As a crew from East Troy, Wis.-based concrete contractor F.C. Price Corp. worked on basement footings and walls at a job in New Berlin, Wis., they seemed to be making better progress than expected.

There was nothing unusual about the job. The three-story, 60-unit senior living facility — the first phase of a project that eventually will include 160 units just south of National Avenue and Sunnyslope Road — didn't present any great challenges.

According to Jake Branfort, F.C. Price project manager, the company's involvement in constructing the structure was typical of what F.C. Price does.

Working as a subcontractor on the job, the crew will put in place a few thousand yards of concrete in the space of about one month.

The remarkable thing about the job, according to Branfort, was his experience operating a new Case 440 skid steer with a Versatile Track System (VTS) from Loegering Mfg.

The Versatile Track System from Loegering Mfg., Casselton, N.D., lets contractors operate a skid steer with tires or with a full rubber track undercarriage system.

The bolt-on, bolt-off rubber tracked undercarriage system fastens directly to the hubs of the machine and requires no machine modifications for most tractors, with changeover taking less than an hour.

While some skid-steer manufacturers offer rubber track undercarriages as a product feature, the Loegering VTS fits a wide variety of skid-steer models.

The Case 440 is part of the latest generation of Case skid steers, offering 89 horsepower and tips the scales at 6,980 pounds.

A continuation of a tractor name plate dating back to the 1960s, the Case 440 is a stable, strong work platform true to Case history — but with new features including a radial piston motor that controls the hydraulics and drive train.

Radial piston motors offer higher torque at low speeds, and operators on the Case 440 can tell the difference.

The Case 440 is a heavier work horse than smaller products, and it packs more punch than the smaller Case tractors including the 5,482-pound Case 410.

This makes it a more natural choice for grading, concrete and asphalt contractors, and according to Branfort the addition of the VTS makes for measurable productivity advances.

"The skid steer definitely saves me a few hours on the job every day. Because of the rubber treads, there is no downtime with a flat tire," said Branfort, who has operated plenty of skid steers over the years.

One selling point of the VTS is the ability to switch from tread to tires in about an hour, but Branfort said that on this job their 440 was designated for off-road use. F.C. Price has a second skid steer — equipped with rubber tires — for use on blacktop.

But according to Dan Soley, vice president of sales and marketing at equipment distributor Miller-Bradford & Risberg, quick changeover has been a huge selling point for Loegering's VTS.

"The skid steer has become the Swiss army knife of construction equipment," Soley said. "The VTS has become probably one of the hottest new blades in that knife. I feel this is an attachment that is revolutionizing the industry."

According to Branfort, traction is the single most impressive feature of the Case 440 equipped with the Loegering VTS.

"You sit a lot flatter and you have a lot more traction," Branfort said. "It makes all the difference in the world."

Branfort hangs real numbers on the increased productivity claiming that "tasks that have taken me 50 hours with the 440 would have taken 200 hours with the old machine."

Part of the difference is likely attributable to the increased lift capacity that the VTS lends to the Case 440.

"The lift capacity is much higher," Branfort said. "Things don't get all squirrelly underneath when you pick something up."

Soley said that apart from the VTS, which can be installed on a number of machines from various manufacturers, the elements of the Case 440's design make it an extremely solid, stable piece of equipment with or without rubber tread.

"The stance of the 440 allows you to climb serious slopes, but also stabilizes on the side of a slope," Soley said. "Even when you are going sideways on a slope, you can material load or do some dozing with no trouble."

The stance of the machine is one reason for the Case 440's stability, but other features have to do with increasing torque and control through a more intelligent drive train.

"Case engineering is a big reason for the performance," Soley said. "New features on this model include an engine that complies with Tier II emissions regulations. The hydraulic system is going to a radial-piston motor, which drives not only the lift arms but the drive train. This offers much quicker response and more control. Compared to competitive products, the 440 is as popular as anything else out there."

Miller-Bradford & Risberg took delivery on their first Case 440s in April, and has already sold about 15 units out of showrooms in Sussex, Sturtevant, Madison, DePere, and Eau Claire — as well as Negaunee, Mich., and Rockford, Ill. Soley said the distributorship is also receiving advance orders for the Case 440s.

"Customers placing orders in advance — it is not uncommon," Soley said. "But at this level, it shows that we have a very active market."