CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT No Strings Attached

When contractor Benjy Gold shows up to a jobsite with a four-in-one bucket attached to his skid-steer loader, his clients sometimes scoff. “A lot of times, I hear, ‘That’s nothing more than a wheelbarrow with a motor on it,’” says Gold, owner of Let the Dirt Dogs Do It, Tega Cay, S.C. “I tell them, ‘You get your wheelbarrow and your shovel and help me move these rocks, and we’ll see how you feel after a couple of hours.’”

The power of skid-steer attachments is often underestimated, Gold says. But contractors who do heavy work know these machines do the job while saving them time and energy and enabling them to make a profit.

ATTACHMENTS 101. Skid-steer loaders are a big part of the landscape industry. In fact, the industry holds the title for having the most skid-steer users of any industry, according to Douglas Laufenberg, product marketing manager for attachments and compact wheel loaders, John Deere, Moline, Ill.

Seeing a need to cater to these users, manufacturers have developed a multitude of attachments landscape contractors can benefit from.  

There’s an attachment for almost any job on the site, including grading and prepping an area to installing irrigation and laying sod, says Rob Otterson, marketing manager, Bobcat, West Fargo, N.D.

Soil conditioners are ideal for clearing rocks, unwanted weeds, existing turf and creating a final grade in preparation for landscaping, planting seed or laying sod, Otterson adds, pointing out that trencher attachments are useful for contractors installing irrigation lines and drain tiles.

Augers, landscape rakes and sweepers have also been used in the industry for many years. Augers can dig holes for planting trees, shrubs and installing fence posts. And landscape rakes can be handy for removing small rock or stone for soil preparation.

Sweepers clean out jobsite dirt and debris. The powered broom enclosed in a bucket can collect material, eliminating the time it would take to complete the task by hand, Otterson says. “This keeps landscapers within the clean jobsite guidelines of a city or development,” he explains.

And manufacturers are constantly adding new models to fill customer requests, Otterson points out. “Many attachments can be used on different types and brands of carriers, further increasing their utilization,” he says. “And there are also unique attachments that can instantly present contractors with add-on service opportunities, including stump grinders, rotary cutters, combination buckets, sod layers and snow removal attachments. The contractor who is aware of these additions will be presented with more opportunities to grow their businesses.”

PLAN FOR PRODUCTIVITY. While all of these attachments might sound appealing, contractors might not always have the funds to buy every attachment they desire. Therefore, professionals recommend a few attachments contractors can purchase that will provide them with the tools to perform the most common tasks.

Different companies call it different names, but many offer a multi-purpose bucket. “A combination bucket is probably one of the smartest and most fundamental attachments to buy,” Otterson says, adding that contractors can doze, dig, dump, grapple and grade with the attachment. “It instantly increases a contractor’s versatility by allowing them to do five functions with one machine. If a contractor is starting with only one attachment, the multi-purpose bucket is a solid choice.”

Gustavo Valecillos, North American commercial division work tools sales consultant, Caterpillar, Peoria, Ill, agrees that this attachment is essential. The bucket opens, so it can be used as a bucket or a clamp. It can then carry loads from place to place, further demonstrating its usefulness. 

After a contractor maximizes his or her investment by buying a multi-function tool, he should also look for an attachment that decreases downtime. “For example, landscapers working in wet environments plagued by rain showers during the spring and early summer months might find they’re often sidelined waiting for standing water on jobsites to dry out,” Otterson says. “But with a conditioner attachment, they can turn over and even out the soil so it dries, and then they can start their work.”

A pallet fork is another timesaver, Otterson points out. Contractors can carry and load pelletized materials, such as sod and paving stone, with a pallet fork. “The time and labor contractors can save with a pallet fork and a combination bucket equates to increased productivity and profitability,” he says. “The faster they can complete one job and start the next job, the more money they’ll earn.”

In addition to pallet forks and buckets, Jeff Freiburger puts trenchers, augers, mowers and backhoes at the top of his list of essential attachments. “All of these items are cost-effective to buy to make your skid-steer the most useful tool in your business,” says Freiburger, application specialist at FFC Attachments, Lee, Ill.

Landscape contractor Bill McCarley finds the leveler to be one of his most productive attachments. “We use them to remove debris so we don’t have to hand rake the soil out,” says McCarley, owner, Outdoor Creations of the Carolinas, Charlotte, N.C.

He also uses the attachment for precision when leveling lawns. As a bonus, he carries plant materials around at a site on a leveler. This saves him from buying a pallet fork and being forced to switch attachments on his machine. He can do several jobs with one attachment.
 
SMART SHOPPING. Contractors should think about which attachment or attachments are best for the tasks at hand before spending the money. Skid-steer loaders can cost $16,500 to $35,000, Otterson says. As for attachments, Gold bought a leveler without hydraulics for about $300. But prices for most attachments range from $2,000 to more than $7,600, Laufenberg says.

Considering the price of the equipment, contractors should make sure they get the right attachment for the job. “When first starting their businesses, contractors should look to purchase attachments that can be used to complete as many jobs as possible,” Otterson says. “For example, most contractors can use combination buckets and pallet forks on construction jobs. They also might find several uses for soil conditioners on a site.”

Also, contractors must consider whether the machine with attachments can fit into their typical jobsites, he says. For instance, the machine might need to fit through a 36-inch gate. There are machines and attachments small enough to fit and powerful enough to get the job done.

Contractors will also need attachments that work well with their specific skid-steer. “The types of attachments used will dictate the amount of auxiliary hydraulic flow needed from the loader,” Otterson says. “A customer who needs enhanced performance, usually required for a stump grinder, trencher or chipper, may need a high-flow machine.”

To get the most out of the equipment, consider the type of skid-steer with which the attachment will be used. In some cases, attachments are bought to fit more than one piece of equipment. With that in mind, Gold bought equipment with universal mounting plates so he can get more out of his attachments.

Some attachments are so universal that they can be used on full-sized skid-steers as well as on the compact models, McCarley says. Some of his colleagues have the capability to switch their attachments from one size machine to another.

However, just because they have the capability doesn’t mean it’s always a good idea. “We can’t put a 6-foot rake in front of a compact skid-steer,” McCarley says. “It’s just not a good idea. Even though we have the capability to use the attachments on both large and compact machines, that is usually saved for specific situations.”

But knowing his attachments are the right size for his machines isn’t enough of a sell for Gold. Before he makes the decision to spend the money for an attachment, he rents it. Of all of the contractors who buy attachments, a large percentage of them rent the equipment before buying it, Valecillos says, adding that the motivation is usually financial.

Renting is also smart when the contractor only needs the equipment for one project, Valecillos says. “For a landscaper who rarely plant trees, a tree spade would be one to rent if they have jobs that require tree installation,” Otterson says. “This provides the option of exploring new services and determining whether they fit their businesses with only a minor investment.”

A similar situation happens in irrigation installation, he says. A contractor can rent a trencher or vibratory compactor to install an irrigation system and determine whether the service is something he or she wants to continue to offer without the risk of buying the attachment first.

COMING ATTACHMENTS. New and changed skid-steer attachments continue to appear on the market. A newer piece for the skid-steer is a higher-powered backhoe attachment, Valecillos says. “The backhoe allows you to trench and add auxiliary hydraulics so you can run tools like augers,” he says, adding that this is a tool that can be switched between a skid-steer and multi-terrain loader.

The size of some trenchers is also shrinking. Users, especially landscape contractors, have been asking for something smaller than the standard 6- or 5-foot trencher, Valecillos says. Because of that, a 3-foot trencher has recently been introduced.

Another innovation that may soon be introduced is the laser-guided attachment. “The laser system automatically moves the blade up or down to keep the base material exactly on-grade,” Otterson says, adding that a fully integrated laser system can have a grade accuracy of +/- .25 inches. “This not only saves concrete, but also reduces the amount of time and labor required for flat work preparation.”

The list of attachments keeps growing – the main reason being they enable contractors to complete more work in less time. Just ask Gold, who says, “The four-in-one bucket easily cuts my job time in half.”