Construction Methods – 110401542

10. Loading and Hauling

Dr. Mohammad Almashaqbeh

Department of Civil Engineering
Hashemite University

Dozer (Bulldozer)
• Dozer (Bulldozer): A tractor
equipped with a front-mounted
earthmoving blade

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 • A dozer moves earth by lowering the blade and cutting until
a full blade load of material is obtained
• Then pushing the material across the ground surface to the
required location
• The material is unloaded by pushing it over a cliff or into a
hopper (truck) or by raising the blade to form a spoil pile

Most common uses:

1. Clearing land
2. Moving and excavating earth for short distances (<100 m)
3. Pushing scrappers during loading
4. Spreading fill material

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 Crawler Dozers Vs. Wheel Dozers
• Crawler dozers have excellent traction and low ground
pressure (typically 41 to 62 kPa)
• Well suited for rough terrain and areas of low trafficability
• Can operate on steeper side slopes and climb greater grades
than can wheel dozers

Wheel Dozers
• While the wheel (rubber-tired) tractor dozing is limited
somewhat by its lower traction and high ground pressure
(172 to 241 kPa), its high ground pressure makes it an
effective soil compacter
• Wheel dozers operate at higher speed than do crawler
dozers
• Wheel dozers are capable also of operating on paved roads
without damaging the surface

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 Dozer Blades
• A number of types of dozer blades are available:
• Straight blade
• Universal blade
• Angle blade
• Cushion blade

• Straight blade:
• The most versatile dozer blade
• Used primarily for excavation
work
• Its smaller size gives it good
penetrating and load pushing
ability

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 • Universal blade:
• The wings enable it to push a
large volume of material over
long distances
• However, its low horsepower
per foot of cutting edge and per
cubic yard limit its ability to
penetrate hard soils or to move
heavy materials

• Angle blade:
• The ability to angle approximately
25 degrees to either side makes it
very effective in sidehill cutting
and backfilling
• May also be used for rough
grading and for moving material
laterally

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 • Cushion blade:
• Reinforced and equipped with
shock absorbers to enable it to
push-load scrapers
• May also be used for cleanup of
the loading or dumping areas
and for general dozing when
not push-loading scrapers

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• Three types of adjustments to dozer blades:

1. Pitching
• Pitching forward: reduces blade penetration and causes
the loose material to roll in front of the blade
• Pitching backward: increases penetration
2. Tilting: useful for breaking up crusty soil
3. Angling: helpful when moving material laterally
• All blades may be tilted except cushion blade
• Only the angle blade can be angled

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Indicators of Dozer Performance

• Two indicators of potential dozer performance (Based on the ratio of
tractor power to blade size):
1. Horsepower per foot of cutting edge (hp/ft)
• Provides an indication of the ability of the blade to penetrate hard
soils
• The higher this ratio, the more aggressive the blade
2. Horsepower per loose cubic yard (hp/lcy)
• Provides an indication of the blade’s ability to push material once
the blade is loaded
• A higher ratio means that the dozer can push a load at a greater
speed
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 Estimating Dozer Production
Production = Volume per cycle x Cycle per hour
• To apply the above equation, we need:
• An estimate of average blade load
• Dozer cycle time
• There are 3 methods for estimating average blade load:
1. Use the blade manufacturer’s capacity rating
2. Base estimate on previous experience under similar
conditions (materials, equipment, and job conditions)
3. Actual measurement of several typical loads obtained in
field tests
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• Measuring Blade Loads Obtained

in Field Tests:
• Obtain a full blade load, carry
onto a level surface, and lift the
blade while pulling slightly
forward so that an evenly shaped
pile is formed
• Obtain the width of the pile (W)
perpendicular to the blade and in
line with the inside of each track
or wheel (average the two
measurements)

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 • Obtain the height of the pile (H) in a
similar manner
• Obtain the length of the pile (L)
parallel to the blade
• Calculate blade volume:
Blade load (LCM) = 0.375 x H (m) x W
(m) x L (m)

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Dozer Cycle Time

Cycle Time = Fixed Time + Variable Time
• Fixed cycle time:
• Maneuver, change gears, start loading, and dump
• Variable cycle time
• Time required to doze and return
• Since the haul distance is relatively short, a dozer usually
returns in reverse gear

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Example
• A power-shift crawler tractor has a rated blade capacity of
5.8 LCM. The dozer is excavating loose common earth and
pushing it a distance of 72 m. Maximum reverse speed in
third range is 9 km/h. Estimate the production of the dozer if
job efficiency is 45 min/h.

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 • Fixed time = 0.05 min (Table 4-4)
• Variable time:
Dozing speed = 4 km/h (Table 4-5)
Dozing time = Distance / Speed
= (72 m / 4 km/h) x (60/1000)
= 1.08 minutes
Return time = (72 m / 9 km/h) x (60/1000)
= 0.48 minutes

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• Total cycle time = 0.05 + 1.08 + 0.48 = 1.61 minutes

• Production = Volume per cycle x Cycle per hour x E

= 5.8 LCM x (60 / 1.61) x (45 / 60)
= 162.11 LCM/h

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 Example
• A power-shift crawler tractor has a rated blade capacity of
4.3 LCM. The dozer is excavating tough clay and pushing it a
distance of 25 m. Maximum reverse speeds are: first range,
3.7 km/h; second range, 6.2 km/hr; third range, 11.5 km/hr.
Estimate the production of the dozer if job efficiency is 50
min/h.

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• Fixed time = 0.05 min (Table 4-4)

• Variable time:
Dozing speed = 2.4 km/h (Table 4-5)
Dozing time = Distance / Speed
= (25 m / 2.4 km/h) x (60/1000)
= 0.63 minutes
Return time = (25 m / 6.2 km/h) x (60/1000)
= 0.24 minutes

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 • Total cycle time = 0.05 + 0.63 + 0.24 = 0.92 minutes

• Production = Volume per cycle x Cycle per hour x E

= 4.3 LCM x (60 / 0.92) x (50 / 60)
= 233.70 LCM/h

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Job Management
• Techniques used to increase dozer production include:
• Downhill dozing

• Slot dozing

• Blade-to-blade (side-by-side) dozing

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 Downhill Dozing
• Allows increased blade load or reduced cycle time by taking
advantage of the force of gravity
• Not necessary for the dozer to actually travel downhill on
each pass to take advantage of the production increase that
results from downhill dozing
• It is efficient to pile up several blade loads and then push
them to the bottom of the hill in one pass

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Slot Dozing
• Utilizes spillage from the
initial dozer passes to form
ridges on each side of the
dozer’s cut area
• A slot or trench is created
which greatly increases the
load that the blade can carry
to the dump area

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 • The technique may be applied to large cut areas by leaving
narrow uncut sections between slots
• The uncut sections are later dozed out near the end of the
excavation process
• Slot dozing may increase dozer production up to 50% under
favorable conditions

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Blade-to-Blade (Side-by-Side) Dozing

• Two or more dozers
operated in parallel with
their blades almost touching
• This enables the blade load
to be increased considerably

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 • Usually not efficient for dozing distances that are less than 15 m
since the increased blade load is offset by the extra maneuvering
time required
• Mechanically coupled side-by-side dozers equipped with a single
blade are available and more efficient than using blade-to-blade
dozing

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Ripper
• The ripper is the long claw-like
device on the back of the
bulldozer
• Rippers can come as a single
shank/giant ripper) or in groups
of two or more (multi shank
rippers)
• Usually, a single shank is
preferred for heavy ripping

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 • Ripping rock breaks the
ground surface rock or
pavement into small rubble
easy to handle and transport,
which can then be removed
so grading can take place

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• Either rubber-tired or crawler tractors may be equipped with

attachments other than dozer blades and rippers
• These include:
• Rakes (used for gathering up brush and small fallen trees)
• Plows
• Scarifiers (used to break up hard surfaces)

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