Category Archives: Commercial

Job Prospects and Career Guidelines of becoming A Paving Machine Operator

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Want to become a paving machine operator. Read this article carefully to know more about the career opportunities and professional outlook in this field.

Education and Training required for Paving Machine Operators

Most paving machine operators start as apprentice or a trainee and work under an experienced operator. Training can also be taken from vocational schools. The best institution is The International Union of Operating Engineers which offers training to an apprentice and to those who are interested to make a career in this field. The duration of the course is up to 4 years.

Proficiency Required

An operator should possess good communication skills, as he have to take and give directions while operating the machine.

They should easily deal with large and complicated heavy equipment and also have comprehensive knowledge about them so that the machines can be maintained and repaired well and quickly.

Career Prospects

The career prospects in this sector are lucrative, bright and full of optimism. There are 54,460 posts available to the operators in a research conducted by the U.S Bureau of Labor Statistics in 2012.This sector will witness a employment growth of 20 percent by the end of the year 2022 according to the BLS.

Other Career Options Available

Apart from driving a paving machine an operator can also find jobs as Material Moving Machine Operator and Heavy Tractor Driver.

Material Moving Machine Operator

A material moving machine operator makes application of heavy construction equipment such as cranes or conveyor belts to move thing from one site to another. They can find work in different industries, or in places like a storehouse, mine or sea harbour and ports. There are no proper education qualification for becoming material moving machine operator , but a high school diploma and experience in the construction industry will stand you in a good stead as many industries prefer it.; You can start as an apprentice and there are scopes for growth. However in order to be a crane operator you will need special license for operating it.

In future the job opportunities of  material moving machine operators is  believed to remain  unaltered starting   from the year  2012-2022, with job  growth  approximately at 1%.

Heavy Tractor Driver

Becoming heavy tractor driver is another option available to the operators. A heavy tractor driver is a professional driver who complies with the rules laid by the federal regulations. A proper commercial driver’s licence is a prerequisite, as you need to drive the machines carrying hazardous materials and other perilous cargoes. The tractors are heavy and can weigh up to 26000 pounds. The operator also needs to keep in touch with the dispatcher for solving various tractor related problems. They are also responsible for maintaining mileage and also plan the long distance routes.

To sum up paving machine operation is a specialised job and the operators have to undergo extensive training to develop and gain good skills and comprehensive knowledge to operate them. They also need practical experience and exposure to drive such large and complicated equipment.

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6 Myths About the Heavy Equipment Fleet Management Software That You Need To Know About

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There is no doubt about the fact that the entire construction industry heavily relies on the heavy equipment in order to finish off a construction project within the given deadline. As such, one really does not have to explain the importance that heavy equipment fleet management holds in the entire scheme of things. Though it has been shunned and criticised by a number of people, one cannot deny the fact that heavy equipment fleet management has enormous competitive advantage of its own.

Heavy Equipment Fleet Management- Myths That Need Busting

The heavy equipment fleet management software has been successful in giving rise to a number of preconceived notions in the market. Needless to say, these are quite untrue.

  • It is true that heavy equipment fleet management software allows you to have access to a number of data on the hardware of the equipment. However, if you expect the software to work of its own accord and give you returns on investments, then you are going about it in absolutely the wrong direction. You have to know the way of utilising the data s availed optimally so that you can receive huge profit.
  • People also feel that they can go for any fleet management software and the result will turn out to be the same. However, that is not the case. The heavy equipment fleet has its own set of concerns and therefore, the solution for the system, too, differs from one another. It is therefore, best to consider this aspect and go for fleet management software that caters to the individual requirements of the heavy equipment.
  • The heavy equipment fleet management software allows the concerned authorities to monitor the behaviour of the equipment operators and put a stop to misuse of the equipment along with tracking them. This allows them to cut down on fuel consumption, thereby, cutting down on the overall expense of the company. Hence, one could easily conclude that this heavy equipment fleet management software in no way intrudes on the privacy of the workers.
  • Contrary to the common preconceived notion, the heavy equipment fleet management software cannot be said to be an expensive deal in the long run. The initial purchase and installation charges might prove to be a pocket pinch, but the subsequent benefits more than makes up for it.
  • A lot of people consider operating the heavy equipment fleet management software to be an exhaustive procedure. On the contrary, operating the entire thing is quite easy only if the concerned authority have a commendable system administrator at their disposal.
  • A lot of smaller heavy equipment fleet management companies tend to think that they do not require fleet management software because of the small size of the company. However, this is a myth as small fleet management companies can make use of this system to improve things.

The heavy equipment fleet management software is quite a lucrative deal if one manages to get past the myths existing in the field.

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Principal Questions to Be Asked When Financing Your Heavy Equipment

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Established contractors prefer to finance their bulky apparatus instead of procuring it with a huge amount of money. This financing technique brings the benefits of cash flow in their trades. If the contractors want their procured equipment to be disbursed for itself as it is being employed, then the process of financing can be a development engine for their businesses. When the suppliers desire to differentiate the asset purchase with the appointing of an employee, they crave for both so as to produce their keep at the end of the day. An excellent analogy assists the employers to get the salary of the entire year on first day.

If you take the direction of financing, it is necessary to know that all the apparatus finance contracts are applicable for agreeable tariff treatment according to the benefit of Section 179 hastened depreciation. In most of the cases, the contractors can deflate the total amount of the paraphernalia in a year as opposed to lettering it off over a five year term period. The sum of write off differs from time to time. Most of the weighty apparatus companies have more than one financial organisation to vend their equipments in profitable price. Here in the article, you will get to know the most important questions that usually determine the performance of your selected finance firm.

Is the funding company a key lender?

Many kinds of money mongers are available on the souk so it is important for you to know which type of lender is suitable for your business. Usually, brokers collect money from other loan companies to run their process of business deal. Their interest rates are higher and the contracts are unsecured. The publicly-traded and bank-possessed investment organisations are mostly preferred by the construction industry.

Current Rate in the Financial Heavy Equipment Market

Generally, every moneylender in the construction paraphernalia offers fairly same rates. Be cautious of the shortest rates because the money mongers may take other charges and fees to cover up this gap. It is essential for the contractors to find out those organisations that maintain a valuable relationship with their end clients.

To enquire about the disbursement options

It is good process to verify the authenticity of the financing concerns. The reputed funding organisations proffer flexible payment alternatives for instance 12, 24, 36, 48 or 60 months. It is sensible for the contractors to choose the long term so as to decrease the amount of monthly imbursement.

Is the financing organization proffers tax benefits?

The construction business contractors should examine that whether their desired funding organisations offer any tariff benefits or not. Most of the finance deals are based on balance sheets and depreciation. It is advisable to the suppliers to discuss the matter with the tax consultants so as to select the best financial company.

Financing is an extremely effectual method of attaining new heavy equipment while controlling the monetary budget and capital flow. Knowing, with which financial company you are working, enquiring the important queries and reassessing your contract will assist you to avert unpleasant bombshells in future.

Hire, Purchase or Lease – Which One is better for Your Next Heavy Equipment Investment?

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Presently, construction industry is blooming but in a slow speed. In this situation, is it better for a construction company owner to lease, procure or rent a bulky paraphernalia? According to Peter D. Gregory, the senior vice president of the reputed construction group of Atlanta commented that right now the condition of the market is tentative that’s why the construction company owners are hesitating to procure heavy equipment or go for leasing deals. Yet, the construction concerns still require bulky paraphernalia to accomplish their task on the site.

In large organisation, the construction business possessors hire equipment managers and chief financial officers to give suggestion on the issue of renting, leasing or purchasing the heavy equipment. On the other hand, in the budding construction firms, the owners alone take the decision. The presidents of some of the well-renowned construction companies stated that the decision entirely counts on the financial condition of the organisations. To determine, which one is the most suitable one needs some logical prediction and forethought. Here in the following piece, the readers will come to know the difference between the buying, renting and leasing a heavy construction equipment.

Renting, Purchase and Leasing Options for Construction Site Contractors

Rent option helps the contractors to save their capital. Often, they choose the option of renting when they require a specific item for a particular task. Some of the well established construction merchants stated that renting is more costly than lease and purchase options because it provides flexibility to the clients.

When the contractors procure heavy construction apparatus, the dealers not only proffers instant ownership but also subtracts the depreciation cost of the equipment. The interest the possessors get form the deduction helps the construction firms to conserve their tax amount. Majority of the construction organisations prefer to buy heavy equipment parts as it adds as a valuable asset in the in the balance sheet. But, the majority of the budding construction owners prefer to go with the lease option because of the Alternative Minimum Tax (AMT).

Lease is yet another option that is facilitated to the construction company owners by the dealers. It is the best choice for those organisations which are not efficient enough to utilise the depreciation. Other than ownership, this option also provides usage pact with typical no money upfront quality.

Comparison Between Lease, Rent and Buy of Heavy Construction Equipment

For long term use, the charge of the lease is much lower than the renting cost. Therefore, it is sensible for the contractors to avail the benefits of leasing heavy equipment for long term basis. If the construction company owners desire to attain the equipment, then the outright purchase technique is more economical to other alternatives.

On the other hand, for short term purpose, the option of renting heavy construction apparatus is the best. If any construction concern owner wants to go with the buy option, he/she should asses some factors like time duration of the application of the equipment and its maintenance cost.

To sum up, it can be said that all the above mentioned options of availing the benefits of heavy equipment are beneficial to the construction owners unless and until they have the skill to attain it in proper way.

 

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What is the ultimate medium dozer?

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Heavy equipment are of various types each type of heavy equipment is meant for a specific function. Though there are few equipment that are multi-purpose but they also come with certain constraints and keeping into consideration those constraints, an operator bring that machine to use. It depends upon the operators recommendations if the equipment should be used for a specific work because he would be in a better position to understand if the work is doable with the equipment. Similarly, heavy equipment can’t do all kind of work that it is meant to do.  For instance, you are given a project to repair the road which looks fragile. You know that you have to unearth the strip using an excavator and then roll a dozer to plain the road. In this situation, you can’t use the excavator that is used for big projects and also can’t use the big dozers. It becomes important for you to identify the kind of machine you need for the work. You perhaps need a medium dozer to complete the work in contrary to the higher version.

We would be talking about why we need a medium dozer and is it really going to be effective.

Not all work suitable for all machines:-

Not everybody is compatible for everything. This also goes good with heavy equipment. Construction companies that are engaged with mighty projects need big dozers. However, while doing those big projects, they come across situations where they require a medium range or small dozers because they may not find the bigger ones compatible for the small work. They may see the use of a medium dozer in that situation. Similarly, when a person needs to work in his garden or there’s some work in the school campus or in the university campus, a medium dozer is much preferred machine.

Very simple to use and bar the requirement of an operator:-

The medium dozers and quite simple to use and do not have complex buttons that you may see in a big dozer. It would be almost impossible for a layman to understand the various functions in a big dozer. He may ruin the work if at all he uses the complex machine. However, if the person decides to hire an operator, that will be an additional expense on his part. Firstly, it is not so easy to get a heavy equipment operator. They are people with expertise knowledge about the machine and are usually hired by big companies paying them fat packages. Nevertheless, if he still manages to get hold of one, he may not be able to afford him. In such a situation, the medium dozer comes very handy. He only need to follow few very simple instructions and can get his hands on the machine.

Quite economical in terms of fuel consumption and high productivity:-

The medium dozers are highly economical when it comes to fuel consumption and still manages to deliver high productivity. After a lot of research work, engineers of various heavy equipment manufacturing companies have come up with latest technology enabled medium dozers that saves good amount of money for the user. It can also give a good sales value after using it for some time.

Save Your Life by Wearing Safety Vest at Construction Sites

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Safety vests are seen prominently at the construction sites worn by road flaggers, road workers and emergency personnel. They have to perform their job with heavy equipment in all conditions. The vests are designed to make the wearers more visible to others and hence keep the workers safe. According to the report of Occupational Safety And Health Administration, the reflective material of the safety vest should be sewn all over it to make the workers more visible both day and night. The vests are light-weighted, the loop and hook closure at the front side and the side strap of elastic aid to keep the wearers at ease in any situations.  It is made of fabric of bright neon colour containing a reflective tape that reflects the light of the car headlights.

The fire and emergency rescuers wear ANSI 207-2011 safety vest. These vests are generally known as public safety vests. The workers put them on over safety equipment which can be taken off quickly in the circumstance of complication.

Uses of safety vests

  • The reflective high-visibility safety vests are the first choice of the machine operators as it helps them to be detected and hence others can avoid colliding with them.
  • It also helps to maintain the traffic where it is at its minimal.
  • Putting on a safety vest while performing at huge-traffic areas help to reduce road accidents.
  • Its visibility also enables the wearer at the construction site to make out in foggy or dark conditions.
  • On big construction areas, where a worker is stranger to the other, the vests assist them to welcome a visitor.
  • In case any accident occurs on the site, safety vests make it easier for the emergency employees to locate the injured workers in an uneven landscape.
  • The padding of the vests protects the user from all types of injuries.
  • The vest also provides the worker with warmth making him comfortable in adverse weathers.
  • It is designed with two big sized pockets which are sewn on the interior side of the vest for cartable storage.

Which is better- Air Vest or Traditional Safety Vest?

There is an ongoing discussion about which is better- Air Vest or Safety Vest. At present, both of the brands have an accessible synthesized vest consists of the characteristic of both the safety vest and the air vest. However, modern air vests are designed in such a way that most of the workers working at a construction site prefer to use air vest to traditional safety vests. Development of safety vest set out in some accidental situations is underway, but these kinds of vests are not available commercially.

Maintaining a high-visibility vest is of first concern for different construction employees and this necessary safety equipment provides the employers the chance to assist their colleagues to stay secured and more visible at the job site.

Therefore, in conclusion we can say that safety vests are major safety equipment in a construction company. So, the workers should not forget to put on the vest before going out to work.

 

 

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Electronic Logging Device- Making Things Easier In the Construction Area

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Concerns about the safety are an integral part of the construction arena. Since the nature of the work is somewhat hazardous, construction company authorities have to be extra careful about maintaining safety at construction sites. It is keeping this aspect of the entire deal in mind that construction companies have come up with the electronic logging devices.

Electronic Logging Device- What Is It All About?

The construction area has come up with the electronic logging device in order to maintain and improve the safety quotient at construction area and driving in general. No more do truck drivers and heavy equipment operators need to resort to the manual mode of entering information in order to keep things going. With the government explicitly defining a particular HOS or hours of service regulation, more and more number of vehicle owners are opting for the electronic logging device including the arena of construction. This device has been designed to record the status of the equipment as to how long it has been running and how much time is left for its last run and things like that. Not only does this ensure optimum utilization of the equipment, but also ensures safety that may otherwise have been hampered due to overload on the part of the equipment.

Electronic Logging Device in the Construction Industry

The use of electronic logging devices in the construction industry has proved to be highly advantageous for those involved in the arena. The very fact that they do not have to manually maintain a record of things is perhaps the best part of the entire deal one could think of.

  • The electronic logging device allows heavy equipment operators and truck drivers to enhance the safety score of the concerned construction organisation along with providing a safer work environment for the employees. The device has been designed in manner so as to provide alerts and reports on the engine, speed and mileage of the equipment so that the equipment operators are well aware of the hazards.
  • One can be assured of significant reduction in the error percentage what with the records being entered and saved in the digital format. This means you save a considerable amount of time which would have otherwise gone into exhaustive paperwork and there is also the fact that you are never going to lose data with this system.
  • With the electronic logging device keeping track of the heavy equipment and truck drivers, one can be completely assured of improvement in the errant behaviour of the drivers. And with improvement in the driving skills, one can be sure of prevention of penalties.

Therefore, it can be easily concluded that proper driving of the heavy equipment and construction trucks contributes in quite a significant way to the entire gamut of the construction business. And the use of electronic logging device has definitely made things much easier for the ones involved in the area.

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Becoming A Successful Entrepreneur Lies In Your Ability To Learn New Things

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The word business sounds to be so lucrative to our ear which is why we all want to own a business. There we will not have any anybody to give orders to us and can do things as it pleases us. If at all, we need to leave a bit early, we have the privilege to do that and do not have to answer anybody for that. Overall, it may give you a sense of freedom, a fresh air to breathe and live life on your own terms. Well, all this sounds so good to hear but does it happen the same way in our practical lives? Well, that is a big serious question which probably a businessman or an entrepreneur may be able to answer. If we give a thought to the fact on how easy it is to run a business, we may find ourselves thinking for hours; because it is not at all easy to run a business. A businessman before starting up a business has to deal with many things and also has to sacrifice a lot of things which he wouldn’t have to do in case he had done a normal day job.

Most importantly, he has to keep himself present to new challenges and to learn to overcome them without hurting his finances. Alternatively, just learning about his business may not be enough but he also has to know a bit of the laws of the land. In order to start a business, one needs to know the government policies of the place and what are the procedures he needs complete to procure a license. Also knowing the time it may take for him to get the license plays mighty role in his business. Thus, he needs to keep himself abreast with few things inside the business as well as outside that will keep him going all the time.

Have a role model:-  Having a role model always helps in difficult times. You might want to make a distinguished person as your role model who is your favorite. A person to whom you respect for his work and also for the kind of attitude he has towards his work. Keeping him as your role model will help you remain motivated as you may feel that if he didn’t give up in a bad situation, so won’t you. You may just stick to your basics and work harder to get through it.

Always keep yourself open to learn new things:-  This attribute is essential in almost all the industry. Employers are always in hunt of employees who know the in and out of their domain. In order to know everything about your line of work, you have to keep yourself open to learn every new thing that comes in your way. For an entrepreneur, it becomes all the more important to keep himself abreast with any small update that concerns his business. He just can’t let them go away or it might prove fatal to his business.

By having lower diesel prices, are you making a bigger profit in your construction business.

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The rise or fall in the price of fuel does have a big impact in the profitability of a construction business. A construction company tends to make good profit when the price of the fuel is down and it has to shell more money on fuel when its prices are high. For the last many years, we have seen that the diesel price was on an increasing trend. It has only been in the last few months that the diesel price has started to fall and things seem to be a bit better for the industry. Other than this, heavy equipment manufacturing companies find it easy to sell machines that run on diesel. The logic to this is quite simple.

The machines that move on diesel involves less cost to production which means that they can sell them off at a lower price than machines that are more environment friendly. However, giving due consideration to the current environmental condition, they are also producing machines that runs on diesel but release less toxic. This may not be at par to any environmental friendly construction equipment but it also does its bit in bringing down the level of pollution.

Construction companies want diesel prices to be down:-

You make good money when the price of the commodity that is mainly required in manufacturing the end product goes down. This is quite evident t happen and does not require any big thinkers to research on it. It is exactly the same way you tend to make good profits when the price of the diesel goes down. Fuel is one of a commodity that is required a lot in a construction project. Your require diesel to run the heavy equipment.

These heavy equipment do not consume fuel like your car does. They simply eat up all the entire fuel that is there in the tank in few hours. If you keep the engine running throughout the day, you need to make sure that you have enough diesels for the machine. Now, you run many such machines in case you have a big project to work on. So all the equipment need diesel to function and if the price of the fuel is high, you are obviously shelling out a chunk of money just for paying the fuel price.

Now, let us imagine the price of diesel goes down. This means that you will be paying less and still be using the same quantity of fuel. This leaves you with surplus funds which can be utilized in taking care of other business expenses. You can even invest this money into buying much needed heavy equipment that are more technologically advanced and perhaps is just the need of the hour. So a fall in the price of diesel can win you so many things which are apparently not possible with the prices being high. It is therefore the wish of every construction company to see the price of diesel falling down which will in turn give them more gains than ever.

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How to Select Pumps for Construction Site Dewatering

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Dewatering performs a vital role in the achievement and security of the most construction sites and can create several challenges which differ from one site to another. Some of the dares are choosing the exact pump and supplements for function, determining the place where to release the water, controlling the flow of water in the construction site with restricted space, and performing so as allowing by pertinent regulations like those created by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA).

Tabulation of Pump Operation

The primary step in enhancing the plan of dewatering in the construction zone is to recognize the necessary capacity, release head and suction lift at the site. The amount of fluid and the speed in which it flows for the needed capacity is calculated in gallons per minute. The vertical gap of the suction that a pump ought to trounce to fetch the solution in to the pump is known as suction lift. The length is measured from the peak of the pumping liquefied solution to the tallness of the suction’s ending point. Prior to the selection of the pump for draining out water from the jobsite, assess the condition of the site and consider the below mentioned points:

  • Actual operation of the pump in a particular job site
  • Kind of fluid to be used in the pump
  • Materials involved in the liquefied solution
  • Velocity of the fluid
  • Consider the ambience of the construction site
  • Think about the noise of the pump that whether it will create an issue or not.
  • Determine the location of the pump in the jobsite
  • Decide the place of discharging the liquid.
  • Consider that whether your company requires filtration for dewatering the water.

Assorted Types of Pumps for Removing Water

The capabilities of the pump differ from focused to highly adaptable and from low physical force to high physical force. Some of the pumps have the ability to drain fluid more perpendicularly than others whereas some are proficient to budge water with wreckage. The pumps that are manufactured for discharging solid particles are economical. It is the duty of the construction business owner to select the suitable pump for the function that will assure a secure and triumphant task. Here in the below cited points, you will come to know the several types of pumps used in the construction site:

  • Portable trash pumps are chiefly employed in the jobsites where the water is drained out via hose or pipe. These pumps are obtainable with a wet priming technology.
  • Wellpoint pumps are mainly manufactured for wellpoint and sock draining out water applications. These pumps comprises of the chain of shallow wells.
  • Hydraulic submersible pump contains the unit of hydraulic power that helps in driving the pump to the end point.

Most of the pumps found in the construction sites are either trailer-mounted or skid-escalated. The jobsite where there is no extra space for releasing the fluid, skid-mounted pumps are the best ones. So, it is your responsibility to choose the most suitable pump for your construction site carefully.