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In the flat Canadian prairie, 22 Volvo motor graders are keeping roads passable through inhospitable weather conditions. In east-central Alberta, the County of Two Hills and the neighbouring Flagstaff County have over 5343 km of roads to be maintained, of which less than 10% are paved. The challenge is to keep these roads passable through the snow in winter, the mud in spring, the rain in summer and the frost in autumn for the 8000 residents. Local weather conditions can be fairly inhospitable. Temperatures range from minus -46°C in January – accompanied by a chilling winter wind – to over +37°C in the summer – with a harsh dry wind. And precipitation, both rain and snow, can reach 187 cm annually.
Mr. Bouchard’s biggest problem was convincing senior operator Willy Derda, who has 18 years experience operating motor graders, to try the Volvo. “He didn’t want to leave his usual motor grader,” says Mr. Bouchard. “But when I convinced him to try the Volvo he became a big fan and now he won’t go back.” When asked about the Volvo G976 All Wheel Drive motor grader, Mr. Derda says: “I like this grader. It’s got lots of power. I love its short turning radius, especially on some of these narrow roads. The cab has great visibility and it’s quiet and comfortable in both summer and winter!” The Volvo G976 motor grader has a blade down force of 9776 kg and a maximum blade pull of 16 635 kg. The low-emission, turbocharged Volvo diesel engine provides a maximum power output of 265 hp. When coupled with the optional Volvo HTE1160 transmission, with 11 forward and 6 reverse speeds, it is economical and versatile with precision control at low-speed, efficient travel at high-speed and greater accuracy in the working range. The All Wheel Drive mode provides more traction and control for an extra 3855 kg of blade pull and high-speed capability for operation in heavy snow or unstable footing. Raymond Bouchard and his operators are pleased with the power and performance of the All Wheel Drive mode when working on heavy-duty road repairs or road reconstruction. “It really holds the slope when cutting,” he says. “It’s got a good weight and it’s a strong machine.”
To simplify the maintenance of the roads, Darrell Szott, Public Works superintendent for the county, has broken the county into ten maintenance areas. “We have assigned graders to each area and they have a minimum of 257 km of road each, to maintain,” he says. Mr. Szott explains that he chose Volvo because it offers value for money. “We were familiar with the quality of Volvo equipment, we have been using a Volvo wheel loader for some time and a Volvo tracked excavator, but we have used a competitor brand of grader for a long time. “We replace our graders every five years and Flagstaff County recently purchased two new Volvos, a G940 motor grader for maintenance and a Volvo G976 All Wheel Drive for the oiling crew,” he continues. When asked about fuel consumption, Murray Moulder, Public Works foreman, points out that, “Fuel consumption on the Volvo grader is good but it is also dependent on the operator and the type of roads they are working on. We have sand roads where a cutting edge will last for two weeks. Then we have roads where the surface is a combination of gravel and bentonite clay and it takes three times more blade pressure so we have to change the edge twice a day. So our fuel consumption can vary. But we are very pleased with the performance of our Volvo graders.” Veteran heavy equipment professional Gates Morin has been working with the Volvo G940 for a few weeks. “I have worked with almost every kind of heavy equipment made but I have never worked with a machine like this Volvo. It definitely has my seal of approval.”
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Volvo Graders Blaze a Trail
The County of Two Hills
Flagstaff County
