Grading and Excavation Contractor Issues

By Greg Smith Long before a single load is booked or any wheels turn, someone, usually a fleet manager, needs to determine exactly what is going to separate the road and the load. There’s a lot riding on this decision because, as much as some would like to think otherwise, a trailer is never just a trailer. It can be manufactured to many different specifications, with multiple raw material options, dozens of load and geographical considerations, various top-speed requirements, and hundreds of possible a...>... More >

By Paul Hull   For most contractors, “underground” has meant trenches down Main Street, tearing up multiple spaces in parking lots, spoiling the calm and neatness of residential streets to repair or update infrastructure, and then the costly replacing and reshaping of what was removed. I’m not going to talk about trenches in this article, even though they are still necessary ways for improving some projects. There are projects that do involve some digging (how else would you get underground?) but t...>... More >

By Penelope B. Grenoble You’ve read in these columns that when it comes to machine control, manufacturers warn contractors about one-stop training—give the operator a quick run-through and let her rip. You’ve also heard manufacturers say it’s essential to have a champion, someone who understands the value of the technology, will do what it takes to learn it, and be a resource for the rest of the crew. Mike Wahlin, GPS grading systems engineer at Reynolds Brothers Inc. in Salt Lake City, is just that kin...>... More >

By Ed Ritchie Certainly, there’s good news about construction employment across the US. According to a recent analysis of federal employment data by the Associated General Contractors of America, 139 out of 337 metropolitan areas added jobs between December 2011 and December 2012. Association officials noted that growing private sector demand for new construction projects boosted employment in a slight plurality of metro areas. Though there are declining numbers in almost as many metro areas, the positi...>... More >

Written by Daniel C. Brown  The EPA’s Tier 4 Interim regulations for exhaust emissions took effect last January, so construction equipment manufacturers have been busy introducing models of dozers and loaders that meet the new rules. And they have seized the opportunity to upgrade these machines beyond just the engine compartment. New loaders abound, from a wide range of manufacturers, so enjoy your choices. It’s a good time to shop for a new loader or dozer. Just last March, John Deere said i...>... More >

Written by Carol Brzozowski  Every day, the Lac Qui Parle County Highway Department in Minnesota is dealing with some challenge along the 500-mile stretch of road it maintains, including the drainage, shoulders, ditches and—in the winter—snow removal. The ability to transport the necessary equipment to handle the challenges is key, points out Daryl Tobias, maintenance supervisor. “Having a quality heavy-duty trailer is an absolute must in the grading and excavating industry,” says Chris Pokorn...>... More >

XL Specialized Trailers New from XL Specialized Trailers, the XL 110 Low-Profile HDG customized trailer is ideal for hauling oversize loads. The main deck is equipped with steel pullouts on 18-inch centers capable of handling up to 60,000 pounds to accommodate hauling large construction and agricultural equipment, including combines and heavy track machines. Thanks to its low-profile, scraper-style upper deck and a 36-inch flip-neck design, the 54-foot XL 110 HDG customized trailer accommodates multiple...>... More >

Written by John Trotti While the economic picture has brightened for many of us and our potential clients, the lessons of the past few years have left an indelible stamp on the entire industry. As most of us in construction have seen, our clients are demanding a greater degree of justification for expenditures that don’t relate to their projected revenue streams, erosion control being a choice example of practices receiving special scrutiny. To complicate the issue further, corporate staffs have become ...>... More >

The Marcellus formation in the northeast US holds one of the country’s largest shale gas deposits. Estimates of its content range from 260 trillion cubic feet (TCF) to 490 TCF—the equivalent of as much as 87 trillion barrels of oil. While only a fraction of that volume will ultimately be recoverable, the push to establish wells throughout New York, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia (as well as parts of Ohio, Virginia, and Maryland) has been moving forward at a blinding pace. Installing drilling pads, one ...>... More >

Bobcat Co. www.bobcat.com BPT Components & Parts Inc. www.bpt.on.ca Citgo Petroleum Corp www.citgo.com CW Mill Equipment Co. Inc. www.hogzilla.com Denis Cimaf Inc. www.deniscimaf.com Doosan Infracore www.doosanequipment.com Dragon Products www.dragonproductsltd.com Eager Beaver Trailers www.eagerbeavertrailers.com Efficiency Production Inc. www.epi-shields.com Evans Cooling Systems www.evanscooling.com Fecon www.fecon.com Gehl Co. www.gehl.com Geophysical Survey Systems. www.geophysical.com HCSS www...>... More >

A research report on loss of agricultural land to urbanization, http://www.k4health.org/pr/m13/m13chap3_3.shtml , landed on my desk a while back, in which it was pointed out that, in fact, three-quarters of the decline in ag-land is the result of other factors than those related to urbanization. While I agree that urbanization per se may not be a major driver in the loss of arable land, I don’t think this means we should curtail discussion on the subject of development and its impact on soil loss, water...>... More >

When it comes to moving and digging earth, these workhorses do more than pull their weight. And with so many attachments available, it’s hard to imagine a task the excavator can’t handle. So many attachments, so many models, and so many manufacturers. We can’t cover them all in one story, but here’s a cross section of new product innovations that are helping contractors improve their productivity and efficiency. There’s nothing like a trade show for taking the pulse of an industry, and at the last ConEx...>... More >

Written by Debbie McClung Few facets of running a construction business are more fiscally insightful than real-time observation of your valuable mobile assets. If you have not incorporated a fleet management tool based on a global positioning system into your operation, you might be surprised to know the growing impact this technology can have on your bottom line. GPS-based fleet management systems have proved to be successful in the railway and trucking industries. Now they are bringing operationa...>... More >

Written by John Trotti Grading & Excavation Contractor magazine has five siblings— Distributed Energy , Erosion Control , MSW Management , Stormwater , and Water Efficiency —and while the subjects are relatively diverse, the core concerns our readers face—regulations, people problems, and productivity issues—are remarkably similar. It doesn’t much matter what your field of endeavor is, the regulatory environment and its oversight activities are on a one-way street heading to increases in both. After...>... More >

Written by Penelope B. Grenoble Long before the job finally got under way in June 2012, the restoration of Malibu Lagoon, a 31-acre shallow water embayment formed where Malibu Creek empties into the Pacific Ocean, had accumulated a reputation as of one of California’s most ecologically sensitive and politically contentious construction projects. Ecologically sensitive, because the object was to restore ecological balance to one of the state’s last naturally functioning lagoons; contentious, because...>... More >

Written by Daniel C. Brown While intelligent compaction (IC) for asphalt rollers provides a valuable quality-control tool, the technology is still evolving. With some IC systems, a display screen in the operator’s compartment shows real-time mat temperature, roller coverage of the mat, and some indication of mat stiffness. No current IC system, however, will directly read out mat density. The conventional quality-control process for asphalt density has shortcomings. Typically, a small number of spo...>... More >

Written by  Daniel C. Brown Electricity does kill people. Approximately 1,000 deaths per year in the United States are the result of electrical injuries. According to the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health, occupational electrical hazards cause more than 300 deaths and 4,000 injuries each year. Statistics for home deaths and injuries are more difficult to acquire. Most sources for this type of information estimate 1,000 deaths, 12,000 shocks and burns, and 150,000 fires. Those are...>... More >

Written by John Trotti Typically expressed in its petroleum equivalent, energy in all forms is high on the list of our concerns. This is so partly because of its cost, partly because its price uncertainty makes our job bids somewhat of a crapshoot, partly because of the fear that some foreign and maybe unfriendly interest will tighten the tap. Yet, when all else is said and done, its use is the clearest indicator of how things are going for us in our business and as a nation. I genuinely believe that we...>... More >

Written by  Carol Brzozowski Kevin Sherman calls Bobcat’s laser grader “a fine-grader’s dream.” For 11 years, Sherman’s focus has been nothing but laser fine grading, mostly for concrete contractors on large sites such as warehouses. His company, A Plus Laser Grading, in Hagerstown, MD, does it all with a Bobcat M-Series loader and a 96-inch laser grader. “It’s phenomenal,” he says. “When I bought this setup, it was hard to prove myself in the beginning, but nowadays it seems when I’m pulling off t...>... More >

Allied Construction Products LLC www.alliedcp.com Alpine Equipment www.alpinecutters.com Auto Crane www.autocrane.com Bair Products Inc. www.bairproducts.com Bobcat Co. www.bobcat.com Carlson Software www.carlsonsw.com Caterpillar Inc. www.cat.com Doosan Infracore www.doosanequipment.com Dragon Products Ltd. www.dragonproductsltd.com Evans Cooling Systems www.evanscooling.com Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. www.thehartford.com Hercules Machine Corp. www.hmc-us.com J&J Truck Bodies & Trail...>... More >

When it comes to heavy-duty equipment in the rugged grading and excavating industries, extending the life of a contractor’s investment increases the benefits associated with the amortization of the original purchase over time. According to Bob Straw, vice president of sales and marketing for IPD, “The longer the effective and efficient useful life of the equipment, the greater the benefit can be in terms of contractor operations cost containment.” IPD, established in 1955 and based in Torrance, CA, is a...>... More >

Most grading and excavation contractors use either loans or leasing at some point to finance their equipment. The two options are different in significant ways. Loans usually require down payments and the promise to repay with interest over time. With a loan, you might have to offer fixed assets for collateral, and equipment can be seized in the case of a default. At the end of a contract, the borrower legally owns the equipment. A lease may be thought of as akin to a rent payment. You have and use the ...>... More >

Common wisdom has it that when times are tight you pull in and cut expenses. Forgo new purchases, avoid discretionary spending, and, most of all, do more with less. But common wisdom can be wrong. As counter-intuitive as it might sound, a down economy is a great time to invest in training. In fact, say the experts, you avoid it at your peril.  If the 1990s were the years of global abundance, the 2010s will likely go down as the age of scarcity, which means there’s no doubt that trimming waste, tigh...>... More >

Manufacturers and system providers of machine-control systems and productivity-enhancing tools are responding to what they acknowledge is a tough market in which budgets are tight by providing high-tech solutions at lower costs. It’s a response to some contractors who are not investing in technology because of cash flow challenges and also to those who want to “test drive” entry-level technology before embracing more capable technological levels. Scott Beathard, president of GeoShack North America, rece...>... More >

Written by John Trotti Here we are nearly six years into a recession every bit as intractable as the one endured by our forebears 80 years ago, most of us lacking a clear vision of what the future holds in store. I’ve come to the conclusion that whatever has gotten us to where we are today will continue to sustain us, and that one day soon we will awaken with the sense that the worst is truly behind us…a vision shared by my merry band of New Age seers. As in past years, I rely on the wisdom of such...>... More >

Written by Nate Heying If you are like many heavy contractors, you hate the insurance renewal process and you rely on your agent (most likely a close friend) to get you the best rates while hopefully providing loss control services to drive down claims resulting in lower insurance costs. Yet you continue to deal with yearly issues at renewal time when insurance carriers tell you that your rates are increasing not because of your claim history but because of your risk sensitive industry. As a succes...>... More >

Bair Products Inc. www.bairproducts.com Bituminous Insurance Companies www.bituminousinsurance.com Bobcat Co. www.bobcat.com Bonnell Industries Inc. www.bonnell.com Carlson Software www.carlsonsw.com Doosan Infracore Construction Equipment America www.doosanequipment.com Dragon Products Ltd. www.dragonproductsltd.com Geophysical Survey Systems Inc. www.geophysical.com GeoShack North America Inc. www.geoshack.com HCSS (Heavy Construction Software Systems) www.hcss.com Hitachi Construction www.hitachicons...>... More >

Written by Ryan Johnson Bobcat compact equipment is aiding in the effort to keep hazardous wastes out of the Ada County landfill in Boise, ID, as well as preparing firebreaks around the perimeter and regularly assisting with excavating and grading projects. Landfill operations coordinator Kurt Hunt oversees the day-to-day operations at the facility, including the use of a Bobcat E45 excavator and a T650 compact track loader—both part of the M-Series line of Bobcat equipment. At the site are two lan...>... More >

By Carol Brzozowski Whether during construction or post-construction, erosion control contractors are turning to the latest technologies to help site clients manage erosion and stormwater in a way that is cost effective yet comprehensive enough to meet regulatory requirements. An 85-acre athletic field complex being constructed at James Madison University in Harrisonburg, VA, calls for careful erosion control methods. Site runoff flows into a local stream, and the site is in the Chesapeake Bay watershed...>... More >

KOMATSU AMERICA CORP. Leveraging its leadership in technology and innovation, Komatsu America Corp. is pleased to introduce the new WA500-7 wheel loader, designed with a more environmentally friendly engine that increases power while decreasing fuel consumption. Powered by a Komatsu SAA6D140E-6 engine with a net horsepower of 353, the wheel loader is EPA Tier 4 Interim and EU Stage 3B emission certified. Some features of the WA500-7 include complimentary Komatsu CARE Factory Maintenance Program (2,000 h...>... More >

By John Trotti It’s easy to get caught up in the daily grind and lose sight of the fact that dirt moving notwithstanding, our business is mainly about people. Obviously we wouldn’t have our jobs were it not for the people who hire us to provide a needed service. Certainly our customers whom we serve define our tasks; but in the final analysis—and this may to some seem at first blush to be politically incorrect—it’s the people in our organization on whom we depend to accomplish those tasks who deserve ou...>... More >

By Carol Wasson Experts say that if cities want roads to last for 20 or more years, it’s important to have a consistent plan of how to treat them. From a basic standpoint, slurry seal is definitely the most economical surface treatment for residential streets, while micro surfacing is ideal for highly traveled roads. Asphalt overlays have their place, but significant money can be saved by committing to pavement preservation. While slurry seal and micro surfacing projects most often fall into the hands o...>... More >

Cold in-place asphalt recycling (CIR) has been around for over 50 years as a way to deal with decaying roadways, but because of its environmental and financial qualities, it is becoming more and more popular. As its name implies, the technique involves using the existing road material rather than bringing in new asphalt. The “cold” refers to the fact that a hot asphalt mix does not have to be brought onsite. The Asphalt Recycling and Reclaiming Association (ARRA), a trade association of recycling contra...>... More >

Alpine Equipment www.alpinecutters.com Auto Crane www.autocrane.com Bobcat Co. www.bobcat.com BPT Components & Parts Inc. www.bpt.on.ca Case Construction www.casece.com Caterpillar Inc. www.cat.com Citgo Petroleum Corp www.citgo.com Doosan Infracore Construction Equipment America www.doosanequipment.com Dragon Products. www.dragonproductsltd.com Efficiency Production Inc. www.epi-shields.com Evans Cooling Systems www.evanscooling.com Federal Signal (Elgin/Vactor) www.vactor.com www.elginsweeper.com ...>... More >

In my callow youth I had the privilege of wallowing in mud, choking on dust, and enduring insults and inane commands from the mouth of my Drill Instructor, whose unenviable task it was to turn me and 29 other miserable scum-sucking civilians into Marines. His name was “Sir,” followed very quickly by the rest of his name, “Yes Sir.” And it was only after I had graduated from his care, that I found that he had other names…Sergeant Daly and even Ralph to his contemporaries whose ribbon-bedecked tunics spor...>... More >

Workers with limited English language skills are at much higher risk of injury and death, says Curtis Childress, a senior risk engineering consultant with Zurich North America, a major insurance company. Some studies indicate that workers with limited English skills have a death rate 45% higher than workers that speak and understand English. Workers from a different culture may be less likely to ask questions, even though they don’t understand what is expected of them. We need to manage all workers for ...>... More >

Sure, with its advanced 3D graphics and realistic motion feedback, you might assume it’s a video game from a modern day arcade. But it’s far from a game. The Volvo Advanced Training Simulator is where highly developed technology meets instruction, providing real-life operator education at a fraction of the cost and with fewer resources needed than with traditional training. Most people would likely expect that a physical piece of heavy construction equipment is necessary when training prospective equipm...>... More >

Written by Carol Brzozowski Hydro- and vacuum excavating systems are becoming so much an increasing part of the construction site landscape these days that one manufacturer states it’s been the busiest year for his company to date, with the demand in some cases exceeding supply. The driving factors: increasingly strict construction site regulations, the growth of oil and gas exploration in North America, and not truly knowing what lies underneath the ground despite line locating technology. Vacuum ...>... More >

Written by Paul Hull When you arrive at the job site you should know exactly what you are supposed to be doing and you should have all the people, equipment, and tools you need to do it for a profitable project. Obvious, isn’t it? You’d be surprised how many crews arrive and wait around, sometimes for hours, because they don’t know what to do or exactly where to do it. The technologies of modern communications are amazing but the basic fact remains that, in communication, one party tells another pa...>... More >

Written by Lori Lovely If equipment is maintained, people can see that. Conversely, if it’s not, they can see that as well—and if they can’t, word of mouth will surely alert them. “You can tell if equipment has been abused,” says Lee Fullbright, product support manager for LBX Co. LLC. Proper, ongoing maintenance makes a “drastic difference” in the value of a machine for resale, the life of a machine and unexpected downtime, Fullbright continues. “If you’re rough on equipment or neglect routine mai...>... More >

More than 2,400 attendees at the Underground Construction Technology (UCT) conference and trade show were treated to exhibits of the latest in trenchless pipe placement and rehab equipment—and a few open-cut exhibitors as well. Attendees at the show, held in January in San Antonio, included utility contractors, owners, municipal officials, engineers, manufacturers, and dealers.   Photo: McLaughlin The On-Target System uses hydraulics to control line and grade.   Photo: ICON ICON’s steerable au...>... More >

Listening to Steve Neal and Wayne Tomlinson talk about what they do at the Road Institute—a kind of mini-asphalt paving university for contractors, DOTs, municipalities, engineers, material manufacturers, and just about anybody who has a connection to or an interest in the asphalt paving industry—it’s easy to understand why for many people, “train” has become a four-letter word.  Train. Train. Train. We hear it everywhere—how important it is, how we’re not doing enough. What you can expect if you d...>... More >

Simply put, Moore’s Law, the basis for which was proposed by Intel cofounder Gordon E. Moore in a 1965 paper, says that the number of transistors that can be economically put on a computer chip will double every two years. While it wasn’t until 1970 that the hypothesis was accorded the status of “law,” its performance has shown such incredible durability clear to the present that it forms the basis for financial projections by many of the leading industrial and governmental organizations worldwide, and ...>... More >

HUSQVARNA CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS Husqvarna Construction Products is proud to unveil the latest addition to its lineup of high-speed diamond blades: the Husqvarna Versa-Cut. The Versa-Cut blade features alternating turbo segments with a total height of .400 inch (.300-inch diamond depth; .100-inch segment base) that enables the blade to cut faster. The Versa-Cut is a general-purpose blade made to cut a wide variety of materials. It facilitates fast and smooth cutting of cured and reinforced concrete, bric...>... More >

A study by ESI International, a management firm that specializes in staff development, recently established that, despite the billions of dollars companies spend annually on training in the United States, too little of what they pay for actually gets applied on the job. Common missteps include insufficient involvement on the part of management in how training melds with a company’s goals, the lack of a companywide strategy, and insufficient feedback mechanisms to determine whether training has been effe...>... More >

These days, it seems impossible to go very long without hearing a mention of “green.” From green energy to green roofs or simply just “going green,” the topic of green seems to be everywhere. In the equipment industry, green fleet is the term that’s creating plenty of buzz and leading a new trend for fleet managers and their crews. So why the obsession with green? In many cases, green practices are viewed as a way to save money. Others see it as simply the right thing to do for the planet and future. On...>... More >

Even the smallest project is made up of several bits and pieces, isn’t it? Equipment, employees, local regulations, and time are some of them. They all combine, like voices in a choir or singing group, to produce a harmony that is pleasing and profitable. When we are considering software that can make our construction projects more efficient and profitable, a most important question must be: “How would these different software programs work together to give me a complete conclusion?” The conclusion for ...>... More >

If you have ever played cards or board games with family or friends, you know how engaging, entertaining, and memorable such games can be. Games such as Trivial Pursuit or other knowledge-based contests can be educational as well—in fact, even more educational precisely because you’re having fun. If you apply gaming principles to the working world—say, in health and safety—you have a formula for creating knowledge and power, says Dan Hannan, a certified safety professional who is a safety consultant for...>... More >