Riverview Estates puts Segal & Morel’s dirt-moving equipment to the test.

If there is one area of the construction business that has thrived no matter what the economic climate, it has been the home-site development and construction business. This has been especially so for homebuilding company Segal & Morel in Bridgewater, NJ.

Principal Kenneth Segal is a second-generation builder whose family has been a major presence in New Jersey’s home-building industry for more than 50 years. Jack Morel joined the company—founded in 1966—as a partner in the mid-1980s and retired in 1995, helping build Segal & Morel into one of the most well-known homebuilders and developers in New Jersey and Pennsylvania. The company’s philosophy of blending tradition with innovation has resulted in 21 residential communities comprising more than 3,500 homes.

Adam Segal, Kenneth’s son, is executive vice president and oversees daily operations. “We are unique in that we are a family-owned company with an impeccable reputation,” he says. “We spend a lot of time and effort in researching and selecting the best products to include in our homes, and we are especially proud to be able to offer many well-known brand-name products such as Kohler, Lennox, Owens Corning, Jenn-Air, and many others.”

Segal & Morel has won two national awards for design excellence from the National Association of Home Builders and is an Energy Star builder, a government certification that means a house is superior in energy efficiency. “We try and stay at the forefront of building technology,” Adam Segal says. “Striving to always give homeowners the best value is our company mission. Continually achieving this goal has been our success.”

Equipment Versatility Gets the Job Done
That desire for finding best value extends to Segal & Morel’s equipment, where new equipment—such as the recently purchased Komatsu D39PX-21 KomStat II dozer—is working an ongoing eight-year development of Riverview Estates in Forks Township, PA. With 95 horsepower and weighing in at 19,620 pounds, the dozer is used for topsoiling, rough grading, foundation work, and filling around utilities. “It’s a fantastic size in terms of productivity,” Segal says. “At the current job site, the D39 is pushing material as it is getting delivered. So, one dump truck at a time, it’s working with the material—be it stone, topsoil, or fill.”

Riverview Estates is a golf course community that will encompass a housing mix of 500 townhouses, single-family houses, and active-adult units. Segal & Morel is doing all construction work on the project with the exception of pipe and roadwork. “We can do a sub-base and a cut and fill to make the road,” Adam Segal says, “but when it comes to the paving, stoning, and curbing, we prefer to subcontract.”

With the variety of tasks associated with land development, Segal & Morel utilizes a fleet of more than 25 pieces of equipment including water tankers, dump trucks, rollers, backhoes, wheel loaders, skid-steer loaders, excavators, and dozers. Dozers are a mainstay of the equipment fleet for foundation work, fine grading, and working with material of stone, topsoil, or fill. With buyers anxiously waiting for their homes to be built, equipment—and operator—productivity is essential. “It’s important the operators like the machine and are comfortable running it because we work a long day,” Adam Segal says.

Before purchasing new equipment, he frequently demos machines from his equipment distributor (Binder Machinery Co.) to get operator input. “The whole reason for demonstrating the machines is for the operators’ benefit,” he says. “From the spec sheet, I can tell the capabilities of the machine, the power of the machine, the price, the life cycle, and the whole operating cost. But when I buy a machine, 50% of my decision is made on operator preference.

“We brought Komatsu’s KomStat II dozer on a demo while one of our other dozers was in for blade repair,” he says. “The operators liked the D39 so much, I decided not to bring the old machine back. That really speaks a lot for the machine. Most of the time, the operators tell me they don’t care. But with this dozer, it really mattered to them, so when it was time to purchase, it wasn’t a difficult decision.”

A major reason why operators remain productive all day long is the Komatsu Hydrostatic Transmission (HST) and palm-controlled joystick. The HST offers two three-speed variable-capacity travel motors that can be selected by the operator to match the optimum speed with the specific job.

PHOTO: BRADY MARKETING GROUP

“The HST machines are clearly easier to operate,” Adam Segal says. “With one hand, an operator controls not only speed, but speed range. HST steering eliminates clutches and brakes, so it’s more operator-friendly and easier to work in all day. The palm-command joystick controls all directional movements. And, since all the younger operators grew up on video games, they are used to joystick control. Plus, it’s less strenuous movement, so operator fatigue is reduced.”

Exceptional Blade Visibility, Comfortable Seating
Operator fatigue is clearly an issue when trying to maintain productivity, so comfortable seating and an easy ride are important to keep operators happy. The D39 has a suspension seat with backrest, height-adjustable armrests, and increased leg space.

“I’ve been on other tractors and find when I get off, I’m pretty sore. But this machine provides a comfortable, stable ride, even when I’m on it all day,” says operator Fernando Aguilar.

The dozer’s slim engine hood and well-located operator seat provide excellent visibility to the blade. This clear blade visibility greatly increases grading efficiency and reduces operator guesswork. The large ground area created by the long tracks and wide track gauges combines with a low center of gravity to make a stable and well-balanced machine. For smoother riding comfort, power train components and hydraulic control valves are mounted to the frame with rubber pads to soften vibration and reduce noise.

Coinciding with ease of operation is the stability factor of the machine. The dozer’s 7-foot-9-inch-long and 25-inch-wide tracks keep it well balanced, yet retain mobility.

The main frame is designed by the same advanced CAE (computer-aided engineering) technology used on Komatsu’s D575A—the largest bulldozer in the world. This main frame structural feature is a main frame and track frame combined with connecting bars by weldments, providing the ideal stiffness required in a small-size crawler dozer.

“We like the fact that this small-size dozer is constructed with the features of a bigger, more stable machine that still gives us a lot of mobility,” Adam Segal says.

Aguilar adds, “The D39 provides us with all the pushing power and blade capacity you could ask for—not to mention the controls are smooth and easy to operate so we can make tight turns and still keep material on the blade.”

Maintenance Keeps Machines Running Smoothly
Segal notes that the manufacturer’s recommended preventative maintenance program has kept his dozers trouble-free. “The accessibility of the greasing points, filters, and fluid-level checkpoints means the operators are actually going to do it because they can do it easily,” he says.

The engine’s gull-wing side cover opens 140 degrees with a gas-spring cylinder, allowing for easy checking of the engine and auxiliary components. Daily maintenance items are centralized on the left side of the engine. “The operator can pop it open and see everything. It’s easy to lean over. It’s easy to touch. Everything you need to do to that machine other than run it you can do standing on the ground,” Adam Segal says.

Aguilar agrees: “The maintenance on these machines is very simple—everything is really easy to get to.”

Transportability Also an Asset
An important feature to Segal & Morel is the ability to move the dozers from site to site as needed. The D39 is the only machine in its class that can be transported with the blade attached and not exceed the 8-foot, 6-inch travel restrictions.

“Mobility is important to me because there are jobs that are small in scope, even though they may be difficult. I don’t want the expense of moving a big machine when the D39 is capable of doing the job,” Adam Segal says, noting that when his company did a spot lot house (a single house), he used the D39 to do everything from digging virgin ground to cutting the driveway to fine grading. “It was the best overall machine to be able to do every step of the project. I was very impressed,” he says.

“The D39 is the perfect-size machine for maneuverability, transportability, and productivity—and it’s the perfect machine for a novice operator,” he adds. “There really isn’t anything that I’ve tried to do with the machine that it hasn’t been able to do.”

GEC - July/August 2005