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Bobcat tackles fly-tipping problem

In the UK, fly-tipping is an increasing problem. Government reports show that in England alone, local authorities dealt with over one million fly-tipping incidents from 2018 to 2019, an increase of 8% over the same period in 2017/2018 and the highest in a decade. Another problem faced by local authorities in the UK is the removal of asbestos -– a recent report estimates there are still six million tonne of asbestos inside 1.5m buildings in the UK.

The removal of these materials requires the expertise of specialist companies such as D J Cleaning Ltd, based in North Newbald in East Yorkshire, which holds a full three-year licence from the UK Health & Safety Executive to remove all types of asbestos such as asbestos insulation board (AIB), artex and cement products. Formed in 1967, D J Cleaning also offers a wide range of site, property and garden clearance services, including the removal of rubbish and often hazardous materials, resulting from fly-tipping.  

To meet the increasing need for a new compact solution for this work, D J Cleaning has just purchased a Bobcat T450 track loader from AMS Bobcat, the Authorised Bobcat Dealer for the counties of East and South Yorkshire and Lincolnshire in the UK. Dan Stephenson, Owner and Director of D J Cleaning, said: “Because it is illegal, much of the fly-tipping takes place in the middle of the night in hidden away places, such as gulleys, narrow, out-of-the-way lanes and overgrown areas and we have been looking for a solution for work in these tight and/or inaccessible places, where larger vehicles cannot access.

“The compact size of the T450 now allows us to take the machine to site on a trailer and drive it right up to the rubbish/waste materials and remove them with the Bobcat grapple attachment also supplied by AMS and load it into another trailer for removal from site. One of the first jobs for the T450 was to clear rubbish dumped in a valley area, where the local council couldn’t work out how to get at it, but to their amazement, we were able to clear it in less than an hour using the new compact loader.”

The cab on the T450 at D J Cleaning is fully enclosed, including a front door and wiper system. This provides a pressurised interior space that keeps dust down to a minimum, keeping the operator clean and comfortable. The one-piece seal and unique, curved door pocket ensure that the driver enjoys the best-possible protection for asbestos removal work.  

Harvey Stephenson, Dan’s son and a company director, has taken over much of the day-to-day running of the business. He said: “In the past, we have hired in compact machinery when needed, but increasing workloads have meant that we require the T450 all the time… The new T450 is a perfect fit with our existing Bobcat T2250 telehandler and E16 mini-excavator. Both of these machines have been great for us – I  call the T2250 the ‘pocket rocket’ – it has serious poke for working in our yard and on site for driving into piles of debris we have to remove. We also have the advantage of interchangeability of attachments such as buckets with the T450.”

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