Facilities Update – June

One of the goals of our Equipment and Facilities program is to have all facilities and equipment ready when needed and to develop maintenance plans that will prevent costly downtime. The team is always looking for ways to improve upon their efficiency.

One of the current projects is re-tooling the new scraper for use in bog renovation. Originally commissioned for crowning dams, it was designed for maximum project flexibility. As we are about to move into the next stage of our latest bog renovation project, it was the perfect time to build a wider fixed blade for this machine in order to help with the land leveling at 11 Acre and Benny’s.

The other ongoing project is improving the driveway and parking area at the shop and ICM building. “We never did finish grading when we took the floater building down,” says Facilities/Equipment Manager Louis Cantafio. “We just made sure it was high enough to get through the winter. But part of our capital improvements projects this year includes adding gutters to our new buildings: the buildings housing the the pickups and the dump trucks as well as the one by the packing house. Part of that will also include running the downspouts under the surface in order to direct water flow toward the ditches.” In order for that to happen, the finished grade needs to be perfect. “Once the truck traffic starts coming through, you don’t want to find out the hard way that the drainage is too close to the surface,” Louis explains.

“Adding gutters and new downspouts as well as regrading the parking area are some of the ways we make our work area nicer,” says Louis. “It looks nice, and it will decrease the need for maintenance in the future, keeping our driveways in more professional condition so they don’t require as much work.” While there are no plans to pave the parking area, we will likely be paving some of our more highly trafficked roadway entrances.

Finally, we improved the airstrip that we maintain for our fertilizer applications. This will kick up a lot less dust, making things easier for everyone involved!