Monthly Archives: December 2013

Caterpillar Inc. is about to bring their latest discovery, the M series of wheel loader to the market by 2014

Caterpillar Inc. is going to launch its most awaited wheel loader in the next year. This wheel loader from its latest “M series”, which as an extended and updated model of the “XE series”, contains all the features of the XE models, as well as many additional ones. The features that will be additional in the M model are: an increased and spacious size of the cab section, a modified and improved 12-ton 982M engine capacity, and all the other features of the 962, 950, 966, 980 and 972 models of wheel loaders.

As the company has understood the immense need for the equipment in any construction industry, there has been a tremendous trial for developing and increasing the qualities and features of all its wheel loaders. The company had started producing the wheel loaders as the G series, with a Tier 1 working principle. Since then, the Caterpillar Inc. has moved on to making its fifth generation machine, the M series wheel loaders. Before the M series came into the news or in front of the world, there was the K series of wheel loaders which was the most common among the users. As per the cost of the wheel loader, the fuel efficiency of the equipment was 25%. The company claims that this time, in the M series of the equipment, it has increased fuel efficiency.  The split flow oil system and the use of multi viscosity oil has made this fuel efficiency possible. What makes this new series of wheel loaders different from the rest of the wheel loaders is that it has a standard lock-up clutch torque converter. This matches the engine power and the hydraulic system of the equipment as designed by the company

By the beginning of the year 2014, the Caterpillar Inc. will offer the users with their first set of heavy equipment designed as the models 966M and the model 972M. However, during the middle of the next year, the company will have to meet the expectations of the users by providing the other two models namely the 980M and 982M. But the highlight or the most talked about models of the M series wheel loaders from the house of the Caterpillar Inc., will be available in the market by the end of the year 2014.

Caterpillar Inc. always comes up with innovative ideas and they keep renovating and modifying their equipment. The M series wheel loaders that the company is about to launch very soon is the Tier 4 or the latest engines from the house of the company. The most amazing feature that these engines have is that they are run by the Cat Regeneration System, a system that Caterpillar Inc. claims to allow those engines which have a horsepower of 175 and can be sold in the countries that are without any modification and are considered as lower regulated.

Shipping Heavy Equipment Overseas- Make Sure That You Do It the Right Way

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Heavy equipment has been rightly said to be the back bone or the major support system, on which the smooth operation of the construction industry depends upon. And it is thus very obvious that the use of all the right kind of construction equipment for the job is something that holds a paramount importance. And it is, therefore, not at all surprising that construction equipment manufacturers have to cater to overseas requirement quite frequently. And thus, the proper shipping of heavy equipment overseas is something that becomes an important factor in the industry.

Shipping Heavy Equipment Overseas                                                       

It is a very obvious fact that companies all around the globe will have varying requirements as far as heavy equipment is concerned. It may also so happen that construction companies need to import heavy equipment in order to fulfil their purpose and thus, overseas heavy equipment shipping has become quite a commonplace affair. Overseas heavy equipment shipping can be quite challenging a feat in the light that companies have to toe both export and import regulations. Further, the shipping of heavy equipment overseas can be quite an expensive deal, the cost of which has to be adjusted with the expenses of the equipment itself.

Shipping Heavy Equipment Overseas – How Will You Go About It?

Shipping heavy equipment overseas is no mean feat. And it goes without saying that quite a lot depends on how well the entire affair is carried out. There are certain pointers that you could keep in mind to make the whole shipping thing an experience that is a bit easier. So, what are the things that you can do?

  • Licensing- that is the first and foremost criteria that you have to meet with in the exporting of heavy equipment overseas. Categorise your equipment in a manner so as to meet all licensing wants in the best manner possible. A classification request has to be presented to the Bureau of Industry and Security, who will then decide upon the issue further with respect to the Export Administration Regulations or EAR. Also ensure that your equipment meets all the legal requirements set by the government.
  • It would also do well to employ the services of a shipping company so that the heavy equipment meant for overseas shipping is consolidated in a single container. This is quite beneficial as not only does it call for easy tracking options but also cuts cost by a considerable amount. In this case, it would be best to go for a shipping company that has enough experience in the export of heavy equipment. It is also to be noted that the rate of shipping will depend on the dimensions of your construction equipment.
  • It is also a wise move to find out the import regulations of the country you are shipping your heavy equipment to. This is because not all countries allow the import of all kinds of equipment, though the permission to export the same is granted by the U.S government.
  • And last but not the least. Arrange for the construction equipment to be imported to the “import pick up spot”. You could either do this yourself or could arrange for a truck that would do it.

 

Importance of Contingency Plan at Construction Business

You cannot predict your future. But taking some risk on your planning you can be profitable. By developing your risk management properly you can reduce your business interruption. This is called contingency planning by which you can minimize bad effect in your trade. It’s a fact that you can’t predict future but by contingency planning you can secure your trade future.

 

Contingency planning:

In construction business contingency plan is very necessary. When owner faces some troubles or get interrupted in his normal process, then he comes with alternative plans to pull out his business from interruption quickly. Contingency planning is often use for risk management to avoid or minimize exceptional or unwanted incident. Suppose, you use one shipping company for supplying things and if it went bankrupt then your business process will stop. To avoid this situation you should use more than one shipping lines for your product supplying.

Consider Before Planning:

  • Industrial strikes.
  • Failures in power, telephones,      internet, computers, gas.
  • Bad debt and finances
  • Safety and health
  • Legal issues and insurances
  • Dependence on key personnel / management
  • Depend on supplies and limited supplier
  • Depend on small customer or limited customer
  • Applying new technology
  • Repairs, maintenance and replacement of equipment
  • Competition and opposition
  • Accessibility of roads, footpath
  • Weather
  • Government legislation,      regulation

Anticipating Risks:

You have to be pessimist to anticipate the risk factor of your business. You have to be aware of all the risks that can harm your trade. Suppose, something bad happened to your main supplier or the shipping company went bankrupt or any major or minor accident at your work station. You have to think about your retail location, office, warehouse and people associated with your trade. If, for some reason, you don’t have this location anymore, then it would be a big trouble for business so you should always make a plan B. Maybe it is hard to think and arrange many things, but you should have everything in your mind to make good and effective contingency plan, especially if you are involved in construction business.

Strategy Developing:

This thing will help your business grow. You have to think about each risk factor and have to make alternative plans for it. Alternating strategy developing is called alleviating risk. If you make a plan for your safety then you can apply it if crisis comes. But you also have to plan how fast you can recover from it. For example, if any natural calamities take place then you can’t stop it, so you should always make insurance for your trade. Therefore plan B is very essential as it not only recovers you from bad situation but also fast forward your business.

Opportunity Planning:

You have to be optimist as a business owner to swipe it, when opportunity comes. You should also have plans, thereby you can deal with anything and if big client or huge contract or other opportunity comes in your way, you can utilize them. To get this kind of opportunity you need proper plan, because you have to face competition with other parties.

Want to run a heavy equipment business? Follow the instructions

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It is true that the business of heavy equipment is radically developing all over the world. It not only just a profitable business but also gives a good opportunity to all the new comers. Now you may be thinking that why should you indulge yourself in this business? The reasons are diverse. If you can run a heavy equipment business then there will be a big chance for you to make huge money. Therefore, whoever wants to try her or his luck in business should aware of the advantages that this business provides. Running a heavy equipment business can be a profitable option of earning huge money. As such business needs lots of money to maintain it properly. Therefore, majority cities only have some companies that work in this field. This situation actually helps the companies, making things easier for them for running this business properly and allows them to enjoy a great profit at the end of the day. Those people who are working in the construction field can make lucrative profit by starting a heavy equipment business. It is really important to know that today the demand of such business is extremely high and people are highly interested in this field. As the heavy equipment share a huge importance in the many other works thereby the popularity of such machines are also increasing. But it is important to know all the processes of running a heavy equipment business. As this business is little different so you have to know some important tips related to this process.  Therefore, if you are really interested in this business here are some important instructions for you and all these hints will help you in your job.

 

Instructions:

  • You have to gather money as much as you can to start your company. Because starting a heavy equipment company is not easy, as the machines comes from a huge amount of money so it is necessary to fund large amount for this business. Even if you think that instead of buying such heavy machines you will lease them but then also you need to pay at least $100,000 in order to assure that the company that you are going to start off has enough capital to continue more or less six months of one year. It will help you to make the clients and also get good projects for your company.

 

  • In today’s world every business need a proper marketing strategy. You have to advertise the products of your company as well as the services to a large number of public for getting potential consumers. Therefore it is the biggest responsibility of a heavy equipment business owner to spend his maximum time on networking with good contractors and also with the small, big construction companies. Such companies get good deals of buildings, homes and thereby they always require the heavy equipment for their works. By making contacts with such contractors you will be able to get many clients and in this way you also will be able to run your heavy equipment business successfully.

How to buy a used excavator?

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In mining fields, or in construction sites, excavators are always very much in demand. For removing the ruins and wastes from the work site, or to load the construction materials to the site, excavators are the only vehicles that can help. However, buying a brand new excavators can burn a whole into the pocket, moreover, there is no specific necessity of a new one, as it serves no other purpose than what a second hand or used excavator does. Therefore, buying a suitable and good conditioned excavator is quite an intelligent task to do. This however needs a detailed survey of the used excavator, before buying it.

  • Inspect the physical condition of the excavator:

The first thing that the buyer should do is to carefully inspect the physical condition of the used excavator.  This includes everything from whether each and every part of the excavator like, the boom, the stick, the bucket, the cab etc. are in proper working condition or not. It should also be checked whether the engine starts smoothly or not. One of the most important factors that must be made sure is that there is no oil leakage from the engine of the excavator as it would mean that the excavator was not serviced properly or was not taken care of. If there is any visible damage on the used excavator, then it is very obvious that, that particular excavator should be removed from your wish list.

  • Make sure that the undercarriage is in proper condition:

Most of the buyers fail to inspect the undercarriage of the used excavators. However, it is very important to inspect that. It is very obvious that due to the usage of the excavator, the undercarriage would be a little scratched or a few other damages would be there. But it should be made sure that the undercarriage is in a repairable condition and it does not cost too much.

  • Check the papers:

The papers of the heavy mechanical vehicle are the most important thing. Without papers, the vehicle will have no further servicing. From the papers of the vehicle, it can also be inferred that when the vehicle was manufactured or how old it is. Thus you can take your decision, whether to invest on this used excavator or not.

  • Fuel consumption:

Before taking your final decision, start the engine of the excavator that you wish to buy and check its fuel consumption rate. If it is not satisfactory, then do not buy the excavator and look out for other options.

When you start a construction business or any other heavy business, it is very important that you are equipped with all the machines and equipment. This however burns a large hole in the pocket. Therefore, going to buy branded new machines or other equipment, then the cost automatically goes higher. A good conditioned, second hand equipment, especially a used excavator, comes at a much cheaper cost, but provide you with all the services that you require.

Construction Industry – The Sector That Rewards People For Their Skill

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When we were young, we had huge aspirations and we all wanted to become someone rich and famous. Some of us wanted to become actors, some wanted to join the armed forces and there were guys who wanted to save life of people. In other words, they wanted to become doctors. At that juncture, no one must have ever thought of trying their hands in the construction industry. We probably may have not known about the existence of any such industry back then. It was only when we grew up in life and started thinking with serious minds about our career, that we realized that no many industries has the ability to make you rich in a short span of time.

Out of the few industries available, it has been seen that the construction industry is known for rewarding the talent one possess. If you have the skill and you work with the right chap who knows how to hone your skill, there is perhaps no looking back for you. You will find glory and honor clubbed with good deal of money on every path that you take and will see your career graph on an upscale.

However, there are few things which one should do if they want to make it big in this domain.

Know the tricks of the trade:-  It is very important to learn the business you’d be following in the next few years. It wouldn’t be wise for a novice to straight away take a plunge in the business and when hit with difficulties, he has no other option but to burn his fingers. On the contrary, a person who has keen interest to know about this industry should spend some years to know how it works. He should yearn to understand the intricacies of this industry and take every difficult situation as a lesson. It is this knowledge that will help him to get a closer look of how this industry functions and how people become successful in a short span.

Have a role model:-  Following someone’s footsteps always work. You may not necessarily have to copy his way of working or handling things but can certainly get inspired by his way of work. You may then prepare your own work flow and follow that on a constant basis. However, having a role model keeps you inspired and helps you to become someone like him at someday or the other.

Having a sound knowledge of the heavy equipment:-  If it’s about construction, you have to make sure you have sound knowledge of the tools that are used in different types of projects. Heavy equipments are used for various purposes and its imperative to know which equipment is required for what kind of job. Other than that, if you learn a bit about the repairing part, it will be a bonus.

The construction industry is not all that complex as it may sound to be. The only thing you need to do is stay focused while you’re on with it.

Heavy Equipment Is Not Only Needed In Construction Sites But Also In Oilfields

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Many people have this preconceived notion that heavy equipment are meant to perform only in construction sites and is hardly required in any other place. However, heavy equipment play a crucial role in mining industry as well as in oilfields. It requires real strong and big machines to excavate deep into the earth to remove the dirt and sneak in further down to extract resources. If not without these machines, it would be unimaginable to portray a human doing it all by himself. The reason why people think that heavy equipment are only used in construction areas is because they see a lot of construction happening in and around their vicinity but hardly see a mining site or an oilfield nearby. For them to see how things work in a mining site or an oilfield, they have to visit a destined location where they can get to see all.

In a nutshell, heavy equipment are an essential component to extract oil from an oilfield or for that matter extracting any useful resources from the crust of the earth.

We would be discussing the need and utility of heavy equipment in an oilfield and how without them it would be vulnerable for people to bring out the much needed resources.

In a construction site, you may have seen people timing their work well as they have specialized in doing this thing for years. In the same way, it requires specialized men to drill an oil rig. You can’t just start extracting oil by employing men who have experiences working in construction sites. They may not be of any good to you and you should be looking for men who have worked in oilfields before and that lot of guys can prove to be beneficial to you.

You would definitely need equipment to dig rigs but you can’t have the operator working in a construction project to do the same job for you. You may need specialized men for that who has experiences in digging oil rigs and knows how to proceed further under any given situation. Ideally, you will come across 2 types of drilling rigs. One would be water based and the other land based. In case of land based rigs, you need equipment that have the potential to drill in deep in the ground and also suck in the mud as it goes deeper and then with the help of other machine, extract the oil from the earth. It is not always that the equipment used in a construction site can also be used here for this purpose. They may have some special equipment which are exclusively used for digging and still may not use an excavator to excavate the earth.

In order to dig deeper, they need more advanced equipment than having to dig for few meters. Therefore, the costing of such advanced equipment would definitely be higher as compared to the ordinary ones. An oilfield is not all about digging in and sucking the oil out but it has more involved with it.

Want To Sell Your Used Heavy Equipment – Auction It

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If you think that selling used heavy equipment is a big pain, then you should reconsider your thought because it has become lot simpler to sell it off with a good price. There are many buyers who are on a hunt for used heavy equipment at affordable rates may find your deal as a very good opportunity and may look forward to buy it. Nevertheless, something that is of real importance is how do you market your stuff and what platform you use to market it. If you have already decided the price of the machine and you want to sell it at nothing less than that, then you may give an ad and quote that price. Interested buyers who find that rate reasonable will flock in to check your stuff and if they like it, may close the deal. But if you are not certain about the price you want to sell the equipment and want to leave it for the buyers to decide, you may simply auction it. It leaves you with very good chance of selling the item with a price which is way above your expectation and higher than what you have imagined.

It is of due importance to select the right platform to auction the item as you need visitors who will come and check out the equipment. You can think of two most convenient ways to auction it. The first would be to post it on the internet (Bidramp.com) and the second is to leave an ad in a local newspaper and arrange the auction at your place or rent a suitable place for auction.

Few things that you should keep in mind before you put up your equipment in an auction. The first would be to ensure that your equipment is up to the mark and that you do everything to make it look new. Paint the stuff, put some stickers, change old or obsolete parts, and get it checked from a mechanic who is an expert in dealing with things like these. Once you are done with these things, the next would be to put it on a website (Bidramp.com) which is known to people and which also has good number of visitors flocking in to check stuffs on the site on a daily basis. Once you have identified such a site, you need to register yourself there and check the charges of the site. The charges ideally depend upon the kind of item you’re auctioning on the site or the bare minimum amount you keep on the item.

It is recommended that you keep the bare minimum price as the price you expect to get on the equipment so that once the auction begins and people starts placing their bids, the price of the stuff keeps moving up on its own and you end up making good money at the end of the auction.

The second option of auctioning the item at your place also has its own significance. There you’ll see the kind of bidders coming in and also see how they increase the price of the item by placing bids on it. Overall, both the options would turn out to be a wonderful way to sell the used equipment.

Used Equipments – Is There A Market For Them

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Not all are blessed with a father who is filthy rich to fulfil all the dreams of his children and therefore people who want to try their luck in the construction segment has to arrange for funds needed all on their own.  As long as you don’t get a man who is ready to adopt you as your son and ready to spend a portion of his wealth to give you a start-up in your business, you got to arrange things on your own and make a way out of it. Jokes apart, construction segment can generate good profits if you know how to extract profits from it. However, in order to get into this industry, one needs to have sufficient fund to support his business. There have been several instances where people were out of projects and eventually had to close their shops. They simply were not able to bear any more expenses which led to dump their dreams in the bin.

Other than making arrangements to take care of the operational costs even if you do not have any projects in hand, you also got to ensure that the heavy equipments you own are in order and have to spend regularly to keep it well maintained. Further to this, if you seek to buy brand new equipments, it will definitely cost you a fortune. So let us assume a person has managed to bag in a project but does not have sufficient funds to buy new equipments, his chances to complete the project becomes dimmer. One would certainly not like to lose business for a silly reason like not having the much needed construction equipment to start the work. Well, as most of the problem has a solution, this problem too has one.

The most economical way to save your business is to buy used equipment. They may not be at par with the brand new machines fitted with sophisticated gadgets but will of course help you serve your purpose. The question arise here is “Do we have a market from where we can buy used construction equipments?” Well, we have a huge market for them and the ways one can procure used equipments are plenty.

Spread of word:- You can just allow people to know that you are in hunt for used construction equipments. This will spread out and people who would like to sell off their used stuff may get in touch with you. You simply have to check the deal they are ready to offer and if all goes your way, you can strike the deal.

Check classifieds:-  Many have found this to be really useful. You need to check the classifieds where people sell used equipments. If at all you find something that meets your requirement, you can contact them and ask for an appointment. Go and check the stuff and if you feel it’s worth buying, go for it. (i.e. Machinery Trader)

Check on internet:-  People list their items on internet. You need to google and check if the net has something to offer you. Most of the time, you’ll find sellers that are selling the stuff you want to buy. You can email them and schedule a meeting. In this way, you can easily buy used equipment and give a good start to your business.

Operating A Dozer Is As Simple As Driving Your Own Car

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If you think that in order to operate a dozer, you need to take some very special training then you probably have to change your thoughts. It may require you to take some level of training but it is definitely not as rigid or complex as taking a space shuttle and flying away in the space. It may sound to be little complicated but the process is quite simple and easy to understand. At the end, you may find it as simple as driving your car. Few things that are important is to understand the intricacies of the equipment and once you know the in and outs of operating the dozer, it would be nothing more than a cake walk for you.
Things that one should consider learning in order to operate a dozer
Knowing more about the machine:- If you want to be a good operator, it is of due importance to know well about the machine. You should know the utilities of various switches inside the cabin. They may be for various reasons and as long as you do not know them all, you may not be able to make optimum utilization of those switches. It may also extend the period of a work assigned to you which will ultimately affect your productivity and may also incur loss to the company. Other than this, not knowing the various functions of the dozer may also lead to accidents and unwanted casualties. No company would ever want these things to happen and therefore, one should learn everything possible about the dozer they are working on.
Get some basic training:- Due to technological changes happening every other day, new model are coming up in the market. These models more or less have the same functions. However, the manufacturing companies try to add few more features to make it look more user-friendly and therefore also attach a higher price value to it. It is because of this reason that the operator should get some basic training in understanding those extra functions and that he can incorporate them in his day to day activities.
Buddy-up under an expert:- You learn well if you learn it from an expert. Operators who have been in this industry for years may have worked with all sorts of machines and therefore are quite competent enough to train young guns. They may teach you many things as to how you can operate a dozer and may also share few of their experiences which may help you under a given situation. The knowledge they have gained all over the years will help the trainees fetch more benefit than any other book can ever provide.
Check the web:- You can also take help from internet to know how you can operate the machine. You can go to youtube and check live demonstration. This will give you a better picture of how you can operate the same stuff all by yourself. Though this is useful, you still will get to learn more from physically working on the dozer.