Heavy equipment is often thought of as being strong tough machinery that is used to power through dirt and rock. In most cases it is. The bulldozer’s main claim to fame is its brute strength when it comes to pushing dirt around. Excavators are renown for their ability to dig trenches in the toughest conditions. Graders, on the other hand, while tough and powerful, are also known for their ability to sculpt the ground under them – and it’s that ability that we rely on for most of our roads and highways.

I marvel at today’s graders. With the use of computer-aided technology, a grader can be finely set to grade the ground under them to precise measurements. This includes both height and angles – or grades. If you regularly drive the highways, especially when it’s raining, you’ll notice the water running off the road easily and quickly. This is because of the very slight slope or grade given to the highway – and it’s all the work of a grader.

There are other areas where you will notice the effect without understanding why. Sweeping bends on highways, especially those that have to wind their way around hills or mountains, all have a slope, known as a camber, that is designed to help the car ‘stick’ to the road rather than trying to veer off. Engineers can determine the precise angle needed, and graders can prepare the road to those precise measurements.

You can learn to become a grader operator in just a few short weeks. Heavy equipment training programs will have you trained and ready for entry level work in next to no time at all. At ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools, we’ll even work with you to try and find you that first job. Grader operators, they don’t power through the ground – they gently sculpt that ground.

It’s still winter in most places up north. And there is still ice and snow on the ground. In fact, Southern Pennsylvania just received snow last night. So will that kill the excavators?

Absolutely not. When a trench needs to be built, there’s no better tool than an excavator. It’s a machine that was built for the job. But, while that’s true, I wouldn’t necessarily recommend using the bucket for breaking up ice. The excavator has other tools for that. One tool that has proven to be useful for breaking up ice is the ground-breaking pick.

Backhoes are OK. They are versatile machines, but excavators are more powerful. In fact, put them side by side and let them have a contest and I guarantee you that excavator will win on breaking ice.

Heavy equipment operators are often multi-skilled operators. If you know how to operate a backhoe, chances are you know how to operate an excavator. By taking your training through a heavy equipment school that trains on multiple equipment such as the excavator and backhoe, you improve your chances of obtaining and keeping a long term job.

At ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Schools, you’ll learn how to use the excavator even on the ice. You’ll be trained in its various functions and how to determine when to use each tool this versatile piece of machinery has to offer. Enroll today and start your career in heavy equipment operations.

Is there a clear definition of heavy equipment in today’s workplace? According to Wikipedia, heavy equipment is defined as:

…. heavy-duty vehicles, specially designed for executing construction tasks, most frequently, ones involving earthwork operations. They are also known as, construction equipment, construction plant, earth movers, engineering vehicles, or simply equipment. They usually comprise five equipment systems: implement, traction, structure, power train, control and information.

Now that’s quite a definition, especially the latter part which names the equipment systems. What should be noted is that the word ‘heavy’ is not mentioned in reference to weight. In fact, weight is not the issue in today’s workforce as can be seen by the use of skid steer loaders and mini excavators. While relatively lightweight, they are still classified as heavy equipment. Generally speaking, the follow vehicles are typical of what could be described as heavy equipment:

• Backhoes
• Wheel Loaders
• Scrapers
• Excavators
• Bulldozers
• Road Graders
• Rock Trucks
• Skid Steers
• All-Terrain Forklifts

These range in size from small vehicles up to massive vehicles (if you can still call them a vehicle) the size of small buildings, often used in the open cut mining industry. You should see the size of the dump trucks that are used alongside them – a single wheel stands almost twice as tall as most people and requires a special forklift when a tire change is required.

Size is irrelevant when it comes to determining heavy equipment. What is interesting is that training for a mini excavator is virtually the same as training for a standard excavator and for one of the giants used in the mining industry. Training is the key to using this equipment. If you are interested in heavy equipment as a career, then start by gaining your skills through a reputable heavy equipment training organization. That way you will be sure of having all the base skills required to launch a successful career as a heavy equipment operator.

It’s hard to imagine two completely different pieces of heavy equipment coming together to make one. Yet, for a backhoe, the combination works extremely well. Backhoes combing the nimble work of a loader with the grunt that excavator provides when digging trenches. As a piece of machinery, the backhoe looks to be an ugly awkward beast. I once made the comment that a backhoe looked like a deformed scorpion – it ‘s a reasonable description. Fortunately, they come with the sting.

Naturally, when you combine two different machines into one, that generally requires two sets of skills. For the backhoe, an operator needs to be competent at working as a loader, steadily filling trucks, or perhaps carting materials around in its scoop. The operator also needs to be competent at working as an excavator operator. This means knowing the digging limits of your machine. It also means knowing how to change and use the wide variety of optional tools associated with a backhoe.

Although a backhoe requires two sets of skills to be an effective operator, these skills are not difficult to learn, especially if you attend a well respected heavy equipment training provider. Backhoes, excavators, and loaders are amongst the skills available through a comprehensive training program, and these skills will help to establish you in a career as a backhoe operator. Backhoe careers are reasonably well paid and demand is slowly on the rise. Do you have what it takes to master two pieces of heavy equipment?

The field of heavy equipment operations is huge and the range of equipment in use extremely varied. You have excavators that are small enough to be transported on a small trailer towed behind a family car. You also have excavators that are so large they need to be dismantled to be moved any great distance – there is no tractor-trailer big enough, or strong enough, to move them. So how do you develop a long term career as a heavy equipment operator?

A career is not just a job. It is a field of work where you are constantly learning, and where there are opportunities for advancement. Heavy equipment certainly fits that bill, especially when it comes to learning. But then, that is what lies at the very foundation of a successful career – your initial training. This is where many prospective operators go wrong, they underestimate the value of that basic training. If you learn the right skills to begin with, you have a solid base to build upon.

That is the second part of a successful career, building on your basic skills. Having completed a heavy equipment training program, graduates are ready for entry level employment. Remember that phrase – entry level employment. You are not going to be employed in a position that requires a lot of experience – you just don’t have it, yet. Entry level employment does not mean you are left to do the more menial tasks – you will still be challenged, and that is how you will build your experience. As you answer each challenge, your employer will automatically offer you more challenging roles. Over time, you will have developed those basic skills into an advanced set of skills and will be in a position to call yourself an experienced heavy equipment operator.

Are there opportunities for advancement? As with all careers, there is always some advancement available. You could be placed in charge of a team of operators working on a project; you may also find yourself in a role teaching others. There is also the opportunity of one day owning your own heavy equipment. Of course, that is taking a career and turning it into a business.

One of the most versatile vehicles in a heavy equipment fleet has to be the backhoe. To begin with, it is two vehicles in one – the front is a standard front end loader and the rear is a cut down version of an excavator. Because it has two tools, it can do a wide range of jobs. Backhoes can also be quite nimble so they can work over a variety of terrains. Their large heavy treaded wheels also help, even when the weather turns sour.

To become a backhoe operator you need to learn the skills of both a loader operator and an excavator operator. For this reason, heavy equipment training programs that introduce students to a variety of machinery are more important than programs that train an individual in a single vehicle. The skills learned across that range of equipment prepares the student well for a career as a backhoe operator – it also provides the student with more options once they have completed their training.

You will find backhoes working everywhere from home construction sites to large buildings. They are also often used to prepare the way for in-ground swimming pools or to dig trenches for underground services such as gas, electricity, and telephone. Backhoes are also often found on demolition sites, particularly during the end stages when a site is being cleared. Backhoes and excavators have many similarities and this includes a wide range of tools that can be added to the rear of the vehicle. These tools can do any number of jobs including digging post holes and breaking up concrete slabs or large rocks in preparation for removal. The loader can then be used to help load the material onto a truck.

Backhoes are a popular choice for those graduating from our heavy equipment training programs. They are also one of the most popular choices when it comes to setting up your own small business. The wide range of jobs that a backhoe can do means it is in constant demand. Interested in a career as a backhoe operator? Contact ATS for more information on our heavy equipment operator training programs.

Looking at all the toy stores this Christmas, it seems that bulldozers are still one of the favorites toys for youngsters. Mind you, I notice a newish toy on the market that has taken a lot of attention, and that’s a sit-on excavator that works very much like the real thing. What is good to see is that there is still an avid interest from our youngsters when it comes to heavy equipment.

Unfortunately, once they reach their teens, medicine, law, and many other professions seem to take precedence. But whenever there is heavy equipment at work, there are plenty of people who stop and watch – perhaps that’s the child in them coming out and remembering their toys. It’s amazing how many people reach that first career change challenge then turn to industries such as heavy equipment operations, truck driving, and crane operations. And what is the most popular unit of heavy equipment? The bulldozer.

Working as a bulldozer operator can be challenging. It is certainly rewarding in both job satisfaction and remuneration. Bulldozer operators get to do many of the jobs that, as children, they practiced in their back yards. And if you think it’s restricted to boys, think again. Girls love to play with bulldozers just as much as boys, and in the workplace they are proving to be just as skilled as their male counterparts.

We may not be attracting the youth into the profession, but we are attracting those a little later in life. Are you one of those going through a career reassessment phase? If you are, you should check out what a career in heavy equipment offers. Bulldozer operators are well-trained professional operators that are well rewarded for their efforts. There is always some demand for new operators, and this will certainly grow as winter starts to leave us. Will you be trained and ready for action when the demand for new operators climbs?

If you start a career off on the right footing, you will often find there are many directions you can take. Heavy equipment careers are one good example. A thorough grounding in a range of machinery can prepare you well for diverse employment opportunities. Backhoes, excavators and loaders are a prime example of this.

Excavators and loaders are very different machinery. Excavators are normally stationary and are generally used to dig holes and trenches. Loaders, on the other hand, are always on the go and used primarily to carry material. They are very effective at lifting loads of sand and gravel into trucks. What do they have in common? The backhoe! The backhoe takes the best of both machines and incorporates it into one machine.

The front of a backhoe looks very much like a standard loader. There is a good reason for that since that is exactly what it does. Backhoes, when used as loaders, can generally do everything that a loader can do, and just as nimbly as well.

At the rear of a backhoe is an excavator tool that is used in the same manner as an excavator. It does the same work, digging holes and trenches. Over the past 20 years or so both have seen the introduction of attachments such as slab breakers, augers and just about any other digging or breaking tool you can think off.

Being trained in all three machinery means you are able to pick and choose workplaces. You are also more attractive to potential employers since they will then have the flexibility of using your skills across a range of machinery. Rather than approaching a career as an operator of one piece of machinery, take advantage of training that provides heavy equipment operator skills across a range of machinery. It can certainly give your career a boost.

Backhoes – they are the backbone of many construction sites. However, I can’t think of many places where backhoes aren’t used these days. One of the big advantages of a backhoe is its versatility. With a bucket at the rear and shovel at the front, it has a wide range of applications. Backhoes also come in a wide variety of sizes – some are quite large and tackle big jobs while others are quite small and can get into some of the smallest places imaginable on a construction site.

Consider some of the work situations where you will find a backhoe:

• swimming pool construction
• digging foundations for new buildings
• digging trenches for pipelines
• demolition work
• agriculture, particularly dam building and irrigation
• cemeteries

That is a very small list of work situations. I could extend that list considerably if I also took into account the range of attachments that can be used in place of the bucket. While a backhoe is an extremely versatile work unit, operating one is not as complex as one may think. In fact, you can learn to operate a range of heavy equipment, including a backhoe, in as little as three weeks. At the end of the training, you are ready for entry level employment as a heavy equipment operator.

For operators, one of the benefits of specializing in backhoes is that it opens the door to further employment options such as loader and excavator operations. The bucket of a backhoe mimics the actions of an excavator while the shovel at the front mimics the actions of a wheel loader. If you are looking for a career in heavy equipment that offers a little in the way of variety, consider a career as a backhoe operator. Backhoe operator wages are good as are the working conditions. Your next step to a successful career is to commence heavy equipment training – are you ready?

If you need to move dirt then you’ll most likely see a bulldozer or front-end loader at work. If you want to dig holes then you’ll often see an excavator at work. If you need to dig holes and move dirt then the best option is to go for a backhoe. Why use two or three pieces of heavy equipment when one piece will do the job? Almost every decent sized construction firm has a backhoe or two and for most owner operators, their first equipment of choice is the backhoe.

Versatility is the key and for those just starting out in business having a piece of equipment that can do a wide range of jobs means they can tender and advertise for more work. If you own and operate a excavator, while there may be plenty of work available now, there will also be quiet times when excavators are not called for. The same can be said about loaders and bulldozers. Because a backhoe effectively crosses over the roles of loader and excavator, the amount of quiet time is much less. The same situation occurs in the workplace.

Training to become a backhoe operator is not that difficult. People from all walks of life and from all ages can and do train to become backhoe operators. Women have also found this to be an easier entry into the heavy equipment work force. After three weeks of heavy equipment training, graduate operators are ready for entry level employment in the heavy equipment industry. By selecting a career as a backhoe operator you can potentially open more doors than those that select single-use equipment like excavators and bulldozers.

If you’re interested in finding out more about heavy equipment in general, why not attend a free introductory class. These classes are totally free with no obligation and are conducted across a range of locations. Free classes are already scheduled up until mid-December so contact us at ATS Heavy Equipment Operator Schools to find out where our closest school is located and when their next free heavy equipment classes are scheduled. A single phone call could change your life and start you on the road to a successful career as a heavy equipment operator.