We have seen some interesting set ups and unique usages for wheel loaders over the years but as we stepped into the main storage area of Sodium Carbonate (soda ash) at Redox’s facility on the outskirts of Melbourne, it was more than a little surreal.
You see, Redox is one of Australia’s leading chemical and ingredient distributors, supplying more than 1000 speciality and commodity products. It is companies like Redox around the globe that are finding the benefits of purchasing lower cost wheel loaders, with less electronics to potentially fail due to exposure to corrosive material, saving them a pile of dosh at the time of purchase and also in maintenance and service over the lifespan of the machine.
Today we were checking out the wheel loader in the soda ash room. For those of you not familiar with the product, soda ash has many unique purposes, including its common role in lowering the PH and acidity of water in swimming pools. It’s also used in a variety of cleaning products and in the manufacturing of glass and other products. It is one of the most widely used commodities in the United States and has been used in manufacturing for over 5000 years.
Ancient Egyptians used it to make glass ornaments and vessels. They recovered the product from dry lake-bed deposits or by burning seaweed and other marine plants. The Romans also used soda ash for baking bread, making glass and for medicinal purposes. Its extraction from the ashes of various plants continued until the middle of the 19th century and gave it the present-day name of “soda ash”. Its fine white talcum powder-like appearance is very unique.
Stepping into the main storage facility at Redox felt like a mixture of stepping onto the moon and landing in Pablo Escobar’s main storage facility. The large warehouse housed mountains of soda ash the size of a family home. This fine white powder was everywhere and the minute the wheel loader fired up and started digging, the air would instantly turn white with a mist-like look.
It is a very unique working environment indeed, but one that would place specific stresses on the air filtration system of the machine. Surprisingly, other than a daily clean of the filters no specified or additional filtration has needed to be introduced. The SDLG machines are well made and backed by great companies like CJD and come with generous warranties.
When working with chemicals in a controlled environment it is very important that any leakages or spills that can introduce any contaminants are kept to an absolute minimum. As such, the SDLG LG959 Wheel Loader on this particular job has been kept an extremely clean machine in its pristinely white industrial home.
Any leaked or spilt fluids would instantly show up in its snow-like warehouse. Therefore, one of its strengths would have to be its clean running ability.
The cabin on the LG959 model more than facilitates the required usage of the operator in these conditions, even though the machine is only used for three hours per day. The cabin and its set-up allow the operator to get stuck into the job and maximise the workload for the allocated three-hour window.
When looking at some of the other strengths of the SDLG machine, its reliability and affordability are all strong suites. The machine has performed very well fulfilling the exact role it was purchased to do with next to no issues, which is surprising given the testing environment it is used in every day.
It is these exact reasons that companies all over Australia and the world are opting for a SDLG machine and reaping the benefits, rather than going down the road of a second-hand premium loader.
SDLG has experienced massive growth over the last four years and in the United States alone the company has seen more than 10 straight quarters of growth over 50 per cent. These machines are successfully being introduced across a broad range of industries and worksites. From feedlots, to bridgework, material handling and other civil work and construction duties.
The brand is winning fans across the board and we’re just starting to see them come into their own in the Australian market.
[colored_box color=”yellow”]For more information visit www.cjd.com.au or call 1300 887 530.[/colored_box]