Ready for Grade Control? Industry Experts Offer Advice for Track Loaders and Mini Excavators
Automation. It sounds awesome but also expensive. Well, it’s certainly a serious investment, but it can also help you save some serious money. Let’s take a grade control system for a compact track loader or compact excavator as an example, matched to a bucket, grader or box blade attachment. The combination is becoming increasingly popular. Powered by a quick and nimble compact track loader, machine-controlled grading attachments and operations can lower material overages while increasing the quality of the finished surface, adding velocity and prestige to your projects. Attached to a mini excavator and perhaps a tiltrotator attachment system, dig-a-ditch operations can become precision sculpting operations.
But grade control is expensive, and it has a learning curve. You’re probably asking yourself: What are even some of the major products? Well, we reached out to the top players of machine control products in the compact equipment industry — names like Topcon, Trimble, Cat, Leica and John Deere — gathering expert advice and popular products for pros. Let’s start with…
Oscar Cantu
Construction Content Manager, Topcon Positioning Group
Top Product
MC-Mobile offers the user experience and competitive performance benefits of full-size machine control guidance solutions for compact excavators, skid steers and compact track loaders (CTLs). MC-Mobile provides users with layout, inspection and validation functionalities and a feature-rich Topcon software experience. Operators can utilize modular components for a wide range of applications, including grade checking, creating designs on the fly, and self-performing site layouts without traditional staking. Displays and other components are designed to be easily shared across numerous machines in owned or rental fleet environments. These pieces can also be moved from grade checking/layout rover pole to machine and back.
Owner/Operator Advice
If you really want to get the most out of your grade control investment, one of the most important considerations is proper training. There are several manufacturers that are making this technology available to contractors, and while each system operates on the same fundamentals and ultimately helps to accomplish the same jobsite tasks, there are always going to be differences in the user interface and functionality. Make sure that your operators understand the system, and how to properly set it up for the job at hand. You also want to make sure that whatever grade control solution you choose plays nicely with the rest of your fleet. Some systems on the market are able to speak to one another without any issues — but not all of them. Make sure that you talk to your equipment dealer to make sure that your compact grade control solution fits nicely into your existing digital workflows.
Bob Shoop
Product Application Specialist, Caterpillar
Top Product
Cat compact construction equipment offers three technology-based attachment grading solutions for skid steer and compact track loaders that have been introduced over the last five years. The Cat BB120/124 box blade has integrated software to operate 2D, 3D and UTS. It fits all D Series Cat SSL/CTL machines. Available specifically for the D3 Series of SSL/CTLs, Cat’s GB121/124 Smart Grader Blade integrates with the machine controls and supports the same technology as the box blade as well adds a slope assist feature that allows the operator to set desired cross slope and maintain position regardless of the host machine’s position. The Cat Smart Dozer Blade, which also is integrated with Cat D3 SSL/CTL machine, is a robust six-way blade that has same slope assist technology as our grader blade for heavier cutting applications or fine grading. Both the box and grader blade attachments are easily able to integrate with Trimble or many other grade control OEM platforms for the easiest plug-and-play solution for customers looking to advance their grading game.
Owner/Operator Advice
Machine grade control systems help increase production and accuracy for finish grades. There are different levels of technology for grade control. As the complexity of the system to complete tasks rises, so does the investment. The project will determine the best system suited for you. 2D systems are intuitive, cost-effective systems that are reliable and can be used on simpler designs jobs such as flat planes and slopes. 3D systems are more advanced so operators can grade on planes, slopes, contours and complex curves. They require satellite for guidance and will need open view to the sky. Universal total station (UTS) systems allow the machine to work inside a building using a prism to capture beam from a workstation that has a clear line of site towards the prism. All these systems work with Cat BB120/124 and GB121/124.
Compact track loaders are the most popular category of compact equipment in America. Learn why with loads of track loader features right here.
Kris Maas
Director of Product Management, Leica Geosystems
Top Product
Leica Geosystems delivers an intelligent and intuitive hardware and software combination for the heavy construction industry — the new all-in-one machine control platform consisting of a panel, MCP80 and docking station combined with a application software, MC1, supports multiple machines for heavy construction. Our all-in-one solution hardware and software can be used on excavators, dozer, motor graders, compactors, drill rigs, drill pilers, concrete paving, asphalt paving, milling and even a specialty application for snow groomers. We offer 2D solutions for earthmoving machines, solutions that can be easily upgraded to 3D applications. All our machine control products are available on any brand of machine available in the construction industry, we also have OEMs who offer a factory fit Leica Geosystems machine ready kit or who offer a complete 2D and 3D solution.
Owner/Operator Advice
Machine control technology is used to help accurately guide, position and automate all heavy construction machinery. The technology uses the same GPS you find in your car and smartphone. This gives your machine a live ‘position’ in space and time, simply meaning it helps you get your job done with less effort and reduces wasteful movements of your machine and material. Most importantly it improves safety and speed while removing unplanned rework. Leica Geosystems is the established brand in the Hexagon Heavy Construction portfolio delivering ‘one for all’ machine control technology. It is a Dirt Simple Solution made up of one common hardware and software platform for all heavy machinery. You can now take control of your jobsite with easy-to-use machine automation solutions. From shifting earth to laying materials, whether it’s a simple laser guiding an excavator to a group of total stations controlling slipform pavers to millimeter accuracy.
Luke Gribble
Solutions Marketing Manager, John Deere
Top Product
The SmartGrade 333G compact track loader is the industry’s first fully integrated 3D grade control solution on a compact track loader. This solution sees the installation and integration of precision 3D grade control technology from the factory while maintaining the existing versatility and productivity capabilities of our existing 333G CTL. The factory integrated solution also leverages key features like our newly designed dozer blade attachment, EZ Grade software, Dozer Mode, and factory calibration all of which assist in the overall ease of operation of the machine and help ensure that you are productively and accurately hitting grade every pass, specifically getting accuracy to within one tenth of an inch. For customers not needing a full 3D solution, we also offer Slope Control and Laser Slope Control on the 333G. Slope Control is an entry level grade control system that allows operators to grade to desired slopes or build flat pads using the systems automated controls. 2D Laser Slope Control assists operators in grading smooth planar surfaces with increased precision utilizing a laser base station and two receivers mounted on the CTL blade. This system allows, similar to slope control, real-time cross slope and/or main fall slope percentages to be displayed in the Deere monitor and utilizes the automated features of the Slope Control system to automatically control blade movements to hit target grades.
Owner/Operator Advice
A fully integrated 3D grading solution is geared towards applications where specific elevations, increased accuracy and tight tolerance are needed. Jobsites with existing 3D engineering models with complex sloping and cut-and-fill requirements often times seen in large site development or roadbuilding come to mind as great applications.
2D solutions are ideal for small to medium jobsites where maintaining and hitting a target grade is necessary but working off of an engineering 3D model is not required. They also can work inside building or arenas and in condensed metro areas near tall buildings since they do not need full visibility to satellites for GPS signals. In general, adding any grade control solution on a compact track loader enables the machines to accurately and efficiently get to grade in smaller jobsite areas that crawler dozers and motor graders can’t get to. Most often, if the machine is not needed for grading, other attachments can be put back on the machine as well and the rubber tracks allow increased mobility to travel over pavement or curbs.
Cameron Clark
Earthmoving Industry Director, Trimble Civil Infrastructure Solutions
Top Product
The Trimble Earthworks GO! Grade Control Platform is a 2D grade control solution for compact machine grading attachments. Trimble Earthworks GO! runs on Android or iOS smartphones and enables high-accuracy grading in an easy-to-use, portable platform. Trimble Earthworks GO! can be used by contractors involved in general construction, site preparation and utility work for grading flat and simple slopes. The system leverages laser technology to provide dynamic, real-time position information that allows the operator to grade or cut profiles quickly and accurately. The platform requires little training time and can increase an operator’s productivity up to 20 percent. At the core of the system is the Earthworks GO! software that guides the user through installation, setup and operating modes. The software was specifically designed for local small site contractors and owner-operators, featuring unparalleled ease-of-use. iOS and Android compatibility allows operators to use their smartphone as the primary machine interface.
Owner/Operator Advice
The best piece of advice I can offer about how to get started is just that. Get started. We are seeing more contractors than ever before use machine control on projects and equipment of all types and sizes, all over the world. Compact machines are a great place to start because the systems are both cost effective and easy to learn and install, while also delivering big productivity gains. Anyone who still isn’t using machine control is at risk of falling behind the competition at this point. The SITECH dealer network consists of more than 110 technology dealers in local markets worldwide. These are local market experts on construction technology options, training, installation, troubleshooting and more. Contractors who aren’t sure where to start should reach out to their local dealer to start the conversation.
Keith Gribbins is publisher of Compact Equipment.
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