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wide, six-and-one-half feet tall and 11-feet long,
the C.U.B.E. was specifically designed to be hauled
by one-ton pick up trucks, says Christensen. The
reason for this design concept is for reaching
remote locations otherwise impossible to traverse
with a conventional mixing truck.
For
instance, a C.U.B.E. was recently airlifted by
helicopter to a job site in California where repairs
were being made to remote location on a dam. Another
customer, Rick Kubesh, owner of the Colville,
Washington-based Kubesh’s Site Mixed Concrete
recently employed a C.U.B.E. for a remote project in
the dark recesses of the Pend Oreille Mine.
“This
job required approximately 100 yards of five sack
concrete. Placement would be seven-and-a-half miles
down in a hard rock mine,” Kubesh continues.
“Limited access prompted us to look at alternative
ways of providing our services.
In the past,
Kubesh explains that its partnering agent on the
project, Knight Construction, resorted to premixed
80 pound sack concrete and a three foot cubic mixer
but resulted in “too many hours to complete and left
most of the crew totally exhausted the following
day.” For example, mixing six yards of concrete in
these extreme conditions took over seven hours to
pour. After attending the WOOC this year, Kubesh
says he saw the light, literally.“ |
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Once we
saw the C.U.B.E. at the WOOC we contacted Bruce
Christensen at Cart-Away,” remembers Kubesh.
“Looking closely at the measurements it was decided
that the ‘Cube’ could fit on a pickup and be
transported to the bottom of the mine,” he adds.
But getting to the required destination was a
challenge. “The trip started at 2,300 feet above
sea-level and ended seven miles later at minus 50
feet below sea-level. With limited clearance the
‘Cube’ made the trip with only inches to spare,”
says Kubesh.
ATTAINING THE RIGHT MIX UNDER SEA LEVEL
Supplying the premix for this project was
equally challenging. “We purchased super sacks with
spouts on the bottom. With volumetric mixers we were
able to mix the five sack concrete less the water in
increments of half-per sack,” says Kubesh.
Knight
Construction then transported the sacks down to the
job site via pick-up trucks. |
“The super
sacks were loaded two at a time into the C.U.B.E.
and water was metered in from the mounted water
meter and within six minutes one yard of concrete
was mixed,” explains Nelson Wells of Knight
Construction. The C.U.B.E. was then
extended out over the forms via a Gradall and the concrete was placed.
This process allowed the placement of up to 13 yards in a single shift
and left the crew able to set up for the next days pour by placing rebar
and forms ahead of schedule.
“It saved us a lot of hours over our previous method of mixing down in
the mine. And anything is better then mixing with those small bags,”
says Wells, adding “it saved us so many hours of manpower.
Dave Konsbruck, Mechanical Engineer for Pend Oreille Mine offered: “It
is a good size for working underground, and was able to get into places
larger units would not. We mixed about 70 yards with it and had no
breakdowns.” Like all new products, however, the C.U.B.E. is a not safe
from critique. “The feed chute for dumping the sacks could have been
bigger, there was |
| Concrete Today -
September 2006 |
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