Street sweeper firm buys six Pothole Pro machines

Dawsongroup, original a haulage contractor that moved into distribution and leasing of commercial vehicles, has bought six Pothole Pros from dealer TC Harrison JCB.

They are being made available to local authorities and contractors across the country for rent or contract hire by Dawsongroup's EMC division, which specialises in municipal machinery such as road sweepers and bin lorries.

The Pothole Pro was launched in January 2021 as an adapted Hydradig wheeled excavator, with tools for cutting and cleaning around potholes. It includes a hydraulic cropping tool, which the previous JCB Pothole Master, a modified 3CX backhoe loader, does not. JCB had high hopes but the municipal sector operates on a tight budget and while the JCB machine may deliver returns in the long (or even medium) term, the initial upfront cost appears to have been a barrier for many potential customers. Accessing the market via Dawsongroup EMC could be the route JCB has been looking for.

Dawsongroup EMC managing director Glen Carruthers said: "This is really exciting for us. The Pothole Pro is an innovative machine which is both time and cost-effective. Our investment gives local authorities and contractors access to the best machines for the job without the need for major financial outlay. Not only is this a highly innovative addition to our product range, but it also means that we are helping to solve a problem that provokes many road users’ frustrations. It is also a significant milestone for Dawsongroup as the company further expands its extensive product range and sector diversification."

JCB Pothole Pro sales manager Ben Rawding said: "It is our biggest order to date for this revolutionary machine and means thousands of miles more road will be repaired quickly and cost effectively as we go into winter. JCB's solution is simple and cost effective and fixes potholes permanently, first time and we are excited that such a major hirer has recognised the machine's benefits."

According to JCB, tests with contractors and local authorities show that the Pothole Pro can complete a pothole repair four times more quickly than standard methods – eight minutes instead of half an hour. With a 40km/h travel speed, the machine can also move between sites without additional transport costs.

JCB says that the Pothole Pro can prepare up to 250 sqm of roadway in a single shift, or 5,000 sqm per month and allows the contractor or local authority to cut the defect, crop the edges and clean the hole with one machine – mechanising jobs traditionally done by pothole gangs and delivering up to a 50% cut in daily costs.

Ben Rawding said that Stoke-on-Trent City Council, the first authority to invest in the Pothole Pro, in November 2021, has repaired seven years’ worth of defects in its first year

The Pothole Pro is equipped with a modified Simex planer, with integrated dust suppression, mounted on the machine's rear skid steer hitch. The planer is 600mm wide, with up to 1.3 metres of side-shift adjustment. This allows the operator to plane a full carriageway from the kerb, without repositioning the machine. Hydraulic tilt and depth control provide a consistent depth for larger patches.

The machine's TAB two-piece boom is fitted with the JCB Multi-tool, mounted on an X12 Steelwrist tilt-rotator. The Multi-tool comprises two attachments: a hydraulic cropper and a sweeper/bucket. The 600mm cropping tool eliminates the need for floor saws or hydraulic breakers, providing a squared off, clean cut to the repair area. The operator then rotates the boom head to bring a 1.2-metre wide sweeper/bucket into use, to clean up the pothole area, eliminating the requirement for a separate sweeper truck. Material lifted by the sweeper/bucket can be loaded directly into a support truck for rapid removal from site.

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