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How does a Turbocharger with Intercooler of Backhoe Loader Works?

Turbocharger: These are what are usually referred to as forced induction systems. Tur-bochargers compress the air flowing in the engine, meaning more oxygen rich air can be filled in the cylinder in addition to the fuel. This directly translates to more power without adding to the weight of the engine. Backhoe loaders are predominantly diesel engine meaning that the easier fuel requires more compressed cooled air for efficiency. The higher air requirement directly translates to a relatively larger turbocharger for diesel engines like that of a backhoe loader or any other heavy machinery.

Intercooler: An intercooler is basically an air intake device usually used with turbocharg-ers. The air compressed by the turbocharger gets very hot very fast so the intercooler is required to cool it and eventually increase the density of the air supplied to the en-gine.Every 10 degree drop in air temperature you gain a percent of horsepower, while every single increased psi translates to a three percent gain in horsepower. Now multiply and crunch the numbers to suit the specs of a backhoe loader and you will understand precisely how much of a difference an intercooler can make to your turbo charged engine. An intercooler can increase the output of a turbocharged engine by a whooping 10% if not more.

How they work together: When air is compressed in the turbocharger, it gets hot vey fast, meaning that it expands and the density of the air in the engine goes down along with the oxygen content. This is where the intercooler comes in. The intercooler cools down the compressed air thereby increasing the density and oxygen content of the air going into the engine. More oxygen means better combustion of the fuel translating to more power and better performance. This arrangement provides consistency in the temperature of the intake air so that the fuel to air ratio remains in a safe zone and steady.

There are usually two types of intercoolers

1. Air to air: This type of intercooler uses a network of tubes and cooling fins to cool the heated up compressed air. As the air is pushed through the intercooler, the heat is transferred to the tubes and cooling fins, while the cool air speeding in absorbs the heat thereby reducing the temperature of the compressed air. Lower cost, simplicity and light weight are its pro’s while relatively higher temperature fluctuations as com-pared to the air- water type is a con.

2. Air to water: This is a relatively bulkier arrangement since the heated water also re-quires cooling. In this type of an arrangement water is the agent used to transfer the heat from the compressed air. Cool water is pumped into the set up which absorbs the heat from the air as it passes through. The water is sent to cool in another coming cir-cuit while the compressed air goes to the turbocharger.

Diesel turbochargers may have one of the following avatars in your heavy machinery.

>Constant pressure system turbocharging: The benefits of this system include good performance even in high load. The cylinders do not require a grouping in multiples of 3, high turbine efficiency, 5-7% reduction in consumption of specific fuel oil in addition to smooth work transfer at the turbine wheel. The cons of this system is that the response to changing load is very poor.

>Pulse system of turbo charging: The system is highly efficient even at lower loads and speeds. It is independent of scavenger pumps and blower at any load change. The ar-rangement is highly responsive and efficient at all engine speeds both low and high. The acceleration of the turbocharger is also good. The few setbacks to this arrangement are a complicated exhaust grouping, various sizes of exhaust pipe spares are required and his pressure exhaust passing into another cylinder during low pressure scavenging effects the system’s combustion efficiency.

>Under piston pressure turbocharging: This is a type of constant pressure charging system with advantages like assistance in tangential swirl and complete evacuation of any remaining exhaust gases. Auxiliary blower may not be required during manoeuvring.

Each of these turbocharging systems have their own set of advantages and disadvantages that needs to be closely looked into before adopting either of these systems into a heavy machinery like the backhoe loader. OEM’s like Mahindra have spent in thousands of man-hours researching on which turbocharger system works best for their Earthmaster range of backhoe loaders. Depending on the design and engine of the backhoe loader either of the turbocharger intercooler systems can be installed as deemed fit by the OEM after exhaustive number crunching on their end

Backhoe Loader Hydraulic: The Heart of Machine

It is a well known fact that a backhoe loader uses hydraulics to do all the heavy lifting. A hydraulic system is basically an arrangement that uses an incompressible fluid, usually oil to transmit force from one point to another. And given that the fluid is incompressible, almost all of the force is transferred unlike other systems where there is some loss of the transferred force.

The two variables at work here are distance and force. Operating the backhoe is a dance to balance both the variables to get the desired results. The work done on pressing down a piston on the left has the two variables as to how much force is being applied and how far the piston is being pushed. Pushing down on the left in turn pushes a certain amount of fluid. Now since the fluid is incompressible, all the force is transferred and so the piston on the right is pushed forward.

The pressure across the system remains the same. The pressure on the piston on the right is working on a larger area meaning it will push upward with greater force. Lets take an example for better understanding.

Left piston has a say 2 inch diameter

Right piston has a say 6 inch diameter

If one were to calculate the area of each piston, we would realise that the piston on the right has an area 9 times that of the left. Simply put, the force applied on the left piston will result in 9 times the force on the right piston. Or it would require the left piston to be moved 9 inches for the right one to be moved an inch. This is hydraulics at its simplest.

While the principle remains the same, a backhoe loader needs to be working continuously and thereby requires constant oil pressure. This is achieved by a oil pump that is powered by a rather powerful diesel engine. The pump keeps a constant supply high pressure going into the valve block system from where the force is then directed further. The pump works like the narrow piston in the above example, it applies a slight force with great speed in turn moving the other piston slowly but with a greater force.

The above mentioned simple system however isnt good enough for a backhoe loader since the pistons need to be able to both push and pull. A piston system called a hydraulic ram is used in a backhoe loader. The ram is fed by hose on both ends letting the piston move in both directions as required by applying pressure from the required end.

A spool valve is used to help the piston move in two directions. The pump pushes oil taken from the tank to the spool valve through the hoses.When the operator changes the direction, the configuration of the spool valve changes accordingly. High pressure oil is pumped in from one direction and low pressure oil pulled back into the tank from the other end.

These days the backhoe loaders are equipped with variable displacement pumps. These make is possible to reduce wastage of energy and fuel. This small addition to the hydraulics ensures that oil is not pumped unless a load is sensed. While a small addition to the hydraulic arrangement, it helps increase fuel efficiency by 7-8percentage. Hydraulics combined with smart electronic circuits make the machine as a whole more efficient and easier to operate. The hydraulics are powered by some of the most powerful diesel engines available in the market today that make these machines worth every penny spent on them.

Operators use the joysticks to operate the pistons and in turn control the movement of the spool valve. It is with the manipulation of these hydraulic pistons by the joysticks that the operators manage to complete seemingly difficult tasks with ease. Simply put it is these hydraulic systems that make the heart of these mean machines.

What are the Machines Used in Road Construction

Let’s take a look at some of the most commonly used road construction equipments.

1. Motor graders: These are the machines used to create a flat surface to place the asphalt on. Motor graders come in various sizes and configurations to suit the scale of the project and its requirements. Most motor graders have multiple axles with the blade located between the front and rear of the machine where the cabin is mounted.

2. Road roller Machines: Road rollers are basically compactors used to compact material such as soil and dirt. In road construction the rollers are used to press down the asphalt in place after it is laid down after the pad foot drum roller has done its job compacting the base layer to lay the asphalt on. Road making equipment may be static or vibrating ones depending on the requirement of the job at hand. Additionally various types of rollers may be used for various jobs depending on the material in use.

3. Asphalt mixing plants: An asphalt mixing plant is the machine used to produce asphalt and various other types of coated road stone. On a general note these are collectively called black top or asphalt concrete. The plan used various materials in appropriate quantities to produce the required quality and quantity of asphalt. The plant keeps the mixture hot to keep it from setting before it is laid and compacted on the road.

4. Crawler Excavator: These are heavy machines comprising of a boom, stick, bucket and cabin mounted on a rotating platform. Wheels or tracks may be used for movement of the machines. Usually tracks are used since they are softer on the top layer of the soil. These are versatile machines given the kind of jobs they can handle with its various attachments. For most parts they are used for excavating earth and rocks and moving the debris from one place to another.

5. Wheel Loaders: These heavy machines come with a considerably huge bucket mounted at the front of a tractor to pick the debris and transport it to the dump truck. The machines scoops the material in its wide bucket and safely moves it to the desired location in a jiffy. Wheel loaders are also called front loaders and are extensively used in road construction on a regular basis.

6. Truck Cranes: These are sizeable cranes used to move things on the construction site. The crane is usually mounted on the back of a lorry and consists of a carrier component and a lifting component to connected using a turn table. The turntable allows the crane to move from side to side on a pivot on the back of the lorry. The cranes are used to lift material from one place to another on the job sites. These truck cranes are usually seen on larger job sites that have enough space to allow for movement of the crane.

What are Concrete Pumps Used For?

Thus, in past few years, concrete pumps have taken over all other methods of transferring liquid concrete at the construction sites.

Definition of a concrete pump

Previously, cranes were used to lift large buckets full of concrete up to where it was needed at the large construction sites. The major challenge was that the crane was able to lift only one bucket at a time, normally holding around two cubic yards of concrete only. So, the need was felt for a machine which pumped concrete effectively. Thus, came into existence concrete pumps.

Simply put, a concrete pump is used in transferring/conveying liquid mixed concrete from the containers to where it needs to be filled at the construction site and thus, it is an important part of any construction project.

There are two basic types of concrete pumps. One is known as a Boom or Truck-mounted Pump which is bigger in size and used on larger sites and for huge road and highway projects. It is usually mounted on a truck or a semi-trailer and possesses an automatic robotic arm to accurately place the concrete as required. The other one is called a Trailer, Line or Stationary Pump which is used for smaller jobs like preparing ground slabs or sidewalks. It uses flexible or steel hoses attached to the outlet of the pump. These hoses are linked together and lead to wherever the concrete needs to be placed.

Uses of a concrete pump

1. This equipment is the best option for placing concrete at the construction site at a faster rate.

2. Usage of concrete pumps leads to less requirement of water as compared to other concrete pouring techniques. Thus, when the concrete is placed, it won’t shrink and crack at all and it will maintain its strength.

3. For complex locations like high-rise buildings or insulated concrete form walls, concrete pumps are used to increase pouring accuracy.

Advantages offered by concrete pumps

Here is the list of advantages for concrete pumps…

1. For any kind of construction project, speed matters a lot. With concrete pumps, concrete pouring becomes simpler and faster. This would mean no project delays.

2. Concrete pumps ensure that the concrete is placed easily at inaccessible sites. So, whether you want to pour concrete on top of a high rise building or in a foundation slab, concrete pumps can deliver concrete mix to almost any area without leaving spills and lumps on the way.

3. This equipment reduces the need for labour as less handling is required since concrete can be placed directly at the desired location. This can save man power, energy and over-head costs.

4. Using concrete pump is more convenient than the old mix and pour methods as the boom arms can actually reach over the top of structures to place the concrete in locations where other types of equipment can’t reach.

5. Concrete pumps promise higher accuracy and quality concrete placement. Accurate concrete pumping effectively results in little or zero material wastage.

6. Last but not the least, with concrete pumps, concrete placing is not at all affected by weather conditions.

In a nutshell

To sum up, usage of concrete pumps lead to many advantages at any construction site, be it big or small. Thus, there is no denying of the fact that concrete pumps are one of the most efficient and cost-effective equipment for concrete placement that we have in present times. Hence, their future looks very bright and promising.

What are Motor Graders Used For?

At a time, when the up-gradation of National highways and various special expressway projects are planned under National Highways Development Programme for the next few years; NHAI is looking at various other connectivity projects in India like bypasses and ring roads around major cities, contributing towards the Smart Cities project; and government is taking up the task of building rural roads seriously and clearing all the pending road construction projects in the country, the road building equipment sector is expected to see a boom.

If we look at the road CE sector, then particularly motor graders (which are also used in the mining industry) will see an unprecedented growth path. In fact, it is estimated that the demand of motor graders will increase by 15-20 per cent in the next 4-5 years.

Decoding motor graders

In the early days, dozers were most commonly used for grading. However, with the need for improved quality of surface finish and speeding up the grading process, motor graders were introduced solely for grading purposes. Since then, their demand has picked up like anything.

Motor graders or alternatively called road graders or graders are absolutely necessary equipment at any construction site. They are usually self-propelled machines with an adjustable blade. Typical motor grader models have three axles with the engine and cab situated above the rear axles at one end of the vehicle and a third axle at the front end of the vehicle with the blade in between.

Motor graders are generally identified by their long adjustable blade and considered to be easy-to-use equipment for mining underneath the ground. Another factor that differentiates motor graders is the drive systems with some of the equipment using all wheel drive i.e., four wheel drive and front wheel drive systems. For rural areas with unpaved roads, an all wheel drive system is necessary while it is redundant for smooth and clear areas.

Motor graders are generally classified into two categories based on the structure and arrangement of the frame i.e., Rigid Frame Motor Grader and Articulated Frame Motor Grader. Of the two, the later is the most commonly used version these days.

Uses of motor graders

1. They can be used for making smoother surfaces, fine grade, levelling soil and shifting small amounts of dirt.

2. The most traditional use of this CE is in the construction and maintenance of roads with its main function being preparing the topmost layer for laying asphalt on top of it.

3. Motor graders are also used for removal of snow, debris and earth-moving purposes.

4. Graders are also used to set native soil foundation pads to finish grade prior to the construction of large buildings.

5. The motor graders also ensure that the compactor is effectively used with minimum load on it.

In simple terms, motor graders are used to finish grade (refine, set precisely) the rough grading performed by heavy CE such as scrapers and bulldozers. A small motor grader within a range of 80-150 horsepower is usually enough for most jobs. While, the smaller graders are perfect for jobs that need to be completed in a tight spacing environment, larger motor graders can be used in broader spaces. Larger machines are known to use a direct drive or a torque converter drive transmission system while the smaller ones are hydrostatically driven.

Grading bright future forward

The clearing of pending road construction projects in the country as well as government’s ambitious urban and rural infrastructure development plans offer a huge growth potential for the growth for motor graders in the country. As per Off-Highway Research, the motor grader market is expected to grow from 750 units in 2016 to 850 units by 2020. Thus, indeed the future of motor graders looks bright.

Different Types of Motor Graders

In addition to its use in the road construction industry, internationally it is also used in removal of snow, debris and earthmoving based on the location and requirement. Motor graders come in after the heavy machines like the bulldozers are done with their job to give a finer finishing to the job.

The motor grader is usually a self propelled machine which comes with an adjustable blade. The blade is usually positioned between the front and rear axle and can be used for cutting, spreading and levelling jobs on a wide range of terrains. Some motor graders come with a scarify option to scarify a layer and then remove it with the help of the blade. Then a new layer is spread before scarifying the top layer again to put in place.

Motor graders are generally classified based on the structure an arrangement of the frame. While history has seen motor graders of various sizes through the past few decades, a few set standard sizes have become set standard in the past few years. Based of frame arrangements the motor graders are classified into two categories

Rigid Frame motor grader

Articulated frame motor grader

Rigid frame motor grader: These usually have a single axle and are incapable of moving either left or right amount a point on the axle. This type of graders were popular in the 1980’s and 90’s.

Articulated frame motor graders: These usually have both a front and rear axle. The blade is usually located somewhere between the two axles. The articulated frame graders are usually in small places where there is very less space to move and turn about in. Most machines manufactured and used these days are articulated frame graders.

When it comes to articulated motor graders there are basically two types of graders base on the joints. One with the articulation joint in the front of the cab and the other with the articulation joint behind the cab. The grader with the articulation joint behind the cabs provides much better visibility and a clearer view of the mouldboard.

Another factor that differentiates motor graders are the drive systems with some of them using all wheel drive, four wheel drive and front wheel drive systems. For rural areas with unpaved roads, an all wheel drive system is necessary while it is redundant for smooth clear areas.

A small motor grader within a range of 80-150 horsepower are usually enough for most jobs. The smaller graders are perfect for landscaping jobs, road maintenance and other jobs that need to be completed in a tight spacing environment. Larger motor graders can be used to do the same things but n a much larger scale for relatively larger broader roads like the sate and national highways. Larger machines are known to use a direct drive or a torque converter drive transmission system while the smaller ones are hydrostatically driven.

Different Types of Road and Construction Equipment and its Usage

It is also seen that the selection of the appropriate type and size of equipment often affects the required amount of time and effort and thus, the job-site productivity of a road or construction project.

Mentioned below are some of the commonly employed road and construction equipment with their usage details:

1. Bulldozers: Also called as dozers, bulldozers are powerful equipment which are largely employed for shifting huge amount of dirt on job sites where there is wide open spaces, rough grading and grinding rocks. They are also used for flattening the road. Bulldozers come in variants with tyres and tracks.

2. Loaders: They are used on road and construction sites to move or load materials such as asphalt, demolition debris, dirt, gravel, rocks, sand etc. There are many types of earth digging equipment and loaders, which depending on their design and application, are called by various names such as backhoe loaders, bucket loaders, front loaders, front-end loaders, wheel loaders, skid-steers etc. The most common and heavily used loaders on a road and construction site include:

  • Front loaders: They are like tractors and used to move a pile of material from the ground and load it onto a dump truck or into an open pit. They are also known as wheel loaders or bucket loaders. Front loaders consist of a front-mounted square wide bucket joined to the end of two arms.
  • Backhoe loaders: They have a front bucket that allows them to work as a wheel loader and an excavator-style digging mechanism at the back. Consisting of three segments i.e., boom, stick and bucket, backhoe loaders come with extensive range of attachments which are used to perform various tasks while paving the roads such as lifting, grabbing objects, dozing, drilling and levelling the ground.
  • Skid steer loaders: Considered to be the best choice for smaller sites, they are used to perform many tasks like lowering soil compaction or working in difficult conditions such as with snow/mud. The front bucket of the machine can be replaced with various types of attachments like hydraulic breaker, pallet booms, auger, mower, snow blower etc., to execute different jobs.

3. Excavators: They consist of a boom, dipper or stick, bucket and cab on a rotating platform known as the house. This house sits on the top of an undercarriage with tracks or wheels. Excavators, also known as diggers, are usually employed together with loaders and bulldozers at any road and construction site. They are used for variety of applications like digging trenches, holes and foundations, material handling, general grading/landscaping etc.

4. Mini excavators: They are wheeled vehicles that generally include a standard backfill blade and independent boom swing. Apart from digging, mini excavators can do grading, lifting heavy items and compact a sub-grade. Based on the digging depth of the boom and bucket, mini excavators come in various sizes.

5. Forklifts: A forklift truck, also called a lift truck, a fork truck, a forklift or a tow-motor, comes with an attached prolonged platform that can be lowered to pick an object on or below the ground and raised to move the object. Forklift trucks are available in many variations and load capacities.

6. Cranes: For movement or hoisting of materials at any road and construction site, the equipment that gets top-most priority is the crane. It is generally equipped with a hoist, wire ropes or chains and sheaves that can be used both to lift and lower materials and to move them horizontally. Cranes can be of many types like fixed or mobile cranes.

Apart from the above mentioned equipment, there are many other equipment which can make the work easy and faster at any road and construction site. So, look at your usage and take your right pick!

Construction Equipment for Different Purposes

This is because they increase the rate of output, reduce overall construction cost, accelerate the planned rate of production where there is shortage of skilled and unskilled labour and eliminate heavy manual work by humans, thereby, reducing fatigue and various other hazards and health issues.

Depending on the application, Construction Equipment (CE) are classified into various categories, which include earth-moving equipment, earth-compacting equipment, hauling equipment, hoisting equipment, conveying equipment, aggregate production equipment, equipment using in concrete construction and pile-driving equipment. Each of the categories has a list of equipment employed for different purposes.

Types of CE for different purposes

  • Earth-moving equipment: They are also called as heavy equipment or heavy-duty vehicles designed especially for executing construction operation that involves earthwork operation i.e., moving large amounts of earth or to dig foundations and landscape areas. On the basis of operation performed by the various machines in the segment, the earth moving equipment market can be bifurcated into excavators (compact excavator, dredging, dragline excavator, front shovel and others), loaders (skip loader, wheel loader, front loader, backhoe loader etc.), construction tractors and others (grader, scraper, track loader, material handler etc.).
  • Earth-compacting equipment: For compacting materials such as soil in order to increase its density for construction, the earth-compacting equipment are used. In addition, compactors are utilised in landfill tasks. Common varieties include plate tampers (also known as rammers), vibratory plates compactors (also known as tamping foot rollers) and vibratory pad foot compactors.
  • Hauling equipment: The equipment used for transportation of material at the construction site are known as hauling equipment or simply haulers. Not only this, hauling equipment are used for carriage and disposal of excavated earth and haulage of heavy construction equipment. There are many types of hauling equipment which include dump trucks (standard dump truck, transfer dump truck, semi-trailer end dump truck, semi-trailer bottom dump truck, double and triple trailer, side dump trucks and off-road dump trucks), tippers, trailers etc.
  • Hoisting equipment: For lifting the loads, holding them in suspension during transfer from one place to other and placing them at designated location, hoisting equipment are used. Big projects such as construction of dams, industrial building etc., definitely require hoisting equipment to perform the task of lifting the loads. This category includes equipment like forklifts, hoists and cranes which in turn are of many types.
  • Conveying equipment: Used for applications involving the transportation of heavy or bulky materials from one place to another over a stationery structure, conveying equipment ease the work at any construction site to a very large extent. They are mainly used in mining and construction activities. In construction industry, conveyors are mainly used for concreting purposes.

Thus, the CE sector is very diverse and wide with a list of CE in every segment.

Future trends for CE sector

Each year, the demand for all the CE is increasing at a rapid pace. This is because high construction and infrastructural growth, technological developments and their adaptations and rapid urbanisation is fuelling the growth of CE industry in the country. In future, due to construction of highways, railways, bridges, ports, residential and commercial buildings, the CE industry is expected to see huge growth.

History of Development of Construction Equipment in India

Lets get some facts straight…

  • The construction industry is a major contributor towards Indias GDP, either directly or indirectly.
  • Poised to play a larger role in Make in India initiative of the Modi government, the has a potential to grow about two-fold to $5 billion by 2020 on the back of infrastructure growth from a $2.8 billion industry at present.
  • India’s CE market is expected to grow by 20-25 per cent over the next few years to reach 330,000 to 450,000 units sold in 2020.
  • With a wide production capacity base, India is perhaps the only developing country in the world, which is totally self-reliant in manufacturing some of the highly sophisticated CE.
  • The whole construction industry employs nearly 33 million people currently.

Well, by looking at these facts, you must have understood that the CE industry is one of the prime industries of India and has a great role to play in the growth of the nation as it supports many other industries. As a matter of fact, the CE segment includes a wide variety of equipment put to use in mining, earthmoving, material handling and others multifarious applications.

Here, it goes without saying that the industry which is growing at such a rapid pace in the country today has an equally interesting history of development too. We take you through this historical journey of CE sector growth in India…

Indian CE sector development history

Until 1960s, domestic requirement of CE was entirely met by imports. However, change came about in 1964 when domestic production of CE began with the setting up of Bharat Earth Movers Ltd (BEML), a public sector unit of the Ministry of Defence, at Kolar in South India to manufacture dozers, dumpers, graders, scrapers, etc., for defence requirements under licence from LeTorneau Westinghouse, USA and Komatsu, Japan.

In the private sector, the Hindustan Motors’ Earthmoving Equipment Division, was established in 1969 at Tiruvallur, near Chennai with technical collaboration from Terex, UK for manufacture of wheel loaders, dozers and dumpers and in 1984 from Caterpillar. This factory was taken over by Caterpillar in 2000 for their Indian operations.

In 1974, under license from Poclain, France, L&T started manufacturing hydraulic excavators. Later, Telcon and Escorts JCB commenced manufacture of hydraulic excavators (under license from Hitachi, Japan) and backhoe loaders (under license from JCB, UK) in 1980 and 1981 respectively. Now, taken over by JC Bamford Excavators Ltd., UK in 2003, Escorts JCB is now called JCB India Ltd.

Some of the recent entrants in the Indian CE segment include Volvo and Terex Vectra etc. However, one of the most notable entrants in the CE segment in the country is the Mahindra Construction Equipment, a part of US $16.7 billion Mahindra Group. It started its business in the CE and earth moving industry in India in 2011 with its the revolutionary new backhoe loader—The Mahindra EarthMaster which is loaded with technology not hitherto seen in this product segment in India. Its manufacturing facility is in Chakan, Pune.

At present, most of the technology leaders like Case, Caterpillar, Hitachi, Ingersoll-Rand, JCB, John Deere, Joy Mining Machinery, Komatsu, Lieberr, Poclain, Terex, Volvo are present in India as joint venture companies or have set up their own manufacturing facilities or marketing companies.

In a nutshell

Thus, overall, the Indian CE industry has traversed a long way since its initial days and has seen huge investments made by national as well as international companies for setting up their manufacturing bases in the country. It is expected that the industry will touch new heights in future.

Five Most Used Earthmoving Equipment

With government’s future plans to invest huge amount of money in infrastructure and housing projects in next few years, the ECE market in the country will see a major boom, resulting in increased demand for various ECE.

Here is a look at five most used earthmoving equipment and why they would comprise the 60 percent of the market share in the future as well…

1. Backhoe loaders: They are the most used equipment in the category as they are highly versatile and perform multiple tasks at any construction site. Also known as digger or simply backhoes, they are generally used for work on rugged terrain and perform tasks like moving dirt, backfill, digging trenches, crushing, lifting, grabbing objects, small demolitions, laying pipes, asphalt breaking, paving roads etc. With few attachments, they can also perform various other tasks. Backhoe loaders are very similar to tractors but the difference is that they contain an adjustable shovel in front a small bucket in the rear. They are considered to be medium sized equipment and are tyre mounted. Overall, they are usually the best choice for smaller jobs which need to be completed in a more restrained space. As per Off-Highway Research, Backhoe loader sales are expected to increase by over 32 percent in the next five years due to increased investment in infrastructure by the Indian government.

2. Excavators: Like backhoe loaders, excavators also bring flexibility and versatility at any construction site, hence they are very common at any construction site. These are hydraulic machines consisting of a boom stick and bucket attached to a cab mounted on a rotating platform called ‘House’. With superior digging power, they are vital for any large job site and can perform a list of tasks like backfilling, digging trenches, holes and foundations, grading, dragging, lifting, loading and dumping with various attachments. They are available over wheels or tracks. As per one of the reports of Research and Markets, Indian excavator market is to grow at a CAGR of 7.86 percent over the period between 2014 and 2019.

3. Bulldozers: Referred to as only dozers sometimes, bulldozers are the most heavy-duty and powerful equipment and largely employed for shifting huge amount of dirt on job sites where there are wide open spaces, rough grading and grinding rocks. They are incredibly strong equipment and easily identified by the huge blade at the front which is controlled with the use of hydraulic pistons and ripper at the back. The machine comes in variants with tyres and tracks.

4. Skid steer loaders: Considered to be one of the most versatile, compact, rigid and powerful earthmoving equipment and best choice for smaller sites, they are used to perform many tasks like lowering soil compaction or working in difficult conditions such as with snow/mud. The front bucket of the machine can be replaced with various types of attachments like hydraulic breaker, pallet booms, auger, mower, snow blower etc., to execute different jobs. Unlike other machines, these do not have steering mechanism for wheels which are mechanically aligned with the side body of the equipment.

5. Motor graders: Also known as grader or road grader, this equipment is used for making smoother surfaces, fine grade, levelling soil, shift small amounts of dirt and prepare the base before laying asphalt. They are again the most commonly used earthmoving equipment. They are generally identified by their long adjustable blade and are generally considered to be easy-to-use equipment for mining underneath the ground.

The above mentioned heavy earthmoving equipment are a requisite for small and large construction sites alike for performing multiple tasks thanks to their size and power that help them in completing daunting tasks with ease.