Heavy Equipment in the News

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Navy Seabees called in to Assist in CA Wildfires

A team of Navy Seabees is using heavy equipment to build firebreaks to help prevent further spread of one of the worst of the San Diego County fires, the Harris Ranch Fire... The Navy’s heavy bulldozers make relatively quick work of a task that would be nearly impossible to do by hand.

Navy Seabees get to work on stopping California wildfires

U.S. Navy Seabee Nathan Luetjen operates a bulldozer to demolish an unsafe building in Muzaffarabad, Pakistan (Picture from US Department of Defense)

Backhoe Broadcasts

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Behold Some Amazing Backhoes!


Backhoe Drifting



That's One Fast Backhoe - The Fastest Backhoe Around by JCB

Backhoe Bandits in the News

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TWO men have been charged after they allegedly rammed their way into a north-west Queensland business and used a backhoe to steal around $90,0000 worth of copper.

Backhoe 'used to steal $90k in copper'

A Backhoe Attachment

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A backhoe, also called a rear actor or back actor, is a piece of excavating equipment consisting of a digging bucket on the end of an articulated arm (also called a stick or dipper). Modern backhoes are powered by hydraulics. They are typically mounted on the back of a tractor or front loader.

Similar attachments for skid loaders are still called backhoes even though they are mounted on the front. This is because the name refers to the action of the shovel, not its location on the vehicle: a backhoe digs by drawing earth backwards, rather than lifting it with a forward motion like a bulldozer.

A backhoe loader is a tractor-like vehicle with an arm and bucket mounted on the back and a front loader mounted on the front. This type of vehicle is often known colloquially as a JCB.

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The Backhoe Loader - The Swiss Army Knife of Heavy Equipment


Heavy Equipment Backhoe Video Profile - Funny bloopers are a click away

Construction Industry Still Declining

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The construction industry has been hit hard in the recent years due to the decline in real estate sales. The ripple effect was forecast by Wall Street Journal Analyst Alex Frangos last year:

"The construction industry accounts for almost a tenth of economic activity, and its contraction could have a ripple effect through the economy as it is a major buyer of finished products and generator of jobs. Local governments' ability to raise revenue through development fees and taxes, especially in fast-growing parts of the country, could suffer as well."

Housing Decline Sparks A Construction Slowdown

Today, CNN Money reported that 2008 will continue to see a decline in the industry, but not as bad as it has been this year:

"McGraw-Hill Construction, part of The McGraw-Hill Companies , today released its 2008 Construction Outlook, which forecasts a drop in overall U.S. construction spending for next year, fueled by tighter lending conditions and weaker job growth. Against this backdrop, the level of construction starts is expected to decline 2%..."

Construction Market Will Continue to Weaken in 2008, According to McGraw-Hill Construction Outlook