Highway and pipeline rights-of-way mowing. Swartz Mowing Inc. operates average 1,100 hours on one of their tractors in a cutting season.
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Swartz Mowing Inc. operators average 1,100 hours
on one o their tractors in a cutting season. |
Taking a little off the top or trimming the sides is a daily ritual for Swartz Mowing Inc. That’s because the family enterprise, based in Olympia, Kentucky, handles different cutting jobs from April through November across nine states.
“Each season one of our assignments is taking care of over 1,000 miles of pipeline rights-of-way for the central region of Duke Energy based in Texas. In 2005, we were also responsible for 51 Department of Transportation projects, which included 45 percent of all the work in Kentucky,” says Neal Swartz, vice president.
“Covering such a wide swath of the South is not without headaches,” he adds. “Flexibility, mobilizing on-the-run, safety considerations, maintaining schedules and conscientious employees that do a good job are keys to our success.”
Swartz’s father, Roosevelt Jr., originally started in concrete and construction work. Now retired, he began mowing for the Kentucky State Department in the early ’70s. Today, Neal and his two brothers, Cary and Kyle, both field foremen, operate the business. Secretary Kim Karrick handles the payroll for 150 employees.
Besides manpower, good equipment is critical for covering so much ground. The fleet includes: four tractor trailers to move machines day and night, 65 trucks, 90 tractors and 90 mowers, ranging in size from a six-foot BushHog® to a 20-foot cutting bar.
Four to six man crews leave the headquarters at 5:00 a.m. and normally work 14-hour days. Each foreman monitors various projects, while maintaining responsibility for safety requirements and keeping tabs on anything that might go wrong. Employees, meanwhile, are regulated by OSHA guidelines.
To add some flexibility in their equipment inventory, Swartz Mowing leased two Challenger® MT465B wheel tractors from Whayne Supply Company in June 2005, with the option to buy.
“We’ve run Caterpillar equipment previously and always had excellent dealer support,” Swartz says. “With so many field challenges, this was a perfect opportunity to see what the Challenger tractors could do.”
Handling such a wide scope of mowing conditions requires power, reliability and unsurpassed performance. And with long days, operators need a smooth ride, plenty of elbow room, easy-to-reach controls and exceptional visibility.
“When you’re working ditches and running up and down the highway, system control for quick customization and high-tech hydraulic flow are 3-point hitch, these machines get the job done. Swartz also insists the tractors are easy to service, a real bonus in this business.
“Overall performance was so superior that we purchased those two tractors and added seven more MT465Bs in 2006,” he says.
Swartz notes that state projects operate on a tight schedule with strict guidelines, which calls for dependable machines.
“For example, not finishing a job on time can bring fines totaling $1,000 a day. To help avoid snags and boost efficiency, 40 cell phones are spread throughout the fleet,” he adds.
Unfortunately, stormy weather can really throw a curve in logistics. Dust, heat, insects, hard ditch banks and tricky terrain can also slow crews. And, traffic has become a major item to deal with the past 10 years. Sometimes it takes half an hour just to cross a major roadway.
“Tractor operators must always stay focused. They can’t ignore traffic congestion or become complacent because speeding drivers pay little attention to safety signs,” Swartz notes. “Sometimes big trucks swerve at the mowers and people throw items, so you must always be on your toes.”
Story by Harlen Persinger
Summer 2007 Challenger Revolution.