How to Select the Right Construction Equipment

The first principle of construction equipment selection that must be understood is the fact that each item of equipment is a tool designed for certain specific purposes. In construction work, a contractor cannot ordinarily afford to have the piece of construction equipment best adapted to each operation that may ever be required during a construction project so its necessary to select the best equipment available for the job.

In general, the best strategy is to consider the most commons tasks and select construction equipment that will accomplish those tasks. When the need arises, the construction engineer will use his ingenuity in an effort to adapt the equipment available in such a manner to complete the task without putting either the equipment or the construction site personnel in a perilous situation.

After all, it's always possible to avoid the high cost of purchasing a specific piece of construction equipment by renting it for the short term. The expenses for that specific construction project will be increased but at least the job will be done correctly using construction equipment designed for that specific purpose and moreover it will be done safely. Renting construction equipment also saves the enormous cost of having to purchase the equipment for just one job.

The second principle in selecting construction equipment is the fact that cost per unit of production, and not initial investment or even ownership cost per hour of an individual piece of construction equipment is the true criterion of economical selection.

For example, when a shovel breaks down, not only is it running up repair costs, but the ownership and labor costs of a whole fleet of trucks will continue while the trucks produce nothing, waiting for the shovel to be repaired or replaced.

The third principle of construction equipment selection is that of utilizing standardized equipment as far as practicable. Standardized parts are readily available and can be stocked so as to minimize replacement delays. They are almost always considerably cheaper than specially made parts. In addition, standardized construction equipment is generally readily convertible to various other uses by addition or substitution of other standardized parts which minimized the initial investment in construction equipment.

The fourth and final principle of construction equipment selection is to not use equipment too large of too powerful for the job. Large heavy equipment running at a fraction of its capacity is generally less economical than smaller equipment running at capacity.

This principle must be applied in accordance with construction equipment available which may have been selected on a basis of the majority of operations to be performed versus that of any single operation. In addition, the transport of heavy equipment from one job site to another may be challenging when you consider such things as bridge capacity and clearance, overhead wires, and highway load limits.