Monthly Archives: November 2016

Caterpillar 14M3 Motor Grader

Heavy equipment has been the backbone of the construction industry since ages and CAT machine is the blue eyed candy of almost every major construction house. Any types of construction work and you have CAT to cater you with the best of machines. If you are looking for something to do the grading work, you will not find anything better than a Cat 14M3 Motor Grader. The features that it offers you may sound to be similar what heavy equipment of other companies have to give but when it comes to ease of operation it really steals the show. Operators have found issues with the level of comfort while operating a machine and this is where CAT has taken utmost care while manufacturing the 14M3 motor grader. Other than comfort it also stress on sustainability of the machine. The motor grader can sustain in rough weather and hostile terrain thus proving its metal time and again.

Operators also have a tough time managing the joystick of the machine which is very well taken care in this version of the grader. The joystick is not only smooth but also provides immense precision control which makes the work simpler for the operator. The visibility factor has also been well taken care of. Operators go crazy when they are not able to view things clearly. This may cause accidents which are in no way a healthy sign for any construction company. The operator has to be ultra cautious while operating the machine even if there is poor visibility. The 14M3 grader has quite brilliantly managed this menace and it offers excellent visibility to the operator.

The model of the engine is CAT C13 ACERT VHP which has a net operating power of 238 hp. This sounds to be quite phenomenal. The machine also possesses programmable Autoshift which permits the operator to program the transmission so that it can shift at optimal points and matches its application. Now in order to reduce fuel consumption the motor grader has something known as “Standard Economy Mode” which if turned on will limit the maximum engine speed and will thus help to restrict the consumption of fuel. The VHP ensures that sufficient amount of power is provided in all the gears and the Standard Automatic Differential Lock system helps in unlocking the differential during a turn and locks it back once it gets straight. This makes the operation easier and also improves the power train protection.

Moving to the safety zone, this machine should be used to have a safer working environment where machine are not bumping against each other. The 14M3 grader has optional rear vision camera which enables the operator to have a view of the rear of the machine and thus avoid any collision. It is installed with the Operator Presence System which plays an instrumental role in keeping the parking brake engaged and the hydraulic implements disabled as long as the operator is seated and he gets the machine ready for work. It has an optional seat belt indicator which will blink if the operator fails to wear them.

With all these features, it makes 14M3 motor grader the most appreciated heavy equipment as far as the grading work is concerned.

Smooth Drum Roller vs. Padfoot (sheepfoot) roller

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It is said that good roads play a pivotal role towards the development of any economy. You need good roads to move items real fast because when it comes to good service time also plays a crucial role and good roads saves a lot of time if you have to transport things by roads. Imagine what you situation would be if you have to ferry something on an urgent basis and you know that it will take time just because the roads are not in good shape. Well, it will for sure irk you to the bottom. The importance of flat roads is better known by people who drive regularly on roads and when they encounter bad roads during their journey, it agonize them like anything.

Well that was all about good roads but there is something that plays a crucial role in making good roads. It is heavy equipment like smooth drum roller or a Pad foot roller that gives the roads a good shape and makes it a comfortable journey for all of us. Let us start by discussing smooth drum rollers first.

Smooth drum rollers are ideally heavy equipment with a big roller in the front of the machine and 2 tires at the rear. Smooth drum machines are used on roads that have more granular materials laid on it. Smooth drums are used when materials like sand and gravel are paid on the surface of the road. It actually works towards locking the pieces together giving a stronger grip to the road. The performance of the smooth drum roller also depends upon the moisture the soil has as it allows better movement without any friction.

Heavy equipment companies like CASE manufacture quality smooth drum rollers. As a matter of fact, they are known for producing many high quality rollers for different kinds of roads. It is evident that a smooth drum roller or a pad foot roller is not the only solution for all types of roads and therefore CASE has many versions of rollers for the end user.

Moving towards Padfoot roller which is also known as Sheep foot roller is more typically used on roads that have more consistent and solid materials laid on it. Materials such as clays need a Padfoot roller on it. Using any other roller can simply deteriorate the quality of work and lead to more complications. Pad foot roller is used on cohesive soil because the soil has the tendency to stick and slip over each other. This is why a Padfoot roller which has the capacity to shear the soil with its drum and achieve the required compaction is used. It is to be noted that ballasts can be added to augment the weight of the machine which in turn gives better compaction.

The price of both Smooth drum roller and Padfoot roller is well within the reach of any construction company/contractor. They are not overtly priced like many other machines that are used in road building and other construction works.

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How to handle rejection as a heavy equipment salesman

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We all see selling as a difficult profession. It is because you got to convince people to buy something that you believe is important for them. However, the person to whom you are trying to sell it may not find it to be at all important. So your job then becomes to talk about all the possible features related to the product and create the need for it in the mind of the taker. This creation of need in the mind of the prospect is a real tough job and not many are able to do that successfully. Many ace sales persons have written in their books about the difficulties they have experienced while creating the need in the minds of the prospective buyer and they have also suggested ways and means that one can take to tackle that part of the problem. However, there is something more important that a salesperson should be learning before learning anything else and that is the way to handle a rejection.

Salesmen who are into selling of heavy equipment have a real tough time doing their job. They are actually dealing with a high priced product that is basically sold to people belonging to a particular domain. This means that your market is quite restricted. It is not like selling a high priced car that many like but can’t buy as they can’t afford it. Here the case is completely different. You are dealing with an item whose takers belong to a specific industry and therefore your scope to sell it in good numbers becomes restricted. This is perhaps the reason why a heavy equipment salesman has the chance to experience rejection lot many times than a salesman selling a car.

Be optimistic in your approach:-

Your approach speaks a lot about your personality and especially when you are a heavy equipment salesman your approach matters a lot than anything else. Your knowledge on your product needs to be absolutely bang-on and that perhaps constitute a larger portion of your self-confidence but your approach towards your profession should be nothing less than splendid. You may have been rejected many times and there may be situations when people will simply not want to meet you but that should not deter you or your approach towards meeting people. Your frame of mind should be always optimistic, nothing less than positive. It is this positive approach that plays an instrumental role towards handling rejection.

Share your experiences with your seniors:-

It is always useful to be around people who are jolly and have a good sense of humor and if such people are your seniors you should consider yourself to be damn lucky. You can share your experience where the prospect didn’t want to buy the machine or have insulted you or simply asked you to leave, leaving you dejected. Your senior in this case will give you a piece of their mind and try to ease you by cracking a joke or two. It also acts as a stress buster. Not just your senior but share your days’ time with anybody that you are convenient with. You can also play around with your dog for that matter. It is undeniably a great way to handle rejections.

Go to esteemed institutions to hire operators

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A construction company spends good amount of money for buying heavy equipments and then needs to spend a lot to simply keep the equipments well maintained. Servicing and maintenance of heavy equipments is a necessity that one can just not ignore and if they got to spend some dollars to keep the stuffs in order, it is perfectly a fair deal. In order to lengthen the life of the machines, the owner should also hire able and competent operators who possess in depth knowledge about them and work without causing any unwanted damage to the machine. Experienced and highly skilled operators are rare to find. You will just not find them idle and are usually hired by construction houses at a price which most of the small construction companies will find difficult to pay. Just in case if you get to find someone of this stature looking for a change of company, you got to be sure that you can shell that amount of money to hire him.

Simultaneously, if you have such kind of experienced operators in your company, ensure that you keep them happy and well paid because if they are unhappy about their package there are many other companies ready to pick them up. Quitting of experienced operators is always a threat and you should be ready to counter such threats if you want to stick to the industry. Well, there is one smart move that you can take to minimize this threat if not eliminate it completely. You can hire young operators who may not have much work experience and are ready to work for you at a lower price. In this way, you are not exploiting their talent and can also mitigate the threat of experienced operators moving to some other company.

Hire people from esteemed institutions:-

You need to first make a list of institutions and their rankings. Once you know the names of some good institutions, reach them out to hire operators. You can arrange a campus interviews and hire guys with good scores in their academics, people with real good knowledge of this domain and guys who are looking to make this profession as their career. Out of the many that you will hire, you will definitely get few who will stay long with the company and in this process can eventually prove to be a valuable asset to the company.

Knowledge on machines is vast:-

Going to esteemed institutions gives you the benefit of hiring guys who have good knowledge about the latest breed of machines. Young kids and ideally smarter than their earlier generation. It is just that they are not experienced in dealing with things and once they get some hands-on knowledge, they can really excel in their domain. These kids may need some guidance and will be able to pick things up very quickly.

Once you get them trained in the right fashion, things will start moving smoothly for you and you will diminish the threat of the old chaps leaving the company as you have the newer guys to take care of their businesses.

Renting an equipment can be the sole option for a financially wrecked contractor

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Construction sector can at times show you the most miserable moments that one must have never dreamt of. For a person who is not doing well and also lacks vision for the company but still manages to sustain, this only indicates that his time is up. Either he changes himself and the way he works or simply change the industry. The construction business is for people who can survive the tide and take up challenges, ready to fight any odds at any given time.

People who lacks creativity and the zeal to do something big may one day not even find their place in this sector. Well, if such a situation ever comes upon a person who has sizable number of heavy equipment, he is left with very limited options. He either has to sell all the heavy equipment at a dirt cheap rate or can rent those machines to someone who can make good use of it. In this way, he can still manage to make descent money out of this transaction.

Before one think of renting his machine there are few pointers that he needs to consider.

Get the equipment repaired:-

It would be utter foolish to list the machine on rent that is not in proper working condition. Quite evidently, no one will be interested in taking a machine that is nonfunctional. You need to make sure that the machine is fixed and then you list it for rent. Take the machine to an expert mechanic and get everything fixed. You may also want to tell taker if the machine has gone through any accidents and the parts you have changed. This will let the taker know that few of the parts in the machine are absolutely new and may build his confidence in confirming the deal. In case, if there are any dents or scratches on the body of the machine, you may put some stickers of your favorite characters. Avoid names and images of any players or teams as the person who want it on rent by support a different team and that will deter him to go for your item.

 

Be clear and concise of your terms:-

You may have certain terms and conditions that you want to convey to the taker. You should state all your conditions in points and check if he is ready to accept them all. In case, if you can let go few of your conditions that are not so important, you may discard them. However, the ones that you feel are way too important, you should put them in the legal document that you will prepare before you eventually rent it out. Make sure that you are clear while conveying the rental amount and the rental period which also should be stated in the legal document.

 

Renting the heavy equipment not only gives you money during your bad phase but also leaves the possibility of you returning into this business after a short gap which would not be possible in case you decide to sell it off.

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Fire Extinguishers with all heavy equipment

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Equipment that gets heated up in no time and also has fuel stored in a different chamber is more likely to catch fire. Heavy equipment work all throughout the day and become really hot even after having worked for few hours. There are high chances that the machine may catch fire and therefore there is a need to have fire extinguisher inside the heavy equipment. It also should be within the reach of the operator which means that he/she should not have to struggle to get the extinguisher the moment he/she detects the machine is on fire. The most common reason for the heavy equipment to catch fire is that the fuel tank is located just above the engine and when the engine becomes tremendously hot, the chances of it catching fire increases manifolds. Just a small spark is enough to cause a big disaster and therefore the operator should ensure that he continue working on the machine after giving some break to it.

Now as per the US department of Labor and US Fish and Wildlife Service it is sole responsibility of the employer to maintain fire extinguishers. If they are found not having one in the machine, they will be penalized as per the Labor’s Fire Protection Code 1926.150. But there is nothing mentioned in the code about the size of the fire extinguisher one should have and hence they can have any size of extinguisher provided it is rated not less than 2A and is provided to a protected area of 3000 square feet. Also the travel distance should not exceed by 100 feet.

What the employer can do before placing an extinguisher is go through the regulation carefully and understand them well so that later on he does not have to face any legal hassles from the court of the land. Simply installing a fire extinguisher does not make much sense when the person who is supposed to use it does not know how to use the stuff. This means that the operator should also be given sufficient training on how to handle a fire extinguisher. An operator will be the guy who can help himself if a crisis of this sort ever happens. He will not be able to find help from outside and if he does not know how to operate it well, it is a big danger for him.

The construction company should also put emphasis on programs related to fire fighting and should engage people to attend it. The workers in the jobsite should be trained to tackle the situation as this may save the life of their fellow workers. The Occupational Safety and health Administration (OSHA) has strictly mentioned in their regulation book that the employer has to take the onus to conduct and develop fire protection programs and should also provide for the required firefighting equipment to its employees. Construction companies are bound to follow these guidelines very stringently as it is concerns the life of his employees.

Market your products well. It helps to sell them sooner

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The toughest job to do in any business is to sell the produces. If you are new to a business, it is quite evident that you may not have enough people who know about the existence of your company and in such a scenario selling your products to the mass at large can be quite a challenging task for the sales guy. He may find it extremely difficult to sell the products if people have never heard the name of the brand. He will just end up frustrating himself and may eventually take up something else. So if you are new company the first part of your job will be to let people know about your existence and the products that you manufacture. Tell the mass about how your products will benefit them and why should people go for your stuff rather than taking it from your competitors. This phenomenon of putting your products for all to see is known as marketing.

Here you are letting people know what you are what you deal with. If you are someone who is into selling heavy equipment, then marketing the machines you have becomes all the more important. Construction or mining companies do not tend to purchase machines in bulk. They buy it only when they need it. So whenever they are in a need to buy heavy equipment they will undoubtedly go for the best and you got to tell them that what you are selling is the best and you can do this only via marketing your heavy equipment. There are universities that have courses in business marketing, marketing management and many other subjects that talks about the importance of marketing and how one can learn to market his products well in the market.

How to market/endorse heavy equipment and your company at the same time is a matter of skill and application of constructive strategy. One simple way is to hire professionals who can make the work simple for you. They will give you marketing tips that can be used to broaden your network and allow people to know more about you. First and foremost you need to have a website of your own and should be pretty operational. You should keep on updating your website twice or thrice in every week. Try to add things that people belonging to the construction sector would like to know. The more people visit your website, the more they will get to know about you.

Take help of web designers to make the appearance of the website look attractive. Try to come on news if possible. That will give you bigger exposure. You can simply take some videos of your company showing the way you guys work and post it on YouTube or on your website. This is a good tactic to promote your company. You can also make use of social media websites to market your company and heavy equipment. These avenues will help you a great deal to encourage others to visit your place and buy heavy equipment from you.

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A brief discussion on the construction cones – know its usage and types

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Constructions are very common in the present era, where new constructions are taking place everywhere. Be it a building, a road or even other huge constructions, there is one thing that needs to be taken care of and that is safety. Construction sites are always associated with possible dangers, hazards and accidents. Though the construction site workers know the areas in a site that are more danger prone and accident prone, the passers-by, the travellers in the road might unknowingly enter this zone.

Hence, it is a must that safety measures are properly taken to ensure that the passers-by, the travellers and the cars driving on the roads are made aware of the possible danger. This is what the construction cones can help the workers with.

What are the construction cones?

Amongst the many safety measure tools that are used in a construction site, the cones are the most important ones. As the name suggests, these are made up of a conical shape. Usually, the colour is a bright orange; however, at times the colour of these construction site safety cones can even be made up of a fluorescent green colour. These cones mark the possibility of hazard within a certain zone and by placing the cones, the danger area is marked.

These cones are usually made up of high quality PVC plastic. The better is the quality of the plastic; the better will be its performance and longevity. In most cases, the cones are heavy at the bottom, so that they do not get twisted or turned over easily by wind.

Variety of construction cones:

  • Non-reflective cones:

 

These types of construction cones come in a plain base colour like orange or fluorescent green or rarely some other colours. They do not have any reflective bands used on them. Hence, in case there is no light in the area, where these cones will be used, they might not be very suitable to notify the possibility of danger or hazard in the area.

  • Reflective cones:

 

These cones have reflective collars, so that in dark atmospheres, when light reflects on these cones, they hazardous zone can easily be identified. This way, the passers-by and also the cars on the roads can understand and identify the area that is to be avoided.

Areas of usage of these construction cones:

Visibility is the purpose of using these construction cones. These can be used in all the areas, where caution needs to be taken in order to avoid accidents. The most widely used areas are –

  • At building constructions
  • Near road constructions
  • To conduct traffic control.

Conclusion:

Now that you have understood about the importance of these cones at the construction sites, it is a must that you buy the good quality ones with proper weight and height. This way, the cones will be visible from a distance and will also withstand strong winds. The colour, height and weight must be considered during your purchase of these cones. Buying the reflective ones is a must, when they ate being used on the roads.

Heavy Equipment Sandblasting/Painting

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If you care for your heavy equipment, you will always want it to look new and for that you will be ready to paint it once in every six months or may be once in a year. Sandblasting or painting as we all know it is a term given by people belonging from the construction domain to paint the heavy equipment and make it look like a new machine. Many construction companies and contactors are hiring companies who are into sandblasting. Why is sandblasting needed and why so many companies are now after getting their heavy equipment painted? The simple reason is that it increases the lifespan of your machine. We all agree to the notion that heavy equipment go through a lot of wear and tear and this also reflects on the body of the machine. Now, this also affects the longevity of the heavy equipment which becomes prone to rusting and may wear off completely.

Now in order to get rid of this issue, construction companies as well as contractors hire the services of sandblasting companies. There they are assured that once the heavy equipment is serviced by them, it will come out with an altogether new look and also with an enhanced life.

Heavy equipment are expensive and are deserved to be cared:-

We all understand how much one has to shell out in order to buy heavy equipment. They may take out a huge chunk of your profits and therefore they deserve the right to be cared. Not many people leave their machines to rust. They do it only if they feel that they may not need the machine any longer and are going to sell it off as scrap. Other than this, nobody with a sane mind will ever want his machine to bear the brunt of the construction site and still not be serviced. Painting becomes a priority when we talk about caring the machine. All the protective layers that the machine is made of gets eroded slowly and gradually while it is put to work and if it is not taken care at the right juncture, it can lead to irreparable loss.

Can expect good rental or sales price:-

We all want to buy workable second hand heavy equipment. People are even ready to pay good price for used machines provided they should be in good condition. Nobody wants to buy scrap by paying a hefty price. So if you are intending to do away with your existing heavy equipment, sandblasting can help you get a better deal. If you have old equipment but still expect a good price, perhaps sandblasting is the only option. You can make it look completely new by this process and then sell it to a buyer at a good price.

You can apply the same option when it comes to renting the machine. Here, it actually becomes a must to paint the stuff because you are not completely doing away with the machine but will get it back after sizeable wear and tear. Therefore, you paint the machine well and once you get it back you can sandblast it again to rent it to some other person.

Related articles across the web

Heavy equipment salesman should have little understanding of the construction business

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A salesman selling a particular product should have little understanding about its utility and how it can be useful to the end user. He needs to do a study on the effectiveness of the product in the life of the consumers and once he does that selling the product will become quite simple for him. Though selling anything is a difficult business but as long as you understand the intricacies of a business and the efficacy of your product in that business you will be able to pitch it in the right way. Salesman who gives more attention knowing the product often end up getting frustrated because they probably know everything about the product they are selling but not much about its use to the ultimate user. This is perhaps not the right sign to start selling a commodity.

Salesmen who are into selling heavy equipment should keep in mind the need of the customer first and why they will want to buy the stuff they are selling. This is where the importance of knowing the construction business comes into picture. As long as you do not know the purpose for him to buy the machine you will be unable to pitch it correctly. You will then try to brag about the feature of the machine but little you know if that machine is at all needed by him in his business. You lose a client in this fashion and perhaps someone else who has a better knowledge about the industry will be able to sell it to him. You may only be left to wonder what went wrong with your approach and what the other salesman did to bag the sale.

You can learn about the construction business in the trainings that are held by your companies. They will speak about the business in particular and also which type of heavy equipment is required for what kind of job. Also you can pitch in products like bucket, attachments and other accessories. So it is not always that you have to sell the entire heavy equipment. Some construction business owners need to just upgrade their machine. Now you can’t ask them to get rid of the old one and buy a new one which has the upgraded feature. He will never want to do that and it will also not be a good salesmanship on your part.

What you can do is have a hearty talk with your client. Try to figure out his actual requirement and where you fit in. it is only after that that you can pitch a product to him. Please remember that if you sell the stuff that benefits the consumer he will more likely give you more business but if you sell him items that gives you good commission then you may sold him the machine for the last time. Never indulge in such mistakes. Short term gains should never be your goal and always pitch in products that are beneficial for the client.