Snow & Ice Management

Slide 1 Snow & Ice Management Slide 2 Why Snow & Ice Management… Snow & ice control is a critical aspect of Canadian living / business Large part of the Landscape industry Opportunity to provide another type of service to our clients Winter work An industry that will continue to grow Secure industry Have to be good at it to build a big client base Video of Multi Car Pileup in Montreal Slippery Surfaces Slide 3 Service Activities for Snow & Ice Management Most common activity is snow plowing Parking lots, streets Anticipated to grow over the next 5 years Large retailers outsource more snow removal needs, rather than internalize De-icing and anti-icing are also a persistant market Slide 4 Slide 5 Segment Differences Residential: Revenue from driveway plowing and sidewalks. Frequency 1x/ snow event Commercial: Greater revenue from deicing, snow hauling and sidewalk clearing Liability (and frequency) are higher Slide 6 Services Sidewalks Snow clearing Sanding & Salting Deicing & Anti Icing Much harder work This is where the liability is Parking Lot Plowing Equipment, trucks, overhead is higher and more expensive the bigger a company gets. Exposure is higher / public vehicles harder to work around Slide 7 Snow and Ice Operations Slide 8 Service Economics - Contracts! Occupiers Liability Act states: property owners owe a duty of care to keep every visitor on the property, reasonably safe Across snow & ice service contracts Most are variable Just 1 in 5 are fixed contracts. For variable contracts the most common is: Stand-by rate (up to a set # of service visits) VS Per push Hourly add ons By the hour over and above the baseline Snow and Ice can be included in baseline or be entirely additional Some companies will do sidewalks fixed and parking lots “per” Slide 9 Liability Relating to Snow & Ice Management Insurance is one of the biggest challenges facing snow removal companies due to severity and frequency of claims $5 million in coverage has become the standard for municipal subcontracts. Membership with the Canadian Nursery and Landscape Association is a great starting place for resources. Alternately, the American ASCA (Accredited Snow Contractors Associations) provides membership with policies and procedures designed to improve the industry as a whole SIMA (Snow and Ice Management Association) is another option. Slide 10 Weather Prediction Tools Weather Apps Weather Network Environment Canada https://weather.gc.ca/ Alerts Storm tracker apps News weather reports Use a variety of different sources to help predict and plan snow and management approach The Weather Network Slide 11 Record Keeping for Snow and Ice Every activity should be accounted for From the time an employee clocks in, to the time, location and amount of salt at each job Unless an owner can prove it, it didn’t happen Software with time tracking, GPS verification & photo collection abilities will pay for itself and are worth the investment The customer’s experience is also improved with accurate records and service updates Increases your chance of repeat business the following season Slide 12 Codes & Regulations for Snow & Ice Control Improper collection & removal of snow poses risks on the environment It must be disposed of correctly (legal snow dump) Direct dumping of waste snow into watercourses is discouraged by Alberta Environment Protection Includes ice covered water bodies, as this may introduce contaminants Snow dumping sites should be selected to: Maximize treatment Minimize safety hazards Protect the environment Control the rate and location of snow melt discharges Slide 13 Equipment for snow and Ice Management Slide 14 History of Snow & Ice Management Slide 15 Slide 16 Straight Blade Adjustable attack angle on this example. Blades come in all sizes / attach to trucks, track loaders, skid steers etc Accessories Wings - hydraulic control, less side-spillage Back-Drag edge - allows operator to pull snow backwards SnoFoil - attach to top of blade for snow rolling Curb guards LED lights as an add-on Slide 17 V-Plows Flared wings Removes a lot of snow & big drifts Double-acting cylinders Trip-edge (for manhole covers, etc) Fisher XV2 V-Plow Trip Edge technology Cutting edge is segmented and moves with topography to save operator lifting the blade & protects surface. Reduced premature wear on the equipment Reduces salt use by up to 50% Reduces plowing time by up to 30% (No need to pass twice over the same area) Reduces hardpack Slide 18 Box Blades / Metal pless w Wings Move maximum snow in minimal time For wheel loaders / large machines Eg. 12’-wide Storm box moves 12 cubic yards of snow Limiting in some factors: LARGE SIZE Doesn’t go on a truck Slide 19 Snowblowers Size options are variable Can be very useful for clearing snow quickly / throwing larger distances MUST be mindful of ejection direction! Doesn’t always provide a clean scrape. Slide 20 Light Snow Options: Rotary Brooms: Pushes snow forward, sweeping. Auto-float follows contour of ground Backpack Blowers: Snow has to be very light - can be hard to control! Slide 21 True Snow Removal… Actual snow “removal” includes hauling the snow off site, moving it to a different location onsite, or melting… Snow storage sites are a challenge due to environmental concerns and physical space. Slide 22 Snowmelters Why melt snow: No dumping fees Eliminate turf and curb stacking damage Reduce liability of stock pile refreeze Used in spaces with limited real estate for snow piling. Snow Melter News report from Chicago Slide 23 TrucBrush: Trailer Snow Removal Mobile, quick effective patented device: Improve facility and roadway safety Less damage to trailers and vehicles Avoid additional weight (violations and fuel) Productivity and employee safety Improve facility & roadside safety Slide 24 Ice Management Strategies… Slide 25 Two Approaches: Reactive De-icing salts, lay down layer post ice buildup Not very efficient (cost is much higher) Throw down a large amount of salt Laying down salt AFTER snow clearing These products are particularly damaging to concrete De-icers lower the freezing point of water Water gets trapped in concrete & causes a repeated thawing & refreezing In poor quality concrete this expansion can cause chipping and other damage Remove the melted ice and snow as quickly as possible Slide 26 De-icing Deicing is required when the snow has fallen and the ice has formed a bond with the pavement surface. For thinner layers deicing liquids can be used on their own Or in combination with solid ice melt Both are effective ways to release the bond of ice with the surface Before applying a de-icing solution, plowing must be done first Areas with a higher volume of traffic will require less material Foot & vehicle traffic help mix the material with the snow & ice Rock Salt vs Liquid Brine Slide 27 De-icing Products Chloride salt benefits: Popular/inexpensive Disadvantages: Corrosive Damage to soil & vegetation Potassium Chloride Works great as a blending agent Less harmful than sodium chloride Effective to -6 C Sodium Chloride Most commonly available Inexpensive Effective to -15 C Slide 28 Magnesium Chloride Good blend with other de-icers More volume to be effective Less corrosive Effective to -32 C Calcium Chloride More expensive Melts ice very quickly More corrosive Effective to -32 C Both pull moisture from the air and onto the roads. Slide 29 Non-chloride De-icers Benefits: Non-corrosive Less toxic Disadvantages: More Expensive Main uses: Airports Parking Structures Bridges Potassium acetate for sensitive structures to reduce chloride damage Reduce maintenance cost for bridges Slide 30 Calcium magnesium acetate & Urea: Effective to -7 C The nicer de-icer Sodium formate: Effective to -17 C Potassium acetate: Effective to -9 C Consider GRIT options instead: Sand Zeolite Slide 31 Ice Mitigation Tools Hopper style broadcast spreaders: Delivers efficient salt and sand spreading operation Poly Hopper Slide 32 Two Approaches: Proactive Application of brine prior to snowfall Economically more effective Use significantly less salt Notes: Doesn’t STOP accumulation usually There is a window of time to optimize clearing Slide 33 Liquid Brine Mixture Liquid brine is about 23.3% salt Sodium Chloride freezes at -10℃, there are other options, with lower freezing points (MgCl & CaCl) Beet “molasses” added to brine mix as an anti-freeze (sugar) Balance has to be right Too much or too little won’t be beneficial Slide 34 Brine Mixers Brine is 3 x more time to mix, but more efficient & cleaner Brine Mixer User friendly option for mixing Removes guesswork Touch Screen controls Automatic batch Cleaning modes Automatic salinity control Correct amount of salt & water Mixing chamber which creates a more uniform brine mix Henderson Brine Extreme How it works Slide 35 Procedures used to Manage Ice Principals of Snow Plowing & SIMA Snow & Ice Training Video Use road and and weather information to make chemical ice management decisions Pavement temperature and ambient temperature reading will gear you towards your ice/snow preventative/fighting tactic Choose your approach Anti-icing, de-icing, or mechanical removal alone Combination of strategies are almost always used together Lasers on vehicles to measure ambient & ground temperature. Slide 36 Prioritize the most critical areas to clear first Safe walking and driving is key Strategize where snow will melt and create ice buildup Move snow away from those areas Regular ice management to ensure water is draining where it is supposed to go Shovel snow 1 ft or more back from sidewalk edge to ensure snow doesn't melt on to concrete and create slippery surfaces Procedures used to Manage Ice