Small businesses come in all shapes and sizes. One of the most common is the contractor, whether they are builders, renovators, craftsmen, landscapers, or tree cutters. In these cases, they have the ability to handle the job, but they don’t always have the power to keep clients happy. This is often due to an overlooked factor, the damage they do unintentionally.
To guard against that, there is a simple solution. Construction mats, or crane mats as they are often called by big business contractors, can be laid down to protect the lawn. This relatively simple move can mean the difference between a five-star review and a three-star review. It stops the problem before it starts, the problem of destroying an expensive lawn.
Lawns don’t look expensive, but the second they are disturbed that’s exactly what they become. If there is a trench caused by excavation equipment or a truck, this can take years to be restored to a flat surface. The missing grass alone can be a headache that costs hundreds of dollars to re-establish.
Yet ruts caused by heavy equipment are easily avoided with construction mats. Crane mats can be laid down like a road, taking the truck from the driveway to the renovation site on the side or back of the house. Instead of ruining the lawn each time the truck takes a load of cement or supplies to the worksite, the truck moves easily and smoothly along the laid track.
Heavy equipment, which is especially hard on lawns, becomes stable and secure when driven onto a surface made of crane mats. If using composite mats, these can be joined together. Large construction companies use these by the hundreds to form a safe surface for their machinery. They aren’t just trying to protect the earthen surface. They are trying to protect their trucks and equipment from getting stuck.
Every time equipment or trucks are stuck, it wastes the contractor’s time. Since time is money, getting bogged down can be costly. Of course, the biggest danger is a problem so big that the truck or equipment has to be towed to be moved off the lawn. These are the things that even the smallest contractor needs to think about.
They don’t need hundreds of crane mats, obviously. Generally 20 large composite mats will suffice to provide the temporary road and work surface they need. By using them, they won’t have to worry much about leaving ruts in the yard. This should leave the homeowner or property owner with a good feeling about the work that was done.
The contractor won’t lose time as workers struggle to get equipment or trucks to move on muddy, sandy, or boggy soil. This speeds up the whole process.
Workers will like these crane mats, too. That’s because the flat surface that works for vehicles is also excellent for them. They aren’t getting their shoes or boots covered in dirt. It’s a simple equation that as their shoes stay cleaner, any interior worksite can also stay cleaner.
Recognizing the True Power of Big Trucks and Equipment
Vehicle weight is the real danger when trucks and equipment get stuck. The average pickup truck, whether light duty or heavy duty, is 5,000 pounds or more. That’s 2.5 tons rolling over the light layer of grass and topsoil. It’s no wonder that it tears up the turf.+
That weight goes up and up as the equipment gets bigger or if the truck is loaded with supplies. Depending on payload capacity, a truck may be carrying from 1,500 to 3,000 pounds. A work truck could be carrying 5,000 pounds. A big work truck may already weigh that much before it adds payload.
With its extra equipment and size, a bucket truck may weigh another 1,000 pounds. A bulldozer not only weighs many tons, but it is also unwieldy. Such tracked machinery may not be inhibited by the topsoil, but they are sure to take a lot of it with them as they roll back and forth.
Of course, contractors often have 4×4 pickups, and they expect that four-wheel drivetrain to provide enough traction for the truck to roll along easily. However, just because the truck can handle the lack of traction doesn’t mean it will do so neatly.
Crane mats provide a flat surface that is stable and predictable for the workers and their equipment. This makes it safer for trucks and big equipment to operate. There is less danger that it will tip over since it has a marked path to travel or a specific area in which to move about. Even sitting still, big equipment is more stable if it is sitting on crane mats. That what’s led to their use in the first place.
If you are a contractor, don’t risk ruining your reputation by tearing up your client’s lawn. You can get good composite crane mats, even used ones, that will leave yards in good shape and ensure that you are rated on your good work not an unsightly mess you left behind.
