tomlin Construction - Thompson Tractor

Thompson tractor • Fall 20072 EarthmovingProfile on Panhandle Grading and Paving Inc.Pensacola, FL. – Panhandle Grading andPaving Inc. has been serving the NorthwestFlorida market for over 25 years, providing thequality work that the Long family continues topride itself in offering.Johnnie Long, President of Panhandle, hasbeen in the business since the 1960’s, gettinghis start with Dixie Grading and Paving. Johnniemade the most out of his time with Dixie learningthe trade. In the early 1970’s, he and his twopartners started their own business, Gulf CoastGrading and Paving. By the late 1970’s, Johnnie’stwo sons, Jerry and Donald, were beginning totake an interest in the business. The decisionwas made to exit Gulf Coast Grading and Pavingto start fresh.Created in 1979, Panhandle had modestbeginnings as most family businesses do.Driveways and small parking lots were wherethe company cut its teeth, but as Jerry andDonald became more involved, the businessbegan to pick up. Donald Long, Vice Presidentof Panhandle and in charge of the Pavingoperations, remembers running his first pavingcrew back in 1984, “I ran that crew for three tofour years, we were a smaller crew and mostlysupported bigger jobs going on around thearea.”Times have changed as Panhandle hasbecome one of the more respected contractorsin northwest Florida. In 2000 and 2006, thePublic Works Association named Panhandletheir “Contractor of the Year” – no small featconsidering the number of contractors in thestate of Florida. Jerry Long serves as the othervice president of Panhandle, and he tends todeal more with the grading division. Betty Longis the secretary/treasurer, but more importantlythe wife/mother and the backbone of the dayto-dayoperations at Panhandle Grading andPaving.Panhandle has grown to approximately 130employees. The paving side of the companyhas roughly 30 employees split between twocrews and two asphalt plants. The two pavingcrews are headed by Superintendent EarnestMillender, who has been with the companyfor over 20 years. Panhandle’s two asphaltplants are located in Milton, FL, and northof Cantonment, FL on Quintette Road. Theplants were a necessity as the size and scopeof Panhandle’s jobs began to increase, “Theasphalt plants were really a natural progression.As the size of our jobs began to grow, it wasthe next logical step for our company,” Donaldsays. Each plant is fed by a Caterpillar ® 962GWheel Loader. The plant on Quintette Road is ina perfect location for Panhandle’s current job,reclaiming and paving nine miles of US Hwy. 29from Cantonment, FL, north to Molino, FL.Panhandle made the move to Caterpillar ®Asphalt Pavers in 2005 when they purchasedan AP-655C for their job repairing State Rd. 399– the beach road stretching from PensacolaBeach, FL, to Navarre, FL. The road was washedaway by Hurricane Ivan in September 2004, andPanhandle was contracted for all the earthwork,site prep and paving. The soft and sandyunderfoot conditions made the job extremelydifficult; the site was so bad, the decision wasmade to feed the paver using articulated trucks(off-highway dump trucks). The AP-655C waschosen for its flotation provided by the MobiltracUndercarriage. The track system wasthe optimal choice for the soft, sandy underfootconditions. After laying 70,000 of the 100,000 tonsthey were contracted for, the job was terminateddue to damage from Hurricane Dennis.After the beach job, Panhandle purchasedan AP-800D in 2006 and another in 2007. InMarch, Panhandle traded in the AP-655C fortheir newest paver, an AP-1055D. The AP-1055Dwas purchased due to the need for a largerhighway class machine that would be heavierand better suited for their Hwy. 29 job. A newCB-634D Compactor, two CB-634C Compactorsand a skidsteer with an asphalt cutter can alsobe found on Panhandle’s paving projects.Other pieces of Caterpillar equipment usedby Panhandle’s Grading division include a D5GLGP, a D6M, two D6N Dozers, a 613 Scraper,a 12G Motor Grader, two D250E’s ArticulatedTrucks, a 416C Backhoe Loader, a Multi-TerrainLoader and a CS-563 Compactor. David Irwin,HE Salesman, Pensacola branch, has beencalling on Panhandle for over 10 years. BrianLaughlin, Thompson Tractor Paving Specialist,has also helped to develop the relationshipbetween Panhandle and Thompson TractorCompany by offering training on initial setup andmaintenance on the Caterpillar Asphalt Pavers.Left to right - Phil Luker, Brian Laughlin, David Irwin, Donald Long, Johnnie Long, Jerry Long“ I haveAccess”Cat® D6KBest in ClassWherever my business takes me, I have Access to …• The excellent service I expect from Thompson Tractor• Knowledgeable staff who understand my needs• One statement for all rental, parts and servicetransactions• My account at Thompson TractorApply today and put the power of the Cat ® AccessAccount SMto work for your business.www.cataccessaccount.comThompson Tractor is showcasing a new tracktypetractor – the D6K. This tractor is the firstin a new family of track-type tractors whichwill set the benchmark for productivity andperformance from first cut to finish grade.This tractor excels in cutting, contouring andother tasks required in today’s site developmentindustry.Key Features and Benefitsµ Engine: CAT C6.6 ACERT engine, providing125 hp at 2100 RPMµ Hydraulic Demand Fan: This fanautomatically adjusts speedsµ Drivetrain: Electronically controlledhydrostatic closed-loop systemµ Operator Environment: Seat-mountedelectrohydraulic controlsµ Undercarriage: SystemOne undercarriagereduces operating costs and extendsundercarriage lifeµ Transmission and Steering Control: The leftjoystick provides intuitive control of machinedirection and speedµ Blade Control: The right joystick providesintuitive blade control operationµ Deceleration Pedal: Single pedal whichcombines the function of a decel pedal andservice brakesThe D6K is an ideal platform for machinecontrol and guidance. The operator consolehas been designed to accommodate the latestAccuGrade ® GPS and Laser displays in aconvenient, easy to remove mounting bracket.D6Ks will soon be in stock at ThompsonTractor. Contact your salesman for additionalinformation and machine specifications.www.thompsontractor.com