1. BigRentz
  2. Think Big Blog
  3. 37 Heavy Construction Equipment Names

37 Heavy Construction Equipment Names

37 Heavy Construction Equipment Names

Every construction project has a perfect set of machinery to get the job done. Getting the right equipment for each project helps with efficiency, safety and build quality. Because of this, it’s essential to be on the same page with your team when it comes to choosing equipment. Some machines have multiple uses, while others are task-specific.

So, if you are interested in construction, here are 37 construction equipment names you need to know:

1. Boom Lift

boom lift in a parking lot

A boom lift is a type of aerial platform used to get workers off the ground to work on an elevated project. This construction lift has a bucket that’s typically large enough for one to two workers to stand in. Wheels or a continuous band of treads are used to make the machine mobile. The crane that lifts the bucket is operated by a hydraulic lift system.

There are two main types of boom lifts: articulating and telescopic, but these are all part of the larger “construction lift” family.

Explore Boom Lifts

2. Scissor Lift

a blue scissor lift outside of a mall

Similar to a boom lift, scissor lifts are aerial work platforms used to elevate workers. Both electric and engine-powered scissor lifts exist. Electric scissor lifts are used when a quieter work environment is needed, whereas engine-powered lifts sacrifice quiet for rugged terrain mobility. Scissor lift buckets are elevated by a system of jacks.

Explore Scissor Lifts

3. Forklift

a forklift near boxes in a warehouse

If materials need to be transported a short distance, forklift equipment can be used. The lift can move materials both vertically and horizontally. Usually used in warehouses, it’s operated by a steering wheel and dashboard controls. This equipment is great for loading and unloading heavy packages/materials.

There are ten main forklift types, each with a specific use. For instance, the reach forklift is used to “reach” boxes and other objects at extremely high heights within a warehouse.

Explore Forklifts

4. Single Man Lift

manlift lifting a man

The manlift was created to transport workers between floors of buildings under construction. Typically, manlifts are equipped with four wheels, and most can maneuver around sites. However, these machines are sometimes stationary and have to be moved on a trailer.

Manlifts utilize a bent crane system that uses hydraulic pumps to raise a bucket that workers stand-in during transport. This construction lift is ideal for any project that needs to reach high elevations.

Explore Single Man Lifts

5. Telehandler

a telehandler on a green lawn next to a fence

A telehandler is used for jobs where a forklift is inadequate. It’s more heavy-duty than a forklift and can access much higher areas as well.

These pieces of heavy equipment have an extendable arm, allowing them to place loads in high places. The machine also has large tires, giving it an advantage on off-road sites.

Explore Telehandlers

6. Bulldozer

a bulldozer near a forest working on a site

Bulldozers are pieces of crawler equipment and have many different uses. Equipped with a metal bucket plate, this piece of heavy machinery is used to push, carry and condense any sort of loose material on site. The metal plate can also be used to loosen compacted materials and break apart walls or other stable structures.

Explore Bulldozers

7. Wheel Tractor-Scraper

a wheel tractor scraper
Wheel tractor-scrapers are also used in earthmoving operations. This piece of heavy equipment consists of a rear hopper which can move vertically, with a sharp edge for flattening a surface. The front end hosts a sharp edge to cut soil and a carpenter’s plane for cutting wood. The two tools work together to fill the hopper and transport whatever material was removed from a cleared area.

Explore Earthmoving Equipment

8. Skid Steer Loader

a skid steer loader picking up dirt

Used for a plethora of jobs, a skid-steer loader is a small engine-powered machine. In front of the operating cabin, there’s a mechanism that allows for the attachment of different types of tools.

From buckets to loaders, a skid loader can host different equipment and is also small enough to maneuver into tight areas of a site. The frame is rigid, meaning turning is done through differential steering (e.g., each wheel moves at a different speed, thus causing a turn).

Explore Skid Steers

9. Backhoe Loader

backhoe in a neighborhood digging a hole

Another type of digger is a backhoe loader. Equipped with a backhoe in the back and a bucket in front, this is a multi-use machine. Similar to a tractor, it’s operated by a driver and has the ability to push materials, with the additional benefit of scooping. Due to its small profile and high maneuverability, the backhoe loader (referred to as backhoe in the industry) is commonly seen in urban environments.

Explore Backhoe Loaders

10. Excavator

an excavator digging a hole

An excavator is a heavy piece of machinery used to dig and crush material on a site. It consists of a hydraulic crane-like boom with a metal shovel that has sharp prongs on the end. The driver’s cab is set on a rotating platform, making the machine more maneuverable. The machine is mobile due to an undercarriage consisting of heavy-duty tracks. Although sometimes called a “power shovel,” an excavator and a power shovel have their differences.

Explore Excavators

11. Feller Buncher

a feller near a pile of logs, with on in its claw

Feller bunchers are a type of harvester that are required for logging. They consist of a standard four-wheel base, giving them easy access to off-road sites. A feller buncher gathers trees by wrapping multiple metal arms around a tree’s trunk and then snipping its base with a chainsaw. This type of harvester then carries the entire tree to a collection area where the greenery will be broken down by other machines.

12. Harvester

a harvester in a giant field

The harvester, or combine, is used to gather grain and other similar crops. This machine combines reaping, threshing and winnowing into one process, making it efficient for agriculture projects. It helps separate straw from the crop itself, minimizing manual work for a farmer. A massive vortex roller sucks in the crop, and discards stems through a chute.

13. Trencher

chain trencher on asphalt

Trenchers are the perfect tool for digging ditches, channels or other long, narrow holes for things like underground piping and cables. This powerful tool is equipped with a heavy metal chain made with incredibly strong steel which it uses to cut into the ground and rip through things like roots, smaller rocks and dirt. They come in a range of sizes and capacities, like the wheel trencher or chain trencher, which looks like a giant chain saw.

Explore Trenchers

14. Articulated Hauler

articulated hauler unloading

As with any articulated truck, an articulated hauler has a pivot joint in its build, giving it increased mobility. Because of this joint, it can carry massive loads around tight turns, making it ideal for most structural builds. This dump truck has a control hub where the driver sits and a material pail where loads go to be transported. Almost all articulated haulers are four-wheel drive, giving them access to most sites regardless of condition.

15. Off-Highway Truck

a massive off highway truck

The off-highway truck is specifically made for rugged environments. This heavy-duty dump-truck has massive wheels with deep treads, allowing it to venture off-road and support construction and mining sites. It’s primarily used to transport materials like rocks or dirt from one site to another. Some models use multi-axle dump buckets to support even heavier loads.

16. Asphalt Paver

asphalt paver with worker on it

Machines used to lay asphalt are called asphalt pavers. Asphalt is loaded into the paver by a dump truck, and then distributed onto the desired area before being semi-packed down — then they are completely flattened by a roller. The paver is typically towed by a dump truck holding asphalt.

17. Cold Planer

a cold planner in a business park

A cold planer grinds asphalt, removing it from its original location. This machine drives down a space and picks up laid asphalt, mills it and then shoots it out a belt system into a dump truck.

These machines help get a surface ready for new asphalt and aid in the recycling efforts by recovering old asphalt. This machine is bulky and hard to maneuver, so it’s essential to get the machine’s placement right when starting a job to ensure minimal shifting while milling.

18. Motor Grader

a motor grader in a ditch

A motor grader is essential to the process of building a road. This heavy machinery is one of the components that flattens an area of dirt in order to build a road. A grader ensures an even grade thanks to a metal plate that flattens the areas it passes over. It’s typically six-wheeled and has an elongated nose where the flattening metal plates sit.

19. Compactor

a worker pushing a yellow compactor

While there are many types of compactors in construction, the plate compactor is the most commonly used. It has a vibrating base plate that levels surfaces and crushes uneven debris. Another common compactor is a road rolling compactor.

Road rolling compactors are used to flatten roads in order to prepare them for re-asphalting or to lay foundation. Other common compactors found on construction sites are trash and hydraulic compactors.

20. Drum Roller

a drum rolle in a a parking lot

In order to press asphalt, soil and other loose materials, drum rollers are used. This machine is typically found at road construction sites. There are two types of drum rollers: smooth rollers and padfoot rollers.

Smooth rollers provide static pressure and use vibration to compact loose materials. Padfoot rollers, also known as Sheepsfoot rollers, also provide static pressure and vibration; however, they also generate manipulative force, allowing for uniform compaction.

Explore Drum Rollers

21. Compact Track and Multi-Terrain Loader

a compact track loader in dirt

A compact track loader (CTL) and multi-terrain loader (MLT) are small, compressed machines used to transport and load materials. Equipped with front metal plate scoops, both machines lift and break apart massive loads.

The difference between a CTL and an MTL is that a CTL is more rugged and puts immense pressure on the ground it’s on, so it’s best for tough terrain. The MTL is less rugged but is designed to work on more delicate surfaces.

22. Skidder

a skidder next to a pile logs

Skidders are also used in logging operations. These foresting machines cut and then move trees to a landing site where they will be loaded onto a vessel for transport. Unlike forwarders, which carry logs a few inches above the ground, skidders typically drag logs to a loading site.

23. Forwarder

a forwarder at the edge of a forest

The forwarder is also used in logging efforts — it takes felled logs and carries them to a loading site. Typically an eight-wheel truck, this machine is designed to go off-road into rugged terrain. The advantage of using this forestry vehicle over other machines is that it’s able to carry logs above the ground. This eliminates dragging, which can destroy the soil.

24. Knuckleboom Loader

a knuckleboom loader carrying a log

The knuckleboom loader is designed to handle logs. Some models are more versatile than others — depending on their off-road ability. Knuckleboom loaders are equipped with tracks and more versatile than wheel or trailer-based models. Once a forwarder brings a log to a loading site, the knuckleboom loader will use a crane head to grab the wood and put it on a truck.

25. Towable Light Tower

a towable light tower illuminating a construction site at night

A towable light tower is used to provide light during night projects or on sites without natural light. This machine is typically diesel-powered and can be taken off-road. It consists of a generator, which is attached to a pair of wheels, and the light tower itself.

Explore Towable Light Towers

26. Carry Deck Crane

a green carry deck crane

A carry deck crane is a small, mobile crane system with a 360-degree rotating platform. This type of crane is ideal for projects that require lifting materials at nearby locations. The operating platform, or deck, sits on four wheels and has a control panel plus a steering wheel for operation.

It gets its name from the machine’s flat deck, which often carries materials, tools or even personnel around the job site.

Explore Carry Deck Cranes

27. Concrete Mixer Truck

concrete-mixer-truck

These machines are just what they sound like — trucks that mix and transport concrete from a batching plant to a construction site. They feature a large cylindrical drum that continually rotates to keep cement evenly mixed. This rotating drum also prevents the cement from hardening. Concrete trucks come in a variety of sizes from a few cubic yards up to meet the needs of construction projects, both big and small.

28. Drill Rig

drill-rig

A drilling rig explores or extracts subsurface materials at a construction site, such as:

  • Oil
  • Natural Gas
  • Minerals
  • Water
  • Geotechnical Data

It typically consists of a derrick and a mast, which holds the drilling tool. Drill rigs can penetrate the Earth’s surface with precise depth and direction. This makes them a great asset for construction sites looking to dig wells or extract oil and for scientific research sites looking to learn more about our Earth.

29. Dump Truck

dump-truck

Dump trucks are vehicles that transport loose materials like gravel, sand, dirt and construction waste. They’re known for their open-top beds and hydraulic lifting mechanisms that can effectively tip or “dump” materials out of the vehicle. This makes them helpful machines to have around mining, construction or emergency disaster cleanup sites, to name a few. Dump trucks come in various sizes and can feature wheels suited for both easy and difficult terrain.

30. Utility Vehicle

UTV

You can think of a utility vehicle as the all-terrain vehicle (ATV) of heavy machinery. Sometimes called UTVs, these sturdy vehicles feature four-wheel drive and robust suspension systems that transport materials or personnel across difficult terrain. This can be especially helpful for accessing remote work sites with no paved road access, such as foresting or agricultural sites.

31. Truck-Mounted Crane

crane-truck

Truck-mounted cranes combine the mobility of a truck with a crane’s lifting capabilities. A heavy-duty crane can assist construction sites with moving heavy loads like steel beams, shipping containers, trees or logs. Because the crane connects to a truck chassis, it is easy to relocate. Additionally, truck-mounted cranes are very quick to set up compared to standard, fixed cranes, making them an even more flexible option.

32. Walkie Stacker

walkie-stacker

Walkie stackers, also known as pallet jacks, are similar to forklifts, except that they aren’t driven. Instead, workers operate walkie stackers by standing behind them and using control guides to lift and push pallets or other loads around the warehouse or job site. This design makes the walkie stacker more compact than a forklift and often more maneuverable in tighter spaces. Walkie stackers are incredibly useful tools for loading or unloading trucks, racks and shelves.

Explore Walkie Stackers

33. Tunnel Boring Machine

tunnel-boring-machine

Tunnel boring machines, also known as “moles,” are powerful machines that revolutionized tunnel-making, such as building subways. Before TBMs existed, tunnel makers relied on much more labor-intensive methods, like drilling and blasting — where workers used handheld or pneumatic drills to create holes in the rock or soil, then placed explosives in those holes to “blast” the area clear. Today, TBMs use a rotating cutting head to bore into the rock and a series of internal conveyor belts to transport the material from the created tunnel.

34. Rock Breaker

rock-breaker

A rock breaker is a chiseled tool with hydraulic power that drives the tip forcefully up and down, making it possible to demolish rock and other hard, solid material. Rock breakers can be mounted on heavy machinery like excavators or backhoe loaders. Also known as “hydraulic hammers,” rock breakers can make what would otherwise be labor-intensive tasks much more efficient, like removing concrete or excavating rocky terrain.

35. Concrete Pump

concrete-pump

Concrete pumps are critical tools for transporting mixed concrete to a construction site. These tools are large pumps connected to a truck or other machinery that use hydraulics to push the cement mixture through a tube. This way, the cement mixture can pour directly where it needs to go. Because of the far-reaching arm, workers can access remote or difficult-to-access locations more efficiently. Concrete pumps also make more labor-intensive strategies like wheelbarrowing obsolete.

36. Pipe Layer

pipelayer

Pipe layers can have either wheels or tracks — plus a hydraulic boom and winch meant to lift, carry and place pipes in the ground. After placing pipes in the ground, the pipe layer operator can also use the boom to adjust the pipe’s vertical and horizontal position to make sure the pipe lays at the proper grade. Then, workers backfill the trench. Thanks to their effectiveness, these machines are vital for projects like laying water, sewer or other utility lines.

37. Dragline Excavator

dragline-excavator

You can think of a dragline excavator as a gigantic big excavator. Both machines are primarily used for digging. However, dragline excavators use a suspended bucket and draglines to pull or “drag” the bucket toward the machine. This is distinct from the digging motion of a standard excavator.

Dragline excavators are some of the biggest, heaviest machines in the construction industry. Their massive buckets are perfect for use in open-pit mines, quarries and other worksites where massive excavations occur.

Whatever your project entails, we hope that this has given you more direction in deciding what equipment you will need. It’s important to consider safety and efficiency when selecting the gear needed to complete your task.

Some of these machines are easier to come by than others, but BigRentz has everything you need to help you get the job done right.

rent-quipment-you-need-for-your-project

Get the latest from the Think Big Blog delivered to your inbox.

Equipment Rental Guides

Download any of our free rental guides and learn how to pick the right equipment to fit your project needs.