Eifers: A concrete fact

Eifers has recently become the exclusive distributor of Bay-Lynx volumetric mobile batch plants in Australia. These robust pieces of equipment are paving the way for better control of concrete mix onsite with better consistency of the mix, no waste and improved mix options.

Trust, passion, safety, mutual respect and family are the core pillars for Eifers, a company whose expertise in time critical civil construction works, both in the public and private sectors, are fast becoming renowned for their unique capabilities and ethos.

Eifers, an Australian owned company was formed in 2003 by father and son team of three, Wayne, Daniel and Matthew. These three men have grown the organisation to now approximately 40 employees who tender for works on major infrastructure projects around the country.

Eifers specialises in innovative infrastructure delivery, which includes time-critical civil construction works. This focus has played a pivotal role in the company’s growth. Eifers expertise in time-critical deployments has grown their reputation as a trusted, reliable and respected project partner across multiple sectors and industries.

“We’re an innovative civil company made up of two divisions, our innovation centre that houses our high-strength rapid set concrete, and our lightweight Ecofil concrete product,” says Matt Eifermann, the company’s General Manager and Co-Founder.

“And then we have our standard civil side, an ISO-accredited service that caters for roads, airports, ports, carparks, substations, public lighting, earthworks and more.”

Rapid deployment concrete technologies form an integral part of its service. Its unique capabilities required to carry out works with both the right machines and manpower is a good example of how the company is always looking to adopt and implement new and innovative solutions into the market.

As a forward-thinking company, Eifers became a trailblazer with High-Early Strength Concrete and forged a path as experts in its field, utilising volumetric mobile batch plants to deliver the fast, efficient, accurate concrete blend direct to site without waste, mess or fuss. Eifers team are highly trained making large scale projects easily manageable.

How it happened

“We’ve used volumetric mixers since 2011. In late 2018 we enquired about purchasing a Bay-Lynx unit, our first unit arrived in 2019 and it was a game changer. From there our relationship with Bay-Lynx grew, but what really stood out was their level of support. From installation through to parts and servicing,” Eifermann says.

“Even though they’re based out of Canada which has some time zone challenges, their response rate is fast, if we have any questions about mechanical or software-related issues, it only takes them a short time to respond.

Eifers already had experience with volumetric cement batch plants, making the implementation of two Bay-Lynx units seamless.

Eifers has used its Bay-Lynx volumetric equipment as part of major infrastructure works on the Melbourne Airport.

This initial impression laid the foundation for what would turn out to be a fortuitous relationship between both companies.

“We have developed a really good relationship with the Baylynx Canada team over time. One day, they had asked us if we knew anyone in Australia who would be interested in potentially becoming a dealer. We talked internally and decided that it was something that we’d be able to do ourselves,” Eifermann says.

“It was enticing because we could add another bow to what we already have within our business group.”

Eifers is now the exclusive distributor of Bay-Lynx volumetric mixers in Australia, with the new-found partnership seen as a new era of the company.

Inside Bay-Lynx

Essentially, the Bay-Lynx Volumetric Mixer is an onsite concrete batch plant that is mounted onto a truck, it is also a pugmill and materials blender. The unit comprises three separate bins, one for aggregates, one for sand and one for cement, along with a water tank.

A conveyor underneath the unit brings the material towards the rear of the machine. All components are dry until the machine has been activated. These materials are then mixed on a 2.4 metre auger, taking around 35 seconds to produce a concrete mix.

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“One of the biggest benefits is that we’re producing concrete on site, so it’s fresh. It hasn’t been sitting there for a while, which means you can take away the time needed for an added hydration process. You also don’t need to mess around with your technical specifications, you get a lot more workability than standard equipment,” Eifermann says.

“Another massive benefit revolves around sustainability. As soon as you’ve made what you need, you simply turn off the machine so you’re saving on emissions and energy. There’s also no wastage, because whatever you don’t use just stays on the truck dry.”

Eifermann says Bay-Lynx batch plants can also provide greater versatility and flexibility when it comes to mix designs.

“We can change the mix design from the truck that can fit 7m3 (or ‘’cubes’) onboard,” he says. “We can make 2m3 of 25mpa (a measure of the compressive strength of concrete), change a couple of settings and make another mix such as 32mpa.

“You can make 2m3 on one side, drive half an hour to another job and make 2m3 on the other side.”

Bay-Lynx units can also support the use of mixes incorporating recycled materials such as rubber, glass and aggregate.

This also includes slag or fly ash, further boosting the machine’s capabilities when it comes to sustainability.

“With the volumetric mixer there are less truck movements because the unit is stationary on site. We also have a silo with us. We have a cement tanker come in every hour compared to having five or six coming in every hour. The process is better, and it works. It’s great for those types of scenarios and can really give you an edge,” Eifermann says.

“If someone has a construction company or a concrete business and are tired of having to wait around to get your concrete supply, this unit is perfect for them. They’ve essentially got full control over when and where they get their concrete.”

Put to the test

Eifers has already successfully used the Bay-Lynx volumetric mixer unit as part of its works on major infrastructure projects. One of the largest was its recent works on a large-scale year long Melbourne Airport Project working as a subcontractor for Fulton Hogan.

“These were works that were very time critical, so we were required to ‘get in and get out’. The volumetric mixer was great for that,” Eifermann says.

The MAPMP 2.0 – DP2 Expedient Pavement Works included replacing over 8000m2 of concrete with Rapid Hardening Concrete at Melbourne Airport to support aircraft operational use, in preparation for the Taxiway Alpha reconstruction. This comprised slab replacement works to 144 defective concrete pavement areas and pavement repairs to patches which took place overnight over the course of a year.

This project makes up one of many packages that Eifers has delivered at the Melbourne Airport.

Another recent project milestone was the company’s contributions to the Santos Moomba Gas Plant, which required the delivery of remote mobile concrete production in Central Australia.

(L-R) Matt Eifermann, General Manager – Eifers with Dan Eifermann, Managing Director – Eifers.

For these works, Eifers provided Bay-Lynx volumetric mixers along with other equipment for the project. Eifers shipped all materials and machinery across 2000 kilometres of rough terrain. Tackling remote and extreme conditions, Eifers produced 650 cubic metres of fresh concrete on site without a problem.

Another example is the Rye Park Wind Farm in New South Wales. Eifers produced more than 400 cubic metres of fresh 32mpa structural concrete designed and certified by the client with its Bay-Lynx volumetric mixers. Remote and regional work is easier to manage with a Volumetric mobile batch plant.

“We envisage this becoming a better way forward to sustainable and easily manage civil works in both urban and remote areas,” Eifermann says.

Support and customisation

Another benefit of using Bay-Lynx volumetric equipment is the backup support, as well as the variety of options available.

When it comes to support, Eifermann says Eifers are fully equipped with spare parts in Australia. They also have the team to provide mechanical fixes on site as required. However, here is where the technology comes in. For software adjustments, Bay-Lynx is able to hook into their Batch Pro Connect onboard system to assist remotely through a laptop.

“From Canada, Bay-Lynx’s support team can support you anywhere in the country. The person who owns the unit can have the support team dial into their laptop using TeamViewer and start diagnosing the problem and making any required adjustments straight away,” he says.

Bay-Lynx Volumetrics are fully customisable adding to the overall versatility of the product, Eifermann adds.

“It really just depends on what the customer requires. If they want to have a white truck with a dark coloured body for the volumetric unit, that’s easy. We can also arrange sign writing on the truck too.

They can also have a fibre feeder added, to create fibre reinforced concrete and use powder oxide, to make coloured concrete,” he says.

“You can also have an additional eight mix tanks. Customers can also ask for a water reducer or retarder, as well as an errand treatment on the concrete. There’s plenty that we can do, depending on what customer’s need. Having these capabilities opens the user up to many more types of tenders and projects.

“Overall, we are happy with our Volumetrics and the versatility and capability they bring us. We think that other construction companies in Australia would benefit from having this type of machinery at their fingertips. We see vast opportunity with these trucks which is why we are backing this brand all the way.”

To find out more about the BayLynx Volumetric mobile batch plant simply visit https://baylynx.com.au/