Case Studies

Town of Granby, Quebec

The town of Granby is located in southwestern Québec, east of Montréal. With a population of almost 70,000 and a climate of enjoyable summers but harsh winters, Granby is well-versed in the art of snow removal. During the 2020/2021 winter season, 129 kilometers of sidewalks and trails were maintained. In the same season, and with the support of the town’s inhabitants, Granby also experimented with blowing snow on to adjacent land, instead of trucking it away. Not only did this method maximise the efficiency of their snow removal operations, but it also reduced the environmental impacts of winter maintenance, with less round trips made by trucks to snow depots, and also transporting snow by truck increases its contamination, puts pressure on the snow dump, and increases runoff.

Granby was the first municipality in Québec to opt for Multihog. Having seen it at the 2018 APOM municipal trade show, they purchased their first Multihog in 2019, an MXC model, for their winter maintenance fleet. Based on its performance, Granby then purchased another, identical model in 2020. Both MXC units are primarily used for sidewalk snow removal, and they are fitted with a range of attachments, including snow plows, drop spreaders and a snow blower. In summer, the winter equipment is removed, and boom mowers are fitted for verge mowing.
In April 2021, Granby added a third Multihog to their fleet, this time opting for the super compact CX model, in order to clear snow on particularly narrow sidewalks in the downtown area.

Francis Lacasse, Public Works foreman at Ville de Granby, is impressed with the units. From the beginning of the purchase process, he was adamant that he wanted to procure a multifunctional machine, which would provide the best value for the town’s equipment budget. “Since the purchase of our first Multihog in 2019, they have proven to be a valuable asset in our machinery fleet. I am quite determined to make our equipment budget work as hard as possible for our residents, so buying a multi-purpose machine which would operate all year was a must for me. I’m happy to say that we’re using it as often as I hoped we would, and our Multihog collection has now grown to three, all of which are integral pieces in our fleet.”

One of the other major factors in the town’s decision was the availability of parts and service locally. “Machineries Forget have a reputation for really good after-sales service, and they assured me that parts availability for the Multihogs wouldn’t be an issue. True to their word, we’ve had no issues getting parts or service for the machines, which is a major bonus for essential equipment like this.”

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