Bateman - Formula For Success

The formula for success doesn’t get much plainer than double the productivity for less cost. That scenario is exactly what Mercer Group International has experienced with the use of four 10-cubic-yard motorized grapples from Bateman Manufacturing of Orillia, Ontario.

Since using the four Bateman grapples to load ships at its Fairless Hills, Pa.-based export facility, the Trenton, N.J.-headquartered scrap processor has seen its load rate jump from 6,000 tons per day to 12,000 tons per day, according to Maintenance Manager Brian Getta. "We used to rent two barge cranes that could load two hatches at a time," Getta recalls. "Now, we can load four hatches at a time—our load rate has doubled, and it’s cheaper."

Getta says Mercer has a whole collection of Bateman attachments handling the company’s ferrous and nonferrous material. Along with the four 10-cubic-yard grapples used to load ships, Mercer also has two 3-cubic-yard grapples as well as its first Bateman purchases—a 1.5-cubic-yard grapple and a 1-cubic-yard grapple.

For site cleanup, Mercer also has a magnet generator system that runs an 80-inch magnet by diesel power on the end of a material handler. The generator unit replaced an older mechanical system, Getta says. "This magnet system comes with its own diesel engine that runs the generator and all the controls," he says. "It’s all self-contained."

The attachments’ sturdy build and remote control features have been attractive qualities to Getta. "The steel Bateman uses is a little heavier gage," he says. "They specialize in the scrap industry and make really good attachments—heavy-duty and they’re built for the environment."