On a roll: a mobile crusher helps in redeveloping an historic Caterpillar site in East Peoria, Ill.

Ironhustler Excavating (IHX) based in Peoria, Ill., provides a full spectrum of construction and demolition services. A rate of 70 percent repeat business helps demonstrate that its customers trust in the performance of IHX's site solutions and systems customized to their specific needs. As Managing Director Dave Schielein puts it, "We believe in providing the best services available to get the job done on time, on budget, and without complications."

Since 2004, Ironhustler Excavating has been positioning itself as a specialist for on-site recycling and has been an authorized dealer for Rubble Master Compact Recyclers.

At Ironhustler Excavating, every field supervisor has more than 20 years of project experience. The company says it offers hands-on ownership involvement at each job it performs. According to Schielein, Ironhustler Excavating's low overhead enables it to transfer savings to its customers, and a range of first-class equipment is dedicated to each specific project through completion. Its strong relationship with sub-contractors means no hassles and quick responses, he adds.

With on-site recycling using Rubble Master Compact Recyclers, IHX has increased its recycling rate. Recently, Ironhustler Excavating won the contract for a project for Caterpillar Inc. and the city of East Peoria: the redevelopment of the original Caterpillar tractor factory in downtown East Peoria. The concrete floor slabs from the old Cat facilities had to be recycled. The widespread material was to be crushed to a 3-inch minus gradation for the next phase of the redevelopment project. A Rubble Master RM80 was employed to meet the demands for a crusher.

The RM80 is a track-mounted mobile impact crusher capable of processing 150 tons per hour, depending on the feed material. On the job in East Peoria, it traveled from pile to pile on the 30-acre site, producing a gradable material in one pass.

ON THE JOB

The RM80 offers high productivity with compact design, according to the company. A contractor needs a standard lowboy trailer to get the RM80 to the job site. Once there, the impact crusher can move within the job site thanks to the crawler gear.

The remote controlled operation allows one person to load and operate the crusher at the same time. The RM80 also features low fuel consumption, an optimized feeding cycle, integrated pre-screening in the vibrating feeder, hydraulic crusher gap adjustment, a remote controlled release system to clear blockages and a magnetic separator, according to the company.

At the Caterpillar site in East Peoria, the RM80 processed approximately 6,600 tons of concrete slabs in about 10 days. The crushed concrete was used on-site as roadbed material.

The concept of "on-site" recycling has been gaining attention in the industry. In times of excessively high fuel costs, contractors are looking for alternative solutions and finding them in on-site operations, saving time, fuel, transportation and material costs.

Rubble Master crushers are designed for cost-effective on-site recycling, according to the company. They are designed for mobility, as transportation is fast and simple with a lowboy. The RM80 can be set up and running in 20 minutes or less.

Especially on urban sites, where space is limited, more compact crushers can be particularly advantageous. Additionally, the powerful but small crushers can be a welcome sight for many local authorities and residents, meeting the demands and regulations concerning permissible emission values.

Experienced contractors know the value behind the concept of on-site recycling: eliminating transportation costs and reducing noise, traffic and air pollution.

Ironhustler Excavating in Peoria sees the demand for on-site recycling continuously growing, saying the trend is unlikely to reverse anytime soon.

In addition to the dismantling of the Caterpillar facility, other recent jobs for the RM80 have included recycling asphalt for Tazewell County Asphalt and processing reinforced concrete pipes for County Materials in Springfield, both in the state of Illinois.

As transportation costs increase, more emphasis is being placed on on-site crushing and recycling, creating more opportunities for portable crushing equipment.

This article was submitted on behalf of HMH/Rubble Master of Austria.