xr4ticlone
Well-Known Member
- Joined
- Dec 15, 2013
- Messages
- 113
- Location
- TEXAS
- Occupation
- Trusted Adviser to the Construction World
Ok, here is the situation.
Looking to buy out a profitable (in spite of current mgmt & processes) material pit. It's not huge, but it is making good money with much greater potential.
Products it makes...
Sand
Gravel (2"+, 1"-2", 5/8, & 3/8)
Sandy loam soil
Black dirt (sort of blackish)
Fill dirt
Clay (mixed into everything...can you actually sell clay? I know people looking to truck some in for a pound...but I know of no one selling it)
Right now it's got...
A small dirt screen that's basically wore out. I actually bought a used trammel screen this weekend to move dirt production to (see root problems in other thread).
A small portable 'wash plant' that's not capable of producing more than 150 total tons of products per day...wanting to sell that if anyone has use. 1700 hour and works well...just NOT the right size as demand is like 10X what that will produce.
A bunch of old, too small, wore out loaders, excavator, and old dump trucks.
What our plan is...
Equipment upgrade...3-5 yard loaders, get the 330 running (engine was out), and then upgrade the wash plant. Use the trammel for dirt products.
Question is this...
The main hole is down to a material that he couldn't wash (clay) in his inadequate wash plant (10 ft min water). We're going to dig & wash that out turning current area into 'retention' pond as we go.
Instead of 'wildcatting' all over the damn place we're going to implement a more managed plan working from the 'main hole' out. The entire are we'll likely be in for the foreseeable future is less than 100 yard from the center of the area....especially for rock & sand.
We have 3 phase on site (other side of the hole...where we want to move anyway since current plant sits on virgin soil with high gravel content) which both my partner and I see as better than running diesel...or at least we did. Today I meet with a material plant owner that used to sell Power Screens and told him our plans...his advice was buy a track mounted portable wash plant ($150-$250k) and take the show with you. He also had bought his first electric powered plant and said it's been a 'nightmare' for all the electrical problems and that he'd just spent $15k on an electrician to fix something else. I've worked around electrical before and I can't say I've ever had that experience. My partner deals with 3 phase all the time with his other biz and says he's at a loss what could be the issue.
We've done the numbers on building a plant and then buying an artic truck, hauling loads to a hopper where loader operator would load trucks and the plant.
VS
Buying mobile plant and load it with the loader using the 330 to dig up the material as needed. It's more expensive but we could theoretically ditch having a truck so it equals out $ wise.
One final thought...help is tough to find here. Currently there are 3 employees. One dip **** that the current owner was inflexible on wanting to fire before he sold (I'm good with that), one aimless non-thinker that could be usable with better leadership, and one slimy old man that has run the plant and been stealing it blind (he's gone after our new guy is up and running...of course our guy is taking over ALL $ day one as well as access)
Want to keep staff as small as possible...
So mobile or fixed?
Looking to buy out a profitable (in spite of current mgmt & processes) material pit. It's not huge, but it is making good money with much greater potential.
Products it makes...
Sand
Gravel (2"+, 1"-2", 5/8, & 3/8)
Sandy loam soil
Black dirt (sort of blackish)
Fill dirt
Clay (mixed into everything...can you actually sell clay? I know people looking to truck some in for a pound...but I know of no one selling it)
Right now it's got...
A small dirt screen that's basically wore out. I actually bought a used trammel screen this weekend to move dirt production to (see root problems in other thread).
A small portable 'wash plant' that's not capable of producing more than 150 total tons of products per day...wanting to sell that if anyone has use. 1700 hour and works well...just NOT the right size as demand is like 10X what that will produce.
A bunch of old, too small, wore out loaders, excavator, and old dump trucks.
What our plan is...
Equipment upgrade...3-5 yard loaders, get the 330 running (engine was out), and then upgrade the wash plant. Use the trammel for dirt products.
Question is this...
The main hole is down to a material that he couldn't wash (clay) in his inadequate wash plant (10 ft min water). We're going to dig & wash that out turning current area into 'retention' pond as we go.
Instead of 'wildcatting' all over the damn place we're going to implement a more managed plan working from the 'main hole' out. The entire are we'll likely be in for the foreseeable future is less than 100 yard from the center of the area....especially for rock & sand.
We have 3 phase on site (other side of the hole...where we want to move anyway since current plant sits on virgin soil with high gravel content) which both my partner and I see as better than running diesel...or at least we did. Today I meet with a material plant owner that used to sell Power Screens and told him our plans...his advice was buy a track mounted portable wash plant ($150-$250k) and take the show with you. He also had bought his first electric powered plant and said it's been a 'nightmare' for all the electrical problems and that he'd just spent $15k on an electrician to fix something else. I've worked around electrical before and I can't say I've ever had that experience. My partner deals with 3 phase all the time with his other biz and says he's at a loss what could be the issue.
We've done the numbers on building a plant and then buying an artic truck, hauling loads to a hopper where loader operator would load trucks and the plant.
VS
Buying mobile plant and load it with the loader using the 330 to dig up the material as needed. It's more expensive but we could theoretically ditch having a truck so it equals out $ wise.
One final thought...help is tough to find here. Currently there are 3 employees. One dip **** that the current owner was inflexible on wanting to fire before he sold (I'm good with that), one aimless non-thinker that could be usable with better leadership, and one slimy old man that has run the plant and been stealing it blind (he's gone after our new guy is up and running...of course our guy is taking over ALL $ day one as well as access)
Want to keep staff as small as possible...
So mobile or fixed?