Kinder Morgan announced its agreement to acquire El Paso Corp. in October 2011. In so doing, the company will become the largest midstream and fourth largest energy company in North America with an enterprise value of approximately $94 billion and 80,000 miles of pipelines. However, the company is already the leader in another area—terminal operations. Currently at 180 terminals, Houston-based Kinder Morgan is the largest independent operator of terminals in the United States, including six in the state of Ohio.

The terminals handle and store bulk materials such as coal, limestone and steel. While Kinder Morgan does not own the commodities moving through its network, it provides the infrastructure and services necessary for successful passage.

For example, the Pinney Dock Terminal in Ashtabula—covering a 310-acre site with 49,000 linear feet of rail trackage available and open storage capacity for approximately 7 million tons—handles primarily coal, coke, iron ore and limestone. “We supply the local construction market and supply materials to power plants, steel mills, whoever uses the bulk materials,”
said Rick Seaman, Pinney Dock Terminal manager. “We handle between 20,000 and 45,000 tons a day—or up to 7 million tons annually.”

At River Transportation Terminal, one of Kinder Morgan's three terminals in Cincinnati, road salt and 2x0 coal are the primary products handled, according to Don Alexander, terminal manager for River T.

At each terminal, different commodities are transloaded from one mode of transportation to another. Material can arrive by ship or barge, and leave by rail or truck, and vice versa.

Both Pinney Dock and River T recently invested in new Komatsu wheel loaders, and both facilities have been pleased with the outcome.

The 57-acre River T facility has two Komatsu WA500 wheel loaders, acquired from Columbus Equipment Company, and the machines have proved a good choice in a variety of ways, especially in their climbing ability. “We build piles of salt and carry the product up the pile. The WA500 has good climbing power,” Alexander noted. “Before we got it, we had a rental [of a different brand] that wasn't a good climber, and that's a critical issue here.” The operators also like the excellent visibility from the Komatsu's cab, he added.

Alexander wasn't previously familiar with Komatsu equipment and admits he was a little leery when the terminal took delivery of its first WA500 more than two years ago. “After receiving the WA500 and working with it, we are very happy. It does the same work as other brands and compares favorably,” he said. “We perform the regular PMs on it and haven't seen any issues.” Because of the corrosive nature of salt, the wheel loaders received a protective coating before being put into service, and it's holding up really well.

Pinney Dock Terminal also acquired a new WA800-3 over the summer. The facility already had an older model 800, a WA500 and a WA380, and has had a good experience with all its Komatsu equipment, Seaman said.

“The operators like the ease of operation. The machines are very similar so the operators can easily switch and qualify in different machines,” he noted. “The new 800 is controlled by a dual-joystick system, there's no steering wheel, so they had to get used to it. That said, it was a fairly easy transition.”

When Kinder Morgan ordered the Komatsu wheel loader for Pinney Dock, Columbus Equipment Company and JRB—the bucket manufacturer—worked closely with the facility to customize the bucket to its specific application, Seaman said. “They calculated the material we were picking up most often, and that allowed them to set the angle of the bucket and put the wear plates on so the bucket would fill easily and the operator doesn't have to dig. The result has been increased ease-of-fill.”

“Usually a machine comes with a bucket and that's what you get. This time, we were able to plan, adapt the bucket to the application in advance, and take advantage of the resultant increased efficiency. That was nice,” he added.

It's too early to determine the overall impact of the improved efficiency, but the 15-yard bucket is also bigger than those on previous machines. “It used to take five trips to fill a rail car with iron ore pellets and now we do it in four due to the size of the bucket,” Seaman explained. “Even though we have had the machine for a short time and are still learning its capabilities … we are pleased with the results so far.”

While the terminals are heavy users of wheel loaders, companywide Kinder Morgan uses a variety of Komatsu equipment, including excavators, skid steers, backhoes and dozers, according to Dan Smith, an area manager for the company. Other Kinder Morgan business segments include natural gas, products and CO2 pipelines. “Komatsu equipment offers good value. It performs well and is easy to work on and maintain,” he said.

Smith has had a relationship with Columbus Equipment Company for 25 years through various employers, and he's happy to do business with them. “They provide good service. They stay in touch with you, and if any issues arise, they deal with them up front. They are always available if you have an issue.”

“Columbus Equipment field techs that come onsite to work are always prompt,” he observed. “They are also very safe, which is important. We never have any issues with their safety procedures. They follow all the guidelines from the Kinder Morgan Safety Program.”

Smith is also impressed with his Columbus Equipment sales representative, Roger Reese. “Roger is very knowledgeable of the products he sells, and he checks in to make sure everything is alright. When I ask for prices, he is very prompt in getting back to me.”

Pinney Dock Manager Seaman has also been happy with the service he gets from the company. “Columbus Equipment is good to deal with. If we have questions, they are approachable—we can call them anytime and talk to the service department.”

“We have built a relationship of trust with Kinder Morgan,” Reese said. “They set a high bar operationally speaking and expect people to do what they promise, and that's how we do business at Columbus Equipment Company. The Kinder Morgan representatives we deal with have been great to work with.”