# Starting An Excavation Business



## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

Hey guys,
my names josh, i am 20 years old and i am very very interested in getting involved with excavation so I figured i would come to the experts. i have many questions to ask if i'm going in the right direction and so on. I would like to go to go school but im curious on what schools i would go to, i would like to go and get my level 3 with a cdl. do you guys have any suggestions on schooling or how to start? any information will be VERY VERY useful!!! thanks guys...


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## dfdsuperduty (Dec 12, 2006)

if your looking to get a cdl make sure it is a class A with air brakes and get your tanker and haz-mat endorsements... this can all be obtained by either studying on your and renting a truck to go and take the test or by contacting your local community college most will have truck driver training or yet another option is to look at companies such as jb hunt, cr england, schneider etc... they will usually have truck driving training however you may have to sign an agreement to work for them for a year or be charged for training.


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## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

thanks so much! that information will be very useful!!! i was checking into a school of training called ATS and it certifies you with all heavy equipment, and provides a class to obtain your CDL. would i be interested in something like that if i was interested in excavation or should i go other places to obtain any of those types of things


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## dfdsuperduty (Dec 12, 2006)

Some people may wonder as to why you need tanker and haz but if you become large enough you will probably want a water truck to help keep the dust down and the haz is nice to have just in case you never know what might happen. The person that you should be really nice to and send him a case of some golden cold ones is power joke he has a wealth of knowledge in this area


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## JohnnyRoyale (Jun 18, 2006)

If your starting out you may want to consider mini excavating, Its specialized and alot of the work is for plumbers, electricians, waterproofing, utilities etc. Entry fee is minimal compared to full sized excavators, but hourly rates are reasonable. Take baby steps first, and your business will evolve. A guy I know started with a used mini 12 years ago, and has over 40 pieces now (big and small), all paid for, out everyday making him $$$. It all depends what you want and how much $$$ you have to invest, bankroll, and what kinds of hits you may possibly have to sustain at the startup level of your business.


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## Bruce'sEx (Sep 16, 2006)

Really depends on what kind of excavation your looking for, Commerical, New houses, existing resi. Everyone of them of them has different demands, and different advantages.


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## StoneDevil (Dec 13, 2007)

pioneer how far are u from Findlay OH


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## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

i would like to start small then evolve into something bigger over the years, so hopefully when i have kids i can give them work in the summer and hopefully they could take over the business. Bruce'sEx what would you recommed getting involved in in your opinions whats the best one with the best advantages and such... and stone devil i'm about 75 miles away from findlay...


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## murray83 (Dec 3, 2005)

I say before making any decision I'd get around 3-5 years experience running machines before going on your own.

Then its pretty much find a niche market in your area then jump on it and take baby steps.


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## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

yes true, i already have experience on some equipment, i've worked on our farms for the past 6 years, i was actually going to go to a school to become a heavy equipment operator... and also get my CDL. would that be the right path?


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## 90plow (Dec 22, 2001)

pioneer enable your pm's and then send me a message I will message you back with some info.
-Eric


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## powerjoke (Nov 13, 2004)

90plow:......he dosent have enough post to enable PM's

Pioneer:......it's a rough market right now, it's not a good choice of occupation's right now  lol

if i had it to do all over again and starting from scratch not haveing experiance etc. i probably would.......

first of all go to a tech school like LINNTECH, not so much for the equipment operation's but to lern the do's and dont's of buisness and i would also lern a little bit of buisness law, and after that.....then i would consintrate on playing with machine's.

it not as easy as sittin on youre ass in a hoe and digging a trench, or riding a dozer and pushin tree's.........their is alot of buisness that comes in it regardless of how big or small you are!

if you go to a Tech. school they'll teach you enough to get you started in equipment repair and so on, 

Tech. school's are really really good at placeing you in a job as soon as you graduate, and that is something in itself that is worth a ton of money.

i guess what i am trying to say is, we have guy's pop up and go away all the time..... down here in MO we have more "lowballer" dirtworker's than you can imagine. just because a guy has a wore out skidsteer and a 1972ford backhoe he thinks he's a exavator  but slow times like these sure do good at weening them out.

in my local phone book thier is approx. 25,000 people. and alphabeticly counting from a-1 excavating to Stunz Excavaton L.L.C. thier is 65 companies between us  90% of wich i am sure is out of buisness.

PJ


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## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

i get what you are saying... i am actually attending a community college now in business, so i could learn how to run a business cause like you said no matter how big or how small it deals with business... and while i was doing that i have the option of doing the heavy equipment training. kill two birds with one stone then i was then going to start small and work my way up.


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## murray83 (Dec 3, 2005)

Best way to get your foot in the door is start small side jobs around your area while working for someone else.

Rent a mini excavator or backhoe and fix a septic or some drainage work,the big jobs may have the big cash but they also bring you big headaches.


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## big pusher (Sep 9, 2008)

Pioneer listen to what PJ IS telling you. Now is not the time to start an excavating business. The decline in the housing market has really put a strain on business.


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## hickslawns (Dec 18, 2004)

Pioneer- Used to drill at the Urbana Armory before they closed it. We drove to Springfield to work in their motorpool. I am sure there are some CDL or possibly heavy equipment schools in Springfield. Possibly in Bellefountaine as well. Drove past a place called Levan's Exc (I think that was the name) in Bellefountaine once a month. Looked like a larger operation. Might try getting in with them or an excavator in Springfield just to get some seat time and work your way up as you finish your schooling. You are 20 and have time on your side. Be patient and learn from those that have made a name in the business. If they are a decent employer they will probably tell you why or why not to do certain things. Or why one thing works better when another way seems easier. etc Get your experience and FINISH COLLEGE! It is like an insurance policy to fall back on no matter what direction you go. If you are 20 and in college with little credit and no existing clients it is probably going to be tough to talk any banker into a loan for a truck/trailer/mini exc/skid steer or even a wheel barrel with the current banking crisis.


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## GLSS22 (Dec 31, 2007)

I would not go to ATS. I looked into it a couple years back, and from what everyone was telling me is its a waist of $15000. the certifications they give you mean nothing. with excavation expierence/machine time is everything, if u dont have it, no one will talk to you. The other way to get started is workin as a laborer for an excavation company, or start really small like everyone else is sayin.


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## pioneer123 (Oct 8, 2008)

thanks alot for all your guys help i appreciate it very much and i will be looking forward to taking it all in and using it down the road!


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## BOSShog (Oct 16, 2008)

Check into your Union ... you would be supprised at what they can offer .... experience and great pay.


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## BOSShog (Oct 16, 2008)

http://www.iuoe.org .. there web site with lots of info


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## BOSShog (Oct 16, 2008)

http://www.iuoe.org/Training/tabid/116/Default.aspx this is where you should probably start


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## LeadDogg (Oct 16, 2008)

I did the same thing as Knockah22. i decided to do some research after i went to check out the school and found that it would be a waste. i called probably the 3 largest commercial companys in NH and they all said the same thing. they told me that seat time is everything and a certification doesnt mean much. they teach you safety, some basic maintenance and how to load a truck. not worth 15K to me


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## sk187 (Dec 7, 2006)

Not the business to get into right now, at least not on any major scale.

The market for this kind of work is awful with almost no new homes being built.

I have worked for my family owned excavation business for 10 years now and we have employed about 30 people at any given time until the last 5 years now we are down to 5.


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## SE+C (Oct 28, 2007)

Pioneer being that your are close to PA check out Penn College of TEchnology they a good program for Heavy equipment and diesel trucks and the help place there grads to with some of the bigger companies in this field


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## BOSShog (Oct 16, 2008)

Call the Union best move you will make pay some dues and get all the training you can handle ,,,,,


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## jdo150 (Oct 27, 2008)

It is all about the seat time, the thing you have to realize with starting this type of buisness is the overhead envolved with it, not to mention the insurance and all that. I would say for you to contact your local union, a friend of mine joind our local union and they put him thru a school where he learned to operate and now has a good job in the union. This will allow you to gain seat time and gain experiance. There is a lot more to owning a excavating company then operating I know since my family has been in buisness for over 50 years. As for school I am curently a seinor at wentworth institure of technology for a construction managment degree, this major has enabled me to see the whole picture with construction and everything else that goes along besides actually doing the constructing part.


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