ALABAMA STATE EDITION
231
65
72 Florence
2
Huntsville
20 Decatur
72
565 59
43
A Supplement to:
231
431
31
5
Gadsden
78 59 Anniston
20
Birmingham Bessemer
82 Tuscaloosa
65 280
20 82 Auburn
80
85
Selma
Phenix City
Montgomery
82
September 21 2011 Vol. XXIIV • No. 19
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“The Nation’s Best Read Construction Newspaper… Founded in 1957.”
Dothan
65 98
Mobile
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Your Alabama Connection • Rich Olivier, Atlanta, GA • 1-800-409-1479
Thompson Tractor Sells Cat D7E to Alabama Power Co.
Thompson Tractor Company’s Jeff Smith (L) and Don Garrett roll into the E.C. Gaston Steam Plant in Wilsonville, Ala., to present Alabama Power with its new Cat D7E.
Alabama Power’s staff of operators and managers were eager for the first opportunity to operate the new D7E.
Alabama Power Company, a subsidiary of Atlanta-based Southern Company, officially took delivery from Thompson Tractor Company of the first Caterpillar D7E electric drive track type tractor sold in the state of Alabama. Prior to delivery, the machine was customized to fit the company’s needs with: a fire suppression system that was installed with the assistance and consultation of Caterpillar with regards to routing, nozzle location, etc; added a 19.4 cu. yd. (14.8 cu m) coal blade; optional LGP tracks; dual tilt engineered and installed by Thompson. On August 24, representatives of Thompson Tractor Company converged on Alabama Power’s E.C. Gaston Steam Plant in Wilsonville, Ala., to provide a celebratory lunch followed by an operator training program for the staff of operators and managers. After lunch, Don Garrett, the Thompson Tractor sales representative who was respon-
sible for the sale of the machine addressed the operators and management team announcing enthusiastically, “You are the first in the state of Alabama to own and operate a new electric drive Cat D7E.” Garrett went on to say that the machine comes from years of product research and development and has thousands of test hours behind it. He also said that he was very appreciative of Alabama Power and looked forward to their feedback on the machine. Jeff Smith, Thompson Tractor’s Caterpillar certified trainer and machine delivery specialist also spoke and furthered Garrett’s enthusiasm by saying, “I’m excited about doing this.” Smith went on to put all minds at ease about being the first to operate a machine like the D7E. He said “If you’re used to running a dozer, it’s not going to be that much of a difference.
The layout of the cab is clean and neat, not a lot of switches and the controls will be very familiar.” He then completely explained the Tier IV Cat engine with the diesel particulate filter exhaust system and how conveniently the computer system recognizes when regeneration is required and is essentially patterned around how one operates the machine. Infectious Enthusiasm The spirit with which Thompson Tractor staff were viewing the Cat D7E, was quickly shared by members of Alabama Power’s staff. Cedric Hutcherson, fuels manager, Alabama Power’s E.C. Gaston Steam Plant, explained, “We were looking for a more efficient dozer that could actually replace two D6’s with one machine. We wanted to make see THOMPSON page 2
Just as with all Thompson Tractor machine deliveries, Jeff Smith does an in-depth walk around and holds a Q&A session on this purchase by Alabama Power.
This D7E was fitted with a number of upgrades, including a Cat consulted fire suppression system.