Graders Provide The Finishing Touch

Graders are a reasonably simple machine when it comes to design and function. At least, that’s what it looks like to an untrained eye. The grader is one of the most important pieces of equipment to a road building crew.

The action of the grader is to use an angled blade that scrapes the surface and, through the angle of the blade, force the excess material to the side of the vehicle. The blades angle can be altered along with the depth of the scraping blade.

After all the work has been done, clearing rocks, tree stumps and other debris, the grader comes in to provide a level foundation for the proposed road surface. This is done by driving over the proposed road in several passes, each pass scraping more and more until the surface is not only level, but has the required to camber for the proposed road. [photo MathKnight cc WikiCommons Gallery]

Away from the road crew, graders have been used to clear snow from roads. The angled blades push the snow off the road surface and to road verges. At time of heavy snow falls, an essential piece of equipment to keep our roads open.

The attached picture shows a typical road crew with a grader, heavy roller and water truck. Working as a grader operator is a real team job. Bulldozer operators remove the excess heavy material. Grader operators clean the surface and provide a level base. The combination of watering and heavy roller create a packed solid base ready for the road building material.

If the opportunity to work as part of a team to build and maintain our highways sounds attractive, consider a career as grader operator. Professional grader training through ATS Heavy Equipment Training Schools could open those doors for you.