Call us on
There’s a lot of terminology in the world of construction equipment that could be confusing if you’re new to the trade. That’s why we thought we would create a glossary to help our newest customers understand some of the jargon that goes with construction equipment hire.
We’ll be adding to this all the time. If there are words that you come across and we haven’t captured, you can email us at marketing@allwayshire.co.nz
Click on the letter below to go to the equipment term which starts with that letter e.g. D for Digger
A | B | C | D | E | F | G | H| I | J| K | L | M| N | O | P | Q| R | S | T | U | V | W | X | Y | Z
Click on the term below to find out what that term means.
Air Compressor, Articulated Truck, Auger Torque Earth Drill, Asphalt Paver, Backhoe, Boom Lift, Breaker, Bulldozer, Compaction, Compactor, Concrete Breaker, Construction Roller, Crane, Crawler, Crane Truck, Digger, Dozer, Drum Roller, Dump Truck, Earth Mover, Excavator, Gantry Crane, Generator, Girder, Grader, Grapple, Hiab, Kango Hammer, Laser Level, Light Tower, Loader, Padfoot Roller, Pile or Post Driver Attachment, Plate Compactor, Power Broom, Rammer Compactor, Roller, Road Sweeper, Rock Breaker, Ripper Attachment, Scraper, Scissor Lift, Skid-Steer Loader, Smooth Drum Roller, Telehandler, Tilting Bucket Attachment, Tipper Truck, Tower Crane, Tractor Grader, Tractor Sweeper, Trench Roller, Trencher, Wheel Loader, Wheel Tractor Scraper
A
What is an Air Compressor?
An air compressor is a piece of equipment that uses electricity to pressurise air and store it. The pressurised air can be used for a variety of purposes including the operation of pneumatic tools.
What is an Articulated Truck?
An articulated truck consists of a cab and dump box or narrow trailer, connected by a pivoting hinge. The design of the articulated truck makes it perfect for challenging worksites that require movement of materials off-road – for example on slippery or sandy surfaces, areas with low ceiling height, or on steep slopes. Articulated trucks are recognised to be more adaptable than other types of dump trucks.
What is an Auger Torque Earth Drill?
An Auger Torque Earth Drill is a hydraulic machine that can be attached to your digger or excavator to allow you to drill holes in the earth with ease. Usually an Auger Torque Earth Drill will require a specific size of excavator which is worth checking before you hire.
Auger Torque Earth Drills come in different sizes depending on the size of hole you want to create. Extensions can be used to increase the depth of the hole.
What is an Asphalt Paver?
An asphalt paver is used in roading or construction to create a solid, stable surface to drive or walk on. Asphalt pavers are usually used along with a dump truck that carries the asphalt for the road or pavement surface.
The dump truck moves the material into the Asphalt Paver and once full, the Asphalt Paver uses dispersion augers to release the asphalt across a levelled surface. Once the asphalt is released, the Paver rolls it flat with its hydraulic cylinder.
Asphalt Pavers can come in a variety of speeds and widths and are helpful for creating:
● Public and private roads
● Driveways
● Parking lots
● Bridge decks
● Recreation courts
● Industrial sites
● Building construction
B
What is a Backhoe?
Backhoe is another widely used equipment which is suitable for multiple purposes. The name itself telling that the hoe arrangement is provided on the back end of the vehicle while loading bucket is provided in the front. This is well useful for excavating trenches below the machine level and using front bucket loading, unloading and lifting of materials can be done.
What is a Boom Lift?
A boom lift/basket crane or cherry picker is an aerial lift attachment that allows workers to reach elevated areas. It’s often helpful on industrial sites and in construction projects but has many other applications across industries such as forestry, painting, window cleaning, firefighting and more.
Boom lifts come in several different types (including telescoping and articulating) and can come with various platform sizes, allowing them to take different numbers of workers at once.
What is a Breaker?
A breaker is an attachment for a digger or excavator which is fitted to demolish hard structures like concrete or rock. Breakers are powerful percussion hammers that are powered by the auxiliary hydraulics of the excavator.
Breakers can also be known as Rock Breakers and Concrete Breakers.
What is a Bulldozer?
A bulldozer is a powerful machine for moving dirt. A bulldozer is also known as a Dozer or a Crawler. It’s a large, heavy and powerful machine that’s powered by a diesel engine and runs on either wheels or tracks. The tracks allow the weight of the Bulldozer to be spread over a larger area to make it easier to move and reduce sinkage.
A bulldozer has a blade at the front which can come in one of 3 types – a straight blade (S blade); a Universal blade (U blade) or a semi-U combination blade. The purpose of the blade is to push material such as soil, sand, snow, rubble, or rock.
Bulldozers can also be fitted with a Ripper at the back. A Ripper can be single (single shank ripper) or grouped in two or more (multishank ripper). Rippers are claw-shaped and long so that they can literally rip material up to make it easy to move or transport. This is an effective way to break up hard earth so it can be moved or break apart solid material like rock or concrete.
Bulldozers are popular in construction, roading, forestry, mining, agriculture and for land clearing.
C
What is Compaction?
Compaction is the process of packing particles closer together using rolling, weight, hydraulic pressure or other means. Compaction removes the air pockets between particles and reduces the permeability of soil.
By making the soil denser and less permeable, Compaction makes the soil stronger, more stable, and able to bear a heavier load. Compacted ground is less permeable and therefore less prone to water absorption and the related expansion and contraction.
Compaction is an important part of the build process as it reduces the potential for settlement in a build over time.
What does a Compactor do?
A Compactor is a tool used in construction to make quick work of the job of compacting soil or material to provide a sturdy, stable surface. A compactor can also be a useful tool for creating a level surface for construction.
A plate compactor has a plate that uses force to push together the particles in the soil or building material. By pushing together the particles the plate compactor ensures that there is less settlement once building is complete; that there is reduced permeability so the soil is less likely to be affected by water, and that the surface is able to bear a greater load.
A plate compactor is useful in roading and construction to create a level, strong surface. Plate Compactors come in different sizes and shapes so you can choose the best model for the job you need to do. Key considerations are the size of the area you need to compact, the material you’re working with, and where you’re going to be working and what the safest solution is.
Want to learn more about compactors work? Take a look at this blog: How does a Plate Compactor work?
What is a Concrete Breaker?
What is a Construction Roller?
What is a Crane?
A crane is a machine that is used in construction to lift and lower materials and heavy loads. It’s main purpose is to lift things and move them from one place to another. Depending on the job at hand, a crane is usually equipped with wire rope, chains, hoist rope or sheaves. A crane can come in a variety of sizes and shapes depending on the type of work it does, the load it moves and the required reach. In Construction cranes are mainly used for the transportation of materials – particularly for loading and unloading framework onto trucks and moving pallets of heavy materials to their end destination.
What is a Crawler?
What is a Crane Truck?
A crane truck is a truck that includes a machine to help you to lift, lower or move heavy objects. Crane trucks can not only transport items from one location to another on a horizontal plane. Because of their lifting capabilities they can also be used to lift objects to elevated heights.
Crane trucks are a common sight on most industrial and construction sites where they are essential for moving heavy wooden or concrete beams or steel.
D
What is a Digger?
A digger is also known as an Excavator. Diggers are used for a wide variety of jobs including landscaping, demolition, construction and material handling. Diggers are strong machines that can put a lot of power and weight behind the action you need them for. Diggers are made up of a boom, dipper (or stick) and a bucket. These are connected to a cab that sits on a rotating house. Many diggers or excavators can rotate 360 degrees. Understanding the angles of rotation and reach of your digger are often important – particularly when you’re working in a confined space. Diggers can come on tracks or wheels, allowing you to easily adapt the machine to the surface you’re working on. You can remove the bucket on your excavator and replace it with a wide variety of attachments that are designed to make it easier to complete a task. These include Augers, Rippers, Compactors, Rakes and Pile Drivers.
Want to know more about Diggers / Excavators? Read our blog: Everything you need to know about Excavators.
What is a Dozer?
What is a Drum Roller?
Drum rollers are also known as compaction rollers, compact rollers and road rollers. These machines smooth and level building terrain or roadways, Drum rollers are very strong and are a powerful tool for successfully flattening surfaces.
Drum rollers come in two different types:
● Smooth rollers: A smooth roller has a smooth drum. Smooth rollers flatten surfaces such as gravel, sand and dirt using a combination of pressure and vibration.
Smooth rollers come in either single or double drum models.
● Padfoot rollers: A padfoot roller operates in the same way as a smooth roller but has a special raised surface on the roller to make soil more compact and solid. Padfoot rollers can also come in either a single or double drum model.
Want to know more about Drum Rollers? Take a look at our blog: Whats the right Roller for your next job?
What is a Dump Truck?
A dump truck can also be referred to as a dumping truck, dump trailer, dumper trailer, dump lorry, tipper truck or dumper lorry or a dumper.
A dump truck is an important piece of equipment in construction as it transports material such as dirt, sand, gravel or construction waste material to or from a work site.
The Dump Truck commonly has an open box bed which is hinged at the back and equipped with hydraulic jacks that tip the box when the load needs to be dumped.
E
What is an Earth Mover?
An Earth Mover is a machine such as a Bulldozer that moves large quantities of earth by digging or excavating, pushing or transporting it. See What is a Bulldozer?
What does an Excavator do?
An Excavator can be used for a wide variety of jobs including landscaping, demolition, construction and material handling. See What is a Digger?
Want to know more about Excavators? Read our blog: Everything you need to know about Excavators.
G
What is a Gantry Crane?
A gantry crane is an overhead crane that is designed to lift and move equipment, materials and tools of any size or weight. Gantry Cranes come in different sizes and shapes that reflect the weight you need to move or the distance you need to move it.
Gantry Cranes consist of an overhead beam supported by freestanding legs. A Gantry Crane can usually be moved on either wheels, a track or a rail system.
Gantry Cranes are often found in places where heavy objects or machines need to be moved such as workshops, warehouses, railroads, shipyards and warehouses.
What is a Generator?
A generator is a useful tool to generate electricity on your construction site. It’s particularly handy where you don’t have access to mains power i.e. new builds and for remote sites which are far away from mains power sources. Generators can run on petrol or diesel fuel.
What is a Girder?
A girder is a type of support beam used in construction. It is a primary beam and its main job is to transfer the load it supports into the columns that it is supported by.
What is a Grader?
A Grader, also known as a Road Grader or Motor Grader, is a machine with a long blade that is used to create a flat road surface either before asphalt or concrete is poured, or just to level and maintain the loose surface of a dirt or gravel road.
Graders are used to achieve a “finish grade” on a surface. This is achieved by adjusting the angle, tilt and height of the blade that is used.
You can find out more about Graders in our blog: Get a great finish with a Grader
What is a Grapple?
A grapple is an attachment that can be fitted to a piece of machinery like a tractor or an excavator. Grapples come in different sizes and are designed to give you access to the power of the machine you’re using when you want to pick something up. Grapples can be used in construction for handling loose material and debris, picking up heavy objects and site clean up. They also have a role to play in agriculture, landscaping and industrial use.
H
What is a Hiab?
Many people call a Crane Truck a Hiab. A Hiab is the name for the crane mounted on a heavy truck chassis, commonly used in construction. The addition of the Hiab allows the truck to transport as well as load and unload freight or materials. Hiabs are common in the construction industry because they avoid the need for a crane on the construction site. Hiabs often work across multiple sites in a day, picking up and delivering materials to different build locations.
See also What is a Crane Truck?
K
What is a Kango Hammer?
A Kango Hammer is also known as a heavy duty breaker, concrete breaker, demolition hammer or jack hammer. Kango hammers are hand operated tools that are used to destroy hard materials like brick, concrete and rock. Kango hammers come in a variety of sizes and can be air, petrol or electric powered, depending on the size of the job and the level of power you require. A Kango Hammer can come with a wide range of different demolition chisels and points, making it a versatile tool for a range of situations.
L
What is a Laser Level?
A laser level is a tool that is used in construction projects where a level surface is required over a large area. Laser levels project a red or green line onto a horizontal or vertical plane and are an effective way to ensure your construction project is straight and true.
What is a Light Tower?
A light tower is an array of powerful lights that is attached to the top of a vertical beam. Having a light tower on your project ensures that you have the light you need to complete your task even when the days are shorter, you’re working indoors in an unlit area, or the weather is poor and you’re struggling with dim natural light. Light towers are portable and usually run on a generator or can be connected to a solar power source.
What is a Loader?
A loader is a type of tractor with a front-mounted wide bucket that is on the end of two arms and scoops up loose material from the ground like dirt, sand or gravel. The loader uses the bucket to move material from one place to another without pushing it along the ground, often depositing it in a waiting truck or into a hole.
Loaders are used in construction for pipeworks, loading material into trucks, and clearing rubble. Loaders can be used for digging but they are less effective for this than backhoes or excavators as they normally can’t dig far below the level of their wheels.
You can also find out more info about loaders in our blog: Hiring a Loader in Hawke’s Bay? Heres what you need to know.
See also What is a Skid Steer Loader?
P
What is a Padfoot Roller?
What is a Pile or Post Driver Attachment?
A Pile Driver attachment works with an excavator and can be used for driving in posts for fencing, piles, retaining walls, shelter belts for horticultural applications etc. Many Pile Drivers come with a side mount bracket for orchard and vineyard applications.
Learn more about Pile Drivers in our blog: The easier way to drive in posts
What is a Plate Compactor?
A plate compactor has a plate that uses force to push together the particles in the soil or building material. By pushing together the particles the plate compactor ensures that there is less settlement once building is complete; that there is reduced permeability so the soil is less likely to be affected by water, and that the surface is able to bear a greater load.
A plate compactor is useful in roading and construction to create a level, strong surface.
Plate Compactors come in different sizes and shapes so you can choose the best model for the job you need to do. Key considerations are the size of the area you need to compact, the material you’re working with, and where you’re going to be working and what the safest solution is.
Learn more about plate compactors in our blog: What is a Handheld Compactor?
Find out more about Compaction in What is Compaction?
Find out more about What does a compactor do?
What is a Power Broom?
R
What is a Rammer Compactor?
A Rammer Compactor is a tool used in soil and material compaction. The Rammer Compactor has a plate on the lower part of the machine that uses shock force to compact soil. Rammers are powered by petrol or diesel engines and the size of the engine relates to the power of the Rammer.
What is a Roller?
What is a Road Sweeper?
What is a Rock Breaker?
What is a Ripper Attachment?
A Ripper Attachment is an attachment for your excavator or tractor that is designed to break through hard surfaces like ice, compacted soil or subsoil.
S
What is a Scraper?
Wheel tractor-scrapers are a type of heavy equipment used in construction projects to scrape, move, and collect dirt, allowing you to grade and level the land.
Here’s how it works:
1. A sharp, angled scraper cuts into the dirt, loosening it.
2. A hopper uses a conveyor belt system to collect and store this loose dirt.
3. Once the hopper is full, you can then dump or transport the dirt wherever
needed.
There are several types of wheel tractor-scrapers, including elevating, open bowl, push-pull, and tandem scrapers.
What is a Scissor Lift?
A scissor lift is a mobile platform that can be elevated to provide a solid working base for carrying out jobs. Scissor lifts are popular in warehouses and stockrooms where storage shelves are high and require loads to be lifted then stacked on upper shelves. They are also a popular piece of equipment in construction where they allow for easy movement of materials or for one or more workers to safely work at height with the tools and materials needed to do the job.
Scissor lifts can be electric-powered or powered by an engine.
What is a Skid-Steer Loader?
A Skid-steer loader (also known as a Bobcat) is a type of loader that has a smaller engine and is adaptable to a wide range of tasks. It can come in small, medium or large models.
The Skid-steer Loader has a mechanism in front of the cab where various types of tools can be attached. It can carry a variety of equipment from buckets to loaders. One of the key benefits of a Skid-steer is its versatility which comes partly from its range of tools and partly from its ability to fit into small tight spaces. That means you can use it for anything from home projects to large land management tasks such as excavation and landscaping.
What is a Smooth Drum Roller?
T
What is a Telehandler?
A telehandler is a versatile piece of hydraulic lifting machinery that features a lifting attachment connected to a telescoping boom. Telehandlers are popular pieces of equipment in the construction and mining industries.
Telehandlers can vary greatly in size, load capacity and lift height. They combine the roles of crane, forklift and platform into a single unit.
What is a Tilting Bucket attachment?
A Tilting Bucket or Tilt Bucket is similar in design to the regular bucket on an excavator but can also tilt 45 degrees to both the left and the right. This tilt function increases the intricacy and accuracy of the work that can be carried out by the excavator operator.
What is a Tipper Truck?
What is a Tower Crane?
Tower cranes are used in the construction of tall buildings to lift heavy and bulky materials like concrete, steel and framework. Tower Cranes have a mast and jib structure, with the mast running vertically up the middle of the crane and the jib and counter jib extending from both sides of the mast. The jib carries the load and the counter jib carries a counter weight at the rear of the crane to balance the load. All tower cranes include an operator cabin.
What is a Tractor Grader?
What is a Tractor Sweeper?
A tractor sweeper is also known as a power broom or a road sweeper. Tractor sweepers are designed to sweep dirt, stones and debris on roads to make roads safer to drive on and to keep dust down to a minimum.
You will typically see tractor sweepers on the road near the entrance to a construction site where debris from trucks and machinery fall off onto the road. The sweeper will sweep the debris off the road to keep it clean and tidy for vehicles to drive on. You will see tractor sweepers on roading sites for reseal preparation and after the road has been resealed to sweep any loose chip seal off the road. You will also see tractor sweepers in line marking jobs.
Dust and dirt can be the enemy of construction and roading projects, and having a Tractor Sweeper available means you can keep dust under control.
Tractor Sweepers efficiently gathers up loose debris and moves it aside so it doesn’t pollute the air around you or mess up the next stage of your project. Some tractor sweepers have a dust suppressing water feature which ensures that even on windy days you can keep dust levels down and keep working on the job at hand.
Want to learn more about tractor sweepers? Take a look at our blog: The Master Sweeper a beautifully designed machine.
What is a Trench Roller?
A Trench Roller is also known as a Trench Compactor. It is a piece of compacting equipment that is designed to operate in narrow spaces like trenches where access and space may be limited. Often they are remote controlled for operator safety working in trenches.
See also What is a Drum Roller?
What is a Trencher?
A Trenching Machine or Trencher is used to create trenches for pipes, cables and drainage needs.
Chain trenchers have a long fixed arm with a digging chain. Wheeled trenchers use a metal wheel with teeth to do the digging work. Both types of trenchers can come as tracked or wheeled vehicles.
W
What is a Wheel Loader?
What is a Wheel Tractor Scraper?
Share
Get the latest from Allways Hire straight to your inbox
Subscribe to our newsletter for our latest offers and new equipment and industry updates, plus advice from the team.
SubscribeRECOMMENDED FOR YOU
Do I need to hire a Dumper?
Find out what a Dumper does and explore our range of Dumpers available to hire or rent in Hawke's Bay from our Napier or Hastings branches.
Read More
What’s new to our Hawke’s Bay Hire Yards?
We're growing our construction and roading equipment for hire at our Napier and Hastings branches. Check out the latest additions here.
Read More
Save time on the job with these 6 construction equipment hires
Hiring construction machinery in Hawke's Bay? Our tips help you save time and money on the job by choosing the right equipment rental.
Read More
