The clear goal for snow removal equipment operators is to have equipment ready for use by making all of the necessary connections in the quickest and safest way possible. This can be challenging for plow truck drivers in potentially cold and hazardous conditions.
Challenges for Snow Removal Equipment Operators
Some of the biggest challenges for snow removal equipment operators is to service the trucks and equipment, such as plows, side plows, and salt spreaders, quickly to get them out on the road as soon as possible. Clearing snowy and icy roads quickly is critical for commuter safety to help prevent dangerous and fatal accidents.
Maintaining plow trucks and equipment quickly can be challenging when connecting or disconnecting hydraulic quick couplers with thermal or residual pressure. Some quick couplers can experience freezing when exposed to slush and ice, which makes them even more difficult to connect and disconnect quickly. Hydraulic quick couplers that leak oil are another problem causing environmental contamination when trucks are serviced outdoors or causing cleanup efforts when serviced in a garage.
Connecting and disconnecting multiple hydraulic lines can be time-consuming and challenging as operators must ensure all lines are connected correctly without inadvertently crossing lines.
All of these challenges, connecting under pressure, freezing and leaking quick couplers, and connecting multiple lines quickly, can result in serious consequences and increase costs for snow removal fleet operators.
Consequences and Costs of Quick Coupler Connections For Snow Removal
One of the greatest measurements of a good connection process is the time required to make all connections. Based on how equipment is stored, the hydraulic system is very susceptible to freezing components or residual pressure build-up inside the hydraulic lines. This can significantly delay servicing trucks to get them on the road when needed.
A typical process to get snow removal equipment like a plow truck ready to work prior or during a snow event can include connecting a plow and/or spreader to the truck. To control the plow and spreader, typically, 4 to 8 hydraulic lines must be connected as well.
Both factors can cause some potentially serious consequences. Not only with lost productivity and safety concerns for the plow drivers trying to force together connections, the impact of the connection delays could also leave dangerous and potentially deadly road conditions for commuters.
Some easily identifiable costs associated with trouble during connection include replacement costs of damaged or broken parts and overtime labor, especially if a mechanic needs to be called in to fix the connection. Other harder-to-measure costs include the number of safety incidents reported during the connection process and the number of preventable accidents from road conditions.
Stucchi’s Snow Removal Solutions
Stucchi offers several different value-bringing products suited for use to help achieve the quick hook-up of plows and spreaders, including GR and DP multi-coupling plates, VEP thread to connect flat face couplings, and other flush face push-to-connect options. Each of these solutions would include connecting under pressure capability to provide a quick and easy way to connect hydraulic lines.
Stucchi offers several quick coupler product solutions for the snow and ice removal industry, including the:
Benefits of Stucchi Snow Removal Solutions
Stucchi snow removal solutions provide many benefits, including:
- Leak-free design eliminates safety and environmental concerns from spilled oil
- Connect and disconnect with residual pressure created from thermal expansion
- Freeze-resistant flat face design is easy to clean and does not collect water
- Potential to connect multiple lines in a simple single-motion connection
Stucchi offers additional information on our website, including specific case studies where we have helped municipalities solve problems and improve snow and ice removal processes, including:
Our FREE Guide on How to Improve Snow Removal Mobile Equipment Performance explains how you can experience easy connect under pressure, with no leakage on quick disconnect, and save time with Stucchi’s multi-coupling plates.
Stucchi is recognized as an industry-leading provider of hydraulic solutions with more than 60 years of experience and hydraulic specialists with in-depth working knowledge of many hydraulic applications. We offer first-to-market quick-connect solutions that improve operational efficiencies, and safety and reduce maintenance and downtime. Contact us to learn more about improving your snow and ice removal equipment performance.
