No construction manager would even attempt to start building the upper floors of a building before its foundation was set. While you may have a lot of flexibility in terms of which areas of the job you want to tackle and when there are certain tasks that must be done before anything else can happen.

How To Improve Your Construction Site

Unfortunately, many job sites become bogged down in delays because the workflows haven’t been properly established and managed. In basic terms, workflow describes the sequence of activities that are needed to get the job done. Without the right processes in place, work can grind to a halt, as crews performing one task must wait for another team to finish a different task.

With that in mind, here are some tips you can use to improve the flow of activity on your site:

1. Use checklists: It sounds simple, but starting with a standardized list of the tasks you need to get done can make certain jobs — such as equipment maintenance and planning — much easier. A list ensures that nothing will be overlooked and there should be fewer surprises once you get started.

• Implement automation: Construction software can handle many of the most tedious and menial parts of the planning and scheduling process, often with greater accuracy than humans with pen and paper. These systems are even capable of generating flowcharts, so you can be certain you’ll have an optimized workflow for your team.

• Find a 3PL partner: Coordinating the delivery of equipment and materials to and from the site is one of the most important and challenging aspects of any project. Working with an experienced third-party logistics provider to handle these steps could not only reduce your workload, but also ensure that you’ll have experts on your side.

• Improve communications: Perhaps the simplest way to improve your workflow is to make sure the lines of communication stay open within your enterprise. In construction, one of the biggest obstacles to success is when teams don’t keep each other in the loop. Building a solid company culture that values teamwork and transparency could help prevent bottlenecks and redundancies from impacting your work in the field.

It takes more than a blueprint to ensure a successful build. Coordinating and streamlining all the activities on your Jobsite requires a bit of foresight and strong internal practices, but the rewards are often well worth the effort. Paying attention to your workflow and taking some steps to enhance it can make you a stronger organization and lead to better overall results.

Senate passed President Biden’s historic $1.2 trillion bipartisan infrastructure plan and the bill has been sent to the House for discussion and a vote. These funds focus on various infrastructure efforts and include $550 billion in new spending with the remaining funds coming from unspent coronavirus relief funds that have already been approved. 

The infrastructure bill offers funds for numerous projects, including $303.5 billion spread across five years for federal highway projects; $40 billion in dedicated resources for bridge rehabilitation, replacement, and repairs; $118 billion to take the Highway Trust Fund out of the general fund of the Treasury; $55 billion for water projects; and funds for passenger and freight rail, rebuilding the electric grid, expansion of broadband internet access, modernization and expansion of transit systems, and building a national network of charging infrastructure for electric vehicles.

Will This Help The Construction Industry?

Since the infrastructure bill funds various infrastructure projects, it could increase construction spending by at least two percent while also driving the volumes and prices for aggregates and cement to higher levels. There has been continued demand for single-housing families, especially since housing inventory is already low. With steady infrastructure spending and continuing lower interest rates, there is continued strength in the construction industry for residential projects.

With a greater demand for residential construction than additional funds for infrastructure, then there will be greater demand for construction workers to take on the projects. There will be an increasing need for skilled and trained heavy equipment operators and workers to handle all the different construction roles. With the additional funding for construction, then the demand for construction workers will increase.

Although many people assume technologies such as AI, analytics and the Internet of Things are the exclusive domain of high-tech industries, this is not the case. Even sectors traditionally defined by their reliance on good old-fashioned elbow grease — such as construction and energy exploration — have discovered the benefits these can bring.

By providing companies with greater control, actionable data, and faster communication, these advancements can yield greater efficiencies, increased production, and lower overhead. Advanced regulatory compliance software also can help enterprises maintain best practices automatically.

Implementing New Technology – Tips To Consider

However, realizing these advantages is not automatic. Implementing new technology in your organization needs to be on top of its game when it comes to integrating new technology into your existing operations. Otherwise, you won’t be able to enjoy everything it can deliver for you. The resources you spend on them could go to waste if you’re not careful, which is why it’s important to consider the following tips.

• Start by examining your current systems. Make sure what you already have in place can support any new system you choose to add. This is crucial for avoiding redundancies and budget overruns.

• Establish a governance group. Any key stakeholders who will be affected by the changes you propose need to be part of the decision-making process. Ensure that they have the opportunity to voice their concerns and offer suggestions as you proceed.

• Get everyone to buy into the procedure. Simply installing new tech into your operations isn’t enough. You need to get everyone impacted by it to see the advantages it will provide and understand why it is necessary. Without buy-in, your team members may not be invested in the idea.

• Provide proper training at all levels. No technology is useful unless it’s fully understood. Even simple systems require proper education to get the most out of their functionality. Always give your personnel everything they need to use it properly so you experience the most benefit from it.

• Keep watching. You can’t simply drop a new technology into your existing setup and expect that to be the end of it. Even after everyone becomes familiar with it, you’ll need to pay attention to how it impacts your workflow. It’s also a good idea to set aside time for any adjustments that may become necessary once you see how it’s put into practice.

Whether it’s cloud-based construction management software or GPS tracking on your fleet of vehicles, implementing new technology into your operations can make a tremendous difference. Before you do so, take the time and be certain that you have the support in place to get as much out of the technology as possible.

Still Training Heavy Equipment Operators

Construction is considered a necessity, and despite the shutdowns that took place because of the Covid-19 pandemic, construction has continued. While some states have specified which kinds of construction were essential, some states only allowed work on what was deemed necessary, such as housing, medical, and infrastructure projects.

With construction projects in high demand and new infrastructure plans, so is the need for qualified and well-trained heavy equipment operators and construction workers. Associated Training Services (ATS) offers a variety of training programs including:

• Heavy Equipment Operator
• Mobile Crane; NCCCO certifications
• Truck Driving
• Get Your CDL
• Rigging/Signalperson; NCCCO certifications
• Digger Derrick; NCCCO certifications
• Tower Crane; NCCCO certifications
• Directional Drilling
• Specialized Training; NCCCO certifications

We offer career service assistance, which provides students with some tools, resources, and assistance to help with career goals nationwide. Our career services department provides a job leads database, which contains the names and contact details of thousands of potential employers. New employers and job postings are constantly being added to the database.

ATS is open and training students. An appointment is required, and masks must be worn. We accept military benefits and financial assistance is available. Now is the time to get started in the construction industry or to start a career as a heavy equipment operator. Call (800) 383-7364 today to learn more about how we can help you take the next step.

Operators:

Industrial rigging, as well as dismantling operations, necessitate the use of at least one, if not many, pieces of heavy equipment, such as cranes, forklifts, aerial lifts, and other similar equipment. It’s not easy to operate heavy machinery. If your workers aren’t properly educated, it can cause a slew of issues for your task and company. This is why accredited safety training for heavy machinery operators is so critical before beginning the job.

Many heavy machinery operator schools provide training and skills that allow applicants to become certified by one or more nationally-recognized professional associations. Heavy machinery operators are not required to be licensed or accredited in all states. In addition, not all forms of equipment need licensing or certification to work in those areas that do. So, what is the significance of professional certification?

Some states do not mandate the licensing and/or certification of heavy equipment operators.

While not all states mandate heavy machinery operators to be licensed or certified, many do. Although precise criteria differ by jurisdiction, many states recognize technical association certification as either a prerequisite for licensing or as appropriate enough on its own to run some heavy machinery within their boundaries.

Training for Heavy Equipment

Heavy equipment operator courses provide instruction in a range of equipment styles, enabling participants to broaden their versatility and experience on the job, which is appealing to employers. The following are some examples of machinery that students can practice to operate:

• Backhoes
• Rough Terrain Forklifts
• Road Graders
• Excavators
• Inspection and maintenance of equipment
• Dump Truck
• Bulldozers

Pay and Benefits:

A high school degree or GED is usually all that is needed to be accepted into a heavy machinery operator training program. Graduate students of the program discover that their salary as a heavy machinery operator much exceeds their former regular paycheck life.

National averages and real earnings can differ depending on the job and position. Many operators with the complexity and range of experience and skills learned from a heavy machinery operator training program, on the other hand, would discover themselves attracting higher demand and earn higher salaries than their rivals.

Additionally, certain companies will reimburse their employees for heavy machinery schools’ job education and training programs. Aside from the decent pay and benefits, the job is demanding and provides the satisfaction of seeing the tangible effects of one’s labor.

Safety:

If an accident occurs on the construction site as a result of insufficient preparation, it may greatly increase the project’s total expense. Mishaps may cause machinery to break down, necessitating the procurement of repair parts or, in the worst-case scenario, a completely new piece of equipment. Operators who have received rigorous instruction know how to prevent these mishaps and properly find Used Heavy Equip for Sale. They also learn how to best maintain the machinery so that it can be kept up and running on a daily basis with minimal maintenance.

Driving On A Construction Site

Operating heavy machinery, including trucks, should always be approached with great caution and concern for the safety of everyone around you. Nowhere is this more critical than on a construction site. Because job sites feature rough terrain, lots of activity, and little in the way of paved roads, they’re overflowing with unpredictability. Truck drivers need to make safe practices a top priority every day. Read on to learn some helpful safety tips to ensure you do so.

Equip Trucks With Warning Systems

Although it’s impossible for drivers to see 360 degrees around them at all times, there are numerous ways to improve visibility and alert others on the site to their presence. Rear- and side-view mirrors are the most obvious of these, but manufacturers are adding video cameras to newer vehicles to help you see more of your surroundings. If you have an older fleet, there are aftermarket systems available that make it easier to increase awareness of what’s going on around you. Backup warning alerts enhance safety by letting others know when the vehicle is in reverse and the driver may not be able to see directly behind him or her.

Stay Focused at All Times

Driving while distracted is never a good idea, but it can be tragic on the Jobsite. Wearing headphones or using a cell phone while driving creates a potentially dangerous situation in a construction area. This is why truck drivers need to keep their eyes and minds on their jobs at all times. Avoiding distractions inside the cab ensures that you’re more alert and aware when you need to be most.

Inspect Your Trucks Every Day

Many times, unsafe conditions are created by mechanical issues with the vehicles themselves, not operator error. This is why it’s crucial to perform visual inspections of each vehicle in your fleet before each shift. Checking for worn brakes, broken tail lights, frayed wiring, and similar issues mean you can catch them before they have a chance to lead to serious accidents. Any potential problems you discover should be dealt with as quickly as possible.

Invest in Training

Safe drivers are made, not born. If you’re in charge of a job site, you should provide adequate training on all necessary safety protocols and regulations. Safety Tips: If you’re a driver, ask what kind of education programs exist at your employer to keep everyone up to date and aware of their responsibilities.

Create a Temporary Roadway

One of the most important things you can do to ensure safe driving conditions at your site doesn’t even involve being behind the wheel. Using timber mats to create temporary roads for trucks and other heavy equipment makes areas safer. This is because they provide a sturdy, stable platform for machines to cross without worrying about slippery or soft soils creating unpredictable situations.

Safety Tip: Driving safely in the cramped, bustling environment of the average construction site may be more difficult than on the open road, but it’s absolutely imperative. Take these tips to heart, and you can ensure that everyone on the job can go home safely each night.

Associated Training Services is open and operating! Classes start every three weeks. We are taking all necessary precautions regarding your safety and health. We are excited about the opportunity to help you become a well paid heavy equipment operator, mobile crane operator, tower crane operator, rigger, CDL truck driver, or horizontal directional drill operator!

What Makes ATS Different?

• Large variety and volume of equipment – over 75 pieces
• Training that correlates to real-life experience
• Hands-on training
• Experienced, professional instructors
• Nationally recognized credentials
• Stability – in business for 60 years
• Easy tuition financial assistance programs
• Affordable school-owned housing
• VA approved
• Specialized training for your company
• High customer satisfaction

So if this is the right career path for you and you want to find out more about what ATS can offer, please visit our main website www.operator-school.com and request a free brochure.

Heavy Machinery Care Routine

In the past, implementing a Preventative Maintenance program into your heavy machinery care routine was considered a costly and unnecessary decision. It was often a scenario where the mindset was to fight the problems as they arose with heavy equipment, instead of performing the preventative care necessary to keep breakdowns from occurring in the first place. 

Yet, as it is well documented that preventative maintenance keeps breakdowns to a minimum, and when breakdowns occur, they are limited to less costly and quicker repairs being needed, we’re seeing the implementation of preventative maintenance programs in shops much more frequently than before. A perfect time to implement such a program is when you are winterizing your heavy equipment. If you’re already prepping your equipment, checking fluids, and replacing worn parts to ensure it will run through the rougher weather, why not go ahead and put a preventative maintenance program into place? 

The benefits you’ll see that are nearly instantaneous are: 

Problems With Machinery Are Caught Early 

Instead of a hydraulic pump completely blown and in need of replacement, you notice the leaking hydraulic fluid, and the seals can be replaced. These are the type of immediate cost and labor savings that a preventative maintenance program can ensure that you will see almost immediately when you put a preventative maintenance program in place.

Everyone knows that if you continue to run a piece of machinery on a failing part, you will see a continuous downhill slide in that machinery’s performance. You can go from a few failing seals to a pump, seals, and blown lines quickly if you don’t address the problem when it is in the beginning stages. 

Minimizing Fuel And Other Fluid Waste 

Let’s face it, fuel and other fluids are not cheap. It’s a costly venture to own and operate heavy equipment. The price of oil for a front-end loader alone can quickly drain your vendor credit account. Multiply that expense by every piece of machinery you’re running in your fleet, and you have a major expense on your hands. 

When you’re operating your machinery at less than optimum performance, you’re putting equipment drag into play on your fluids and fuel levels. You’ll burn through your fuel at an accelerated speed, and depending on the maintenance that piece of machinery needs, you may very well run through all of the machine’s other fluids at breakneck speed as well. 

The Number Of Major Repairs Are Decreased with Preventative Maintenance 

If you catch a breakdown in the early stages, you can prevent major parts from being destroyed. As we discussed earlier, it’s much easier and cheaper to replace seals than it is to replace the entire hydraulic pump. If you allow a failing part to affect every part down the line, you’re turning an already fragile situation into a potentially harmful and very expensive breakdown, where the entire issue could be resolved with just a few seals being replaced. 

Protects Employees From Machinery That Isn’t Operating Safely 

The last thing, any heavy equipment owner needs is an OSHA recordable. Not only are you risking such an occurrence by not properly maintaining your heavy equipment, but when OSHA shows up on-site, they will expect to see every maintenance record that you have on that piece of equipment. 

When you put a reliable preventative maintenance program or a CMMS into place, you arm yourself with records that are indisputable, and with the knowledge that you did everything possible to protect your employees from the harm that can come when they run faulty equipment.

Extends Heavy Equipment Life By Significant Time Periods 

We all want to get the maximum mileage out of our heavy equipment. It is expensive to purchase, and if you’re not getting maximum value from your heavy equipment, it is a huge waste of your hard-earned money. Why not properly maintain your equipment and ensure that every engine hour possible is worked on your equipment? 

When you implement a preventative maintenance program and address minor issues with your equipment while they are still minor, you’re maximizing your equipment hours and preventing small parts breakdown from becoming time and labor-consuming major breakdowns. By simply addressing your equipment needs in a timely and preventative fashion, you can and will see major breakdowns decrease. In addition, you will extend the life of your equipment every time by reducing wear and stress on the machinery, and ensuring that the equipment maintenance is addressed on time and with the proper frequency as recommended by the manufacturer.

When you need to remove accumulated sediment from the bottom or sides of a body of water, you will need to dredge. Dredging is a process that removes the accumulated sediment. Dredging can be used to remove sediment from the bottom of the river, stream, pond, lake, or off the banks or sides. A dredge is a special kind of equipment that creates a vacuum to suck up and then pump out the unwanted debris and sediment.

A natural process, sedimentation occurs when debris along with sand and silt accumulate on the bottom of the body of water – the canal, stream, pond, lake, or river – with the passage of time. The general public depends on these bodies of water to transport goods to their destination, for recreation, and for fishing. When sedimentation occurs, these bodies of water can be environmental hazards and they can become more challenging to navigate safely.

Removing the sediment that has accumulated often becomes necessary. Dredging becomes a necessity for the health of the waterway so it can be used for commercial processes and applications. Dredging offers fast, efficient, and affordable solutions. Not all dredges are the same, and different kinds of dredges take care of the sediment removal process in different ways.

During the dredging process, the dredge is either completely or partially submerged in the water. The dredge operator will be able to gather the sediment and get it moved to another location. After the dredging project is done, the sediment is relocated to another location and can be used for various things, such as construction fill, flood defense on the beach, or mixed with additives so topsoil can be enhanced and improved.

You will need specialized training to operate a dredge. ATS offers specialized heavy equipment training. To learn more about the specialized programs from ATS, call today at (800) 383-7364.

ATS was recently mentioned in the International Cranes & Specialized Transport magazine for March 2020. The article covers the latest news on the industry as well as what ATS offers for training and how we contribute to the skilled trades. Follow the link to the magazine and scroll down to page 15 to read the full article.

You can find out more about ATS and the training programs we offer by visiting www.operator-school.com or by calling one of our admissions representatives at (800) 383-7364.