than the other way around, you will want to ensure your horizontal grinder has options for mobility. Tracked grinders allow you to easily maneuver your grinder into position on the site, and dolly systems make transporting grinders over public roads a breeze. These features save your operation time that would normally be spent loading and unloading your equipment from a lowboy trailer. Plus, easy transportation increases the scope of your operation, allowing your business to expand its geographic reach.
Ease of Use
You will also want to consider the ease of use for both you and your horizontal grinder operators. Depending on the company you buy from, this can vary greatly. If not designed with user experience in mind, necessary tasks like swapping rotor teeth and changing out grinder screens can quickly cut into your company鈥檚 uptime, reducing productivity and creating further inefficiencies in your workflow.
Supporting Equipment
If you are looking to add supporting equipment to your operation, there is no shortage of options for increasing your efficiency. As with choosing a horizontal grinder, finding the right equipment will depend on the unique needs of your business.
For operations that handle contaminated wood waste, like telephone poles, railroad ties, or construction and demolition waste, adding a shredder to the workflow offers several advantages. Not only do shredders minimize the cost of processing contaminated materials, but pre-shredding the feedstock also primes the material for easy metal removal. This can help reduce the chance of ferrous material damaging your horizontal grinder or other equipment and, in turn, lower maintenance and repair costs.
Similarly, conveyor systems can be seamlessly integrated into your operation鈥檚 workflow, streamlining the process of handling bulk material. Instead of using a wheel loader to move your end product, conveyors can be used to pile the material a safe distance away. In addition to preventing fire hazards from piling material near a horizontal grinder, this also minimizes the wasted downtime spent repositioning your grinder when storage space runs out.
The best conveyors are engineered to be portable and designed with your business鈥� success in mind. If your operation is producing a secondary product and size consistency is a concern, radial stacking conveyors help ensure the material is well-blended and consistent. Decrease the cost of additional labor and equipment associated with double handling, all while enjoying the benefit of uninterrupted production.
Company Support
The company you partner with is just as important as choosing the right equipment for your operation. When it comes to things like service and replacement parts, ensure your company is backed by a responsive and knowledgeable support team. Waiting long periods of time for parts or struggling to schedule service with evasive technicians is not just frustrating鈥攊t also reduces your operation鈥檚 uptime and cuts into profits.
In addition, examine the preventative maintenance programs offered by the company you are considering. By catching small issues, reliable service technicians can help prevent more serious breakdowns. Regular, scheduled maintenance does wonders for reducing larger, costly problems and long-term equipment maintenance costs.
When it comes to supporting your business, factory-direct companies offer a distinct advantage. While third-party sellers do not always understand the machines they are selling, you can be sure a factory-direct company will. They have built, innovated and rebuilt the machines they are selling, so you can be confident the service and advice they provide are in the best interests of both your operation and the longevity of your equipment.
Working with the right partner鈥攐ne that has experience and expertise in developing operational solutions鈥攚ill provide a superior resource to your operation as you look for ways to further simplify and streamline your operation. | WA
For over 30 years, Rotochopper has specialized in equipment that transforms waste materials into profitable opportunities like colored landscape mulch, animal bedding, biomass fuels and compost. As a factory-direct company, they are uniquely focused on providing innovative solutions and extraordinary customer service to the Rotochopper customers around the world. For more information, call (320) 548-3586, e-mail [email protected] or visit .