Scrapers, Truck Drivers, and Rollies
Welcome back to my best, yet likely inaccurate, recollection of the history of BuildWitt!
In PART 5, I discussed my back surgery, introduction to Greek Life, and investing journey…
After one year of college, it was BACK TO THE DIRT BABY!
The Job...
While I worked for Markham throughout the school year in the office, I was adamant about returning to the field for the summer.
There was some hesitancy because I was damn good at filing paperwork, but my size eight 19-year-old foot was down… It was the field, OR ELSE. Was I bluffing? Duh.
I had no strategic purpose behind my desire for more Arizona summer suffering. I was like a salmon returning to my spawning ground on autopilot… I wanted back in the ditch. That's it.
Markham relented, and I was once again anointed with the title of "laborer." My dreams were coming true!
Project One
At the time, Markham didn't have a formal internship program. There was no job description or rotation schedule. They likely called around to see who needed a hand. And when I say hand, I mean I was only worth one at best.
The first to bite was a residential grading project far east of town.
As I drove to the job for the first morning, I was better off than I was a year earlier, but I was still as green as a leprechaun—about the same size too.
If nothing else, I was better prepared. I had more comfortable Ariat boots (still my go-to), Western long-sleeve shirts from the local thrift store, and a mini cooler full of snacks.
I parked near the lineup, doing my best to act like I knew what I was doing. The sun was barely waking, but the day was already hot.
I hoped to lean on my expensive three months of underground experience, but there was no pipe to be found. We were moving dirt.
The operation consisted of push-pull scrapers, paddle-wheel scrapers, water wagons, and blades. The heavy lifting was complete, and it was time to dig basins and finish pads.
The earth in Arizona is typically soft and dry, making it the perfect application for scrapers. You're not winning work in AZ if you're not moving dirt by scraper.
Since I had no relevant operating experience, doing anything productive was out of the question. The only task remaining? Grade-checking.
Now that I think of it… They probably didn't request my presence.
Grade Checking (iTs GrAdE sEtTiNg)
I followed the foreman, a working foreman, around the job like a little duckling. We didn’t have a fancy side-by-side—we had our feet.
I call out “working foreman” because it’s something I’ve only seen standard in a few markets. Most of the time, the foreman manages the operation while helping out as needed. But in the Southwest, foremen often run equipment, lay pipe, and check grade. They not only inform the operation, but they work alongside the crew.
My first job? Watch, which didn’t last long. My second job? Carry and pound the stakes.
We had GPS, but the foreman used an old-school eye level and tape to lay everything out, which I thought looked so damn cool.
It was like watching a professional golfer at work. He’d study the green, take his shot, and move on to the next with purpose. I wasn’t doing anything and still struggled to keep up.
I learned what the red, white, and blue ribbons he tied to each stake meant. I learned how he’d interpret the existing stakes and plans. And after watching and listening, I even learned how to use an eye level and folding tape!
In only a week, my world transformed from inches to tenths…
Moving Dirt... An Introduction
Even better than learning the basics of grade-checking, I learned the basics of moving earth—cuts and fills, the importance of haul roads, compaction, moisture content, dust control, scraper basics, bulking, finish grading, etc.
To see raw land transformed into beautifully finished house pads was thrilling. I loved pipe (haha!), but dirt was my jam!
And all these basics were about to come in handy. Only one week into my first project, I got the call… I was reassigned.
Project Two
The second project was a stone’s throw from Arizona State in Tempe, Arizona. Dramatically closer to my house, I could sleep an extra fifteen minutes to nearly 5:00 AM!
I parked my little Toyota amongst the pickup trucks and met my new foreman, Billy. About twice my size, he ran a tight ship and was damn proud of his work.
The most unusual thing about Billy? His watch. Specifically, a Rolex. And it wasn’t some fake Chinese knock-off… It was REAL.
I’d seen many Rolex watches (rollies, as the kids say) before—nearly everyone in Scottsdale wears one. But they wear them to keep up with everyone else... For status. But Billy’s? His was the representation of decades of hard work and pride. How do I know? He told me.
Back to the job at hand…
I was on another earthmoving project with scrapers and blades, but this one had a twist. It wasn’t an enormous site speckled with house pads tied together by roads. We were digging a new section of the canal.
Arizona’s water comes from one of two places—the Salt (SRP) or Colorado (CAP) Rivers. Concrete-lined canals wind through the city to connect the water with the millions of people who need it.
To spur economic growth in Tempe, SRP decided to redevelop a large parcel of land into commercial office buildings.
The only twist—to make the development work, they needed to move a section of the historic Grand Canal. Enter team Markham and Aaron, the lil laborer.
War
At face value, the job was simple. Dig an enormous channel at a slight curve across the site, with a huge circular excavation in the middle for a future water feature. Markham had opted for 627 push-pull scrapers. Easy… except it quickly wasn't.
Because the new canal alignment was close to the existing canal, we encountered soft pockets of mud—the arch nemesis of conventional scrapers. They function solely based on friction between their rubber tires and the earth. Mud = no friction.
Again, since I was more liability than asset, I'd take care of odds and ends around site, but I mainly functioned as a "spotter."
Our new reality was frustrating to everyone, but I loved it. Two scrapers would enter the freshly-carved channel. The first would lower its cutting edge to the earth while the other pushed. The bowl would fill…
But as the machine fattened up with its sizeable earthen meal, it would quickly sink, front first. No amount of horsepower pushing on the back would break it free. And because the cut was so narrow, the entire operation would grind to a halt.
A recovery mission would ensue. The first few were tricky, but the crew got the hang of it, and struck scrapers transformed from a big problem to a slight inconvenience.
We even rented a small LGP dozer dedicated to digging scrapers out. It was awesome!
After a few weeks of battle, we prevailed, and the channel finally reached grade. Our blade man, a linebacker size human with an enormous beard, cut the slopes like an earthwork wizard. Don't believe me? Check out the photo…
GeoGrid + Truck Drivers
Following team scraper versus moist dirt, they called me up from the bullpen. My time to shine…
Back to the central water feature—the first step was digging an enormous circular hole roughly 25' deep. Check.
But before the concrete crews took the reins, we had to prepare the foundation. Our compaction was good, but we had more fun work since engineers love safety factors!
If you've had the pleasure of working with geogrid, you know it's a pain in the ass. If you haven't been so fortunate—think 1" by 1" rigid plastic grid delivered in rolls. In theory, it distributes weight over a surface evenly. But install is anything but even…
Not only did geogrid grace my life, but so did truck drivers… Native material didn't cut it. We had to use AB (aggregate base), the standard base material in Arizona. Base meant truck drivers, and truck drivers meant, well, truck drivers.
As an industry and society, we need truck drivers, so if you're among the competent truck drivers, thanks for what you do.
BUT… THERE ARE MANY BAD TRUCK DRIVERS.
The trucks rolled down the ramps and into the cut loaded with AB, and it was my job to tell them where to dump. I'd do my damndest to explain precisely what we needed.
Dump over there. They'd nod. I'd stand where we needed them and then watch them turn and dump in the other direction. If I were really lucky, they'd get stuck, too!
Maybe I never learned how to speak their language. If anyone has any tips, I'm all ears.
After herding the cats, we'd have enough material for a lift. The blade did the grading; then we'd roll out the geogrid. Everything had to overlap, cutting it was a pain, and we had babysitters (engineers/inspectors) the whole time. I'm good without another day of geogrid in my life.
Project Three
Just when I was getting the hang of everything at the canal project, I got another call. Verrado...
Remember the project I mentioned I visited during Spring Break? That's the one.
It was WAY west of town near Buckeye, so I was back to waking up at 4:00, but the sunrise was always there as a reward. When I pulled onto the site for the first time, I immediately knew this one was different. The parking lot was chock-full of cars, and people were everywhere. Welcome to the big leagues.
The project was an enormous subdivision and golf course at the foot of gorgeous mountains. We were transforming the desert, which used to be Caterpillar's proving grounds, into a new utopia.
After the safety meeting, the superintendent gave me a tour. The place was massive… Earthmoving and underground work, as far as I could see.
Following the warm welcome, he introduced me to my new coworker, Jack. Jumping Jack, to be exact.
And that's a story for another newsletter… Until then, stay dirty!
Dirt Talk Podcast
Shane Patterson started his career selling tires and making good money. Life was good… until he realized that the Dirt World was calling. So he took a job as a haul truck driver to get out from behind a desk, and over the span of 18 months, he earned more and more responsibility (and the accompanying skills) by asking directly for it when he saw how he could help the team.
Vlog
In this video, we visited SA Recycling's scrap and export facility in Long Beach, California.
Here, scrap metal, steel, and cars are sorted and eventually loaded onto ships and sent to foreign countries for processing. The scrap material is recycled and melted down into new steel and metal products.
The facility uses massive CAT machines, big material handlers, and a 988 on solid tires to move around the heavy stuff. They even have a shredder that can process up to 2,000 tons of material per day, including cars, refrigerators, train cars, turbines, jet turbines, steel cable, and any kind of metal scrap.
The final product is grabbed by material handlers, put into trucks, lifted up by a crane, and then loaded onto ships. About 30,000 tons per ship are sent overseas for recycling.
Watch as we explore the process and learn about the circle of life that takes place in this industry! #recycling #construction #heavyequipment
I’ll see you next week!
