¹ú²úÂ鶹

Take on your biggest challenges by adopting the latest technologies into your operations.
By Jadon Kool

Choosing the correct type of equipment and attachments to handle, sort, and cut scrap metal can help reduce overall owning and operating costs. Within those machines and attachments, there are many additional technology features to consider to maximize your scrap metal operations.

Acute Focus on Worksite Safety
Safety is top of mind when running a successful scrap metal operation. Accidents and equipment damage can happen even with the best operators. In scrap yards, there are many moving pieces and changing variables that can increase the risk of an incident. There are several new technologies designed to help enhance safety on the jobsite.

Let’s start with looking at cameras and sensors. Equipment used in scrap metal operations today have these technologies within the machine, can be included as an add-on option, or kit for older legacy equipment. There are options to get a camera with a 360-degree bird’s-eye view, as well as technology that detects objects and people, send warnings to the operator, and even stop the machine. The risk is greater in scrap yards where local traffic is allowed onto the yard to unload and potentially walk into the working zone of the machine.

Operator fatigue or distractions is another area that can increase the chance of an incident. Solutions can be as simple as Bluetooth connectivity with phones to more advanced camera technology that can monitor eye movement. This in-cab technology can detect if an operator is falling asleep or looking at their phone while operating. The system can also warn the operator to focus on the task or take a break. This technology can communicate with the office to let management know if they need to assist an operator before something significant happens.

Another potential issue with material handlers or excavators is when the operator brings the attachment into the machine’s cab causing potential injury and damage. Technology exists today on some machines where, by calibration and measuring up the machine’s front and attachment, the machine always knows where the stick end and tool are located. Offsets can be put into place to keep the stick end farther away from the machine to account for material length like an I-beam sticking out of the grapple. Operators can override, if necessary, to pick up something resting near the wheels or tracks.

Some sites have hazards that cannot be moved or mitigated away, such as power lines, roadway locations, building walls, floors, and ceilings. In some scrap applications, multiple material handlers may feed a shredder right next to each other, making a collision between the two possible. Using the same sensors and logic for cab avoidance, E-fence can be a helpful solution to avoid these risks to not only protect the machine from damage, but also prevent possible injury to the operator or people near the machine.

Bringing Technology into Scrap Metal Operations
There has been much advancement over the past few years in machine technology related to productivity. These features can help operators complete their day-to-day tasks, assist operators in learning the equipment, and keep the machines up and running longer.
Most scrap applications have in-bound and outbound scales to measure trucks as they come and go. In some cases, trucks may need to be sent back to add more material or take extra weight off. Being off target on weight can affect profits.  Sending out trucks underweight is not productive and sending trucks out overweight can result in fines and extra wear and tear on the trucks. Built-in and add-on scale systems are becoming more popular for managing productivity. Although most machine scale systems are not certified for trade, as some factors in scrap applications can affect accuracy, they are a great indicator of what is being loaded for total weight. Some machines can use their scale systems to communicate directly to the primary office through a telematics service to keep accurate reporting. Many scrap applications have various avenues of shipping material other than on highway trucking. Having scale systems can help indicate weights when loading rail, barges, or ships.

Wheel loaders are leading the way with assist technologies that can be used in scrap applications. Features like auto-set tires allow the machine to control the front during digging operations to prevent tire slip, which can help extend the life of the tires. In addition, these assist technologies can also improve pile penetration and loading for bigger payloads, which reduces fuel consumption by preventing the machine from stalling out. There is also technology that automatically digs into the pile, lifts to a set height, and puts the bucket back into the dig position. This helps minimize repetition and fatigue for an operator with routine and repeated work all day.
Another overly repetitive task is when operators dump material in the same location, such as hoppers, belts, trucks, etc. Swing assist features are becoming available to stop the machine’s swing circuit within a set dump location.

Every operator is different in how they like to run a machine. Many newer machines can create custom operator profiles with their exact settings and preferences, or custom settings to control machine or attachment priority that match the operator’s expectations. A happy operator is usually a more productive operator. Some machines can have application profiles that can be set with a button to make the machine behave differently from one application to another. Additionally, there are features where a more experienced operator can program a custom dig profile on a loader, for example, and a newer operator can use that profile to see how the machine is expected to perform during that task.

Newer operators may not be fully aware of all the equipment that goes into scrap applications. Digital operating and maintenance manuals, coaching videos, and even active coaching feedback are ways to train and build an operator’s confidence in the cab. These feedback systems can monitor the operator’s techniques and provide feedback if something is done incorrectly, like slamming the bucket cylinder at the end of its stroke. Operating issues can be sent to the office for management awareness.

There has been increasing interest in different ideas to assist with production requirements for attachments. Some scrap sites may have to switch between a grapple and a magnet often, which causes downtime. More and more locations have started using grapples with a magnet built into them to get the best of both worlds without switching tools. While this grapple type has existed for years and works well in very specific applications, it does have some drawbacks with reduced capacity since the machine has to now swing the weight of a grapple and a magnet at the same time. A solution to a few drawbacks of a mag-grapple is a coupler system that can quickly switch between a dedicated grapple and magnet. Some of these systems can connect and disconnect the hydraulics and generator cable automatically without the operator leaving the cab, keeping downtime to a minimum. There are still some minor drawbacks as the coupler system is another touchpoint for daily inspections and maintenance.

Lastly, it is important to know what hours are on the attachments you are using and whether they are due for maintenance. Attachment specific trackers are now available to provide that information, and some can communicate with the host machines to switch the settings for flow and pressure.

The Evolving Scrap Metal Operations
Equipment technology continues to evolve rapidly and does not have to be limited to general construction applications. While in most cases there will not be a need to use or embrace all the new features and technology that are coming out, there is a place in scrap metal operations to help improve safety, increase productivity, and provide more value for the organization and your customers. | WA

Jadon Kool is a Market Professional at Caterpillar Inc. focusing on scrap, recycling, and demolition for the North American market. He has 17 years of experience in the heavy equipment industry where he has had roles as an on-site equipment manager for a major nationwide construction company, service engineer for Cat hydro-mechanical tools and hammers, and a product application specialist for Cat machines and attachments that serve the scrap, recycling, and demolition industries. He can be reached at [email protected].