Toolcat Joins Campus Landscaping Crew

Terry Scheerer, University of Northern Iowa, has found plenty of productive uses for the Toolcat 5600, including snow removal.

From landscape construction and maintenance to snow removal, crews at the University of Northern Iowa in Cedar Falls find plenty of productive uses for their Toolcat™ 5600 utility work machine.

“We bought it because it can do so many things our smaller utility vehicles can’t do,” says Terry Scheerer, manager of grounds and landscaping.

The two-seat, 44-hp machine is designed to combine the best features of a loader, pickup truck and attachment carrier. It can be used with a variety of Bobcat attachments that mount on the front loader arm. It also features a hydraulic lift cargo box and a hitch for towing equipment.

Toolcat 5600

“We can do a whole planting operation with that one machine,” Scheerer explains. “For example, we use a bucket to haul dirt or mulch, the cargo box to carry hand tools and a trailer to transport plant materials to the jobsite.”

Other jobs include drilling planting holes for trees and shrubs with a 24-in. bit and carrying balled and burlapped trees. By hauling a 100-gal. water tank in the cargo box, it also eliminates the time and labor to drag hoses around to irrigate newly-planted trees or to keep them watered in the summer.

“One morning we loaded the 5600 on a trailer and took it to a site where we used it to pull about 200 fence posts out of the ground,” Scheerer says.

The machine, equipped with optional turf tires, has hydrostatic four-wheel drive and all-wheel steer. That also saves time and work.,

“Most of the time, we use it on turf,” he says. “It can maneuver easily in tight areas without tearing up the grass. It’s a very versatile unit.”