COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING

DEPARTMENT CONSTRUCTION TECHNOLOGY AND

MANAGEMENT

CHAPTER-1
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT
CONTENTS
 Introduction
 General

 Classification of Equipments

 Earth Work
 Excavation, soil characteristics

 Crane Shovel Family

 Face Shovel, Drag Line, Clam shells, Hoes

 Heavy Earth moving Equipments

 Excavators, Loaders, Dozers, Scrapers

 Grading Equipment
 Graders

 Compaction Equipment
 Hauling Equipment
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS

1. Introduction
 Today contractors undertake many types of construction activities

that require different types, sizes, and groupings of equipment for

earth moving, excavating, and lifting.
 There is a piece of equipment for practically any work activity, large

or small.
 Materials, Money, Manpower and Machineries (the 4 M's) are usual

resources recognized in most situations.

 The dependency and need for heavy construction equipment have

grown with the size and complexity of construction projects.

3
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
1. Introduction
 The efficient and effective implementation of construction
projects requires good management of relationships for and
among resources, activities and stakeholders as applied to the
context where such projects are implemented.
 Equipment types used in a construction project is largely dependent
on their :
 Unit price
 Type of work
 Scope of work
 Mobility
 System of control and
 Availability

4
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
1. Introduction
Classification of Construction Equipments
 Generally equipment types can be classified into Productive and

Support equipments.
I. Productive equipments are those units that alone or in
combination lead to an end product which can be recognized
as a unit for payment;
 Include pavers, haulers, loaders, rollers etc.
II. Support equipments are those equipments which are required
for operations related to the placement of construction such as
movement of personnel and materials, and activities that
influence the placement of environment.
 Include represented hoists, lighting sets, vibrators, scaffolds as
typical support equipments

5
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
1. Introduction
Classification of Construction Equipments
 Another way of classifying construction equipments can also be

based on whether the construction is a heavy or light construction

works or services.
I. Heavy: Road and Hydro Power works, Large Irrigation
schemes, Water Supply and Sewage plants and High Rise
buildings and often called equipment intensive.
II. Light: Low rise buildings, water supply and sewerage lines,
electric and telecommunication lines and small irrigation
schemes and called labor intensive services.

6
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
1. Introduction
Classification of Construction Equipments
 For the purpose of this course two major classifications of

equipments largely based on the type of works involved are covered.

I. Construction Equipments
 Earth works equipments: Bulldozers, Shovels, Clamshells and
Draglines, Loaders, Graders, Scrappers, Rollers, Drills, Grouting pumps,
Pile driving and Hammers.
 Hauling and Hoisting equipments: Tractors, Normal and Dump trucks,
Scrapers, Hoists, Conveyors and Cranes.
 Compaction and stabilization equipments- Compactors
 Foundation Equipments - Pile Driving Equipments
 Pumping Equipments - Pumps, Hoses, Pipes, and Compressors.
 Concreting equipment: Mixers, Vibrators
 Tunnelling equipment
 Drilling and blasting equipment

7
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
1. Introduction
Classification of Construction Equipments
II. Construction Plants
 Aggregate production plants,
 Crushers, Screens, Conveyors, and Feeders.
 Asphalt mixing plant and
 Aggregate Batchers, Bitumen Emulsifier, and
Mixers.
 Concrete Batching Plants
 Feeders, Mixers and Silos.

8
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
 Earth work includes:

 Site preparation, excavation, loading, hauling

 Embankment construction,
 Backfilling, dredging,
 Preparing base course,
 Sub-base and sub-grade,
 Compaction, road surfacing
 All the above works involve the use of a large number of highly

efficient and versatile equipment.

9
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
 Earth work equipments are broadly classified into earth moving,

compaction, grading and hauling equipments.

Earth Work
 Definition:- Earth work is a process of moving soil or rock from one

location to the other and processing it, so that it meets construction

requirements of location, elevation, density, moisture content, etc.
 The proper selection of these equipment and the length of time they

will have to be used are an essential part of the estimator’s work.

10
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
A. Excavators B
B. Loaders A
C. Shovels
D. Clamshells
E. Draglines
F. Scrapers
G. Dumpers D
C
H. Dozers
I. Graders
J. Rollers
F G

E
H
I J
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Excavation Types
 Common Excavation: refers to ordinary earth excavation.

 Rock Excavation: rock excavation cannot be done by ordinary earth

handling equipment.
 Rock materials must be removed by drilling and blasting or by
some other methods.
 This normally results in a considerably greater expense than
earth excavation.
 Muck Excavation: includes materials that will decay or produce

subsidence in embankments.
 It is usually a soft organic material having a high water content.

12
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
EXCAVATION
 Muck Excavation:

 Typically, it would include such things as decaying stumps,

roots, logs, and humus.
 These materials are hard to handle and can present special
construction problems both at their point of excavation, and in
transportation and disposal.
 Unclassified Excavation: refers to the materials that cannot be

defined as soil or rock.

 The removal of common excavation will not require the use of
explosives, although tractors equipped with rippers may be used
to loosen consolidated formations.

13
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
General Soil Characteristics
 As earth moving equipments are mostly related to woks related to

soil, important aspects of soil shall be reviewed.

 From the characteristics of soils trafficability, loadability and volume

change are vital for earth works. Accordingly,

 Trafficability - property that shows the ability of soil to support
repeated traffic loading
 Loadability - property that tells the ease or difficulty of excavating
and loading
 Soil Volume Change - property that is related with volumes of soil
samples on different stress or compaction levels.

14
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Soil Volume Change Characteristics
 There are three principal conditions or states in which soil may exist:

bank, loose, and compacted. The meanings of these terms are as

follows:
 Bank State - This is the state when the material is in its natural
state i.e. before disturbance. Often referred to as “in – place’’ or “in
situ.’’
 Unit - Bank cubic meter [Bm3]
 Loose State - This is the state after the material is excavated or
disturbed.
 Unit - Loose cubic meter [Lm3]
 Compacted State - This is the state after the material is compacted.
 Unit- Compact cubic meter [Cm3].

15
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Soil Volume Change Characteristics

Bank Unit (Bm3) Loose cubic meter [Lm3] Compact cubic meter [Cm3].

16
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Soil Volume Change Characteristics
Relationship between the three states

17
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Soil Volume Change Characteristics
 Load and Shrinkage Factors:

 In performing earthmoving calculations, it is important to

convert all material volumes’ to common unit of measure.

 Bank cubic meter is most commonly used

 Pay load is the volume unit specified as the basis for payment

in an earth moving contract.

18
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
Soil Volume Change Characteristics
 Swell values for different class of earth

19
 CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
 Common Features
 Mounting
 Crawlers/Trucks
 Wheels
 Trucks
 Superstructure or control room
 Front end attachment

20
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
A. Face Shovel
 Face shovel is equipment used mainly in quarries, pits and on construction
sites to excavate and load blasted rock.
 These equipments are more effective for excavations above the wheel or
grade level.
 The basic parts of a power shovel include the mounting, cab, boom,
dipper stick, dipper (bucket), and hoist line.
 Optimum depth of cut: is that depth which produces the greatest
output and at which the dipper comes up with full load without undue
crowding.
 The depth varies with the class of soil and the size of the dipper.

 It may cost about 10 Million ETB

21
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
A. Face Shovel
 The output of a shovel is

affected by numerous factors,

including the following:
 Class of material,
 depth of cut,
 angle of swing,
 job conditions,
 management conditions,
 size of hauling units,
 skill of operator and
 physical condition of the
shovel. Wheel Grade Level
22
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
 Draglines are used to excavate earth and load it into hauling units,

such as trucks or tractors-pulled wagons, or deposit it into levees,

dams and spoil banks near the pits from which it was excavated.
 These equipments are more efficient for excavation below the grade

level and have the longest reach of all shovel equipments.

 A dragline can be used for dragging out sediments and is efficient

for under water construction.

 These equipments are weak while excavating hard materials and have

a lesser productivity than a face shovels.

23
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
 Basic Components of a drag line

24
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
 Types of Drag Lines: Drag lines may be divided into three types:

 Crawler-mounted
 Wheel-mounted, self-propelled
 Truck-mounted
 Crawler-mounted draglines can operate over soft ground conditions

that would not support wheel -or truck- mounted equipment.

 The travel speed of a crawler machine is very slow, frequently
less than 1 mph,
 It is necessary to use auxiliary, hauling equipment to transport the
unit from one job to another.
 Wheel-and truck-mounted units may have travel speeds in excess of 30

mph.

25
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
Size of a Drag Line
 The size of a dragline is indicated by the size of the bucket, expressed

in cubic meter (cu m).

 Most draglines may handle more than one size bucket, depending on

the length of the boom utilized and the class and weight of the
material excavated.
 Since the maximum lifting capacity of a dragline is limited by the

force which will tilt the machine over, it is necessary to reduce the
size of the bucket when a long boom is used or when the excavated
material has a high unit weight.
 In practice, the combined weight of the bucket and its load should not

be greater than 75% of the force required to tilt the machine.

26
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
Operation of a Drag Line

27
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
B. Drag Line
Output of drug lines
 The output of drag lines will vary with the following factors

 Class of material
 Depth of cut
 Angle of swing
 Size and type of bucket
 Length of boom
 Method of disposal, casting, or loading
 Size of the hauling units, when used
 Skill of the operator
 Physical condition of the machine
 Job conditions

28
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
C. Clamshells
 Clamshells are used primarily for handling loose materials such as

sand, gravel, crushed stone, coal, etc. and for removing materials
from inside cofferdams, pier foundations, sewer manholes, sheet-
lined trenches, etc.
 They are specially suited to vertically lifting materials from one

location to another, as in charging hoppers and overhead bins.

 The limits of vertical movements may be relatively large when they

are used with long crane booms.

 Clamshell buckets are available in various sizes, and in heavy-duty

types for digging, medium-weight types for general-purpose work

and lightweight types for rehandling light materials.


29
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
C. Clamshells
 Manufacturers supply buckets either with removable teeth or without

teeth.
 Teeth are used in digging the harder types of materials but are not

required when a bucket is used for re-handling purposes.

30
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
C. Clamshells
 The capacity of a clamshell bucket is usually given in cubic meter.

 The variable factors affecting operations include:

 The difficulty of loading the bucket,

 The size load obtainable,
 The height of lift,
 The angle of swing,
 The method of disposing of the load, and
 The experience of the operator.

31
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes
 Hoes are used primarily to excavate below the natural surface of the

ground on which the machine rests.

 hoe is sometimes referred to by other names, such as backhoe or back

shovel.
 They are adapted to excavating trenches, pits for basements, and

general grading work, which requires precise control of depths.

 Because of their rigidity they are superior to draglines in operating

on close-range work and dumping into trucks.

 Because of the direct pull on the bucket, backhoes may exert greater

tooth pressures than face shovels.

 In storm drain and utility work the hoe can perform the trench

excavation and handle the pipe, eliminating a second machine.

32
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes
Basic component of backhoes

33
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes
Hoe Buckets
 There are special buckets for

everything from light sand to

hard rock digging.

Bucket option

Teeth option

34
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes
Hydraulic Hoes
 Bucket penetration (break out force) is developed by the hydraulic

cylinders of the boom, stick and bucket.

Stick Bucket Boom

35
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes
Hydraulic Hoe Types
 The hoe can be track or wheel mounted

36
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
D. Hoes

37
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.1 Crane Shovel Family
Comparison between the shovel family

38
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2. Earth Work Equipments
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
 Replaced the cable operated crane shove family

 Excavators are basically digging machines, having the following

three main components

 An undercarriage to give mobility. This may be crawler track
mounted or wheel mounted.
 A superstructure with operator’s cabin mounted on either a slew
ring to traverse through 360° or on a rigid frame.
 Hydraulically articulated boom and dipper arms with bucket.
 Excavators are designed to excavate below the ground surface on

which the machine rests.

 Good mobility and versatility and excellent for general-purpose work,

such as excavating trenches and pits.

39
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Basic Parts of Excavator

40
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
 Functions of excavators:

 Excavating – Earthworks
 Loading Excavated Material
 Scarification
 Making of Drains
 Advantages of hydraulic excavators include:

 Faster cycle time,

 Higher bucket penetrating force,
 More precise digging, and easier operator control.
 Many attachments can be made to increase the versatility of
the equipments.

41
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Types of excavators
 Excavators are of the following types based on the type of carriers on

which they are mounted:

I. Crawler mounted excavator
II. Truck mounted excavator
III. Self propelled excavator
IV. Excavators mounted on barge or rail
I. Crawler mounted excavator:
 These excavators are mounted on the crawler system and are very

suitable for carrying out large works in rough terrain.

42
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Types of excavators
I. Crawler mounted excavators:
 Crawler excavators have the following main

characteristics;
 Can be used for work on soft or wet grounds
 Can be used on sharp rocks or other adverse
conditions
 These can climb steep grades (even up to 40
percent)
 Requires very less turning space
 Have very less speed for travelling
 Can be shifted from one site to another only
on trailors
43
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Types of excavators
II. Truck mounted excavators:
 These excavators are mounted on truck chassis and has the

following main characteristics:

 High road speed and mobility is the main advantage.
 Lower stability over sides and hence require counter-weight or
outriggers.
 Require more operating space.
 Tyres give high ground pressure and hence it requires firm and
smooth operating locations.
 Have two engines and two cabs, separately for truck chassis and
excavator.

44
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Types of excavators
III. Self propelled excavators:
 These excavators are self propelled and has rubber tyres. The main

characteristics are:
 Medium travel speed generally between 10-30 Km per hour.
 Has one engine and one cab for control by one operator.
IV. Excavators on barge or rail:
 These excavators are mounted on barge or rail to carry out work of

excavation in water or near railway line respectively.

45
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
A. Excavators
Common attachments
 Some common attachments include:

 Augers: Drills holes for poles, posts,

soil sampling, and ground
improvement
 Jack Hammer: vibratory hammer used
to break up concrete and rock.
 Bucket Ripper: The bucket sides and
bottom are lined with ripper teeth to
break up hard soil or soft rock.
 Thumb Bucket: attached to bucket to
provide a hook capacity.

46
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
 A bucket is attached to the arms and capable of being raised, lowered,

and dumped through mechanical or hydraulic controls.

 The loaders having bucket in the front, known as “front end loaders”

are very common.

 The loaders are versatile, self propelled equipment mounted either on

crawler or wheel-type running gear.

 These are equipments used primarily:

 To load excavated materials to a hauling unit,

 Excavate soft to medium materials,
 Loading hoppers,
 Stockpiling materials,
 Backfilling ditches, and
 Moving concrete and other construction materials.
47
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Basic Parts of a loader

48
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Types of Loaders
 Loaders are of the following two types:

 Crawler loaders
 Wheel Loaders

49
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Types of Loaders
I. Crawler loaders
 Crawler track types are generally preferred for digging and loading

jobs where ground conditions are poor and low pressure

characteristics are required.
 They are preferable for applications involving rock and sharp stony

ground as there is no possibility of tyre damage.

 These are best employed for short moves between loading and

dumping points.
 They should be transported from one site to another after loading on

the trailors.

50
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Types of Loaders
II. Wheel loaders
 As a result of the development of more capable power trains (axel and

tires), there was a steady trend towards wheel loaders at the expense
of crawlers.
 Wheel loaders are generally four wheel drive. However, for handling

light jobs on good ground conditions two-wheel drive varients are

also used.
 Four wheel drive loaders are generally used for construction jobs,

whereas, two wheel drive loaders are used for bulk handling of coal,
cement, fertilizer etc.

51
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
II. Wheel loaders
 From manoeuvrability point of view, wheel loaders are of

A. Articulated type (Pivot steer)

B. Rigid frame- two wheel steer or all wheel steer.
A. Articulated type of loaders
 They are hinged in the middle of the front and rear axels.

 Due to their operational characteristics and capability of working in

limited space and short turning radius, resulting higher speed of

work, they have become popular.
 The articulation permits the loader to pivot 30-45 degree either side

of the center.

52
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
II. Wheel loaders
A. Articulated type of loaders
 Some advantage of articulated type of loaders are:

 Quick manoeuvring and thereby easier spotting of loads

 Less rolling resistance on turns
 Better mobility on soft surface
 Give better performance and high productivity.
B. Rigid frame type loaders
 These are comparatively cheaper than articulated frame type of

loaders.
 Manoeuvring back and forth before dumping is required in most cases.

 Rigid frame loaders are of two types, namely two wheel steer and all

wheel steer.
53
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
II. Wheel loaders
 Some models of wheel loaders are designed as a combination of a

backhoe and loader and often called backhoe loader.

54
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Backhoe loader features
 Very common piece of equipment
 Many subcontractors own/lease
 Very versatile
 Easily transported
 “Low” maintenance costs
 Operator “friendly”
 Easily rented

55
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Operations
 Loaders are used to carry out the following main operations;

A. Loading
 Loading operation is the main operation performed by the loaders.

 Loading consists of scooping, lifting, turning and dumping materials

such as sand, gravel, and crushed materials from stockpiles, bank or

construction site into the hauling units.
B. Hauling
 Wheel loaders are excellent for moving loose materials over short

distances to dump into hauling units, hoppers, conveyors, bins, or any

other place of work in the construction site.

56
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Operations
C. Excavating
 Crawler loaders and heavy duty wheel loaders are excellent for many

excavation jobs.
 These loaders can excavate as well as lift the excavated material and

dump it into trucks or on the stockpiles

D. Clearing
 Loaders can scoop up and load the debris of demolished buildings into

hauling units.
 Loaders are the first equipment to prepare the site for building and

construction operations; and also the last equipment in order to

backfill, spread, level and top with selected good soil.

57
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Attachments
 The following are main attachments which can be fitted to a wheel

loader
a) Back filling attachment
 Back filling can be done with the bucket of this attachment when used

with the loader.

b) Forklift attachment
 An industrial forklift when attached with the loader gives more

stability, more tractive power and greater clearance than the normal.
c) Sweeping attachment
 A sweeping attachment can be fitted to a wheel loader for general

cleaning of roads and parking areas in the industries.

58
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
B. Loaders
Attachments
 The following are main attachments which can be fitted to a wheel

loader
d) Multi purpose bucket
 A multi purpose or four-in-one bucket can be used as a dozer, scraper,

clamshell and a general purpose loading.

e) Ripper-scarifier a attachment
 These are mounted on the rear of the loader to loosen hard surfaces.

f) Miscellaneous other attachments

 A large number of attachments for specialized jobs are also available

for fitting to the loaders. Some of these are pipe laying attachments,
pole handling attachments, boom for loader crane set up.

59
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
 Dozers are machines designed primarily for cutting and pushing the

material over relatively short distance.

 They consist of a tractor equipped with a front–mounted

earthmoving blade controlled by hydraulic cylinders to vary the

depth of cut.
 A dozer moves earth by lowering the blade and cutting until a full

blade load of materials is obtained. It then pushes the material across

the ground surface to the required location.
 Rear mounted hydraulic scarifiers and rippers can be fitted to loosen

hard material prior to dozing.

60
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers

61
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Application of Dozers
 The following are the main dozer application

 Clearing land of timber and stumps,

 Opening up pilot roads through mountains and rocky terrain,
 Moving earth for the haul distances up to approximately 100m,
 Helping load tractor-pulled scrapers,
 Spreading earth fills,
 Backfilling trenches,
 Side hill cuts
 Clearing construction sites of derbies, and
 Maintaining haul roads.

62
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Application of Dozers

Moving earth Helping scrappers

63
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Application of Dozers

64
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades
 A heavy blade of slightly concave profile is attached in the front of

the tractor.
 The blades has a replaceable cutting edge, which wears out with the

use of the blade.

 The dozer blades are available in sizes from 2m to 7.5m wide and

0.8m to 1.5m height.

 Dozer blades are of the following types:

A. U-Blade: Used for moving big loads over longer distances; curved
shape and side and top extensions reduce the spillage of loose
material; best suited for lighter materials.

65
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades
B. Straight Blade: Used primarily for shallow surface removal, land
clearing; designed to push dirt for short distances, versatile,
lightweight and maneuverable, handles a wide range of materials.
C. Angle Blade: It is designed to move material towards the sides of a
cut, backfilling or cutting ditches, and sustainably reduces the
amount of maneuvering.
D. C (cushion Blade): Used primarily with scrapers for ‘‘on the go’’
push loading; can be used for lighter excavation and other general
tasks.
E. Land fill Blade: These blades are specially designed to handie
refuse and/or fill material.

66
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades

U-Blade SU-Blade Carry Dozer “CD” Blade

Straight “S” Blade Power Angle &

Variable Radius
Tilt Blade
“VR” Blade
67
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades

Angle “A”-Blade Cushion “C”-Blade V-Tree cutter -Blade

Rakes K/G -Blade

68
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Blade adjustments

Tilting
Angle adjustment
69
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Blade adjustments

Angle adjustment (Top View)

Pitch adjustment

70
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades and Material Evaluation
 Besides job requirement, several other consideration determine choice

of attachment.
 Moisture content, particle size, and number of voids are the more

important characteristics influencing dozing performance.

a) Moisture content: If the moisture content increases above the
optimum, material becomes heavy and will thus have a negative
effect on dozing performance.
b) Particle size: Large particles resist penetration more than smaller
ones, requiring more dozing power.
 Materials consisting of irregularly and sharp-edged particles are
more difficult to doze than material composed of round-edged
particles
71
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Dozer Blades and Material Evaluation
c) Voids: Relatively dense materials with few voids contain large
numbers of individual particles in close contact with each other .
Because of this more force is required to break up this tightly
bonded material.

72
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Rippers
 Crawler-tractor, mounted with ripper is finding increasing use in

construction, mining and quarrying.

 Characteristic of material to be ripped influence the selection of

ripper type; number of shanks required, ripping speed and amount

of ripper penetration.
Types of Rippers
A. Fixed multiple-shank ripper: used for comparatively simple ripping
operations.
B. Variable multiple-shank ripper: These are used where there are
many boulders, or where the quality of rock is not consistent.

73
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Types of Rippers
C. Fixed giant ripper: has only one single powerful shank, but is not
common as compared to variable giant rippers.
D. Variable giant ripper: has a single powerful shank . The angle of
this ripper can be changed according to the ground requirements.

74
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Types of Rippers

75
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Ripping Efficiency
 In order to achieve high ripping efficiency, following suggestion

should be considered.
1) When material is not broken, loosen the surface in one direction,
then cross-ripping should be adopted.
2) If material is soft, use more than one shank ripper.
3) Ripping should be done downhill.
4) Avoid reversing when shank is in the ground.
5) When both dozing and ripping operations are required to be done,
it should rip going out and doze on the way in.
6) For hard material, use shorter tips, and for ordinary work use
longest and sharpest point.

76
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Crawler Vs Tyre Tractors

A. Crawler Mounted tractors B. Wheel Mounted tractors

77
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Crawler Vs Tyre Tractors
 Each type of tractor has certain advantages in certain conditions.

 Advantages of crawler mounted tractors:

1) More tractive effort, hence can also operate on loose or muddy soil.
2) In absence of tyres, can easily operate in rocky conditions.
3) Where maintenance of haul roads is difficult, it can easily travel,
especially in rough terrain.
4) Crawler tractors are more compact and powerful and hence can
handle difficult jobs as well.
5) Greater floatation because of the lower pressure under the trucks.

78
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
C. Dozers
Crawler Vs Tyre Tractors
 Advantages of wheel mounted tractors:

1) Can travel at higher speeds during operations and also from one job
to the other.
2) Ease in operation. Operator feels less fatigue.
3) Can travel on paved roads without damaging them.
4) Can travel long distances at its own power, whereas crawler
mounted needs trailors.
5) When work is spread over long area, these are found to be
producing more output.
6) Operation, maintenance and repair costs are less in wheeled tractor
as compared to crawler tractors.

79
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
 Scrapers are capable of excavating, hauling, and dumping material

over medium- to long-haul distances.

 The scrapers are designed to dig, load, haul, dump and spread and

sometimes called as carry all.

Types of scrapers
 The scrappers are of three types:

I. Towed scrapers:
 They are provided with either cable or hydraulic control.
 They are becoming obsolete.
 When coupled to a suitably powered crawler tractor, they can
operate in extremely adverse conditions.
 Travel at slower speed and can be used for short hauls only.

80
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Types of scrapers
II. Self propelled or motorized or conventional scrapers:
 Generally manufactured in ranges from 10-20 cubic meters.
 Needs push loading by a crawler mounted or wheeled tractor.
 Have more hauling speed and hence are suitable for long distance
hauling .
III. Self loading or elevating scrapers:
 The problem of loading by a pusher is overcome by these type of
scrappers.
 These are twin engine scrappers and can work completely
independently of all other plants.
 Pay loads are restricted because of the additional weight of the
loading elevator and its drive system.
81
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS

2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments

D. Scrapers
Types of scrapers
 Another classification method of scrapers

I. Push-loaded (Conventional):
 Single powered axel
 Tandem powered axels
II. Self loading:
 Push-pull, tandem powered axels
 Elevating
 Auger

82
 CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Types of scrapers
Conventional (Push loaded)
Become uneconomical when
• Haul grades > 5%
• Return grades > 12%

Tandem powered Twin Engine

• Good for jobs having adverse
grade
• Owning operating costs are about
25% higher

83
 CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Types of scrapers

Push pull scrapers

 Can work as a team or operate
individually with a pusher.
 Tire wear will increase in rock or
abrasive materials.

Elevating scrapers
 Good for short hauls and in
favourable materials.
 Can work alone in the cut.
 Cost more initially and to
operate.
84
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Types of scrapers
Auger Scrapers
 Can self load in difficult
condition, laminated rock or
granular material.
 The augers add weight to the
scraper during travel and it is
more costly to own and operate
than the conventional.

85
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Basic Parts of a scraper
 A scraper has the following main parts:

i. Bowl
 The bowl is a pan to hold the scraped dirt
 It is hinged at the rear corners to the rear axle inside the wheels, and
is capable of tilting down for digging or ejecting.
ii. Cutting edge
 The bowl has a cutting edge attached to the bottom.
 The cutting edge is lowered into the dirt to make a shallow cut.
iii. Apron
 This is a wall in front of the bowl, which opens and closes to
regulate the flow of the earth in and out of the bowl.

86
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Basic Parts of a scraper

87
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Basic Parts of a scraper
iv. Tail gate or ejector
 These are the rear of the pan which is capable of forward and
backward movement inside the bowl

88
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Operation
 Operation of a scraper is described here under for an earth work:

i. Loading or digging
 The operator moves to the cut with the ejector at the rear and the
apron raised approximately to 40 cm.
 The bowl is then lowered to the desired depth of cut, increase engine
speed, move forward in first gear keeping optimum depth of cut.
 When the bowl is full, the apron is closed and the bowl is then raised.
ii. Transporting
 The bowl is transported in high gear in raised position to provide
sufficient clearance.
 During transporting, apron should be fully closed to prevent loss of
material

89
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Operation
 Operation of a scraper is described here under for an earth work:

iii. Unloading
 The bowl should be positioned to spread the material to the desired
depth during this operation.
 A partial opening of the apron during the initial unloading will help in
even spreading.
 For wet and sticky material, the apron should be raised and lowered
repeatedly until the material behind it is loosened and drops out of the
bowl.
 Then the ejector is moved forward to push the remaining material out
of the bowl at a uniform rate.
 When the dump is complete, the tail gate is fully retracted, the apron
dropped and the ‘bowl’ raised to transporting position.
90
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.2 Heavy Earth moving Equipments
D. Scrapers
Operation
 Following are some of the suggestions for increasing scraper

production:
 Construct and maintain smooth haul roads for faster travel.
 Depth of cut should be according to the type of soil being cut.
 Use ripper teeth in hard or abrasive materials for easy handling.
 Where possible, loading be done in down grade
 To increase the stability of the scraper during travel, carry the
bowl as close to the ground as possible.
 If necessary pre-wetting of the soil is done so that the soil is
reasonably moist, as most soils load easily when they are moist.
 Whenever possible, plan the work to eliminate all avoidable turns.

91
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
 Grading is the process of bringing earth work to the desired shape

and elevation (grade).

 Motor graders are used for leveling and smoothening the earthwork,

spreading and leveling the base course in the construction of roads

and air fields.
 Motor graders can be used for the following types of works:

 Gravel road repairing

 Road shoulder reshaping, bank cutting and reshaping
 Ditch filling or digging
 Levelled or slopped ground finishing
 Base course spreading and levelling
 Material mixing, hard surface cutting, snow clearance,
 Land clearance, frozen top soil and asphalt breaking
92
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Comparison with dozers
 A grader is restricted to making shallow cuts in medium-hard

materials.
 They should not be used for heavy excavations.

 A grader can move small amounts of material but cannot perform

dozer-type work because of the structural strength and location of its

moldboard.
 Graders can work on slopes as steep as 3:1.

 Grader are capable of progressively cutting ditches to a depth of 3 ft.

93
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Basic parts of grader
 The components the grader that actually do the finishing are:

 Blade (Moldboard)
 Scarifier
 Rippers
Scarifier
log Rear
Ripper

Moldboard/
Circle Blade
94
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Basic parts of grader

95
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Blade
 The blade (Mould Board) is the main tool of the grader.

 It is carried by a rotating circle and is easily maneuverable to a wide

range of cutting positions with the help of hydraulic controls.

 The blade and the circle are mounted on a frame and is supported at

the front of the machine by a ball joint.

 The blade can be adjusted to any position with help of levers as

indicated below:
 Side shift: the blade has Blade Sideshift Ram
 Lifting the blade: The blade can be lifted or lowered by levers
operating the two rams.
 Rotating the circle: A hydraulic motor is provided to rotate the
circle and blade. Blade can be rotated either in clockwise or counter
clockwise direction.
96
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Blade
 Adjusting blade cutting angle (Blade pitch): The vertical angle of
the blade can be adjusted.

97
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Blade

98
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Blade

Adjusting blade cutting angle

99
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Blade

Adjusting blade cutting angle

10
0
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Scarifier
 Scarifier is a special tool attached with the motor grader for loosening

the hard soil and has a set teeth mounted on adjustable shanks.
 This attachment digs up hard ground like asphalt, old pavement,

frozen surface and hard soil with vegetation and brushes which can
not be removed by the blade.
 The teeth are replaceable, and the number of teeth can be varied to

suit the ground hardness.

 High strength alloy steel tips can be mounted on the teeth to prevent

teeth wear and extend their service for economical performance.

10
1
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Scarifier

10
2
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Ripper
 The ripper is used to break up materials too hard to cut with

moldboard blade.
 The depth of cut is controlled by hydraulically operated ripper control

lever.
 Type of material to be ripped will determine position of the ripper

shank.

10
3
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Various Operations
A. Grading:
 Grading in road construction means flattening and smoothening the

road surface and others by the scrapping action of the blade, includes
working operation like, surface skimming, light duty bulldozing,
leveling, spreading and crowning.
 A cutting depth of 2 to 3cm is considered to be the best for optimum

efficiency. Under no circumstances it should be greater than 5cm.

B. Spreading:
 Gravel together with binding material is spread by the motor grader.

 For spreading the cutting angle is set at 60° nearly.

 Cutting edge of the blade is set above the ground at a distance equal

to the depth to which the material is to be spread.

10
4
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Various Operations
C. Finishing and Leveling:
 In final finishing and leveling, surface have to be finished to fine

limits.
 In such cases make the finishing pass with the blade only slightly

angled and set to skim the surface.

D. Ditch Digging:
 The front end of the blade is tilted down and the rear end is tilted up

above the road surface. The front end cuts into the ground.
 This is used to dig drainage ditches and road side ditches.

E. Cutting:
 For the purpose of cutting in soft dirt, set the blade to an angle b/n 40-

55 degree, while in hard dirt an angle of 30-45 degree is proper.

10
5
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.3 Grading Equipments
Graders
Various Operations

Laser Blade controls Ditch Cutting

10
6
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.4 Earth work Equipment Summary

10
7
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.4 Earth work Equipment Summary
 Choice of Excavation Equipment for Building Site Excavation

depends on:
 Size of the job: - Bucket Size and Number of Excavators
 Activity time constraints: - Number of equipment
 Availability of equipment:
 Cost of transportation of equipment:
 Type of excavation:
 Soil characteristics:
 Geometric characteristics of elements of the soil to be excavated:
 Space constraints:
 Characteristics of haul units:
 Location of dumping areas:
 Weather and temperature:

10
8
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.4 Earth work Equipment Summary

10
9
CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENTS
2.4 Earth work Equipment Summary

11
0
THANK YOU!

11
1