A broad category of large, motorized industrial vehicles designed for heavy construction operations. This includes excavators, bulldozers, cranes, graders, and loaders used primarily for earthmoving, lifting, and site preparation. These machines require specialized training to operate and represent a significant portion of a project's equipment budget and logistical planning.
We need to coordinate the heavy machinery deliveries so the excavators don't block the graders at the entrance.
On the job site, crews rarely use this formal term, preferring to call out the specific equipment by name or use slang like yellow iron.
Also heard as
- heavy equipment
- yellow goods
- yellow iron
Related terms
Heavy equipment
Large, heavy-duty vehicles and machines used for earthmoving, lifting, and major construction tasks.
Earthmoving
The process of excavating, transporting, and grading soil and rock to prepare a construction site.
Yellow goods
A collective term for heavy construction machinery and earthmoving equipment.
Trackhoe
An excavator mounted on continuous crawler tracks rather than wheels.