More than 20 machines from Stevens Equipment Rental are supporting RJ McLeod on the expansion of Kishorn Port on Scotland’s west coast, where around one million tonnes of excavated sandstone is being processed and reused on site.
The project will extend the existing dry dock by 100 metres and create around nine hectares of new laydown land, increasing the port’s capacity to support offshore wind, decommissioning and aquaculture activities.
SER’s fleet includes Volvo A45 and A30 articulated haulers, Volvo EC550, EC400 and EC300 excavators, Volvo L180 wheel loaders, Caterpillar 352 excavators and Caterpillar D7 and D6 dozers.
Construction involves drilling and blasting more than 450,000 m³ of Torridonian sandstone, a particularly dense and abrasive rock formation. Rather than transporting excavated material away from the site, RJ McLeod is crushing, processing and reusing it across the development.
Large boulders produced during blasting are being selected for use as rock armour, while excavators, haulers, loaders and dozers work together to maintain a continuous flow of material through the site.
Machine selection and fleet balance have therefore become critical to maintaining productivity across excavation, crushing, haulage, spreading and compaction operations.
SER has also established maintenance support at the remote site, keeping key parts and fluids locally and positioning an engineer at Kishorn for much of the project.
The fleet has been equipped to handle the demanding ground conditions, including reinforced excavator buckets and ground engaging tools. Many machines are also fitted with or prepared for 3D machine control, alongside 360 degree cameras and human detection systems.
RJ McLeod is progressing towards completion of the expanded infrastructure, returning to a site the contractor originally helped construct around five decades ago.
