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Guthrie compares the plates' isolation mounts to a car's shock absorbers. The isolation mounts absorb some of the vibration so that it isn't really hard on the skid steer. "The idea is to keep all that thumping down in the attachment and not to have that reaction come back up into the loader arms, which is just going to put wear and tear on the skid steer and the operator," he says.

In addition to the dual counterweights and isolation mounts, the three compaction plate attachments have a front lip that can be used to drag dirt before compaction and tilt to angle the plate for the slope that is being compacted.

Coneqtec/Universal has the DC8000 compaction plate that offers 8,000 lbs. of vertical force at a rate of 2,300 vpm. The DC5500 is a smaller attachment that will fit on regular or mini-skid steers and provides 5,500 lbs. of force at 1,900 vpm.

Guthrie says paving contractors know that they have to compact before they pave. "If it's not compacted, it's not going to work," he says. Since compacting is not really an option, a compaction plate attachment can be a very valuable resource for both big- and small-time paving contractors.

Vibratory Roller
Another skid steer attachment that can be especially beneficial to a paving contractor is a vibratory roller. These attachments perform the same work as dedicated ride-on or walk-behind compactors - compact base materials and remove air pockets - but instead of requiring a separate piece of equipment dedicated only to compaction, the work can be done using a skid steer. This helps save time and money as well as transportation space, Moorman says.