As some may have heard the Salt/Sand spreader on the snow plow that the Town uses has not been functioning properly. Recently it started to malfunction late one evening and prevented an adequate amount of material to be applied to the roads.
I made contact with Jeff Schneider. Jeff, in the past, has been tasked with maintenance of the plow truck. Jeff and I discussed the current state of the spreader in the plow truck. Jeff explained to me that after a centrifugal clutch malfunctioned in the past, in the current spreader, it cost nearly $900.00 to replace and took nearly 4 weeks to repair. Jeff also told me that the current spreader had been in use since the early 90’s.
I explored what would be an adequate replacement for the current spreader in the truck. I did a extensive amount of online research and I also noticed that the City of Greensburg was using the Western Tornado spreader in their City owned Vehicles. I reached out to them to see what, if any, complaints they had about this make and model of spreader. They told me that they were having good luck with this make and model of spreader and would recommend its use.
The Western Tornado spreader differs in design from the current spreader and offers the ability to independently control the feed belt and spinner that spreads the product. It also uses electric motors to replace the gas motor that is currently in use. The new spreader also is made out of poly and will not rust like the current spreader.
The removal of snow and ice and safety of the residents of St. Paul is one of my priorities and I believe the purchase of a new spreader will help make this process more efficient. I plan to approach fellow board members with the recommendation to purchase this new spreader.
The total cost of this spreader installed is $5,075.00. I am attaching a brochure for the proposed spreader.
-Dave Henderson