As I have stated in the past, during the winter months when we cannot work outside, we work on preparing for the next season. One of the things we do is refurbish equipment. So long as parts remain available, refurbishing equipment is a very cost effective method for preserving capital and helping the operation run more efficiently.
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| Removing rust and old paint |
HFCC owns three Salsco greens rollers that are 20 years or older. Fortunately for us, parts are still very much available and the basic design of the machine has not changed. What this means for us is that a new machine would not necessarily provide any real benefit over refurbishing the old units. While the new machines are a bit faster, the old ones are as fast as we need them to be, especially with our small greens and sloping green surrounds.
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| Welding a new section to the ramp. |
Each machine was completely disassembled and stripped of paint. Some welding and fabrication was needed as two machines had cracked frames and all of the rollers either needed replaced or repaired. The rollers all received new bearings, chains, sprockets, hoses, seats, and where finished off with a new coat of automotive paint.
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| Painted parts awaiting assembly. |
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| Assembling the frame. |
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| Installing the engine and hydraulics |
In addition to refurbishing the rollers, the trailers that transport the rollers where refurbished. This was a major undertaking as the trailers had cracked frames and short ramps. Approximately half of each trailer was replaced by our staff as they fabricated new parts and welded them in place. Each trailer was finished off with a new coat of paint and new rubber tracks.
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| Grinding a new longer trailer ramp. |
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| Old trailer disassembled. |
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| Finished trailer with longer ramp and rubber tracks. |
The complete cost of refurbishing the rollers and trailers was approximately $7000. The cost of three new rollers would have cost the club over $50,000, so the refurbishment is a very cost effective solution. The refurbished rollers will last the club for well over five years or until parts are no longer available.
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| Finished rollers on their trailers. |
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| Finished roller. |
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| Finished roller. |
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| Three finished rollers ready for the season. |
