The squeeze play has likely figured into the outcome of many Durham (North Carolina) Bulls minor league baseball games. So, it’s only appropriate that a trio of compact excavators recently pulled off an impressive “squeeze play” of their own in successfully backfilling a large excavation around a major new multi-use building right across the street from the Bulls downtown Durham stadium.
PLAYING IN THE DIRT
BridgePoint Civil, an earth-moving contractor based in nearby Goldsboro, recently finished excavation and site prep for a 12-story luxury apartment building and multi-story parking deck to be known as the Van Alen, part of an 11-acre development in downtown Durham, North Carolina, that will include an 11-story office and commercial tower at 555 Magnum St. The 418-unit apartment tower is on track to open in mid-2018.
The $80 million project is near many downtown attractions and amenities, including the minor league Durham Bulls baseball park, the Durham Performing Arts Center, restaurants, and shopping.
BridgePoint Civil worked on the project as excavating and site prep subcontractor to Northwood Ravin, a commercial property developer based in Morrisville, North Carolina.
In addition to two full-sized Hyundai excavators (models HX380L and HX220L) and two Hyundai HL740-9A wheel loaders for large-scale excavation and earthmoving at the project, BridgePoint Civil used three Hyundai R60CR-9A compact excavators for all work in confined spaces on the project. This included backfilling excavations in tight spaces between construction fences and the building foundation.
“The Hyundai R60CR-9A is our go-to machine for a lot of jobs,” says Jeremy Smith, president of BridgePoint Civil. “We like its power and productivity, plus it’s very versatile and maneuverable for working in tight spaces. And, it’s easy to move with a truck and trailer.” The R60CR-9A is a 6-ton-class machine, powered by a 63-hp Yanmar engine.
Smith described the construction site as a large block in downtown Durham surrounded by four busy intersections. “This was the site of a car dealership for many years,” Smith explains. “We demo’ed the asphalt and sidewalks and located and dug up the underground utilities, mostly storm drainage pipe.”
POWER, PRECISION IN SMALL SPACES
The confined working area at the Van Alen building is typical of the projects that the Hyundai R60CR-9A excavators tackle. “We use the compacts all the time in small spaces and to dig around utilities,” Smith says. “For example, we recently had a project on the University of North Carolina campus in Chapel Hill where we used one of the R60CR-9A compact excavators to dig around utilities. The hydraulics on those machines really deliver precision control, which is perfect for jobs like that.”
Excavation and site prep subcontractor BridgePoint Civil used a team of three Hyundai R60CR-9A compact excavators to backfill around the foundation of the Van Alen building and handle other assignments in the tight working spaces around the building’s perimeter.
GROWING THE FLEET
Smith founded BridgePoint Civil, with partner Shelley McPhatter, in March 2015, and already has grown the company to 50 employees and a substantial equipment fleet—all Hyundai machines—including five large excavators, the three compact excavators, and the two HL740-9A wheel loaders.
“Our local Hyundai dealer, Rob’s Hydraulics, has been great,” Smith says. “They are available to us any hour of the day or night. We have our own shop for routine service, but we do rely on Rob’s for certain kinds of maintenance.” Rob’s has locations in Grimesland and Clayton, North Carolina.
BridgePoint Civil is a sister company to BridgePoint General Contracting, based in Durham. “Bridge Point General wanted to add a separate company for excavation, grading, and site prep, so that’s how we got started,” Smith notes.
BridgePoint Civil handles projects for private developers like Northwood Ravin, as well as municipal work for local governments.
“The business climate in the Raleigh-Durham area is great,” Smith says. “The private commercial market is hot right now, and we’re poised to take our share of that business. We’re excited about the opportunities that we see coming up in the next few years.” ■
For More Information
For more information about the Hyundai equipment used in this project, visit www.hceamericas.com.
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Modern Contractor Solutions, September 2017
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Compact Excavators Pull Off “Squeeze Play”
