HOW TO FIND A GOOD DIGGER DRIVER.
Finding a good digger driver is not like hiring a tradesperson in town.
Big earthwork companies build forestry roads, create subdivisions, and work on government contracts. The machines and experts best suited to lifestyle blocks are usually local owner-operators with decades of experience in their region.
However, having done something for a long time doesn’t mean a person is good at it reliable or trustworthy industry sources agree on several strategies for finding a good operator.
Ask local block owners and large-scale farmers for recommendations, but check what kind of work they had done. Cutting a bench for a fence line is easy compared to putting in an all weather driveway on a steep grade. Find an operator who has experience doing the specific job you need to be done.
Get someone local. Peard operators are all locally grown, we know this area well. Most diggers will need to be brought on site by truck or transporter, the further an operator travels, the higher the fixed cost before work begins. Experienced contractors will also stick to their patch, where they know the soils and climate challenges.
Plan well ahead. Often, the best operators will be busy for months in advance and prioritise work with people they know. Lucky for you we have a good ballance of a busy workload but a big enough team to offer capacity and flexibilty around your timeframes, weve created a good enough name for ourselves and we know the phone will always ring. The first challenge you may find is getting one to retum your call especially if you’re new to the district. Name-drop at the earliest opportunity, mention who recommended them to you.
Be clear about the work you want to be done.
Use the right size digger for the job and the type of country. Too big and the machine may not be able to access the area or have enough room to operate, and it will be more costly to transport on site. Too small and the job will take much, much longer and may cost a lot more. Let us help you to decide the scope and the best plan moving forward.
Feel free to ask for names of previous clients you can call If you know enough to evaluate what you’re seeing, ask to have a look at work they’ve done: This can be tricky to assess though. For example, a newly built driveway might look great, but it’s what’s underneath that counts. Don’t go with the cheapest price!
Be willing to wait. Bad weather. unexpected finds (see “why you need to expect the unexpected” below), and Scope creep (where a client makes multiple changes once the digger is on site, often because of poor planning) can cause delays. This has a bump on effect for everyone booked in afterward If you have hard deadlines, like pouring a foundation. allow plenty of time for delays, and communicate your timeline clearly.
Check with your neighbours if they have work they need to be done. You may be able to share the fixed transportation costs if the machine can be walked between properties. Multiple jobs in one place are also more attractive to an operator.
Feel free to give us a call if you ahve any questions, we are only too willing to help you.