Benefits Of Earth Moving Equipment V/S Manual Labour
There are clear benefits of using construction and earth moving equipment over manual labour and traditional methods. We list them down for you…
In India, the construction and earth moving equipment market is expected to grow at a healthy CAGR of 20 to 25 per cent over the next few years, from FY13-14 levels of 48,000 units. This would bring the market to between $21 billion by 2020, up from today’s $3 billion.
Primarily, two factors are helping in this growth of the industry i.e., increase in demand from end-user industries and higher adoption of construction and earth moving equipment in traditional construction applications.
The Driving Factors
Construction and earth moving equipment industry is a direct beneficiary of the accelerated pace of infrastructure development in India. With urbanisation, the city skylines are changing to accommodate vertical growth including high rise residential complexes, commercial spaces and multiplexes. Apart from infrastructure and building construction, India is witnessing rapid expansion of the mining sector as well. This is also aiding in the growth of construction and earth moving equipment industry in the country. As a result, the heavy construction and earth moving equipment industry in India is witnessing intense competition and localisation has emerged as a key parameter with focus on customised products adapted to the indigenous market.
There are clear advantages of using earth moving equipment over manual labour and low-end technology for construction applications and it is important for the industry executives to identify and communicate these benefits to the customers. We have listed down these benefits for you…
- Quality improvement- Among the most significant criteria for evaluating a construction equipment company’s performance is the reliability and quality of the construction. Using construction and earth moving equipment in complex and heavy construction activities significantly improves both these measures. Employing earth moving equipment as opposed to manual labour allows contractors to complete work with minimal quality defects, shielding them from claims arising from poor workmanship. Since today, many construction contracts in India include a defects liability clause; it is to the construction companies’ advantage to increase their usage of earth moving equipment for construction activities.
- Project efficiency- Earth moving equipment overcomes many of the limitations associated with manual labour, from its inconsistency—due to weather, attendance, health, socio-economic conditions and a variety of other factors—to the time it takes to complete projects. In fact, usage of earth moving equipment can reduce a project’s completion time significantly.
- Cost savings and profitability- Increased productivity and the reliability of earth moving equipment ultimately translate into higher profitability from fewer defect-related claims and the avoidance of delay penalties. In addition, using earth moving equipment can significantly reduce the cost of large-scale projects. It also makes it easier for the companies to complete their projects within budget at a reduced overall cost.
- Safety- Any construction site is the locus of multiple high-risk activities. There are obvious safety concerns associated with workers operating on the ground, particularly within confined spaces when heavy materials are being moved around. Using earth moving equipment for construction activities helps mitigate or even prevent many of these risks.
In A Nutshell
Increased use of construction and earth moving equipment in construction activities is imperative to help drive the growth of the industry in the long term. There are clear benefits of using the construction and earth moving equipment over manual labour and traditional methods. These include improved quality, timeliness, better project financials and safety. So, isn’t earth moving equipment better than manual labour?