Equipment World Digital Magazine
Issue link: https://read.dmtmag.com/i/953148
March 2018 | EquipmentWorld.com 44 T he decision to buy tracked or wheeled pavers really comes down to a contractor's preference as much as application. Those preferences can vary on a state-by-state basis, and there's an increasing trend toward contractors using both wheeled and tracked machines. Each machine has its advantages, depending on the job. Advancements in rubber tracks are giving tracked machines longer life, faster speed and better rideability, similar to wheeled machines. Industrywide, 10-foot rubber track pavers now log the highest sales volumes, says Jim Holland, product vice president for Vögele, part of the Wirtgen Group. And at Volvo Construction Equipment, it's now split roughly in half between wheeled and tracked machine sales. "A lot of it comes down to the owner's and the crew's preference; they usually go from their past experience and what they've always used," says Dan Donovan, di- rector of road sales for Volvo CE in North America. "For us, in our 8-foot market, our track machine is far more popular than our wheeled unit, but then again, you can have that change based on what state has the most activity – highway spending, housing starts, and in some states, the counties do their own maintenance, so they have a preference." Donovan has also noticed the 10-foot rubber track gar- nering more attention over the last 10 to 15 years. The steel track designs that many manufacturers had years ago were slow, clunky and expensive to fix, but manu- facturers have eliminated those problems, he explains. "Whereas, the wheeled probably would have dominat- ed the market, that high-speed rubber track certainly has changed the face of the industry," Donovan says. And it's taken a lot of the market from the wheeled category. More than mainline Holland says most buyers choose the 10-foot rubber- track pavers for mainline work, DOT work, highway and similar projects. Now, a growing number of contractors are even using them for large-box store parking lots where the commercial-type paver does more pulls to complete the work. "I've seen a trend where some are going to larger machines, even for parking lots. It's a highway-class ma- chine, but you can use it in multiple applications; it's not just limited to the highway," Holland says. highway contractor | by Joy Powell | JoyPowell@randallreilly.com WHEELED VS. TRACKED ASPHALT PAVERS Some prefer one or the other, but increasingly some are choosing both