More than 20 years ago, Keith Babb, president of New England Mobile Crushing Services, walked away from a successful career in the automotive industry and started a new venture working in a niche market subcontracting hammering and crushing and screening services to New England contractors.
The rock that Babb and his customers face every day is some of the hardest in the country and shows up on virtually every job site. New England is among the few regions in the United States where blasting is commonplace and expected on typical excavation sites.
"The downsides to blasting your way through New England's granite are many," Babb said. "To begin with, the blasting process is very expensive. You may only need to make a four or five-foot cut, but by the nature of blasting you are going to pay for a minimum of an eight-foot cut."