The Many Faces of the Hydraulic Excavator

An excavator only in name, the hydraulic excavator can truly astonish in terms of the sheer range of the machine. Used in a number of different activities the world over, the hydraulic excavator is arguably the most versatile of construction machines.

It may be called an excavator but the uses of a hydraulic excavator, as it is properly called, can be as varied as applications in building of roads, laying pipelines, even digging out ores in mining and more. It’s highly versatile and useful and a skilled operator can use it even in relatively tight spots, giving the crew a hand where other machines may not be able to reach.



Those familiar with the construction of a hydraulic excavator will know that there are essentially four parts to the excavator; the tracks, cab, arm, boom and bucket. The arm and boom work pretty much like a human arm and the bucket like a cupped palm. And it is this bucket attachment that can be said to be the secret of the hydraulic excavator’s versatility.

Well, not the bucket per se, but rather the fact that the bucket can be detached and replaced with scissors, drills, crushing equipment and other, more exotic attachments that are available in the market. It is this ability to switch out the bucket with other attachments at a moment’s notice that has contributed majorly to the success of the presence of hydraulic excavators at virtually every construction site.

Thanks to this special ability of the hydraulic excavator, it can be used in digging soil or rocks, cutting steel, breaking rocks, drilling holes in the ground, laying gravel into the road before overlaying, compressing rocks, concrete and steel, landscape wowing and much more. With an operating load of at least 18,000 pounds, the hydraulic excavator is a multi-talented behemoth of a machine.

Excavators are also available in many other operating ranges however the “sweet-spot” that most people tend to go for is machines with operating weights in the 18,000 to 40,000 pounds range. These machines is commonly said to be in the mid-range. Many specialty contractors go for machines in this range as they can be used in a variety of activities, including installing sewers and even build swimming pools.

The number of activities that can be done using one of these hydraulic excavators is truly impressive. Contractors opting for mid-range excavators are engaged in a variety of businesses. Even in one project, the hydraulic excavator can be used in many different stages. For example, in a housing project, the excavator can be used in initial land clearing, site development, underground utilities, basement excavation, back-filling, finish grading and all the way to larger-scale landscaping at the end phases.