By Jonathan Gardner, Product Manager for Construction Equipment at Kubota Canada
Canada is growing at an estimated 1.8 per cent annually. And while there’s lots of space to go around, there isn’t necessarily the infrastructure in place to support this continued population growth. Which is why pretty much every urban area of Canada from east to west has one thing in common – construction.
As our country’s population continues to climb, the number of development projects — residential homes, apartment complexes, retail spaces, etc. — is increasing exponentially.
This requires a need for more efficient and versatile tools and machinery on every jobsite, not only to move things along quicker and in a more cost-effective way, but also to adopt a more future-focused approach to infrastructure.
Navigating urban jobsites
Building projects that take place within city landscapes present many challenges that aren’t found in a larger, more secluded area. Think about the sheer number of people moving around on foot or in vehicles navigating within a space often less than the size of one city block. This is where compact equipment comes into play.
With significantly smaller footprints, the ability to turn on a dime, and even pivot in place, compact equipment, such as mini excavators, compact track loaders and skid steer loaders, can navigate the confined spaces that are urban jobsites, without disturbing surrounding properties or interrupting traffic.
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In addition to increased accessibility to tighter spaces, compact machinery is unmatched in its versatility compared to its larger counterparts, as one machine can be fitted with a variety of attachments to complete various jobsite tasks.
Compact equipment provides operators with the agility to handle multiple types of infrastructure projects — big and small — including driveway paving, housing development, foundation repairs and fence installation.
When beginning a project, look to a skid steer loader to support in land-clearing and grading operations, as well as hauling material and debris from one place to another.
Compact track loaders are also extremely helpful in moving dirt, rocks and other material with a traditional bucket attachment, and when paired with blades or grapples, can even be used to tackle more of the heavy lifting in levelling and excavating. But when you’re ready to dig, mini excavators are irreplaceable on urban jobsites. They can fit in places most equipment can’t, and with the right attachments, can tackle jobs such as the digging of foundations, removing existing concrete pads and more.
The cost benefits
As companies look to decrease input costs and increase profits in the current economic landscapes, compact equipment is a valuable tool for urban developers for many reasons.
First is the lower capital investment. With a smaller size comes a smaller price tag, making it a more affordable option for smaller, more limited-access or specialized development projects.
Compact machinery also requires less storage space and can be transported with greater ease than larger models, not to mention the added versatility that allows for quick application and attachment changes, much like a Swiss Army Knife for construction, on urgent jobs.
Equipment that allows for attachments like augers for drilling holes, power rake for ground prep, grading box blades for driveway preparation and plate compactors for soil compaction, are prime examples of the highly versatile nature of compact models.
The more projects that can be completed using a single machine, the greater income business owners can expect.
The future of excavation
Productivity goes hand-in-hand with performance, which is another area in which compact machinery excels. Tiltrotators are becoming more popular in the Canadian market, as owners and contractors are realizing they can be more productive and improve efficiencies when building a retaining wall or completing various excavation jobs.
Many compact machines now have telematics systems built-in as standard, to help monitor critical performance metrics, including hours worked, fuel levels and key maintenance intervals, supporting in anticipating operational issues before they arise. In some instances, it can even record when and where machinery was used, allowing project managers and leads to know when their team completed certain tasks in a development timeline.
When considering compact machinery equipped with telematics for urban jobsites, there are several benefits to keep in mind to ensure that business owners are getting the best investment for their purchase:
- Monitor operational performance and efficiency: Route information, fuel consumption, GPS location and engine status become actionable insights that users can plan around.
- Check equipment health: This allows users to identify and correct issues before they become ongoing problems. A condition-based monitoring system allows technicians access to valuable data ensuring they are responding with the right tools and replacement parts.
- Enhance user safety and security: Users can always know where their machines are located on large-scale worksites while remotely preventing unauthorized equipment access to untrained operators.
- Improve fault identification: Pre-telematics, a check engine light could be received, but not remotely, and indicated a problem, but no solution. Sensor data now provides detailed remote information about equipment fault status and how operators can streamline the fix.
Always know how and where machinery is operating to better plan diagnostic and maintenance work.
When it comes to city-based landscaping, development and construction jobs, compact machinery provides more than an essential service.
To navigate urban jobsites of all shapes and sizes, companies are not only doing better work faster; they are also fuelling the future of Canadian infrastructure.
