Index
Intro
Heavy equipment operators operate heavy equipment used in the construction and maintenance of roads, bridges, airports, gas and oil pipelines, tunnels, buildings and other structures; in surface mining and quarrying activities; and in material handling work. They are employed by construction companies, heavy equipment contractors, public works departments and pipeline, logging, cargo-handling and other companies.
Progression to supervisory positions is possible with experience.
Main Duties
Heavy equipment operators perform some or all of the following duties:
- Operate heavy equipment such as backhoes, bulldozers, loaders and graders to excavate, move, load and grade earth, rock, gravel or other materials during construction and related activities
- Operate bulldozers or other heavy equipment to clear brush and stumps prior to logging activities and to build roads at logging and surface mining sites
- Operate heavy equipment with pile driver head to drive piling into earth to provide support for buildings, bridges or other structures
- Operate heavy dredging equipment to deepen waterways or reclaim earth fill
- Operate heavy paving and surfacing equipment to lay, spread or compact concrete, asphalt and other surface materials during highway and road construction
- Operate power shovels to excavate rock, ore or other materials from open-pit mines, strip mines, quarries or construction pits
- Operate heavy equipment to move, load and unload cargo
- Conduct pre-operational checks on equipment and clean, lubricate and refill equipment.
Employment Requirements
- Some secondary school education is required.
- Completion of a one- to two-year apprenticeship program
or
Some high school, college or industry courses in heavy equipment operating combined with on-the-job training are required. - Trade certification is compulsory in Quebec and available, but voluntary, in Newfoundland and Labrador, the Northwest Territories and Nunavut.
- Internal company certification may be required by some employers.
All Titles
- aerial tram operator
- apprentice heavy equipment operator
- asphalt batch plant operator
- asphalt plant operator
- asphalt roller operator
- asphalt spreader operator
- asphalt street paver operator
- asphalt-grooving machine operator
- asphalt-paving machine operator
- asphalt-paving screed operator
- backhoe operator
- bituminous paver operator – heavy equipment
- bobcat operator
- boom-conveyor operator
- bucketwheel operator
- bucketwheel-excavator operator
- buggy-operator skinner
- buggy-scraper operator
- bulldozer driver
- bulldozer operator
- cat operator
- cat skinner
- caterpillar car operator
- caterpillar operator
- concrete spreader operator – heavy equipment
- concrete-grooving machine operator
- concrete-paving machine operator
- construction equipment operator
- continuous bucket excavator operator
- crawler tractor operator
- ditcher operator – construction
- ditching machine operator
- dozer operator
- dredge operator
- dredge runner
- earth-moving equipment operator
- electrical equipment operator – shovel
- elevating grader operator
- elevating scraper operator
- equipment operator, heavy-duty
- excavating machine operator
- excavator operator
- front end loader operator
- gradall operator
- grader operator
- groove-cutting machine operator
- grooving machine operator – heavy equipment
- hammer operator, pile driving
- heater-planer operator
- heavy construction-equipment operator
- heavy equipment operator
- heavy equipment operator apprentice
- heavy-duty equipment operator
- heavy-duty equipment operator apprentice
- ho-ram operator
- horizontal earth-boring machine operator
- hydraulic excavator operator
- industrial backhoe operator
- loader operator – construction
- marine railway operator
- mining shovel operator (except underground)
- mole operator
- mucker operator – construction
- mucking machine operator – construction
- operating engineer, heavy equipment
- operator, asphalt plant
- operator, heavy construction-equipment
- operator, pile-driving hammer
- operator, side boom tractor
- paver operator
- payloader operator
- peat-moss-cutting machine operator
- peat-moss-gathering machine operator
- pile driver winch operator
- pile-driving hammer operator
- pipelayer operator
- power grader operator
- power shovel operator
- pulvimixer operator
- ripper operator – heavy equipment
- road grader operator
- road mixer operator
- road planer operator
- road roller operator
- roller operator
- rotary trencher operator
- scarifier operator
- scraper operator
- screed operator, asphalt paving
- shield operator
- shovel operator – heavy equipment
- side boom operator – pipeline construction
- side boom tractor operator
- snow-grooming machine operator
- spreader operator – heavy equipment
- stacker operator – heavy equipment
- street paver operator
- street paver, asphalt operator
- stripping shovel operator
- structural hydraulic jack erector
- surface mining equipment operator
- track-loader operator
- tractor operator – construction
- tractor-excavator operator
- trench-digging machine operator
- trenching machine operator
- tunnelling machine operator
- vibratory road roller operator
- vibratory roller operator
Exclusions
- Contractors and supervisors, heavy equipment operator crews (7302)
- Crane operators (7371)
- Forklift and industrial truck operators (See 7452 Material handlers)
- Logging machinery operators (8241)
- Underground production and development miners (8231)