Weed Sprayer - Equipment vs. Productivity Trade Off in Action
Posted by Andrew Greess on Nov 6, 2013
Weed Sprayer | Weed Spray Rig | Weed Control Sprayer | Herbicide Spray Rig
200 gallon custom weed control sprayer built for a utility company to spray weeds in their right of way.
Their current process is 1 guy drives and 1 guy sprays. I asked if both employees were licensed to apply herbicides. He replied that they were. That's when I raised the issue of a dual hose reel herbicide spray rig. He loved the idea.
To boost their productivity, we put electric reels on either side of the weed spray rig so two techs could spray at the same time. Since they already had two employees on the vehicle, there was no incremental labor cost.
They determined that a one time higher outlay for weed sprayer equipment was worth the ongoing doubling of productivity.
200 Gallon Gas-Powered Dual-Reel Herbicide Sprayer >>>>
Dual electric reels to save employee time and ease their workload. Roller guides make hose rollup/rolloff much easier, while keeping the hose off the vehicle. This protects the vehicle and extends hose life.
The following photo shows the Honda engine and Hypro pump. Notice how we raise the motor mount. This makes it easy to get access to both pump and motor for service. Also, the little red loop at lower left is a hose that makes it really easy to change engine oil. If you change the oil in a Honda engine, it will run for many years. Many spray rigs have the Honda basically at ground level so the only way to change the oil is to let it run out. Most people don't do this, they just don't change the oil.
As I was admiring our work, I realized something. This rig has many extras that I often don't quote to pest control/weed control companies. I know many of them are getting multiple bids and will choose the lowest price. Adding extras like some of those listed above will ensure we don't get the work.
But this strikes me as counter productive. Many of these items boost employee productivity, reduce problems/downtime and extend equipment life. They make total financial sense. Unfortunately, we don't always get the opportunity to explain this.
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