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Felling Trailers’ Chosen for Atlas Foundation Company’s Specialized Trailer Needs
Atlas’ Micro Pile Division has previously acquired an overseas manufacturer to design and build a custom water pump to be used for extremely specialized deep foundation drilling applications, the only pump of its kind in the U.S. For this custom application, the pump needed to be mounted to a trailer for ease of transport to and from jobs, as well as maneuverability on job sites. This trailer would need to be designed and engineered around the specifications of the water pump, along with incorporating usability and safety for the crew operating it. Larry Boeke, Atlas Foundation’s superintendent of Maintenance and Shop Repair, had previously worked with Felling Trailers and knew they were the right manufacturer for the project. Atlas Foundation has close to a dozen Felling trailers currently in their fleet. He had worked with Felling's Mike Wolff, who at the time was part of the Service team, to set up the refurbishing of 5 of their trailers over a period of 5-10 years; most of these trailers are 20+ years old. “After decades of experience using and maintaining Felling Trailers, it was an easy choice for me to reach out to Mike. Mike had done a fantastic job with us on previous projects. I knew I only wanted to work with Felling,” said Larry Boeke. Throughout the design process, there were many changes; some were small, like shortening up the overall trailer length. Others were more detailed, like incorporating pull-out steps/platforms and handrails, for the crew to access the deck safely. “The selection of Grat-X decking was made in place of standard decking for crew safety. When the unit is used in cold weather environments, the crew must disconnect water lines and drain the pump at the end of each shift to prevent freezing. The Grat-X decking allows for the water to pass through to the ground below, preventing water/ice build-up, greatly reducing the likelihood of the crew slipping,” said T.J. Schwartz, Felling’s OEM trailer specialist. Attention to the fine details was key. With the pump still in production, the teams worked off drawings and maintained continuous communication with the overseas vendor. “We worked closely with the pump vendor to verify the water pump's overall size and weight and determine the center of gravity for proper axle placement. We had to really pay attention to the smaller details and plan ahead for things like compartment door clearance for mounting a spare tire, clearance for personnel to access the deck from all sides, and so on,” said Larry Boeke. With the design process completed the trailer then moved onto the production floor. Built to specifications, this high-pressure water pump trailer was constructed with custom mounting provisions for the skid-based water pump, 8’ pull-out grip strut side steps on curbside, roadside, and along the rear tailboard. Rear stabilizer jacks, along with two heavy-duty storage boxes provided by Atlas Foundation Co., were mounted on the rear of the trailer. Once assembled and inspected, the finished trailer was delivered to Atlas Foundation, Co., where the one-of-a-kind pump was mounted to the trailer and put into service. “In my opinion, Felling builds the best construction equipment transport trailer on the market. They are extremely heavy-duty from front to back. I would say that my experience with Felling has always been positive. From their parts and service department to the refurbish division, to now having had the chance to work with their engineering and design team, and then finishing up with the production division. Every interaction has been positive and professional. I was impressed with how knowledgeable Mike and T.J. were throughout the entire process. I would definitely recommend anyone that hasn’t given Felling a try yet to take a look and see how the team at Felling can help with a specialized project like ours,” said Larry Boeke.
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