Every workplace seems to have a piece of heavy equipment that has been designed to do a job for that industry. Because of that, they are not in widespread use. For many of those units, format training isn’t available, however, to learn to operate the equipment you will need to know how to operate some heavy equipment machines.

A good example would be the container cranes at the docks. It’s a little hard to incorporate one of them in the back yard of the training facility, unless it was a port. However, in order to learn to operate one of these machines you may need general crane operator training and experience.

Another good example is the asphalt distributor. These come in a wide range of sizes and capabilities. There general use is to carefully lay down a bed of hot asphalt. This is achieved using a number of devices on the one machine including a heater to keep the asphalt hot, sprays to spray the asphalt and often the ability to set forward speed. Once again, training at a training facility is not practical. However, to undertake on-the-job training, many employers prefer to take on those who do at least have training such as grader operation.

There are a great many other examples in the work place. Most of them rely on you having as a basic set of chore skills, heavy equipment training such as motor grader, bulldozer or mobile crane.
ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can provide that training and perhaps get you started on an interesting career in heavy equipment.

Excavators are heavy equipment used in mining, construction and other civil works. The machine consists of a cab mounted on a turntable atop an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. The term excavator is often used to describe any piece of digging equipment.

Large excavators are useful for digging foundations and other huge projects that require heavy equipment. There are times when you will need a smaller excavator to handle a job. These smaller excavators are also called compact excavators or mini excavators.

Excavators often have attachments that can be fitted in place of the bucket. These attachments include jackhammers, shovels, grapples, and augers. Grapples are similar to claws and are used to grasp objects. Hydraulic mining excavators often uses shovels. Augers are similar to a drill bit, and are used to move materials.

The role of excavators is to dig holes, trenches, and foundations. In addition, excavators can be used in demolition, general landscaping, grading, heavy lifting, laying pipes, river dredging, mining, open-pit mining, and brush cutting.

No matter what the use, an excavator operator requires training and ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools have all the accredited training you may require to work in the construction industry.

Operating a crane requires a lot of training and skill since one wrong move can injure or even kill hundreds of people working on the construction site.

These days, many employers are insisting on crane operators that are trained and are capable of handling difficult situations. Employers who have restricted their employment policies to employing trained personnel have noticed a reduction in the number of work place incidents involving cranes.

Training is not focused on safety, although it is a key component. Students trained in how to use the equipment the right way, how to handle risky materials, how to recognize and handle handle risky situations, and how to react in a tight situation.

Considering the number of work place mishaps in earlier years, there has always been a need to train employees on how to operate a crane. Rather than undertake hit and miss on the job training, formal training to a set training schedule ensures that all topics are covered properly and not skipped over. On the job training often omits many important areas, often because the current job did not involve that area.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools are accredited to deliver crane training to an approved standard. If you are looking for a career as a crane operator, check out what we have to offer.

The old farm tractors you see pottering around farms are a far cry from the latest models appearing in the showrooms. Tractors of old had three point linkages that really turned them into advanced towing machines; tow a plow for example.

Tractors now come with the ability to add scoop which means they can operate as small front end loaders. You can also add an arm and bucket which in effect turns them into a backhoe; in fact it is not just the bucket you can add, you can add any of the traditional backhoe attachments.

Most tractors now come with the ability to add a blade, similar to that of a bulldozer. Whilst they may not have the strength of a bulldozer, they can still do a lot of the lighter work, often faster and more efficiently than their larger cousins.

The old fashion tractor doesn’t cut it in the modern world now and the skills developed on these old tractors do not really prepare you for the modern day models. Even the cabs of the modern tractor are different. The come with all the mod cons like air conditioning, electronics, GPS and some even come with laser technology.

Learning to operate modern heavy equipment is not as difficult as it may seem. ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can provide all the training you require in heavy equipment to make you proficient in the operation of most types of machinery in use to day. Visit their site and request a brochure or free DVD on careers in heavy equipment.

One of the largest machines in the heavy equipment category are the large excavators. They can be lumbering giants, slowly crawling around a construction site on huge tracks. The buckets are huge and can lift a lot of dirt in one load.

As the name suggests, excavators dig and dig deep. They can be slow and ponderous, but they are certainly make up for speed by moving a lot of dirt at once. Excavators are more in the brute classification than finesse. They dig out the earth using brute strength – for finesse, you need to call in some of the smaller heavy equipment machines.

Learning to operate an excavator is not that difficult, however learning the different types of earth that is going to be dug does takes time, and experience. As with all heavy equipment, safe work practices are an important part of your training. Being able to excavate a construction to plans without causing any damage or injury is the most important component.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training School can provide you with the training and skills to get you started in a career as an excavator operator. Visit them today to pick up your free brochure or DVD. Stay awhile and view the online videos, particularly those from former students.

Today’s heavy equipment is built to high standards. Maintenance is an important area and almost new equipment has been designed in such a way that maintenance points are easy to access, thus reducing down times.

Where heavy equipment has really moved ahead is in cabin design. I has gone totally ergonomic. Seats with 5,6 or seven different seating positions, reinforced lumbar support and rotating for easy movement is just the start.

The viewing area in the cabs of most modern heavy equipment is 360 degrees. In other words, you have a reasonably clear view of everything, from the seating position, by just rotating the chair.

Other ergonomic features include dials and guages that are prominent and easily read, hand controls with ergonomic grips, and ventilation and temperature control. The working life of a heavy equipment operator is almost one of luxury – the only thing missing is the room service.

If this is the life for you – consider undergoing a training program through ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools – a new career in heavy equipment awaits you.

A mobile crane operators job can be hectic generally starting each day at the yard where you pick up your work schedule for the day.

Once you have your work schedule, you will need to give the mobile crane a quick but thorough maintenance and safety check. Obviously, you need to get it done before you get out on the job – it’s no good finding a problem on the job and having to return to the yard.

Jobs for mobile crane operators are generally short, often completed in half a day, or a full day at the most. Once you arrive at the job you will need to quickly assess the situation, the ground you will be operating on and what is to be lifted. You will probably have to set blocks to balance and brace the crane.

If required, you will need to assemble some of the crane’s rigging. Once completed, and the crane has been set up to perform the task, you are set to go. Using either radio and/or hand signals, you can start to actually do the job. This requires good hand/eye/feet coordination as they are all used to manipulate the crane.

Once the job has been completed, you will need to reverse many of the above steps. There will also be paper work to complete. Possibly a job sheet or work order and a log book. Then it’s either off to the next job, or back to the yard.

It may not sound exciting, but a mobile crane operators jobs are varied and interesting and can often test your skills. Thorough training is required to operate a mobile crane proficiently to get the job done. ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can help you acquire those skills and start a career as a mobile crane operator.

Some heavy equipment machines use tracks rather than wheels. These machines cannot be driven on standard roads for several reasons. First, they are fairly slow moving, secondly, and more importantly, they could cause serious damage to the surface. A third reason is simple, size. Some heavy equipment is just too wide to be transporting down a highway without causing major traffic interference.

Transporting

To transport this heavy equipment, a flatbed or lowboy tractor trailer is used. The machine is driven up onto the flatbed and securely fastened. The tractor tows the flatbed to the next job site where the process is reversed.

Driving a tractor-trailer may be a requirement of your job description as a heavy equipment operator. Some employers want you to be able to take the equipment out to a job site, get the job done and then move onto the next job. To be able to deliver this job requirement, you need to undertake two tasks.

Your major task is to sit for an obtain a Class-A (Tractor Trailer) Commercial Driver Licensing (CDL). To achieve this, it is recommended you complete a tractor-trailer course that covers not only the operation of the tractor-trailer but the safety requirements as well.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools provide tractor-trailer training to provide the knowledge and skills required to achieve your commercial driving license.

If you travel around as much as I do you will often see the signs. “Crane Operator Wanted”; “bulldozer operator wanted”. If I was a few years younger I would be jumping at the chance.

One of the real benefits of undertaking heavy equipment training is the versatility, and freedom, it offers. If your young, free, and want to see the world, or at least the country, then a qualification as a heavy equipment operator could be your pass to freedom.

You can, and many in the industry do, move from one job to another as you move around the country. There are also many overseas countries that recognize the training, if not the training, then the skills developed on the job.

Wherever there is growth, new buildings, new roads, new mines or land being cleared, they will need heavy equipment operators. If you think about it, a bulldozer made in Germany is going to be the same the world over. It is just the local rules and safety issues that need to be learned.

If you want to travel the world then get your start by undertaking the training at ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools.

One question that is often asked about heavy equipment is, “why does some machinery use tracks whilst others use standard wheels?”.

The answer is not as straightforward as some may think. Tracks first off, are the propelling devices similar to those used by army tanks. If you think about the size of some of the heavy equipment, in particular the weight; and then compare that to the surface they are working on; you may get some understanding.

Tracks distribute the weight along the base of the machine. Wheeled units distribute the weight across axles. Wheels can easily get stuck in mud, sand or clay surfaces; tracks can move over these surfaces with ease.

Wheeled heavy equipment can be easily overturned when carrying a load and hitting a large bump in the surface – either that or snap an axle. Tracks glide over these rough surfaces without any real problems.

Where wheeled heavy equipment does have an advantage is that it can often be driven on main roads. Tracked vehicles would cause too much damage on these surfaces. Ironically, when preparing a building site, a tracked vehicle can cause less damage to the soft surface than a wheeled vehicle.

Heavy equipment comes a number of different configurations. Ideally you should learn to operate both the tracked and wheeled units. Steering is completely different in a tracked unit. Wheeled units are steered much like a standard motor vehicle. Tracked units often use foot pedals to steer and change direction by changing the speed and direction (forward, stop, reverse) of the tracks independently.

ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools can take you through the different types of heavy equipment, both tracked and wheeled. Send an inquiry and see what courses suit your needs.