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Excavators are rockin’ and rollin’ in Memphis

Spring 2013

What makes Memphis well known? The musical heritage of Beale Street, known as home of the blues; the legendary Sun Studio, birthplace of rock ‘n' roll; the home of Federal Express that helped create the world's busiest air-cargo airport; a major distribution and transportation hub that includes the nation's third largest rail center and fourth largest inland port; and the internationally recognized St. Jude Children's Research Hospital.

Located on the east bank of the Mississippi River, Memphis, Tenn., is home to 650,000 residents, making it larger than Atlanta, St. Louis, Boston, Seattle, Denver and Washington D.C. The sprawling city occupies about the same amount of land as Dallas, but with half the population.

What makes Memphis work?

More than 6,300 city employees carry out jobs that help make the city a better place to live and work. Within the Division of Public Works there's a small group - about two dozen employees - impacting the city in a big way. The behind-the-scenes team, including members of the Heavy Equipment Services Department, is on call all hours of the day and night, supporting city maintenance and emergency activities.

"We work for every department in the city," says Gary Hardin, heavy equipment supervisor and 20-year veteran with Public Works Department. "For many jobs - both emergency and routine - we are the only group that has the specialty equipment to handle certain assignments efficiently and safely."

Among the large inventory of heavy equipment are two Doosan crawler excavators - a DX255LC and DX300LC SLR (Super-Long Reach). Both excavators were purchased from the local Doosan dealer, H&E Equipment Services in Memphis. Another city department also has a DX255LC.

"The City purchased the DX300LC SLR two years ago when we identified a need for a long-reach machine that could clean reservoirs and ditches we could not reach with other equipment," Hardin says. "We added the DX255LC last fall. That machine is used throughout the year, while the DX300LC SLR is more of a specialty machine."

Valuable options

The DX300LC SLR has a 213-horsepower diesel engine and a maximum reach at grade of 57 feet 1 inch. Powered by a 185-horsepower diesel engine, the DX255LC has a maximum dig depth of 22 feet 4 inches. Beyond their superior reach and dig depth, both units are known for fuel efficiency and minimal maintenance costs, premium comfort and good all-around visibility, superior reliability and outstanding production.

"When we get a call, we go out to the jobsite and decide which machine will work best," Hardin says. "The two excavators give us some good options."

Plenty of other work

What about when there is no emergency work? "That's when we help out with preventive maintenance projects," Hardin says. "For example, cleaning drains and ditches to prevent flooding, or taking down older buildings as part of a city revitalization project. Every day we are not on call, we are doing something to take care of the city."

When the City of Memphis purchased its first Doosan excavator, Hardin, who was an operator at the time, was somewhat apprehensive because he was not familiar with the brand.

"After running it for a day I decided it was a good machine," he recalls. "There are plenty of things to like about the two excavators: smoothness, power, cab, visibility, reliable and fuel-efficient. They are very valuable and have made a lot of our jobs easier and safer."

The value of all those features is regularly demonstrated, notes Hardin, because his department gets plenty of difficult assignments. "If the job is associated with the city, we are available to do it," he says. "That's why we're here and why we have all this equipment."