The construction equipment industry is seeing innovative new developments across all categories that are changing the way we work, and crawler dozers—once considered one of the more difficult machines to master—have now become considerably simpler to operate.
The key trends that are driving innovation in the crawler dozer category are centered primarily around operator experience—and this goes beyond comfortable cabs and easy-to-use controls.
Over the last decade, Tasman Geosciences has evolved its business in environmental consulting, construction, demolition and abatement services. Specifically, the new earthmoving division within Tasman’s construction group is working to deliver environmentally conscious remediation services through excavation, oftentimes on delicate sites with existing infrastructure.
Derek Palmer, the construction operations manager who leads the Tasman excavation unit, said the team is typically operating on sites where visibility, attention to detail and precision run paramount to speed and productivity.
Robert Velazquez —founder of Semper Fi Land Services in Aurora, Ill.—is not your average business owner. He started his landscaping business in 2004 when he was still a teenager, fresh out of Marine Corp. training. Like many, his first landscaping jobs involved doing most, if not all, of the work himself while rounding up borrowed trucks and equipment, but today he runs a flourishing business with a large fleet of equipment and 35 employees.
Starting a business like Semper Fi wasn’t without its challenges. After building his customer base throughout 2004 and 2005, Velazquez got news that he was being deployed. “I was in the Marine Corps reserves, and we got notified that we were being deployed to Iraq,” Velazquez explains. “So all the customers I had built up from 2004 and 2005, I just sent them a letter saying, ‘Hey, I have an obligation. I’m going to Iraq, I’ll be back in a year.’ Didn’t really close the business, but put it on hold. Came back, sent them a letter and said, ‘Hey, I’m back, and I’m going to start my business again.’ Many of those customers I have still today.”
No two earthmoving jobs are alike. The gained wisdom of you and your colleagues, the technological advances in today’s equipment, and your confidence in your workforce can all help you properly bid and secure new work. It’s a tricky process – how do you come in low enough to win the bid but also high enough to ensure profitability in the job? We all love what we do, but let’s not kid ourselves – we’re in this to make money.
What follows are a few tips that I’ve picked up in more than 30 years of working as a contractor and a few years now working as a product promotions specialist with CASE, where I work with contractors from all over the world at the world class Tomahawk Customer Center. It may be as simple as moving dirt, but it’s the attention to detail that will keep you ahead of the competition.
Machine control systems offer major advantages in time savings and accuracy – and contractors can start out with a simple 2D system and scale up to more advanced solutions when needed.
For more information on machine control solutions, visit CaseCE.com/SiteControl.
