Arguably, hydraulics in construction transformed the industry and allowed us to engineer and build structures that would otherwise be impossible without it. Nowadays, it’s a common sight to see hydraulic machinery on construction sites cruising through earthworks and lifting massive, heavy materials with ease. In this article, we’ll look at the history of hydraulics in construction, where they have taken us to today, and what the future likely holds.
From the mysterious construction methods used to build the pyramids to today’s superstructures, we have always found ways of performing miracles in construction. Early equipment used to lighten the burden included steam shovels, winches and mechanical pulleys in railroads and mining as well as construction. Later, diesel engines allowed us to build bigger, better and faster than ever before. The common thread through all our construction feats was finding ways to perform tasks that couldn’t be achieved by hand.
As we know, hydraulic power isn’t new technology. History records the appearance of hydraulics as far back as 1882 in the construction of hull docks in England. It was the first use of hydraulic excavators, and these used water as their hydraulic fluid, not oil. These machines are unrecognisable compared to modern machines, but they were effective in what they needed to get done.
By 1897, the Kilgore Machine Company introduced the first fully hydraulic excavator to the world. Much more powerful than its earlier counterparts, these machines could complete earthworks that formerly needed large teams of men with hand tools in a fraction of the time.
Despite the effectiveness of early machines, the construction industry continued to use cables and winches until the 1960s. This was when the industry embraced excavators, graders, dozers and power shovels. The sheer power output of hydraulic machinery far outweighed machine downtime and the difficulty of repairs.
As manufacturers of hydraulic machinery developed and refined the technology, these machines became more precise, allowing construction teams to complete more work with machines, not manpower.
The rise of hydraulic-powered machines extended from excavators, dozers, graders and power shovels into scissor lifts, cranes, trenchers, concrete pumpers and a host of other machinery that allowed people to build faster, bigger and better.
Now, modern machinery employs state-of-the-art technology such as GPS and laser positioning to build with far greater accuracy than ever before. We are also seeing the introduction of self-operating machines with remote control, which is transforming the nature of the work for machine operators.
Hydraulic power is now so important to the industry, it does more than deliver the muscle to move mountains, it also moves the machines themselves. If you need the power to drive a Caterpillar 6090 FS excavator with an operating weight of 1102 tonnes, what better way than with hydraulics?
With our cities getting larger and more densely populated, we’re seeing a trend toward the development of machines with power density instead of sheer power. This is to allow machines to operate on smaller footprints where construction space is a premium and to safely and accurately move heavy materials in tight spaces. As we noted before, there is also a trend toward remote operation, monitoring and predictive maintenance with smart technologies and the internet and multipurpose machines that can perform different tasks.
The future is looking exciting for hydraulics in the construction industry as we find new and better ways to be more productive and complete more work in less time. It’s fair to say that hydraulics are now indispensable to construction, and we’re likely to see hydraulic power being used more than ever before.
