CARMELLA BOYKIN: AT THE NEW YORK STATE TRANSPORTATION EXPO, SNOW REMOVAL COMPANIES SHOW OFF EVERYTHING FROM HUGE TRUCKS, TO SMALL USES OF SPACE…BLACKBURN TRUCK BODIES OWNER JEFF BLACKBURN SAYS MANY OF THE IMPROVEMENTS ARE SMALL DETAILS…
JEFF BLACKBURN: TECHNOLOGY IS STILL ABOUT THE SAME, BUT THEY’VE PERFECTED IT A LITTLE BIT, YOU KNOW IT’S JUST LIKE THE CARS TODAY…
BOYKIN: BUT THOSE PERFECTIONS, LIKE NEW PLOW STYLES, CAN HELP SAVE A LOT OF TIME…
BLACKBURN: THE V-PLOWS ARE ABLE TO, YOU CAN WING IT IN ONE DIRECTION OR YOU CAN CARRY THE SNOW…
BOYKIN: ESPECIALLY COMPARED TO OLDER STYLES…
BLACKBURN: THE OLD TECHNOLOGY WAS A STRAIGHT BLADE PLOW AND YOU LOST HALF OF WHAT YOU WERE ACTUALLY PLOWING.
BOYKIN: BUYERS PRODUCTS MANAGER BOB LOBELLO SAYS TRUCK BEDS CAN NOW BE USED FOR SAND, GRAVEL, AND MULCH IN THE SPRING…NOT JUST WINTER SALT…
BOB LOBELLO: BASICALLY, ONE TRUCK NOW IS COVERING A FULL RANGE, LESS MONEY FOR THEIR BUDGET, ONE TRUCK.
BOYKIN: WHILE PLOWS AND TRUCKBEDS HAVE CHANGED OVER THE YEARS, ANOTHER BIG ADVANCEMENT IS IN THE LIGHTING…
LOBELLO: THE NEW THING NOW IS LED. A LOT OF THE TRUCKS ARE COMING OUT WITH LED LIGHTS
BOYKIN: BUT LED LIGHTS AREN’T AS WARM AS THE OLD LIGHTS…THE INNOVATION IS AN INTERNAL HEATER AND FAN
BLACKBURN: THEY ACTUALLY NOW IN THIS LIGHT IS A HEATER AND A FAN THAT BLOWS AND IT CONTINUES TO KEEP THE LIGHT WARM WHICH ALLOWS THE SNOW TO MELT OFF OF IT…
BOYKIN: YOU CAN EXPECT TO SEE THESE LIGHTS IN SYRACUSE SOON, BECAUSE IN THE FIRST TWO HOURS OF THE EXPO, BLACKBURN HAS ALREADY SOLD SIX TO HIGHWAY DEPARTMENTS…CARMELLA BOYKIN N-C-C NEWS.
Syracuse, N.Y. (NCC NEWS) – At the New York State Transportation and Public Works Expo, construction and plowing companies show off their latest gear and technologies. Because winter is around the corner, companies are highlighting their best snow removal gear for independent and corporate consumers to buy. Although things don’t change drastically year to year, there are still some improvements.
“Technology is still about the same,” said owner of Blackburn Truck Bodies Jeff Blackburn. “But, they’ve perfected it a little bit, you know it’s just like the cars today.
But, little perfections can still help save a lot of time when plowing under time constraints. One of the ways is how plows are shaped.
“The v-plows are able to, you can wing it or carry the snow,” said Blackburn.
Which is more useful than old, antiquated styles.
“Old technology was a straight blade plow and lost half of what you were actually plowing,” said Blackburn.
Another innovation is the ability to make trucks multipurpose. Instead of just carrying salt, trucks can now also carry and distribute sand, gravel, and mulch.
“Basically, one truck is now covering a full range,” says Buyers Products manager Bob Lobello. “Less money for their budget, one truck.”
But the newest innovation is heated LED lights. Usually, trucks have standard lights on their plows which can be dim during late nights and early mornings.
“LED lights are much brighter than standard lights,” said Lobello. “But LED lights don’t generate heat.”
But, there is a solution. “Actually, now in this light there is a heater and a fan that blows,” said Blackburn. “It continues to keep the light warm and melts the snow off of it.”
