Rugged Loaders and Excavators Handle Tough Demolition Duty

Craig Thompson and Ray Jones of E. Luke Green Company rely on the Bobcat System to replace workers with hand tools.

Dispatching as many as 15 crews at a time over a seven state area from Missouri to Florida, E. Luke Green Company tackles a wide range of industrial, commercial and residential demolition projects. “Over the past two decades, we’ve developed a very strong name in selective demolition and structural shoring,” says Ray Jones, project manager for the company, based in Johnson City, Tenn.

To bolster that reputation, the company relies on a very strong name in compact equipment—a fleet of 14 Bobcat® skid-steer loaders and six Bobcat compact excavators. The company has used Bobcat equipment for more than 15 years to boost productivity when gutting interiors, working on roofs and other jobs where larger equipment is too heavy or too clumsy.

“Our Bobcat loaders and excavators replace sledge hammers, pry bars and wheelbarrows,” Jones reports. “One of our Bobcat loaders and operator can replace five men with hand tools.”

In some cases, he adds, his Bobcat equipment can also out-work larger machines. “Because it’s faster and much more maneuverable, a Bobcat loader can fill a 30- or 40-yard roll-off container with soft debris, such as gypsum board, insulation and lumber, faster than a larger track loader with a much bigger bucket,” Jones says.

E. Luke Green Company’s Bobcat skid-steer loaders range in size from the compact 463 to the powerful 863 (now the S220). The loaders are used with Bobcat hydraulic breakers, industrial grapple buckets and pallet forks. The firm’s Bobcat excavator models —two compact 320s, three mid-size 331s and a long-arm 341—operate Bobcat augers and hydraulic breakers.

“We use our smallest loaders where access is limited or inside buildings where we can’t knock a hole in the wall to take in bigger machines,” says Craig Thompson, senior project manager.

Depending on the project, loaders and excavators may team up on the work. For example, for interior concrete slab demolition an excavator breaks up the concrete with a hydraulic breaker, a loader scoops up the debris in an industrial grapple bucket and hauls it away. Then, the excavator may dig out the space for a new slab, followed by a bucket-equipped loader which brings in fresh concrete.

One reason the company has been using Bobcat equipment for 15 years, Jones notes, is the strong service and support provided by his local dealer, East Tennessee Rent Alls. “They back the Bobcat products really well,” Jones says. “Also, there are many other Bobcat dealers who can service our machines when we’re out on the road.”

Another reason, Jones and his crews have stuck with the Bobcat brand is the rugged, reliable performance of the machines. “We keep them maintained but we work them really hard in tough conditions from daylight to dark,” he explains. “We’ve tried other machines, but they can’t handle the work without breaking down. We like the success we’ve had with our Bobcat equipment.”