H.J.R. Asphalt Partnership surfaces or re-surfaces approximately 500 miles (700 km) of roads, on average, each year and carries an inventory of over one hundred pieces of iron, including trucks, trailers, asphalt plants, pavers, asphalt packers and assorted road construction equipment.
The Saskatchewan-based partnership began over twenty years ago when the late Harry Tarasoff, his brother Jim and long-time friend Reg Willick were working in the paving industry and saw an opportunity to provide a higher level of quality workmanship and customer service.
“When we started our business back in 1988, the first new paver that we purchased was a Blaw-Knox 5510. We still use that same paver today.” One doesn’t have to look too closely to see the glint of pride in Reg Willick’s eye as he tells the story of how the largest asphalt paving company in the province has grown from very humble beginnings. “We pride ourselves in being innovators and leaders in the industry.”
According to Jim Tarasoff, the annual season for success is fairly short for them. “We usually get going somewhere in early May and our highway work will usually end in early October. We maintain a plus 40 degree Fahrenheit (plus 5 Celsius) policy. We will not do any highway paving if the temperature drops below this minimum and in the spring and fall that could mean a lot of waiting, resulting in some very short workdays. It’s sometimes pretty tough, but we persevere.”
H.J.R. has been very satisfied with the Blaw-Knox pavers and Ingersoll-Rand (I-R) packers that they own.
This past year, the partners made three paver purchases to expand and support the company. First, they purchased two new Volvo PF6110 tracked pavers. According to Willick, the decision to purchase the new Volvo product was made in just five minutes. “We had done our homework. We knew what we wanted and since Volvo had taken charge of the I-R/Blaw-Knox line, it became a no-brainer for us.”
Volvo Construction Equipment, with North American headquarters in Asheville, North Carolina, purchased the road construction division of Ingersoll-Rand in 2007, and Blaw-Knox had been part of the I-R brand for a number of years prior to that.
“Our pavers were all Blaw-Knox and our packers where mainly I-R,” Willick pointed out. “Previously we had to go to one dealer for paver service and another for packer service. Now, with the consolidation of both brands under the Volvo umbrella, it has made it much easier for us. We now just deal with Redhead.” Redhead Equipment is Volvo Construction Equipment’s premier dealer group in Saskatchewan.
A quality idea is born
H.J.R.’s most recent purchase was a Volvo Quality Reborn Blaw-Knox PF-5510 paver. According to Willick, the company took somewhat longer to decide on this purchase. “We had always bought new or very slightly used equipment in the past. But we took a long hard look at this machine and we were very pleased with everything we saw. Then we saw the price and it made the purchase decision a lot easier.” Willick went on to point out, “It has been a real good unit for us and it works right alongside the new machines and does a fantastic job.” But the strongest endorsement of the Volvo Quality Reborn program was still to come from this very experienced and industry savvy paver... “We are so satisfied with this 5510 that we are considering having at least one of our other pavers go through the program (Volvo Quality Reborn) this winter.” Quality Reborn is an innovative, Volvo-exclusive process that completely reconditions highway-class pavers and asphalt compactors, bringing them up to current industry standards for quality and safety. The Quality Reborn re-conditioning process is done by experienced, factory trained Volvo technicians at a dedicated Volvo facility. The minimum one-hundred point inspection that each machine goes through is completely backed with a factory warranty and any part that is found to have less than 75 percent of its life remaining is replaced with a new, genuine Volvo part. It’s a practical equipment-reconditioning program that is guaranteed and will save companies money.
Innovations in material and equipment
Meanwhile, out on a stretch of prairie highway east of Saskatoon, there is another innovation being put to work with a Volvo PF6110 paver. H.J.R. has designed a ‘better mousetrap’ and is the premier paving company in Saskatchewan to re-surface roads with crumb rubber asphalt. It’s a unique process where ground-up rubber from tires is added to the oil and then mixed with the aggregate at the asphalt plant. There is, however, one hot bump in the road to this process. The mixing of the rubber with the oil and aggregate must be done at a temperature of approximately 375 degrees Fahrenheit (190 Celsius) and when it reaches the job site, it is still at a temperature of over 340 degrees Fahrenheit (170 Celsius). It’s here that another Volvo innovation is critical to the job site success.
H.J.R. operator Harry Cote is pleased with what Volvo has done with the design of the new Volvo PF6110 paver. “It’s just better technology,” says Cote. “One of the most important innovations is the way that the ‘heat rise‘ is controlled on this machine, and that’s very important on a crumb rubber job. The heat we are dealing with here is considerably higher than on a regular asphalt job. This is a good machine.” This process has a number of benefits, H.J.R. reports: it’s quieter to drive on, ‘heals‘ better, has greater adhesion, is less prone to cracking and provides a practical use for over 800 tons of used tires in Saskatchewan alone. Sort of a ‘quality reborn’ use for used tires.
