F-1.08-F.G.
Active Member
It's been a minute or two since I've been on HEF so I'm just now getting around to updating everyone on an incident that took place in the area back in Feb.
We've had windows busted out and dirt clods thrown at the machines over the weekends, but nothing as serious as this.
During an early morning drinking binge, an older gentleman who intended to vandalize our equipment, accompanied by his girlfriend and his son, made a trip to a jobsite I've been working on through the fall and winter. The company I work for has a strict policy regarding machine lock-up and safety with unattended machine, but somehow this guy slipped through the cracks.
We purchased a new Sakai sheepsfoot roller a year or so ago, nice piece, no complaints, the story moves on. Our welding shop usually fabricates absolutely inpenetrable locking dashboards, key hides, etc... in order to prevent theft and vandalism. This new Sakai came with a locking dashboard (as most do nowadays) and it seemed more than sufficient enough to stop the weekend joyrider. If anyone is familar with this machine, you'll already know that that dashboard cover locks (with your own padlock) over the instrument panel while the key, which is attached to a small chain, rest in it's own storage compartment UNDER the locking dash cover. The ignition is located on the right side of the column and requires a Sakai key (not just a #357 like most rollers). Even with the ignition exposed, the probabilty of theft and/or joyriding is quite low due to the complexity of the key (unlike some compaction equipment, which can be started with just about anything). What we didn't realize is that once everything is secured, the same small chain that ensures that the key stays with that machine is also barely visible with the dash locked up. You can see it, you can grab it and you can wiggle it and tug on it until... TA DA... the key slithers out from under the cover and you now have the ability to start the machine. The machine is equipped with a parking brake that is activated/deactivated by a large red button that is concealed by, but very near the edge of the locking cover... it too is able to be accessed/manipulated while the machine is "secured" thus allowing anyone with a little patience and know-how to access any machine similar to this one.
The gentleman who visited us over that Febuary weekend applied his patience and know-how until he got a hold of the key, started our machine and began joyriding across the site. He bumped into a couple peices of gear, he ran over the porta-john. Then, with his son watching, he rode the roller over an embankment and fell away from the operator station and then under the rear tire where his skull was crushed. He died instantly in front of his 15 year old son.
We've since modified the roller so that the ignition is under the panel and the key stays in the foremans truck, and I would advise everyone out there to do the same. If anyone needs me to go into detail on the modifications, I can, just PM me.
I didn't write this because the guy "got what he deserved" or "had it coming to him". I wrote it to inform all you guys to go the extra mile when you're securing your machinesin the evening to prevent something like this happening to anybody again. Let's lock 'em up (and then some)
We've had windows busted out and dirt clods thrown at the machines over the weekends, but nothing as serious as this.
During an early morning drinking binge, an older gentleman who intended to vandalize our equipment, accompanied by his girlfriend and his son, made a trip to a jobsite I've been working on through the fall and winter. The company I work for has a strict policy regarding machine lock-up and safety with unattended machine, but somehow this guy slipped through the cracks.
We purchased a new Sakai sheepsfoot roller a year or so ago, nice piece, no complaints, the story moves on. Our welding shop usually fabricates absolutely inpenetrable locking dashboards, key hides, etc... in order to prevent theft and vandalism. This new Sakai came with a locking dashboard (as most do nowadays) and it seemed more than sufficient enough to stop the weekend joyrider. If anyone is familar with this machine, you'll already know that that dashboard cover locks (with your own padlock) over the instrument panel while the key, which is attached to a small chain, rest in it's own storage compartment UNDER the locking dash cover. The ignition is located on the right side of the column and requires a Sakai key (not just a #357 like most rollers). Even with the ignition exposed, the probabilty of theft and/or joyriding is quite low due to the complexity of the key (unlike some compaction equipment, which can be started with just about anything). What we didn't realize is that once everything is secured, the same small chain that ensures that the key stays with that machine is also barely visible with the dash locked up. You can see it, you can grab it and you can wiggle it and tug on it until... TA DA... the key slithers out from under the cover and you now have the ability to start the machine. The machine is equipped with a parking brake that is activated/deactivated by a large red button that is concealed by, but very near the edge of the locking cover... it too is able to be accessed/manipulated while the machine is "secured" thus allowing anyone with a little patience and know-how to access any machine similar to this one.
The gentleman who visited us over that Febuary weekend applied his patience and know-how until he got a hold of the key, started our machine and began joyriding across the site. He bumped into a couple peices of gear, he ran over the porta-john. Then, with his son watching, he rode the roller over an embankment and fell away from the operator station and then under the rear tire where his skull was crushed. He died instantly in front of his 15 year old son.
We've since modified the roller so that the ignition is under the panel and the key stays in the foremans truck, and I would advise everyone out there to do the same. If anyone needs me to go into detail on the modifications, I can, just PM me.
I didn't write this because the guy "got what he deserved" or "had it coming to him". I wrote it to inform all you guys to go the extra mile when you're securing your machinesin the evening to prevent something like this happening to anybody again. Let's lock 'em up (and then some)
