Earthmoving machines

1. When relatively large areas of land or large volumes of earth are involved, machines are
generally preferred to move earth, if local conditions make it possible.
2. For maximum efficiency and minimum cost, the choice of an earthmoving machine
should take into account the distance of transport, the local conditions, the period the
machine can operate daily and the characteristics of the earth to be moved. Remember
also that under wet soil conditions, a machine with tracks will usually be more efficient
than one with wheels.
3. There are various earthmoving activities: loosening and digging up the earth, moving it,
lifting it up to another area or into another machine, and placing it in or on a specific
location. Other machines (see later) can be used for compacting the final earth
construction. Some machines are built for specific tasks, others are capable of more than
one task.
4. Although the selection and planning of the use of the most efficient machinery is often
best left to an experienced local contractor, Table 18 provides some guidance to use in
normal field conditions.
5. The average hourly output of bulldozers and wheel-loaders for different types of
earthwork are given in Tables 19 and 20.

TABLE 18
Earthmoving machines: guidelines for possible choices
Transport
distance

Working conditions

Preferred choice of
machine*

Direct
(0-5 m)

Placing/lifting adjacent
to works, small capacity

Backhoe

Very short
(5-15 m)

Rough/uneven terrain
Earth not concentrated

Track-loader

Loose earth, easy to dig

for loading

Wheel-loader

Earth to be moved, but

not loaded

Bulldozer
1

Short
(15-70 m)

Bulldozer

Medium
(70-250 m)

Towed scraper

Long
(250-1000 m)

Motorscraper

Very long
(over 1000 m)

Truck

* Under normal field conditions, namely flat topography and dry weather

TABLE 19
Average output of various machine per working hour

TABLE 20
Approximate output of bulldozers for earthwork

Approx.
power Approx. blade Excavation/transport**
rating (horsepower) capacity* (m3) (m3/h)

Spreading
loose
earth
(m3/h)

40

1.2

13-17

18-24

70

2.5

22-29

30-39

90

3.6

32-40

42-54

130

4.0

46-71

60-76

* When completely filled. In practice, filling is usually 30 to 60% of this, depending on site
conditions
** Excavation by layers less than 0.5 m thick. Transport over 50 m at most, in good site
conditions
Note: it is possible to estimate output by defining the time for each trip based on:

excavation of blade load 0.5-1 min; pushing 2 km/h; returning 4-5 km/h; turning,
positioning, gear change 0.5-1 min; allow a maximum of 50 min per hour These output
figures decrease considerably in difficult site conditions such as sloping ground
6. Loaders either on wheels or on tracks are not only very efficient for loading material on
to lorries but also for excavating thin soil layers over large areas and for clearing forested
areas (see Chapter 5). Their bucket size varies from 0.5 m 3 to 6 m3 . A loader with a 0.75
m3 bucket, for example, equals approximately the loading capacity of a team of 30
workers.
7. A backhoe is a powerful arm and bucket mounted at the back of a tractor and
hydraulically controlled. It can be extremely useful, particularly for small works. It is a
multipurpose machine, particularly efficient for digging ditches and foundations, placing
material nearby and building up small dikes. Many backhoes are also equipped with a
front-end bulldozer blade, although their capacity is much smaller than that of a
specialized bulldozer.
Small backhoe on tracks

Small backhoe on wheel-tractor

8. Where heavy and difficult digging is required, where it is necessary to dig under water,
to finish side slopes or to dig trenches and canals, other machines may be used:

hydraulic excavator, with a 360 revolving backhoe;

hydraulic shovel, similar except for the front-loading bucket;

dragline excavator, with a large bucket controlled by cables.

9. However, these specialized machines are expensive to operate and would only be used
in difficult or unusual circumstances.