Episodes

  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 15: Ideas to Keep Potentially Talented Employees Engaged

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 15: Ideas to Keep Potentially Talented Employees Engaged
    Dec 20 2023
    In this episode of The Contractor’s Best Friend Podcast, longtime construction expert Brad Humphrey sits down with Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates, to discuss a workforce issue in the industry: workers who are talented but show a lack of consistency, absenteeism, motivation or other issues. 
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    12 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 14: 'Second Chance' New Hires

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 14: 'Second Chance' New Hires
    Dec 6 2023
    In the latest episode of The Contractor’s Best Friend Podcast, longtime construction expert Brad Humphrey talks with Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates and Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding, about the challenges of hiring workers. Many contractors are giving former employees a second chance on the jobsite to help fill workforce gaps. 
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    12 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 13: Maximize the Trade-In Value of Your Equipment

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 13: Maximize the Trade-In Value of Your Equipment
    Nov 22 2023
    In this episode of The Contractor’s Best Friend, construction expert Brad Humphrey sits down with Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates and Sam Meeker, Caterpillar’s dozer and compact track loader specialist. The three discuss how to get the maximum value for heavy equipment when doing a trade-in. One way to do this is with telematics, which can track and record maintenance and related records for machinery. The process involves more than looking up the trade-in value, they said. 
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    13 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 12: When It Rains, It's Time to Train

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 12: When It Rains, It's Time to Train
    Nov 8 2023
    One of the hottest topics in the construction industry today is finding workers and training. In this episode, construction expert Brad Humphrey talks about finding the time to train employees. He is joined by Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates and Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding. When adverse weather strikes, slowing work productivity on the jobsite, it's the perfect time to train employees, they said. 
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    12 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 11: Jobsite Safety

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 11: Jobsite Safety
    Oct 25 2023
    In the latest episode, longtime construction expert Brad Humphrey is once again joined by Caterpillar Safety Expert Morgan Grigsby, as well as Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding, to talk about jobsite safety. The use of smart cameras is improving safety on jobsites by increasing visibility around heavy equipment. Equipment operators are given the right information at the right time to make decisions to improve the safety around them. 
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    14 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 10: Why Implement Compact Technology into My Operations?

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 10: Why Implement Compact Technology into My Operations?
    Oct 11 2023
    Construction expert Brad Humphrey sits down with Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding, to discuss the importance of implementing intelligent compaction technology on the jobsite. Compaction technology benefits contractors who move, grade and compact materials to specified moisture and density levels. 
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    13 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 9: How to Minimize Equipment Costs

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 9: How to Minimize Equipment Costs
    Sep 27 2023
    Ever wondered how to create preventative maintenance plans for your jobsite heavy equipment? Construction expert Brad Humphrey sits down with Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates and Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding, to talk about how proper maintenance plans can save money and remain competitive. 
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    12 mins
  • The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 8: Jobsite Security Part 2

    The Contractor's Best Friend Podcast Season 7 Episode 8: Jobsite Security Part 2
    Sep 13 2023
    In Part 2 of this podcast series on jobsite safety, construction expert Brad Humphrey sits down with Jason Hurdis, Caterpillar’s global market professional for quarry and aggregates and Lonnie Fritz, Caterpillar’s senior market professional construction industry expert with a focus on heavy construction and roadbuilding, to talk about how technology and equipment can improve security. As construction industry equipment theft continues to be a problem, the latest technology can help prevent such theft and keep crews safe. 
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    11 mins