Construction machinery are specialized heavy-duty vehicles used for construction purposes. Some common types of heavy construction equipment used in the United States include excavators, cranes, backhoes, bulldozers, motor graders, wheel loaders, compactors, and pavers. These machines perform excavation, lifting, digging, hauling, compacting, grading, and paving functions that are necessary at construction sites for buildings, roads, bridges and other infrastructure projects.
Excavators
U.S. Heavy Duty Construction Equipment as Excavators, also known as digging machines, are used for digging, demolition, scraping and transportation of materials. They have a bucket or digging tool on an articulating arm mounted to the chassis. Popular brands of excavators in the U.S. include Caterpillar, Komatsu, John Deere, Hitachi and Hyundai. Excavators come in many sizes ranging from small compact excavators used in urban construction to large hydraulic excavators used in mining and heavy civil engineering projects. In 2020, over 45,000 excavators were sold in the U.S. with a total market value of $6 billion.
Cranes
Cranes are versatile lifting machines that are essential for construction, shipping and factory work. Common types of cranes used at construction sites include tower cranes, crawler cranes, rough terrain cranes and all terrain cranes. Tower cranes and crawler cranes provide lifting capacities of over 100 tons and are used to erect tall structures like buildings, bridges and industrial facilities. Rough terrain and all terrain cranes are mobile cranes with lifting capacities of 5-200 tons used to lift and place heavy structural steel and precast concrete elements. In 2021, over 20,000 cranes were sold in the U.S. valued at around $3 billion.
Backhoes and Loader Backhoes
Backhoes, also called rear loaders, have a bucket or spade on the back of the vehicle that can dig and move material. Loader backhoes perform both loading and excavating functions and have a bucket attachment on the front. The backhoe design allows them to dig and maneuver in tight spaces. They are versatile machines commonly used in landscaping, excavation, underground utility work and material handling. Key players in the U.S. heavy construction equipment market include John Deere, Caterpillar, New Holland, Case and Kubota. It is estimated over 70,000 units are sold annually in the U.S. valued at $2 billion.
Bulldozers
Bulldozers, also known as pushers or graders, are equipped with a blade used for pushing large quantities of soil, sand, rubble, and other such materials during landscaping, leveling and other such large-scale grading activities. They perform a variety of tasks like clearing vegetation, leveling ground for construction, landfill compaction and mining overburden removal. Caterpillar, Komatsu and John Deere dominate the bulldozer market in the U.S. More than 18,000 bulldozers were sold in 2020 with a total sales value of over $4 billion.
Motor Graders
Motor graders are heavy equipment used to create smooth surfaces and shape soil or aggregate road bases, parking lots and pathways. Their main component is a long blade attached perpendicular to the front that can be adjusted for height, angle and float. Motor graders precisely level and contour large areas efficiently. Caterpillar, John Deere and Komatsu have leading market shares in the U.S. Around 4,500 motor graders are sold annually with a market size close to $1 billion.
Wheel Loaders
Wheel loaders are versatile machines used primarily for loading and material handling tasks. Equipped with a bucket, they are deployed for excavation, demolition, gravel pitching and snow removal. They are able to quickly load trucks and stockpile material. Manufacturers like Caterpillar, John Deere, Komatsu and Volvo have significant presences in U.S. heavy construction equipment market. In 2020, over 16,000 units were sold with revenues totaling more than $2.5 billion.
Compactors
Compactors are used to compact and densify soil, aggregates like gravel and asphalt in material. Vibratory plate and roller compactors deliver high impact force to achieve compaction in layers during construction activities like roadworks, landfill lining and site preparation. Global leaders Caterpillar and Wacker Neuson supply a range of compactors to the United States construction industry. Around 25,000 compactors are sold annually in the country valued at about $400 million.
Pavers
Paving equipment is used to lay asphalt, concrete and similar materials at construction sites. Pavers carefully place and level these materials over prepared surfaces to construct roads, bridges and parking lots. Common types include asphalt pavers, concrete pavers and multi-purpose pavers. Leading paver brands include Caterpillar, Volvo Construction Equipment, Fayat, Vögele and Dynapac. In 2021, around 12,000 units were sold in the U.S. generating revenues of over $1 billion.
This overview covered the main categories of heavy-duty construction equipment used extensively across the United States. The market is very large with total annual sales exceeding $30 billion. However, spending slowed in early 2020 due to economic uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. As infrastructure projects restart and new investments are made, the U.S. heavy equipment market is projected to experience steady growth over the next five years supported by government funding programs. Ongoing technology advances will also enhance the productivity, safety and environmental performance of construction machinery.
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