Caterpillar is officially in the track drill business, and to celebrate, a team from Global Construction & Infrastructure (GCI), Cat Global Mining (CGM) and dealer Stowers Cat visited the first customer. Stowers Cat sold the first Cat® MD5075 Track Drill to loyal Cat customer Short Mountain Silica. GCI Sales and Marketing Director Paul Clark, CGM Product Manager Alan Walker and other Caterpillar employees visited Short Mountain Silica’s quarry in Mooresburg, Tennessee, to thank the customers for their confidence in Caterpillar and see the machine in action.
Short Mountain Silica owners R.L. Wallen and his son, Matt, met with Paul and the others at the Short Mountain Silica facility in Tennessee. Wallen demonstrated the machine, explained what an improvement it is over his previous drill and discussed possible future features for the line.
“We are extremely pleased with the versatility we now have because of the telescopic boom. We can raise and lower the boom smoothly, and we like that the tracks on the undercarriage have separate oscillation, which makes set ups easier and faster,” said Matt Wallen. “As for the service and support we get with Stowers Cat? We couldn’t ask for a better relationship.”
In North America, 24 Cat dealers now sell, service and support track drills, the newest addition to the GCI product line.
Production started on Cat track drills after the Bucyrus acquisition, and teams are working on fully integrating them into the Caterpillar line-up. This first sale has already been followed by several others, and dealers are quickly learning the ins and outs of the new products.
“Stowers seems to have an excellent grasp of the new equipment line even though they have only been exposed to it for a short period of time,” said Drill Specialist Richie Jarvis. “Cat dealers have excellent customer relationships within these markets and their excitement about the new product line will ensure a successful future for the track drills in the Southeast.”
Short Mountain Silica had previously used a competitor’s drills, but suffered through poor parts and service availability.
Once Caterpillar began selling track drills, they made the decision to switch because of their history of exceptional service and support from Stowers Cat. The customer owns 20 Cat machines already, some of which have lasted for 10 or 15 years thanks to the quality of support and maintenance from Stowers.
The track drill product family involves 10 different machines and two types of drill. The smaller track drills drill holes of two-four inches in diameter and primarily see use in quarries and heavy construction, while the larger rotary drills, which drill holes up to 18 inches diameter, are used in mining. The quality of the line’s components and design makes them a perfect fit for the high standards of Caterpillar.
“Bucyrus drills were durable, rebuildable and had a low cost of operation,” said Rick Costello, GCI senior industry market consultant. “Those are the same qualities we have in Cat products. They’re designed to work for years.”
Track drills are used in quarries and mines to drill rough benches for the larger drills. This is one of the first steps in the material extraction process and is crucial to the site’s production. Short Mountain Silica, based in Mooresburg, Tennessee, processes sandstone into silica for use in glass, traction sand and landscaping sand.