SITE: 30 ACRE COMMERCIAL LOT
LOCATION: OSWEGO, NY
Average annual snowfall: 150″
Sno Pusher type: Rubber Edge Sno Pushers: 10′ Backhoe; Steel Edge Sno Pusher: 20′ Loader
Equipment: 1 Backhoe, 1 Loader
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Chase Enterprises operates out of the Oswego, NY area; right on the shores of Lake Ontario. In the winter, lake effect weather can bring up to 150” of snow per season. Chase effectively manages this extreme snowfall with the help of Pro-Tech Sno Pushers. This case examines the efficiency gains in using both rubber edge and steel edge Sno Pushers together to keep a 30 acre commercial lot clean.
COMPANY BACKGROUND
Chase Enterprises started as a snow removal contractor 15 years ago. They have expanded to include landscape maintenance, grounds service, and lot maintenance. However, snow removal remains its most profitable area of business. Chase currently operates in 40 mile radius around Oswego, New York with 25 small and large commercial lots. It has 30 snow removal employees and its fleet includes dump trucks, pickups, wheel loaders, skid steers, backhoes, and snow blowers. It currently has 5 Pro-Tech Sno Pushers ranging from 8’ to 20’, including both steel-edge and rubber-edge Sno Pusher models.
SITE INFORMATION
The site analyzed is a 30 acre Wal-Mart parking lot with many obstructions. There are many curbs and lampposts and a few islands. There are also loading docks that must be cleared. There are always cars in the lot. The lot receives 140-150” of snow annually with a typical storm of 2-5” and occasionally 12”+ constantly falling. The conditions vary greatly through the season from light snow to slush to hard pack. The constant traffic creates lots of hard pack and ice.
COMPARISON: ‘BEFORE & AFTER” THE ADDITION OF PRO-TECH SNO PUSHERS
Before: Chase Enterprises used a dump truck with a 12’ scraper blade and 3-4 pickups with plows. During heavier storms, 6-8 pickups would be required. It would take about two hours and five employees to clear the lot for a typical 2-4” snowfall. The pickups would windrow 8-10 passes to clear a length of the lot and the dump truck would clear the snow to designated piling areas. This process would typically require 5 employees and 2 hours to complete, resulting in a total of 10 man hours to clear the lot.
After: Chase Enterprises currently uses a 10’ Sno Pusher (SP10B) with self-leveling shoes on a John Deere backhoe and a 20’ Steel Edge Sno Pusher (IS20L) on a Samsung 250 Loader. The SP10B is used to clear lanes into small piles at the back of the lot. While the SP10B is clearing lanes, the IS20L clears the front of the store, access roads, and loading docks. Then it pushes the small piles made by the SP10B to the lower end of the lot. The Sno Pushers are able to clear in a single pass what it would take a pickup truck 8-10 windrows to do. For a typical storm, this process takes 2 employees approximately 1hour and 45 minutes, requiring a total of 3.5 man hours. Using two Pro-Tech Sno Pushers reduced man hours by 65% and required 3 fewer units to clear the lot.
QUOTES
“The IST excels on cold days; it requires a minimum amount of salt.”
“On a warm day, nothing works better than the rubber cutting edge.”
“Using Sno Pushers is going to save you money and be safer.”
“We burn less fuel.”
“The Pushers are able to clear in a single pass what it would take a pickup 8-10 windrows to do.”
“Using fewer units is going to lower your risk of injury and have less impact on the environment.”
Allen Chase
Chase Enterprises
24 Co. Rt. 1A
Oswego, NY 13126