Bell and Daewoo suit Bardon

by Ian Brown



A trio of Bell articulated dump trucks is helping Bardon Aggregates achieve production targets at its Warmwell Quarry in Dorset. Delivered recently by Bell dealer Kellands the trucks are working in conjunction with a new Daewoo 450 excavator.

Warmwell outputs around 350,000t mostly sand, per year but because of its geology and wastage there is huge rehandling. The total tonnage moved is much nearer 600,000t to 800,000t. This means any kit purchased has to really earn its keep.

Ground conditions don't help, deep sand over clay makes wet weather a nightmare. So the management knew it had to make the right choice when it came time to re-equip.

It tried several trucks then gave each of its experienced operators a questionnaire to fill in. Not surprisingly they wanted six-wheel drive, plenty of poke, comfort, handling, visibility and ease of maintenance. Just like operators the world over.

So quarry manager Dave Searle and production supervisor Roger Barnes came up with the solution - three Bell B40C ADTs with Mercedes Benz and Allison auto-transmissions.

So far they're proving to be "fast with a good power to weight ratio, they're economical and the inbuilt retarders mean that foundation brake wear is minimised" says Barnes.

Searle adds: "Because we were looking for a new primary production excavator too Kellands was able to give us a four-machine package with a five-year warranty."