“It’s easy math,” Lee explains. “Take a million-ton-a-year operation. Divide the million tons by 12, which is approximately 84,000 tons a month that a quarry manager must produce. Divide this by 25 working days a month; now you’re producing 3,360 tons a day. Divide by eight hours in a day, and you get 420 tons an hour. Multiply this by $15, which is an average selling price for a ton of aggregate. This means the average quarry is producing $6,300 an hour or $50,400 a day worth of aggregate.

“With these numbers in hand, you can show the quarry manager that an auditing program is well worth the investment,” Lee says. “If the auditing program keeps him up and operational for only one hour, then the investment has made him money. Look at how much he’s losing if the drill is down.”

Although these are general numbers intended for demonstration purposes, a quarry owner can easily see what he stands to gain — or lose — by being proactive with scheduled maintenance and taking advantage of an auditing program.

Another benefit to an auditing program is that major problems can be more easily avoided. If a component such as a pump appears to be failing, it can be ordered and a maintenance visit can be scheduled. 

Some dealers have also added operator evaluations as part of the auditing process. In situations where employees are more transient or may perform several job functions in a company, the drill technician will observe the operator to ensure he’s working the machine correctly and maintaining it according to schedule.

Finally, an auditing program could add to the potential resale value of a drill. Detailed records will demonstrate and verify that a drill rig has been thoroughly maintained and regularly inspected.

 There will always be emergency breakdowns and unplanned downtime, but a proactive approach to maintenance can minimize these occurrences. In today’s economy, more so than ever, a program that helps maintain or improve productivity and the availability of equipment is money well spent.

Christina Fisher is a writer and public relations specialist with Ellenbecker Communications. She has been covering the construction and mining industries since 2000.