Heavy Equipment Operator

About the Department

The Heavy Equipment Operator performs a variety of highway construction and maintenance work to keep the roadways and roadsides safe and in good repair according to standards. This position operates and transports specialized pieces of heavy equipment.

Position Duties

• Transfers expertise in roadway construction and maintenance operations to maintain, repair, construct and/or reconstruct roadways with paved and unpaved surfaces and roadsides.
• Operates and maintains various heavy-duty equipment used to construct and maintain roadways and roadsides; conducts daily safety and maintenance checks, and preventive maintenance; loads, delivers, and unloads materials and equipment for highway, bridge construction and maintenance work using single- and multi-axle trucks in combination with tanks and trailers; moves soil and other construction materials; loads bulk materials onto trucks; excavates trenches and ditches; removes and installs culvert pipes; removes and grinds pavement; grades, shapes, and controls material flow of aggregate base/surfacing; compacts asphalt pavements; removes objects, litter, and debris from roadways; assists with forest fire response.
• Utilizes heavy equipment operation skills and routine maintenance knowledge to operate and preserve equipment used in maintaining roadways and roadsides for snow and ice control to ensure travel safety; prepares and inspects winter maintenance equipment; performs preventative maintenance on equipment; removes snow from roadways, shoulders, rights-of-ways, lots, and yards; applies sand, aggregate and/or anti-icing and de-icing chemicals; removes ice and frozen materials from culverts; cleans equipment after use; operates and maintains salt dome conveyor system.
• Illustrates experience with laws relating to heights, widths, and tie-down of cargo; sets grades using a hand level and laser level; interprets grade stakes for construction projects.
• Applies knowledge of the Manual on Uniform Traffic Control Devices (MUTCD) and Wisconsin MUTCD Supplement; performs traffic control set-ups on roadways and ensures safety of employees and traveling public; assists with fabricating, erecting, maintaining, and inventorying all traffic signs, barricades, and traffic control devices.
• Sustains trees, grass, shrubs, brush, and other softscape materials on roadside; plants, waters, seeds, sods, trims, chips tree limbs, grinds/removes stumps; mows and trims around media, sight corners, and signposts; controls vegetation with biological controls and control burns, and insect control.
• Adheres to records management guidelines and standards to maintain accurate materials records.
• Preserves building and grounds maintenance of scale and rest areas.
• Performs other related duties as required or assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

• Two (2) years of paid, full-time work experience operating heavy equipment such as that used for roadway/roadside construction and maintenance, landscaping, snow, and ice removal activities, and/or farming.
• Appointment will be conditional upon successful completion of a criminal background check.
• Position will require a pre-employment physical exam.
• Position will be subject to pre-hire, random, and post-accident drug and alcohol testing during the course of employment.
• Must have a valid driver’s license and an acceptable driving record.
• Must obtain a valid Wisconsin Class A Commercial Driver's License without "L" (air brake) restriction and with "N" (tank vehicles) endorsement within six (6) months of hire and maintain thereafter during employment.
• Must successfully complete employer-provided training to obtain certification as a “competent person” for excavation work in accordance with OSHA standards at first available opportunity and periodically as required to maintain certified status.
• Must furnish and maintain personal tool set at start of employment to include hammers, screwdrivers, and both American and metric measures of socket wrenches and hand wrenches.

Other Qualifications

• High school diploma or equivalent.
• Hazardous materials (H) and tank vehicle (N) license endorsements.