Some people wonder about the “road of life” that they have chosen and whether the “road” not taken would have been the better choice. Gary Harvey isn’t one of those people. He chose a road and has not looked back. After high school, Harvey began working with D.W. Winkleman Construction, of Syracuse, NY, doing roadwork. Later, he was employed with Proctor Construction, of Utica, NY. In 1976, sticking to the road (work), Harvey founded his own company, Harvey Construction, based in Holland Patent, NY, which specialized in blacktop work.Today, he owns and operates three gravel pits located in Floyd, Remsen and Barneveld, NY, whose primary production is topsoil, sand and gravel products in addition to performing some outside excavation and contract crushing. One of Harvey’s largest customers is the City of Rome, NY. The company recycles the city’s asphalt millings, which it mixes with a No. 2 stone to make a sub-base. Harvey Construction also has been very active in producing clay and topsoil for capping the landfill at the Griffiss Industrial Park, formerly known as Griffiss Air Force Base. In addition, Harvey has worked with Barrett Paving, putting down Route 285 around Griffiss Industrial Park. With more than 27 years in the construction industry, Harvey has had experience with a lot of equipment from a variety of manufacturers. Today, he prefers Kawasaki’s 90ZIV-2 loaders and Kobelco excavators.“Our Kawasakis are operator-friendly, offer great visibility, but, most impressively, the machine is balanced. When you’re loading, it just feels right. Of course, it helps that the Kawasakis are priced right. We have tried them all and for the price, a Kawasaki is as good a machine as you can get,” said Harvey.Harvey owned a 1992 Kawasaki 90Z-III, which he recently traded in on a brand new Kawasaki 90ZIV-2 5-yd. (4.6 m) loader. He also is currently renting another identical Kawasaki loader and a Kobelco 330LC-IV, a 74,000-lb. (33,566 kg) excavator, which he has had for five months.“The Kobelco excavator we have on rent has been a very good producer and has done everything that we’ve asked it to do. The machine has good breakout force and is a very solid machine. When we get ready to replace the excavator that we own, we will be very serious about these Kobelcos,” Harvey said.Just as Kawasakis and Kobelcos have been the machinery of choice for Harvey, Tracey Road Equipment, in East Syracuse, NY, has been his dealer of choice.“John Roden, our sales rep, treats us very well. He knows his equipment, but has never been high pressure,” said Harvey.“We really enjoy doing business with Tracey Road Equipment Inc. Their support from a parts and service standpoint has been excellent. I also appreciate that Tracey Road Equipment does not have a big turnover in their product line. They’ve been the Kobelco and Kawasaki dealer in this area for years,” he explained.The choice of road taken by Harvey has been a good one and Harvey’s youngest son, Kurt, is currently attending Herkimer County Community College with plans of joining his father on the journey.For more information, call Harvey at 315/794-4371 or Tracey at 315/437-1471. This story also appears on Crane Equipment Guide.
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