Most crushing campaigns are procured under one of three engagement models: contract crushing, mobile crushing, or plant hire. They are often used interchangeably, but they price and perform differently. This guide compares them so you can brief the right one.
Contract crushing means long-term, continuous production, usually measured in years, delivered against a published spec with dedicated plant and crew. Mobile crushing means plant deployed to your site for a defined campaign with a start and end date. Plant hire means renting plant, wet (with operator) or dry (machine only), for a defined window.
By tonnage and duration: continuous programmes over 12 months and above roughly 200,000 tonnes a month suit contract crushing. Defined campaigns of tens of thousands of tonnes with clear start and end dates suit mobile crushing. Short or irregular windows, where you already have a qualified crew, suit plant hire.
By cost structure: contract and build-own-operate are priced per tonne of product crushed, rewarding sustained throughput. Mobile crushing is typically priced per tonne or per campaign. Plant hire is priced per week with mobilisation, with wet hire carrying a higher weekly rate than dry hire.
By location: Rostrevor runs contract and campaign work across Victoria, South Australia, and Western Australia. Plant is deployable to other states for programmes of the right scale, including remote sites with FIFO crew rotation.
By accountability: contract crushing gives you one accountable partner for output, quality, and reporting, with daily QA against your spec. Plant hire puts safety and output responsibility on your own crew unless you take wet hire.
Rule of thumb: if you need continuous spec-compliant supply for years, brief contract crushing. If you have a defined campaign, brief mobile crushing. If you need plant for a short window, hire it. Briefing the wrong model is the most common reason quotes come back unusable.