Compact Excavators Pack Punch

Digging their way into the changing utility construction market

By Tara Deering -- Construction Digest, 1/24/2005

Todd Burns, owner of Sub-Surface of Indiana, knows how to get around installing utility lines in cramped conditions. He uses compact excavators. For more than five years, Burns has been using compact excavators to help adapt to the changing utility construction market, which increasingly has involved more rehabilitation and tight access jobs.

When Burns started out in the utility construction business in 1987, the only piece of equipment he needed was a rubber-tire trencher with a backhoe attachment. But now, as his utility construction business in Morgantown, Ind., has grown, he has expanded his equipment fleet to include backhoe loaders, skid-steer loaders, horizontal directional drilling (HDD) machines, and compact excavators.

Burns was working for a gas utility company when he ran into another contractor who had just started his own utility construction business. He planted the seed in Burns' head that he should jump on the bandwagon, too.

"He convinced me it was a good opportunity and that there was room for another utility contractor in the area," Burns says. "At that time, I didn't have any employees. I just started out with myself and a trenching machine."

A month later, Burns hired another full-time employee to help with the growing number of jobs he was receiving from Indianapolis Power & Light Co., which provides electrical service to about 440,000 residential, commercial and industrial customers in Indianapolis and other central Indiana communities. In the beginning, Burns used his backhoe trencher to run electrical service to individual residential customers. After proving they could handle any job the electric company threw their way, they expanded their business to installing electrical lines for entire housing subdivisions. And things took off from there. Soon they entered into a contract with local telephone and cable companies to install their telecommunication lines.

Business mostly grew through word-of-mouth. "They would see the name on the side of our trucks and call us up," Burns says.

As electrical lines in the communities aged, Sub-Surface began receiving more jobs entailing rehabilitation work. The increase in jobs that required going into developed areas and replacing utility lines is one of the biggest changes Burns has seen in the utility construction business over the last 17 years.

In the mid-1990s, Burns expanded his equipment fleet to include HDD machines in order to adjust to the changing market. For the first few years, Burns' crews used backhoes with their HDD machines to dig holes to tie-in cable, but they found that the large backhoes were not conducive to working in the tight quarters between homes. So Burns had to find a machine that was smaller, but had the power to do the job.

In 1998, Sub-Surface purchased its first compact excavator, a Bobcat 334, to see if it would work well with its HDD machines. The 7,568-pound compact excavator proved it was up for the task with its 11-foot-2-inch digging depth.

"In the last five years, the use of compact excavators has become even more popular in our area," Burns says. "More and more job sites are growing smaller, and compact excavators have taken the place of the larger backhoes because you can get into a lot tighter spaces."

He added, "Anymore we don't even think of bringing the backhoe on those jobs. We just get in and bring the compact excavator. They're much easier to work with."

The utility companies Burns worked for also liked the compact excavator. The compact excavator's tracks, low machine weight and low 4.47-psi ground pressure meant less turf disturbance to their customers' lawns.

Not only have the utility companies been happy with the machine's performance, but residents in the areas where Sub-Surface does work have also started to take notice. While installing electrical, cable or water lines in residential neighborhoods, homeowners have approached Sub-Surface to use its compact excavator to rip out driveways or steps.

"We do those kinds of little odds-and-ends jobs all the time," Burns says. "They'll come up to us and ask, 'Since you're here, can you do this for us?'"

Because Burns had only one compact excavator, his two HDD crews shared the machine. Impressed by the machine's arm and bucket breakout force, the crews oftentimes argued over who would get to take it out on a job. Then two years ago, Burns purchased another excavator, this time a Bobcat 442. The new excavator is larger than the Bobcat 334 and was purchased to help with water and sewer jobs involving larger pipe.

"The maneuverability of the larger excavator over our backhoe loader is amazing," Burns says. "The zero tail swing (on the Bobcat 442) is definitely a help because it makes it easy to dig around obstacles and in between houses. We're able to get in and out and backfill in less time."

Another advantage of compact excavators is their integrated backfill blade, which can be used to backfill trenches or level and grade a job site. It also serves as a stabilizer for digging. In addition to the backfill blade, Burns also likes the compactor excavator's hydraulic clamp that is operated using fingertip joystick controls. The clamp acts like a thumb against the bucket and is driven by the Bobcat variable flow auxiliary hydraulics.

The variable flow allows the crews to slowly open and close the clamp, making it easier to pick up reels of cable, manhole covers and other things that might get in the way of getting the job done.

When the economy slowed a few years ago, Burns diversified his company by expanding his HDD division. Now Sub-Surface has four HDD machines, increasing its need for another trenching machine. And with the success Burns has experienced thus far with his two compact excavators, he's considering investing in a third. After only two years of owning the Bobcat 442, it has about 1,500 service hours, while the smaller Bobcat 334 has 1,800 hours. Both, he says, have required only routine maintenance such as replacing bucket teeth.

"They get used pretty much every day," Burns says.