Texas Two Step

By Larry Trojak
Technical writer – Ham Lake, MN
Republished from Texas Contractor Vol. 159 No. 6 June 2011

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Companies that make the switch from conventional grading and excavation techniques to GPS-based technology – including machine-controlled dozers and graders – generally cite the boost in productivity as the overriding benefit. For Smith & Company, that same boost was there, but it was also accompanied by a better use of onsite personnel, a reduction in surveying costs and a much better ability to maintain specs and avoid material overages. On a recent highway and bridge project in the township of Tomball northwest of Houston, the company brought the full force of its recently acquired Topcon machine control capability to bear and quickly became proponents of their new found strengths. Company officials say they are continually impressed with the benefits of these tools and are envisioning a host of ways in which they will use the technology in future projects.

Established 41 years ago, Smith & Company has grown to become one of east Texas’ larger highway contractors, currently employing more than 250 people. According to Mike Case, Smith’s surveying superintendent, to continue that growth, they had been looking at and considering machine control for some time. “It’s probably been three or four years now that we’ve been looking into what machine control could do for our operation,” he says. “As time went on, we became convinced that we could use it, but then wanted to wait until we had the right project to both justify the cost and put it to its best use. We got that opportunity last year when we won the bid on this project in Tomball. So, after repeated meetings with Scott Bird and David Owen from GeoShack, Topcon’s local dealer and one other manufacturer, we made the commitment to Topcon.”

Working through GeoShack, Smith & Company purchased a pair of Topcon MillimeterGPS® systems for their graders, Topcon’s 3D-MC2 system for their Cat D6 dozer, a Series 9000 Robotic Total Station, as well as several FC-250 field controllers, also from Topcon. Case says there were a number of factors that steered them toward Topcon after those initial meetings. “I think the fact that Topcon’s systems – both the 3D-MC2 and the mmGPS – represented a newer, more versatile technolog y, played a big role in our decision,” says Gene Smith. “Just as important, however, was the level of support GeoShack said they were willing to provide. I think that did it for us and they’ve proven true to their word.”

Anyone for Bridge?

The driving component that justified this switch was an $18 million TxDOT job to widen two miles of FM-2978, a key thoroughfare into and out of the Lake Conroe recreational area north of Houston. The project entails not just the widening of the road, but also construction of an 1,170-ft. overpass. “At one point in the road, there is an at-grade rail crossing and, as the Lake Conroe area continues to grow in popularity, that crossing has become more and more of an issue,” says Smith. “The new overpass will eliminate that concern. This was the perfect project to really put the new machine control and robotic technology to work and it’s met or exceeded our expectations at every step.” Smith’s robotic capability came in particularly handy tackling under-bridge work and other facets of the job in which overhead obstructions blocked the machines’ access to a strong signal. “During the bridge construction phase of the project, we relied heavily on the Topcon 9000 robotic total station to provide the positioning data needed for the mmGPS systems used for earthmoving and grading under the bridge. The unit allowed us to maintain a solid pace despite the challenges presented by the bridge itself. At one time out here we had two blades and a person with a handheld checking behind the machines. Getting the results we did without setting a stake was unheard of for us just a short time ago. Now it’s become the only way to do business.”

Texas Stake-house

The issue of setting stakes and the costs associated with it were two key reasons Smith & Company got onboard with GPS. Mike Case says they had long recognized the inefficiency of stake setting but were powerless to do anything about it. Suddenly all that had changed. “In fact, when we started this job, we were still doing hand-staking for a while,” he says, “So we’ve had a better opportunity to make comparisons between the two approaches than most companies. And the differences are dramatic both in cost and results. We have a display of TxDOT core samples in our field office that shows our accuracy before and after implementing machine control, and there is no denying we are saving money by getting things right the first time. When TxDOT pulls these cores and sees discrepancies, it issues fines, which are a direct impact on our bottom line. We’ve eliminated the risk of that altogether.”

“Having accurate thicknesses,” adds Smith, “keeps material costs down, whether those savings are in base material or hot mix.” He says that he’s read articles about machine control in which people talked about saving in materials and it really didn’t resonate with him – until this job. “Now it all makes sense: when you have control, you can better manage the project and its costs.” Case adds that savings are also being realized in the balance between crew allocation and machine use. In the past, he says, they would use dozers to rough-cut an area and the survey crew would stand around waiting for the machines to finish. Then, while that crew was blue topping , the machines would be sitting around waiting to fine grade. “And it’s important to note that we are putting down a cement stabilized base on this project – a material that’s really hard to stake in. If we were blue topping for curb and gutter, we’d be setting stakes every 25 ft., a really labor-intensive effort. Costs for staking/surveying are anywhere from $600-$1,000 a day and out here that part of the job was about a three-month operation. When you realize all that can be avoided, it makes a pretty compelling case for machine control. Stakeless is what pushes a company like us over to buy it.”

Future Uses

Both Smith and Case say the impact the new technology has had on their operation is being felt throughout the organization. Operators, who, as it was suspected, were apprehensive about making the switch, have come to embrace their new found capabilities. Management is obviously impressed with a technology that can directly – and positively – impact both performance and the bottom line. “The biggest problem I see with GPS and machine control,” says Case, “is that, once you get used to it, you find you can’t live without it. Since we’ve made the switch, we’ve been constantly thinking about different ways to use it. We are considering ways that it can impact even our smaller projects. For us, it is not a question of whether or not machine control has impacted our company; it’s a question of how can we take that to the next level, and we’re excited about the possibilities.” TxDOT has set an October deadline for completion of the FM-2978 project but Smith & Company expects to be finished by mid-summer, roughly three months ahead of schedule. “There’s no denying that’s due to the effect technology has had on our operation,” says Smith. “With machine control, we are finding that we can deliver a better job, more efficiently, and keep costs down in doing so. I’d say everyone wins with that.”

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