Page 286 - Peterson 85 Years and Going Strong

If you look at custom fab today, it’s not just a tractor business anymore...The tricky part is making people aware of all that we can do for them.
– Jack Ravazza, general manager of Special Services, Peterson-Cat, San Leandro
Today, Peterson’s Hillsboro shop still makes a lot of buckets and attachments for customers upon re- quest. “Both shops build buckets,” explains Ravaz- za. “We just build different kinds because we have different markets.” Hillsboro builds special logging attachments and chip buckets for wood plants, whereas the San Leandro shop is more construc- tion-based. However, they have each other as a resource for customers who want something that shop doesn’t traditionally offer. “We’ll either build it for them or send them our drawings if we’re busy,” says Ravazza. “That’s how we do teamwork, by sharing our information and collaborating. The gene pool is the same.”
COLLABORATING WITH POWER: EMISSIONS SOLUTIONS
In 2003, the California Air Resources Board (CARB) adopted the Stationary Engine Rule re- quiring adherence to its mandated emissions re- ductions by 2011. Since every hospital and medical facility in the state is required to have a standby generator—not to mention all those in commer- cial buildings—there was a lot of work to do. Diesel particulate filters (DPF) had been a sim- ple solution for the truck industry. But it was a bit trickier for gen-sets. For instance, if a customer had fifty stationary engines that weren’t tier com- pliant, should he replace all those engines or outfit them with DPFs? At roughly $20,000–$25,000 a pop, finances usually made the decision. The only problem was where to put the giant DPF mufflers that weighed between 450 to 5,600 pounds each.
Peterson Power teamed up with San Leandro’s fab shop to create a solution. “We build frames to hold the DPFs suspended over the generator it- self,” explains Ravazza. “They can’t go directly on the engines because they’re so heavy they’d dam- age the housing. Instead, we build a tubular frame that straddles the engine and sits on the floor.” If the generator is inside a building, the DPF goes up on the roof where the exhaust comes out. If it’s in a container, like a big refrigerated shipping contain- er, it needs a separate frame solution.
In 2011, the fab shop built a prototype and a total of eight DPF frames for Genentech. In 2012, Pe- terson Power won the Verizon contract for nine- teen.“We also had to galvanize the outdoor frames for Verizon to protect against rust and get some of them seismically certified for earthquake safe- ty. It took us a year to do all nineteen units. This is becoming more and more common because the EPA is making it a requirement now,” says Rav- azza “We’ve always done one-off jobs for Power, but now we’re working together more and more as partners. It’s a real team effort.”
Peterson’s San Leandro fab shop has been build- ing custom buckets and attachments as far back as Buster’s U-dozer in 1943. Buster and his en- gineers patented five buckets—among a slew of other designs: the multi-directional Clam Bucket (1963), the 988 Bonus Bucket (1968), the Demoli- tion Bucket (1969), the Swinging Bucket for load- ers (1970), and the Multipurpose Bucket (1973). Every generation since has come up with their own designs based on customer need. “Now we specialize in large loader buckets, demo buckets, and excavator buckets and thumbs,” says Ravaz- za. “Our custom heavy-duty buckets are built with high-quality materials and wear packages that increase their service life. And we build them all per customer request. Buckets and attachments are what keep us going in-between special projects. It’s our bread and butter.”
284 | PETERSON: 85 YEARS AND GOING STRONG