Joe Volini, owner of Heartland Recycling, LLC, quickly came to understand the “Perfect In One Pass” advantage when he added a Rotochopper MC-266 to his C & D recycling operation. Prior to the MC-266, Heartland had been operating a competitor grinder powered by an 800 horsepower diesel engine. They were grinding their sorted C & D wood fiber three times to produce a consistent 2” minus boiler fuel product. Grinding the material three times resulted in a large percentage of fines, causing it to be rejected by some several potential buyers.
With the switch to an MC-266, Volini saw his operating costs drop drastically, while finished product quality noticeably increased. Even though the MC-266 had approximately 40% less horsepower than Heartland’s previous grinder, their production rates stayed on target because they were able to produce a finished end product in only one pass. With less handling, less fuel consumption, and much less hassle, they were ending up with a more valuable finished product.
After this dramatic decrease in operating costs, Volini continued to look for news ways to lower his operating costs. After further discussion with his Rotochopper rep, in 2009 he decided to make another major switch, this time to an electric-powered grinder, the Rotochopper EC-256.
With the switch to an EC-256, Volini saw his operating costs go down even further and uptime increase. Volini had expected moderate operating cost savings by switching from diesel to electric but quickly learned that the benefits of his EC-256 far exceeded the price difference between diesel fuel and electricity: “The EC-256 requires very little maintenance and uses much less electricity than I expected,” Volini notes.
Volini states that his EC-256 processes a steady stream of sorted wood fiber that is fed directly from his sorting line, noting that he opted for the EC-256, rather than the larger EC-266 or B-66 E, because it was sized to match his raw material volume. Since his wood grinder has to keep pace with his sorting line, uptime is critical, he stresses.
Most of all, Volini appreciates that his C & D recycling operation is getting the convenience of steady uptime, without sacrificing the finished product control he had come to trust from his MC-266: “We are producing 10 loads per week of perfect finished product with minimal handling… We couldn’t be happier with our electric Rotochopper.”