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Customer Snapshot
Customer Snapshot
Customer Story
Box Culvert and Tunnel
Cleaning low box culverts with fewer workers, no water, and no diesel emissions
2
Reduced crew requirements from 5–6 people
$161,280 USD
Redeployed in labour value per year across approximately 24 culverts
12 months
Estimated time for ROI
Movex Innovation’s M-48 mini loader helped Caltrans access culverts under 3 feet high while reducing vacuum truck use, labour requirements, and water consumption
Customer
Caltrans – Stormwater/culvert cleaning team
Location
California
Application
Cleaning rectangular box culverts, including several culverts 3 feet high or less
Equipment
Movex Innovation’s M-48 mini loader
Previous equipment used:
Remote-controlled diesel mucker and vacuum truck
Results:
- Allowed the team to access low box culverts that were difficult to clean efficiently before
- Reduced crew requirements from 5–6 people with the vacuum truck to 2 people with the MINIDOZER
- Freed up 3 workers to be reassigned to other jobs
- Eliminated water use for box culverts 3 feet high or less
- Reduced reliance on vacuum trucks for low box culvert cleaning
- Supported California diesel-emission reduction priorities
- Redeployed an estimated $161,280 USD in labour value per year across approximately 24 culverts
- Contributed to an estimated ROI of less than 12 months based on redeployed labour alone
The California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) stormwater team had a very specific cleaning problem. Many box culverts were too low for the diesel mucker they already had on hand. At more than 3 feet high, the machine simply could not enter several culverts measuring 3 feet or less. The work still had to be done, but the available equipment pushed the crew toward a heavier, more resource-intensive approach: the vacuum truck.
That approach worked, but it came with a cost. It required more people, more water, more logistics, and more wear on equipment that could be used elsewhere.
Movex Innovation’s M-48 MINIDOZER gave the team another option. With its low profile, electric power, and remote-controlled operation, the mini loader could enter low rectangular culverts and push material out without water, diesel, or a 5-person vacuum truck setup.
The challenge: Low culverts that larger equipment could not reach
The Caltrans stormwater team was already using a remote-controlled diesel mucker for some culvert cleaning operations. But height became a hard limit.
For several box culverts measuring 3 feet or less in height, the diesel unit was too tall to fit inside. That forced the crew to rely on the vacuum truck for jobs that would otherwise have been better suited to a smaller machine.
A typical vacuum truck operation required a minimum crew of 5 people: one truck operator, one ground person, two water truck operators, and one additional person to alternate or assist as needed. In practice, Fidel explained, that often meant 5 to 6 people tied to the operation.
The vacuum truck also relied on high-pressure water to return material via jetting and suction. For low box culverts, this created a messier and more resource-heavy process.
As Fidel Caravjal, Stormwater Supervisor, put it: “It was a lot messier with the vacuum truck—and we used a lot of water.”
For round culverts and certain other tasks, the vacuum truck remained useful. But for low rectangular box culverts, Caltrans needed a more practical way to get inside, move material, and keep workers and equipment available for other jobs.
The solution: A low-profile electric mini loader built to enter tight culverts
Caltrans purchased equipment from Movex Innovation’s line of mini loaders: the M-48 MINIDOZER to support stormwater and culvert cleaning.
The deciding factor was access. At approximately 24 inches high, the MINIDOZER could enter box culverts measuring 3 feet high or less, where the larger diesel mucker could not. That low profile made it possible to clean culverts that had previously required a vacuum-truck approach.
The electric powertrain was also a key factor in the decision-making process. In California, reducing diesel emissions is a major operational and regulatory concern. The MINIDOZER gave the team a 100% electric machine that could operate without diesel fuel and without exhaust emissions inside the culvert.
For these low box culverts, workers could move from a vacuum truck setup involving 5 to 6 workers to a MINIDOZER setup with 2 workers. One person operates while another is present for safety, and operators can alternate during the work.
That change gave Caltrans more flexibility. The vacuum truck could be redeployed to other tasks, including round culverts, while Movex’s mini loader handled the low rectangular culverts it was built to access.
"
The MINIDOZER allowed us to access culverts we couldn’t previously clean efficiently.
Fidel Caravjal, Stormwater Supervisor, Caltrans
The results: Fewer people tied to one task, less water used, and a faster path to ROI
Movex Innovation’s M-48 mini loader changed the way Caltrans took care of low box culvert cleaning.
Three workers redeployed per low box culvert operation
Before the MINIDOZER, cleaning certain low box culverts with the vacuum truck required a crew of at least 5 people, and often 5 to 6.
With the MINIDOZER, the team could complete this type of work with 2 people. That means 3 workers could be reassigned to other jobs instead of being tied to the vacuum truck operation.
For a full 400-foot box culvert, Fidel considered that the work can take approximately 2 weeks with the MINIDOZER. Based on a conservative labour calculation, that represents 240 hours of redeployed labour per culvert:
3 workers x 40 hours per week x 2 weeks = 240 hours
At an estimated labour value of $28/hour, that equalled $6,720 USD in redeployed labour per box culvert.
With approximately 24 box culverts measuring 3 feet or less per year, that represents an estimated $161,280 USD per year in labour that can be reassigned to other work.
Based on labour redeployment alone, the return on investment is estimated at under 12 months. That estimate does not include additional savings related to water, diesel, vacuum truck wear, maintenance, or reduced high-pressure system use.
No water required for low box culvert cleaning
The MINIDOZER operates without water. That is a major difference compared with the vacuum truck, which uses high-pressure water to move material and complete the cleaning process.
For box culverts, eliminating water use reduces the need for water transport, simplifies the work plan, and lowers the environmental impact associated with cleaning them. It also makes the work less messy for the crew.
Less reliance on the vacuum truck
By using the MINIDOZER for low rectangular culverts, Caltrans can reserve the vacuum truck for the tasks where it is truly needed.
This matters because vacuum trucks are valuable, specialized pieces of equipment. Reducing their use on jobs that can be handled by a smaller electric machine helps limit wear, diesel consumption, maintenance requirements, and pressure on the fleet. It also helps the team use the right equipment for the right job instead of forcing one machine to do everything.
A second unit on the way
The team’s experience with the M-48 mini loader has been strong enough that Caltrans is purchasing a second unit, this time with a camera to improve visibility, and for long distance operation.
That next step says a lot. The machine did not just solve a single access problem. It proved useful enough to become part of the team’s broader culvert cleaning strategy.
"
It was a lot messier with the vacuum truck—and we used a lot of water.
Fidel Caravajal, Stormwater Supervisor, Caltrans
Equipment deployed
Mini loaders
MINIDOZER M-48
M- 48 (SS, ST)
The MINIDOZER M-48 has the perfect size for a mini loader for cleaning box culverts
Height: 22 in
Width: 48 in
Length: 110 in
Lifting capacity: 1170 lb
Need to clean low culverts without tying up a full vacuum truck crew?
Movex Innovation’s M-48 MINIDOZER helps stormwater and maintenance teams access low culverts, reduce manual and equipment strain, and keep specialized trucks available for the jobs that truly require them.
Talk to Movex Innovation about whether the M-48 MINIDOZER could help you accelerate your culvert cleaning.
Curious if our MINIDOZER could work at your site?
Schedule a call with the Movex team.