Category Archives: heavy equipment

Two Ways to Differentiate Your Service Contracting Business from the Competition

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As the Information Technology has made the service contracting business reach the mass at a rapid rate, it has become very important for every owner of service contracting business to stand out in the competition. Only providing top-notch quality service is not enough, one has to become a good learner of the market strategies to globalise his service contracting business.  The two most important ways to differentiate your service contracting business from the competition is to use the social media like Facebook, Twitter and Linked In and listen to your customer with great care.

This article will define the above said two points to improve your service contracting business.

  • Use of Social Media:- Social media is the best source to reach the people. By using social media you can share the views of your customers and also tell them about the services which your company offer. You can use this media to inform the people about your service contracting business and why should they opt for you. A survey on the number of users of social media shows that nearly 1.7 million people use Facebook (leaving aside the surveys on other social media). Social media sites give opportunity to the users to communicate with other such service contracting business owners. And if the owners add you in their circles then you can also get some latest information about how they are trying to satisfy the customers by delivering services. This will definitely help you a lot. Account with more number of likes always attracts more traffic. If you have more number of likes, then people will visit your website and if they require any kind of service they will contact you either through email or phone. The increase in the number of likes in a social media makes the customer believe that it is trust worthy.
  • Carefully listen to your customer: In order to attain success in service contracting business, you have to listen carefully to your customer. Find out in which field they need your service. Ask them the deadline of delivering that service. Don’t delay in providing customer service and try to give them some offers or discounts to attract the customer. Try to give the customer quality service. If you give them quality service and that too within an affordable price the customer will definitely stay with you in the long run. Give good training to the customer service provider personnel isn’t a bad idea. If they are properly trained then they will make no faults while servicing. Even when your contract period with the customer is over, call them (though less frequently) to know the condition of the product. And if they make any complaints regarding the service then try to fix it and assure them that it will not happen again in future and you are really feeling very sorry for it.

 

Apart from this building an attractive website, giving online and offline ads, and an arrangement of weekly fun staff meeting where you can discuss about various steps required to take your service contracting business to the top are some other points which cannot be ignored.

 

 

Heavy Equipment Training Videos

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It takes time to learn something and when that thing is related to heavy equipment, it may take more time for one to grasp. It is not that the subject is very complex in nature but because it is quite vast if one wants to learn the entire of it. It may take ages to become an expert in the field of heavy equipment and still one may find scope to learn something new. No doubt about the fact that this subject is a little complex but people can still manage its complexities if they have a platform that can help them to learn the subject in a more simplified manner. There are various machines that are used for different purposes and it is perhaps impossible for someone to know everything about it. Therefore, what one can do is just select the subject of his interest and start learning about it. One of the most convenient methods is to watch training videos on computer and hear from the experts.

Training videos can play a vital role in shaping up the learning skill of an individual. Not necessary that his method of education is important in the field of heavy equipment but it can be used in any sphere. There are many people who find it difficult to understand things that are written in the books and they prefer seeing things for real. Not everyone can be taken to a workshop to show how things are taken care and how people work on construction equipment. Therefore the better alternative is to take a video of the work happening in the workshop and use it as a training material.

Very helpful for students:-

Many training institute that teach students on heavy equipment use training videos to show students how to work on particular construction equipment. There they can see things happening in front of their eyes and get a good exposure. The knowledge that they get from the books will help them to a certain extent but when they get to see such training videos, they will learn lot more from it. It helps them to remember things which they may not do if they study only from the book. They can also keep the videos with them for further reference. For instance, when they go home and read their books they can often play the video and relate things that are written in the book. This will help them to get a better understanding of the subject and will make them an able professional.

Check sites to find more videos:-

The institute may provide you with a couple of training videos and will ask you to learn from there. But if you have the quest to learn more, you can also go to websites like “Youtube.com” and hunt for the videos you want to watch. There you will find many options and you do not have to restrict yourself to the limited knowledge that is taught in your institute. These websites are always a better option for those who want to know more and learn more.

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Keeping the heavy equipment in good order will ensure a good resale value

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Heavy equipment cost dearly and it feels good to get a good resale value for the old machine. It is not always possible to fetch brand new heavy equipment whenever you see a need for it. Most of the times, you have to depend on resale equipment to get the work done. Therefore people who have bought a new machine can expect a good resale price for it only if they keep the equipment in good shape. It is pretty obvious that no one want to purchase an equipment which fails to work properly or breaks down every now and then. Everybody wants to buy equipment that are in good shape as that will also reduce the maintenance costs of the owner.

Maintenance cost is a big pain for the owner because if it fails to give good attention to the maintenance of the machine, it may not be able to deliver quality work. This can have a severe impact on the business and may lead to losing of projects. Therefore, if he gets a deal where the machine is well maintained, he would be ready to pay a good price for it. Nobody likes to compromise on quality as they all know that compromising on the quality of the machine means giving way to your competitors to take away your business. There are many things one can do to keep the machine in order to get a good resale value. We would be discussing few crucial points.

Service the machine at regular intervals:-

Knowing the nature of work heavy equipment are into, it becomes very important to service them at regular intervals. Lubricating various parts of the machine, changing the engine oil on a timely basis, regularly washing the machine, changing the faulty parts of the machine before things get out of hand are few very crucial things one needs to keep in mind while servicing the equipment. Skipping either of the work can have an intense impact on the machine leading to various complications that may become expensive to deal with at a later point in time.

Most of the time, the operator who drives the machine is in a better position to understand if there is anything wrong with it. If he finds any issues he may directly report it to the supervisor in charge who in turn should take immediate decision to alter the parts or service the machine.

Take the service of an expert mechanic:-

When you are dealing with something important, do take help of experts. While you service the equipment, it is prudent to avail the service of an expert mechanic who knows the in and out of the machine and can tell you precisely what has gone wrong with it and what needs to be done to get it revived. You should give your machine to someone who is genuine and whom you can trust. Though it is difficult to get good honest mechanics but once you feel you have found the right guy for your stuff, you should stick to him.

Dozer Engine Specifications – How can one know more of them?

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A construction site is installed with various heavy equipment. They need almost all sorts of heavy equipment to complete a project. Out of all the heavy equipment that they have on their site, a bulldozer is a must. Many big construction companies say that dozers are the most integral part of their business and they can’t dream of completing a project without the presence of highly efficient and easy to use dozers. Dozers are not only needed in big construction projects but also in projects which are not huge in nature. One can do away with any other heavy equipment which they feel can be ignored but never with a dozer. They will always feel the need of that equipment for the completion of their project.

Now we have something which is of such an importance. Have you wondered what would be the specifications of its engine which carries most of the load of the machine? An engine is said to be the heart of the machine and if that is in good shape, any external damage to the machine can be easily dealt with. However, if something goes wrong with the engine, it takes a heavy toll on the project as you may expect the machine to not to work for few days. Unless you have an alternative for the equipment, things will be harsh.

Let us now talk about the specification of the engine of a dozer. Before we go any further with the topic, please note that different companies have different makes and every make has variation in its engine. So the specification of the CAT dozer engine will be spoken in length.

The model of the CAT dozer engine is 3406 with around 315 horse power with a displacement of 590.9 cu in. The horse power that the engine gives is quite immense in comparison to models made by its competitors. Nevertheless, there are few makes manufactured by companies like John Deere, Hitachi etc that marvels many times that the CAT model.

In order to know in depth about the specifications of the dozer engine, the most reasonable way is to explore the internet. You may find unlimited search results that will help you understand the design or the pattern of the engine. Though exploring the internet is one of the best options but there are some flaws as well. Getting too much of options can sometime make things very confusing. You may not understand what to see and what to skip and especially when you are running short of time, it becomes a pain to browse the entire site just to know a simple specification of the engine.

In such a situation, it is often advised to meet a dealer or visit the dozer manufacturing company’s office and ask for a brochure which will contain all the minute information of everything. You can focus your attention to the design of the engine or can have a look at the entire brochure. You never know what might catch your attention the next minute.

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Know the Fundamentals while Operating a Motor Grader

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A motor grader is a construction vehicle which is used for creating a flat surface at the time of grading. It has a long blade and also comprises of axles with engine and cab on top of the rear axles. The motor grader finds application for various construction purposes such as maintaining roads, landscaping. It is very important and versatile earthmoving heavy equipment but operating it can be quite complex as compared to other heavy construction vehicles.

Factors to keep in mind before Operating a Motor Grader

It will be advisable to use small graders if you intend to use ait for maintaining roads and building landscapes.

Consider the ground conditions before operating it. Ground conditions should be the first criteria before selecting the type and size of the motor grader. This is an important factor to consider before operating it because some ground conditions tremendous pressure from the blades while some other motor graders take advantage from lower pressure borne by the ground.

Use a heavy motor grader in case if you are operating it in those sites which are full of rocks and gravels because such rocky conditions can take a great toll on the machine pins and basic structures.

Try to operate a motor grader that has wider and thicker edges because they are suitable for complex construction purposes such as road maintenance and pioneering. Generally graders with thicker edges have better features such superior abrasion and collision resistance ability. Curved edges are narrow and thin in size than wider and thicker wedges, and if you prefer using curved edges then it will give you better performance in terms of superior infiltration and rolling action beneficial for fine grading and finish work.

The width of the ditch slopes should differ depending on the kind of road being built and also make sure that the soil type, ditch depth you use should be rightly available.

 

A flat-bottom ditch can tackle large amounts of rain or snowfall and can provide extra material if it is needed to lift up the road. If the enough to prevent construction site is subjected to severe rainfall, then raising the surface high is the best option to prevent water from leaking under the road. If a surface is raised then it allows to get rid of the snow from the road, reducing drifting.

 

Tips to Grade a Construction Site with the help of Motor Grader

To grade a site an operator needs to have skills to run the equipment as well as comprehensive knowledge about using latest technologies such as GPS and laser control system.

Grade the sites with those motor graders which have hydraulic engines with cooling fans to improve the cooling performance of the motor grader while operating it in hot weather. The cooling fans are important to prevent machine from getting overheated. It will be beneficial to invest in EPA Tier 2 and 3 engines as they prevent machine damage due to overheating.

Consider using less rpm to grade the construction sites, as it will be fuel-efficient and also increase the productivity of the motor grader.

To sum up grading a construction site requires some tips and procedures for the operators to follow such as the type and size of the equipment and ground conditions to operate it smoothly efficiently and get the best out of the machine.

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Safety First In Construction Sites

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The construction business is not an easy one. There are a lot of aspects that are to be considered when it comes to successfully executing a project. Among several aspects, the most important thing to be concerned with is the safety. It is to be made sure that no harm is cased to the workers or the environment at the time of the construction. At the same time, it is also to be ensured that the people who are going stay inside the building are safe. Therefore, a construction must be done with adherence to the guidelines of the government. Otherwise, legal hassles can leave a construction company completely devastated.

There have been many instances where people in charge have been slapped with extreme cases by the government due to negligence in this regard. An American project manager was sued by the government with charges of manslaughter when. He had ignored order to stop working. As a result, the construction site saw the death of an employee in the trenches. Another company had received orders to make payments of about one million dollars for the charges of terminating a foreman wrongfully along with two drivers as they raised their concerns regarding the fatigue of the drivers.

These actions taken against the company representatives have been done justly. The worker who had been fired had been compensated. However, the family of the deceased will hardly be ever able to compensate for their loss. The injustice done is not only affecting the deceased but also the friends and the family of the sufferer. Therefore, such damages are compensated easily with monetary penalties. Therefore, it is only natural to penalize the people responsible with stringent punishments for their negligence and lack of responsibility. That is why all companies are expected and ordered to stick to the construction rules stipulated by the corporation.

The occupational safety and health administration has been vested with the responsibility of inspecting the job sites, the unsafe practices in the city. They also levy fines for such activities and can also shut down projects. Some may have complaints about the apparent oversight. However, the devastating incidents are far more significant and prominent than the trivial inconveniences. Supervisors and construction workers who do not pay heed to the unsafe conditions are forced to acknowledge the responsibility by the governing body for their as well as other’s safety.

The operators of tower crane have been given the authority to get a project shut down if they feel that the safe lifts are being jeopardized by the wind speeds. In this way many visible accidents can be prevented. There has been the creation of a new group known as the Construction Equipment Safety. This group has mainly three goals. The first goal is to get all accidents highlighted due to the construction equipment so that others can avoid such unfortunate incidents. The second goal is to encourage discussion regarding the improvement of the safety in the construction sites, the finally goal is to share experiences and strategies so that new ideas could be developed.

 

 

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Employ Heavy Equipment Marketing Plan to Grow your Business

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As Seth Godin says, “Don’t find customers for your products, find products for your customers”, clears the idea that presently, marketing is the momentous factor of any sort of business. Earlier the businessmen were not required to give cold calls to their customers to enhance their products and services. Even they used to get calls from the potential shareholders for bidding or proposing their shares in high-priced. But nowadays, this scenario has been completely changed. The traders should acquire knowledge about marketing strategies in order to expand their business.

It is known to all of us that the heavy equipment are available in the souk in an expensive price. Hence the construction and mining companies always want to avail the heavy equipment in rental basis. Loads of heavy equipment rental organizations always try to provide best services in order to attract more and more construction traders towards them. The work environment of our modern society is undoubtedly tough and competitive. This competition is same for the heavy equipment renting concerns also. The owners of these firms should require making former trades calls and executing a marketing method to maintain their incoming channel full of prospective ventures to bid. Here in the following, the businessmen will come to know about the effective marketing strategies without utilizing the process of cold calling.

Build Cognizance of Your Organization

The heavy equipment rental firms must use the trustworthy postal services to create awareness of their companies. They should remember the detailed contact address of their potential buyers. Exclusive, innovative and instructive articles, mini-brochures, postcards, guides and the checklists of the companies should be mailed to the prospective purchasers so as to grab their attention towards the concern.

Pique Clients Attention

Heavy Equipment rental organization should mail some eye-catchy advertisements and discount schemes to their potential customers in order to keep itself in the priority list. The company can also send attractive gift items to the customers for instance coffee cups with hammer shaped handles, golf ball markers, cartoons, web notepads etc. It is very important to know that the heavy equipment companies should send only those materials that are read, demanded and preserved by the customers.

Match Your Service with Customer’s Thinking

Another vital step of the heavy equipment marketing plan is informing the customers about the activities performed by the rental companies. It will help in building confidence of the customers towards the organization. When the heavy equipment renting firms informed the prospectors about their goals, services and attractive packages, this will surely works out. The companies must show their concerns for their customers by sending articles related to various topics like announcements, customer, staff maintenance, administration etc.

Scores of heavy equipment rental organizations utilize database contact software program to maintain track of their targeted punters. This software is considered as the part of the marketing plan that assists the businessmen to promote their products and services in an enhanced way. Furthermore, it helps the heavy equipment companies to find out the contact details of their desired prospective clients. The companies can also mail personalised letters to the approaching customers about their latest schemes.

Take loans to finance purchase of heavy equipment

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It was never easy to start a new business and in today’s time, it has become more difficult to give a head start to a business given the sort of competition one has to face on a daily basis. A person has to sacrifice a lot to keep his business floating. On top of it, he has to juggle well between his personal and professional life. Under all these circumstances, when one is struggling to keep his business moving, it becomes difficult to incorporate something expensive in the business. Well, business in a construction industry is all about that. You have to be ready to bring in new equipment if the business needs it. You can’t let the offer go just because you can’t afford to buy the machine. Most of the time, a person also gets business after being evaluated on the kind of machines he possesses. Therefore, he needs to have the machines that are a part of his business requirements.

For small construction companies, it may not be so simple to buy brand new equipment. They have experienced serious financial crunch during the beginning of their professional career. They may not want to invest all that they have in buying equipment and then struggle for finances to meet overhead expenses. These overhead expenses cost dearly too many companies who are not financially sound. This has also become the reason why many start-up companies are forced to shut their businesses and look for something else. Construction segment is undoubtedly the most rewarding sector; however it rewards people who have managed to stay in this sector for years and have stood firm during turbulent times.

Taking a loan to finance heavy equipment may sound like a good option but it also has its limitations. One needs to be very sure that he will be able to pay the loan in time. This will help him to keep his credit score in place and will also keep his business moving. There are many financial institutions that are ready to finance people looking for loans on heavy equipment. It would be prudent to first check the interest rates of the institution before you take the loan. Many financial institutions offer lower rate of interest but they have certain service charges that are very high. It may make no sense to you to pay that high service charge to the company just to buy low interest rate. If you look closely, you will definitely find someone who is charging the service charge defined by their governing body and the interest rates as stated in the norms. That sort of company should be the one you should be looking at. Simultaneously, also understand the terms and conditions well. For instance, the term of the loan is crucial to understand. Also, the plan should have a provision to make early or part payment whenever you have excess money without charging anything extra for that. Ideally, the heavy equipment manufacturing company will arrange financial institutions for you. But if you want to use the services of any other organization, you are free to do so.

Don’t need the equipment – sell it online

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With changing time we also need to update the heavy equipment with latest technologies that can make work simpler for the workers. The operators do not have a tough time operating the machine and can complete the work easily and safely. With the advent of new technologies and people willing to accept them with open arms, it leaves less hope for the old machines. They may no longer have any utility in big construction sites and will be replaced by state of the art technology machines but that does not mean that they do not have any utility whatsoever. It is just that they need to be placed to the right segment of buyers and they will be back to business. Firstly, it is important to identify the right set of buyers for your old machine and then you got to check if the machines are in order that makes it saleable.

The best way to sell old heavy equipment is selling it online. Internet gives you the capability to reach good number of prospects who are in search of old equipment. All you have to do is get yourself connected to the correct platform and start selling.

We would be discussing few points on what needs to be done when you have an old machine to sell.

 Get the machine repaired if it’s not in order:-

Getting the old machine repaired becomes your priority, because as long as the equipment is not in good order, there is no point in listing it online. People who would be interested to buy the item would like to take a trial first and if they find anything wrong with it, they may just turn off the deal. In this way, you lose a prospect. Therefore, it is prudent to seek the service of an expert mechanic and get the machine checked. If it is necessary to replace few defective parts, you should do it without a thought. List the item only when the expert tells you that the machine is in great shape and can be used in the site.

Get hold of a good site that deals with selling of old machines:-

It is important to know a site that deals with selling old heavy equipment. That will be the site where you can list your machine and expect people to come and see them. It is very crucial that you list the item after giving all the information that you can. Prospects will go through the details that you have listed and this is what will make them curious to pay a visit. If they do not see much on the listing, they may quickly move on to the next item posted by some other seller.

Put sufficient pictures of your machine:-

Sufficient pictures of your machine will always work positively in the minds of the prospect. It becomes very hard for someone to make a judgment just by going through the description. They would also want to see few pictures that will give them some idea about the machine. Please ensure that you paint the machine well before you take the picture.

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Training guide on heavy equipment

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For a beginner, learning a new subject which is complex in nature is very difficult. He/she needs a good teacher and an equally suitable learning guide to understand things correctly. Moreover, when he/she is learning about heavy equipment, it becomes all the more important to have a training guide which he/she can refer time and again. It is not that only while learning he/she may need the reference of the training guide but also when he/she is done with his academics in the field of heavy equipment and is working with some company that he/she may find its importance. Heavy equipment contains huge stream of knowledge in it and it is almost difficult for one to understand it entirely. Therefore, one has to decide what they would like to specialize in. Once they have decided the subject of their interest, they can lean on several literatures written on heavy equipment that they can find helpful. However, a training guide can still come handy for a person who has specialized knowledge about a particular subject.

Training guide may consist of many things. It can contain information on how to operate a machine or it can give information on how to fix something. Concurrently, it also has something for people who have just started using equipment.

Training manuals given by heavy equipment manufacturing companies:-

Heavy equipment are undoubtedly very expensive item and the heavy equipment manufacturing companies clearly understand that if they offer a training guide or a user manual, it will be a big help to users. Not everybody who purchases heavy equipment is qualified from a reputed institute to operate it. Many people believe in trial and error method. However, no one wants to break their machine in this process. Hence, the manufacturing companies offer training guides along with the item. The user can go through the manual before even starting the machine. The training guide teaches the user every minute thing that he is required to know. Alternatively, if he gets stuck somewhere while operating the machine, he can make use of the user manual, read what he is required to do to fix the problem and then carry on with his work.

Training guide provides safety tips:-

While operating heavy equipment, following the necessary safety requirements is very crucial. A first time user may not be aware of the safety requirements and there is a high chance that he may skip them. That can prove to be a fatal mistake as he may not only hurt himself or the people around him but also damage the machine or things that are around him. Tips like what he should be doing before he begins his shift, if he should be inspecting something and if yes what are they? The safety rules that he/she should follow while operating any type of equipment. These safety rules can be generic to all the machines and need not be specific to the one that he/she has bought.

The training guide also contains information on how to keep the machine after being used and for how long can one use the machine in a day. These tips should be stringently followed in order to increase the longevity of the equipment.

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