Mole-Master Services Corp. • 800-322-6653 • http://www.molemaster.com
Mole•Master™ has been a leading provider of silo and bin cleaning services and products for the grain industry for more than three decades.
Prior to its founding in Marietta, OH in December 1986, the company was part of the cleaning division for First Colony Corp., the largest poured-in-place concrete silo producer at the time, according to General Manager Dave Laing.
In the early 1980s, construction activity was at a near standstill, so First Colony divested and sold the cleaning division. As a privately owned, standalone corporation, Mole•Master continued serving First Colony’s customers and growing the business through research and development.
“People who had silos built by First Colony Corp. naturally came back to the company when they had material flow issues or problems – not generally caused by the silo construction itself – but because of operational issues,” Laing recalls. Early on, he says the available equipment and methods for handling bin and silo cleaning projects varied in their effectiveness, so Mole•Master began developing ideas in-house and experimenting with different concepts that ultimately resulted in a product that laid the foundation for the company’s success.
“Out of that research came what we call our ‘bread and butter,’ the Big•Mole™ silo cleaning system,” says Laing. “And we have improved upon it continuously over the years, resulting in a highly effective system for projects with the highest degree of difficulty.”
Today, Mole•Master’s innovative cleaning processes and technologies help the company offer services throughout the United States and in 34 countries worldwide across more than 22 different industrial categories.
Mole•Master has always been customer focused, says Laing, because “when you’re in the service business, you have to provide good customer service, or you won’t be in business very long. Our customer focus is part of the reason we have such a high percentage of return customers.
“On top of that,” he adds, “we’re still gaining new business every day, because our reputation is that we’re the ones who can flat out take care of business.”
Because Mole•Master is privately owned as part of a group of engineering and manufacturing companies, it is in a unique position in that it can take advantage of a full CNC shop and manufacturing capabilities to develop new products. “That’s one of the things that really separates us from other companies in this business,” says Laing.
In fact, he says the company’s ability to be flexible – even out in the field – is another reason for its success. “We arrive at a project site with a 28-foot trailer stocked with a variety of different tools in the event that the plan of action changes once conditions are assessed. The exact condition of material in bins or silos is never exactly known until you are on site, so making adjustments as needed is crucial.”
At the end of the day, Laing says Mole•Master’s role is to provide the safest and most efficient way to solve a customer’s problem. “I’m tired of reading reports about someone who has been entrapped in a bin after entering without the appropriate equipment or processes in place. It just shouldn’t happen,” he says. “Safety is at the forefront of everything we do. We provide a safer way to get the job done by eliminating the need for hazardous human entry.”
Mole•Master predominantly has always been a silo, bin, bunker, transport, and process vessel cleanout company, says Laing, to solve storage flow problems wherever they exist.
The company also offers structural inspections of silos. “Silos tend to have issues, and that need to be found as soon as possible, because small cracks in concrete or metal fatigue in steel structures can turn into really big problems,” he says. The company’s certified, experienced structural engineers can evaluate a silo to make sure everything is structurally sound.
Additionally, Mole•Master manufactures a number of cleaning systems including the Junior 360™ whip machine, the Arch•Master™ portable auger system, and the Safe-T-Shot™ CO2-blasting system.
“The Junior 360™ whip machine is easily set up by one or two people in less than 30 minutes, provides for safe and effective cleaning, and eliminates the need for hazardous human entry,” he says. “It is designed with a fully adjustable boom and crane bearing mount that allows the unit to provide 100% coverage of a vessel’s interior walls.”
Designed to create a faster, safer way to unlock bridged material, the Arch•Master is a portable, miniaturized rock drill for material that tends to arch or bridge.
The Safe-T-Shot uses a blast of carbon dioxide (CO2) to safely clear hardened material without damaging a silo or bin’s walls. “The system uses a single, electrically ignited charge, does not require a lot of manpower, and will not damage the interior or exterior of a storage vessel.” explains Laing.
Reprinted from GRAIN JOURNAL January/February 2020 Issue
