CONSTRUCTION TOOLS PLANTS AND 1

EQUIPMENTS

INTRODUCTION
It is a common fact that we find a wide variety of
construction machines on every construction sites, which
make the construction jobs easy, safe and quicker.

Depending on the application, construction machines are

classified into various categories which we are discussing
here.
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Major Classification of Construction Equipment's:

A. Earthmoving equipments

B. Construction vehicles

C. Material handling equipments

D. Construction equipments
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 Choice of Equipment and Standard 5
Production Rates
Typically, construction equipment is used to perform essentially
repetitive operations, and can be broadly classified according to
two basic functions:

(1) operators such as cranes, graders, etc. which stay within

the confines of the construction site, and

(2) haulers such as dump trucks, ready mixed concrete truck,

etc. which transport materials to and from the site.
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In both cases, the cycle of a piece of equipment is a sequence
of tasks which is repeated to produce a unit of output.

For example, the sequence of tasks for a crane might be to fit

and install a wall panel (or a package of eight wall panels) on
the side of a building;

similarly, the sequence of tasks of a ready mixed concrete

truck might be to load, haul and unload two cubic yards (or
one truck load) of fresh concrete.
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In order to increase job-site productivity, it is beneficial to
select equipment with proper characteristics and a size most
suitable for the work conditions at a construction site.

The success of a construction project depends entirely upon

the choice of mechanical equipment and if the choice is
proper, the work can be completed in short time with less
cost.

As a matter of fact, easy availability of good mechanical

equipment proves to be an asset of any civil engineering
project
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It is not always desirable or possible for the contractor to own
each and every type of construction equipment required for
the project

The contractor has to consider aspects of the utility of

particular construction equipment and if it is economically
justifiable, then only he proceeds to purchase such
equipment.

The amount which is invested in the purchase of a

construction equipment should be recovered during the useful
period of such equipment.
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The knowledge of construction equipment is required to:
Make construction planning (decide the type of equipment's required)

Prepare work table ( efficient utilization of equipment)

Select right type of equipment at the right place and at the right time

Decide the numbers of equipment's required

Run all the equipment's continuously, economically and efficiently

Improve speed, quality, consistency and economy of construction by

selecting the suitable equipment's
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Classification of Equipment's:
The construction equipment's are classified as follows:
Intermittent type
Continuous flow type
Mixed type

Intermittent type:
These types of equipment's have intermittent cycles of work
They are operated on series of cycles and each cycle completes in itself
Power shovels, drag lines, bull dozers, concrete mixers etc. are the
examples of intermittent type equipment's
(2) Continuous flow type: 11
These type of equipment's have a continuous flow of work turned out
Belt conveyors, pipelines, air compressors etc. are the examples of
continuous flow type equipment's

(3) Mixed type:

These type of equipment's have characteristics of both, intermittent as
well as continuous flow type equipment's
They are continuously operated over a defined surface area
After completion of a particular sweep, it requires operation cease and
readjustment of its position to resume production on another area
Motor graders, bull dozers, scrapers, etc. are the examples of mixed type
equipment's
Classification Continues 12
1. Standard Equipment &
2. Special Equipment

What is a Standard Equipment?

Various types of construction equipment's are available in the
market in standard form
They can be used for a variety of construction operations
without any difficulty and they are easily available in
standard commercial sizes
Readily available spare parts.
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However, there is no clear distinction between standard
equipment and special equipment
It is quite likely that the standard equipment for one contractor may
prove to be the special equipment for the other contractor
Following are the advantages of using a standard equipment on
the construction project:
Initial Investment
Purchase period
Reliability in operation
Repairs
Resale value
Use
Special Equipment's: 14

In general, a special construction equipment is defined as an

equipment which is either manufactured for a single
construction project or for a specified type of construction
activity

The choice of special equipment should be made carefully

after proper financial analysis

The initial investment in case of special equipment is very

high and there is also risk of loss of invested amount due to
radical change in its design
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Selection of Equipment: 16

The choice of equipment to be used on a construction project has

a major influence on the efficiency and profitability of the
construction operation.

Although there are a number of factors that should be considered

in selecting equipment for a project, the most important criterion is
the ability of the equipment to perform the required work.

The equipment should maximize the profit or return on the

investment produced by the equipment. (profit is maximized when
the lowest cost per Unit of production)
Selection of Equipment: 17

Previous data regarding the performance of the equipment on

similar job

Possible future use of the equipment

Its availability

The availability of parts and service and

The effect of equipment downtime on other construction

equipment and operations.
Excavating & Earth Moving Equipment : 18

Dozers (Bull Dozers) & Tractors

Power shovel

Back hoe

Drag line

Clam shell

Scrapers
Tractors: 19

Tractors are self contained units that are designed to provide

tractive power for drawbar work. (pulling and pushing)
They are low center of gravity machines. This is a pre-
requisite of a good machine.
When the tractor is not required for hauling other machines,
it can be easily converted to serve as bulldozer, angle-dozer
etc.
The tractors are used for agricultural operations such as
hoeing, tilling, harvesting etc.
When tractors are equipped with shovels, they can even be
used for the mining operations.
Classification of Tractors: 20
The tractor may be crawler mounted or wheel mounted

Crawler type tractor:

The tractor is supported on a chain of plates and It is used for

rough and uneven ground
These tractors can be very effective even in the case of loose or
muddy soils.
Can damage pavements
The speed of this type dose not exceed 10 to 12 kmph normally.
Crawler Type Tractor 21
Wheel type tractor: 22
The engine is mounted on four wheels.
The main advantage is higher speed, sometimes exceeding 50
kmph
It is used for long-distance hauling and good roads or paved roads.
Comparison between crawler and wheeled tractors: 23
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 DOZERS (BULL DOZER) 25

Part of an Earth Moving Equipment.

Primarily for cutting and pushing material over short distances

Consists of tractor ( which change energy of the engine in to

tractive energy) with front mounted blade controlled by hydraulic
cylinders to vary depth of cut and rate of levelling

The heavy blade also called metal plate attached to the tractor
pushes the material from one place to another.
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Used to cut and push large quantities of soil, sand, rubble, or

other such material during construction work and typically
equipped at the rear with a claw-like device (known as a ripper) to
loosen densely-compacted materials.

Widely used as a multipurpose equipment can perform large

number operations

Different names like angle dozer, tilt dozer, tree dozer and push
dozer

Bull dozer scrapes soft and granular material pushes it in front or

stock piles
Purpose/Applications of a Dozer: 27

1. For spreading the earth fill

2. For opening up pilot roads through mountainous and rocky terrains.
3. Clearing land from the trees and stumps
4. Back-filling trenches at construction sites by dragging the earth from
one place to another
5. Ripping
6. Clearing construction sites.
7. Maintaining haul roads and
8. Hauling for short distances.
9. Towing other equipment
10. Clearing the floors of borrow and quarry pits
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Classification of bull dozer: 30
1. Position of blades
Bull dozers in which the blade perpendicular to the direction of
movement
Angle dozers in which the blade is set at an angle with the
direction of movement.
2. Based on mountings
Wheel mounted
Crawler mounted
3. Based on the control
Cable controlled
Hydraulically controlled
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Dozers Blades: 32
Dozers are mounted with blades that are perpendicular to the direction
of travel, where as angle dozers are mounted with blades set at an angle
with the direction of travel.
The former push the earth forward where as the latter push it forward
and to one side.
Basic earth moving blades are curved in the vertical plane in the shape
of a C (concave profile)
U blade : U blade should be selected for moving large amount of
materials over long distances (used for stock pile work)
Straight blade: Smaller than U blade, easy to manoeuvre, can move
heavy materials more efficiently.
Along the bottom length of the blade hard steel plates are bolted. These
make up the cutting edge of the blade.
Available in sizes from 2m to 7.5 meters wide and 0.8 m to 1.5 m
height
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Classification based on nature of blade:

Angle dozers- to push load at any angle nearly 25 degrees direction of

travel of dozer

This is helpful where the material is pushed down the slope on hill work

Tilt dozer is used where blade is required to be tilted by raising one

end up to 25 cm above the other

Push Dozer used to push scraper unit during digging or loading

operation by means of a rectangular plate called pusher plate.
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Dozer Size & Production Estimation: 38
A bulldozer has no set volumetric capacity
There is no hopper or bowl to load
The dimensions of the blade affects productivity
Depends upon the conditions under which it operates and also the
power supplied to the blade
The amount of material that the dozer moves depends upon the
quantity which will remain in front of the blade during the push.

Following are the factors which control the dozers production rates:
1. Blade type
2. Type and condition of the material
3. Cycle time
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Each blade has a theoretical capacity of hauling a particular type of

earth and knowing the number of turns a bulldozer will make in a
given time, the approximate output of a bulldozer can be estimated
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In general, it can be stated that the output of all the earth moving
machinery will depend on the following factors:
a. Efficiency of the operator
b. Nature of soil
c. Topography of the area
d. Type of equipment
e. Weather
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 GRADERS 43

Grader is a finishing equipment

A grader, also commonly referred to as a road grader, a blade, a

maintainer, or a motor grader, is a construction machine with a
long blade (3 to 4 meters) used to create a flat surface.

Used to shape materials to the required line and grade.

A graders primary purpose is to cut and move the material with

the moldboard.
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The self-propelled grader is known as motor grader and a grader

which is towed by a tractor is known as elevating grader

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

It performs various operations like grading, spreading, side

cutting, road crowning, bank dressing and mixing of materials
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 Graders are multipurpose machines used for: 49
1. Finishing
2. Shaping Banks
3. Sloping and
4. Ditching.
In civil engineering, the grader's purpose is to "finish grade" (refine,
set precisely) the "rough grading" performed by such as scrapers and
bulldozers.
Construction and maintenance of dirt roads and gravel roads.
Prepare the base course to create a wide flat surface for the asphalt
to be placed on.
Graders are also used to set native soil foundation pads to finish
grade prior to the construction of large buildings.
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Comparison with Dozers: 53
A grader is restricted to making shallow cuts in medium to hard
materials.

They should not be used for heavy excavations

A grader cannot perform dozer type of work because of its structural

strength and location of its moldboard.

Graders are capable of progressively cutting ditches to a depth of 3

feet.

It is more economical to use other types of equipment to cut ditches

greater than 3 feet.
SCRAPERS 54
A wheel tractor-scraper is a piece of heavy equipment used for
earthmoving (cutting, loading, hauling, dumping & also spreading)
The basic parts of scrapers are the bowl, apron and tail gate or ejector
The rear part has a bucket attached to a vertically moveable hopper
(also known as the bowl) with a sharp horizontal front edge.
Its capacity varies from 3 cu.m to 25 cu.m
The scraper has a cutting edge or blade at the bottom and it is possible
to dig earth to a depth of about 250mm
The hopper can be hydraulically lowered and raised. During its
horizontal movement when the hopper is lowered, the front edge cuts
into the soil and fills the hopper.
When the hopper is full, it is raised above ground and closed with a
vertical blade (also known as apron) and taken to the site of dumping
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The earth from the scraper is then taken out by opening the apron of it
and the earth is spread or laid in layer of required thickness
Scrapers are usually mounted on two or four pneumatic tyred wheels
An apron is provided in front of the container which opens and closes in
order to regulate the flow of earth in and out of the container
Scraper are capable of producing a very smooth and accurate formation
level
Hence a Scraper can perform 4 major operations namely a) Cutting or
Digging b) Conveying or Hauling c) Dumping d) Spreading.
Wheels of machine cause some compaction.
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 Dozer Short haul up to 100 m 61
Scraper long haul up to 1km

Types of Scrapers
Towed type
Self Propelled
Self loading / elevating scraper

Note: All scrapers are wheel tractor pulled machines.

Towed Scrapers/Tractor pulled: 62
provided with cable or hydraulic control
Becoming obsolete
Operate in extreme adverse conditions
Capacities of a scraper bowl ranges from 3cu.m to 25 cu.m
The speed of operation is governed by the speed of towing vehicle, which
is 8km/h, when hauling and 3km/h when scraping
Crawler-drawn scraper consists of a four-wheeled scraper bowl towed
behind a crawler power unit (range 300 mts)
If one machine experience breakdown it will not shut down the job for a
long time as in the case of self propelled and elevator
Self Propelled (Push loading scraper): 63
Motorized / conventional
More popular
10 to 25 cum
Motorized scraper needs push loading by crawler mounted or
Wheeled tractor (can not provide high tractive effort required for
economical loading)
Have more hauling speed
Wheel mounted Suitable for long speed
Crawler mounted for short haul only
Speeds up to 45kmph when full loaded hence economical haul
distance
Elevating Scraper: 64
Self propelled and self loading
apron is replaced by an elevator
Cost of pusher and its operator is eliminated
they have very good finishing ability
transport efficiency is reduced due to dead weight of loading
mechanism
operating cost and maintenance is higher by 30 %
efficient in short hauls and favourable material only
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SCRAPER OPERATION 66
LOADING

A scraper is loaded by lowering the front end of the bowl until the
cutting edge, which is attached to and extends across the width of the
bowl enters the ground

At the same time, the front apron is raised to provide an open slot
through which the earth can flow into the bowl.

As the scraper moves forward a horizontal strip of material is forced

into the bowl. This is continued until the bowl is filled at which point the
cutting edge is raised and the apron is lowered to prevent spillage during
the haul.
DUMPING 67
The dumping operation consists of lowering the cutting edge to desired
height above the fill, raising the apron, and then forcing the material out
by means of a movable ejector mounted at the rear end of the bowl.

SCRAPER SELECTION
Job size

Volume of material to move and maneuver

Scraper configurations

Job conditions, grades, rolling resistance and material type.

Cost must consider all hourly cost for the entire pusher - scraper fleet.
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Cycle time for a scraper: 70
The cycle time for a scraper is the time to load, haul, dump, turn,
return, and to turn back into position to pick up another load.
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CYCLE TIME FOR A SCRAPER

Average load time for push- loader scrapers in common earth is 0.85
min.

Both haul and return times depend upon the distance travelled and
the scraper speed

Dump time varies with scarper size but project conditions will affect the
duration (usually 30 to 45 seconds)

The average turn time in cut is 0.30 min and on the fill the average time
is 0.21 min.
EXCAVATORS 72

Excavators are heavy construction equipment consisting of a boom,

stick, bucket and cab on a rotating platform (known as the "house").
The house sits atop an undercarriage with tracks(crawler) or wheels.
Excavators are also called diggers
Operator cabin mounted either on ring to traverse 360 degree or on a
rigid frame
Hydraulic action of excavator directs the bucket teeth at their most
efficient angle during digging operation
Hydraulic system also contributes for smooth, shock free operation
Controls are easy to operate and respond quickly
Hence popular
Excavators are used in many ways: 73
Digging of trenches, holes, foundations

Material handling

Brush cutting with hydraulic attachments

Forestry work

Demolition

General grading/landscaping

Heavy lift, e.g. lifting and placing of pipes

Mining, only open-pit mining

River dredging
1. POWER SHOVEL/HOE
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To excavate the earth and to load the trucks

capable of excavating all types of earth except hard rock

size varies from 0.375m3 to 5m3 .

Basics parts of power shovel including the track system, cabin, cables,
rack, stick, boom foot-pin, saddle block, boom, boom point sheaves and
bucket

For large lifts to dump earth from basement into tracks will require long
boom of a large shovel.
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For excavating blasted rocks, large size dipper will easily handle bigger
sizes.
For excavating hard and tough bed of soil, the dipper of large shovel
which can exert greater downward pressure will be more suitable.
If the project time is such that it needs high hourly output, large shovel
should be used

APPLICATIONS
Suitable for close range of work
Capable of digging very hard materials,
can remove big sized boulders.
It is used in various types of jobs such as digging in gravel banks, clay
pits, digging cuts in road works, road-side berms, etc.
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POWER SHOVEL
Factors affecting output of power shovel 77

Class of material
Depth of cutting
Angle of swing
Job condition
Management condition
Size of hauling units
Skill of the operator
Physical condition of the shovel
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VERY OLD POWER SHOVEL (CABLE TYPE) 79
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Power Shovel:
An upward motion unit is
called a front shovel or a
front power shovel. A shovel
develops breakout force by
crowding material away
from the machine

A shovel is capable of
developing a high breakout
force

The material being

excavated should be such
that it will stand with a
fairly vertical face
HOE (HYDRAULIC) 81
HOE
A downward arc excavator is
called as a hoe. It develops
excavation breakout force by
pulling the bucket towards the
machine and curling the bucket
inwards

Hoes are used primarily to

excavate below the natural
surface of the ground on which
the machine rests

Hoes are adopted to excavate

trenches and pits for
basements.
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CYCLE TIME FOR A POWER SHOVEL 85
BACK HOE 86
Also known as hoe, back shovel and pull shovel

It is used to excavate below the natural surface on which it rests.

Generally used to excavate trenches, pits for basements and also for
grading works, which requires precise control of depths.

The basic parts are Boom, Boom sheave, Stick sheave, Stick, Bucket
and Bucket Sheave
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Backhoe
The section of the arm closest to the vehicle is known as the boom, and
the section which carries the bucket is known as the dipper or dipper
stick
The boom is attached to the vehicle through a pivot known as the
kingpost, which allows the arm to slew left and right, usually through a
total of around 200 degrees.
Modern backhoes are powered by hydraulics.
Applications: 90

It is the most suitable machine for digging below the machine level, such
as, trenches, footings, basements etc.

Backhoes are used for surface or subsurface excavation of solids and

sludge

It can be efficiently used to dress or trim the surface avoiding the use of
manual effort for dressing the excavated the surface.
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Advantages of Hydraulic Control of machine components:
Faster cycle times

Outstanding control of attachments

High overall efficiency

Smoothness and ease of operation

Positive control that offers greater accuracy and precision

LOADERS 92
Loaders are used extensively in construction industry to handle and
transport bulk material, such as earth and rock, to load trucks, to
excavate earth and to charge aggregate bins at asphalt and concrete
plants.
Loader is also used to feed material into the conveyer belt and hoppers

Basically there are two types of loaders:

1. The crawler tractor mounted type and
2. The wheel tractor mounted type
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TRENCHING MACHINES 96

Trenchers, or ditchers as they are sometimes called, are similar to

excavators in the sense that they penetrate the earth, breaking soil and
rock, and remove it from the ground. They differ from excavators, in that
the soil is removed in one continuous movement.

The term trenching machine applies to wheel and ladder type machines.

These machines are used for digging utility trenches for water, gas and
oil pipelines; shoulder drains for highways; drainage ditches; and
sewers, where the job and soil conditions are such that they may be
used.
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They provide relatively fast digging with positive depths and widths of
trenches reducing expensive finishing.

These machines are capable of digging any type of soil but not suitable
for rocks.

They are available in various sizes for digging trenches of varying depths
and widths

They are usually crawler mounted to increase their stability and to

distribute the weight over a great area.
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Wheel type trencher can dig a trench up to 2.5m depth and 300mm to
1500mm in width

The excavating parts of the machine include power driven wheel with
cutting teeth to which movable buckets are attached

Ladder type trencher can dig a trench up to 10m in depth and 4m in

width

It consists of two endless chains which travel along the boom, to which
teethed cutter buckets are attached
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