Broyhill designs collection truck for off-road applications

Nebraska-based equipment company Broyhill Inc. says it has found applications for its smaller, specialized waste collection trucks in beach, resort and other recreational areas.

Among the owners and operators of the company’s Load-and-Pack branded trucks is Michael Schaber, parks and forestry operations manager for the city of Rochester, Minnesota, whose route crews remove trash from 107 parks situated on 3,000 acres of land.

“In the past we’d send out a couple guys in pickup trucks with a dumpster attached to the rear,” says Schaber. “They’d have to get out of the truck, lift and empty the trash barrel, and then get back in the truck. It took forever,” he adds. 

Schaber’s research led him to Load-and-Pack. Rochester now uses a vehicle fitted with special tires “that defy snow, soft sand and mud, while boasting a four-wheel drive capability and a hydraulic front-lifting arm that grabs, hoists and empties containers up to 90 gallons and 500 pounds,” according to Broyhill. The company says the cycle per container lasts about five seconds.

“It didn’t take long to convince us [to purchase a Load-and-Pack],” says Schaber. “And it was easy to win approval because we’d save money by reducing paid time and avoiding employee injuries,” he adds. 

In the South, Charles V. Loftis, director of the Sand Beach Department in Harrison County, Mississippi, says maintaining 26 miles of beach used to require eight employees per day when trash receptacles were lifted manually and emptied into a trailer pulled by a tractor.

Since operating a Load-and-Pack, “We’ve saved a lot on worker’s comp because nobody gets hurt,” says Loftis. “These vehicles are designed to avoid injury. Add that to the time we save during pickup, and the Broyhill Load-and-Pack works perfectly for us,” he comments.