Equappment App Created to Improve HDD Contractor Efficiency, Increase Profitability

With 35 years in the horizontal directional drilling (HDD) industry at Melfred Borzall, Peter Melsheimer has witnessed firsthand some of the pain points contractors face daily.

This knowledge led him to create Equappment (EQ), a digital tool that addresses inefficiencies and downtime caused by not having the right equipment on the job. ​Melsheimer’s background in manufacturing and experience working alongside contractors gives him a unique perspective on improving productivity and efficiency in underground construction. ​

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Among other things, he’s seen a job shutting down because there was no swivel to go with the reamer or not enough duct pullers, or instances where equipment was missed during invoicing or left behind at a remote job site. To address these issues, he initially created a system for tracking equipment and tooling, including photos, specs, and checklists for what was needed to go out to a job and what needed to come back.

After this initial phase, he realized that this system did not provide enough value to contractors compared to the effort required to maintain it. To improve EQ, he spent more time with contractors, learning about their operations, processes, requirements, and struggles. ​ As a result, EQ evolved into a comprehensive app focused on underground construction and tailored to the needs of HDD companies. ​

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EQ serves as a single source of operational information for utility contractors. ​ It includes features such as equipment and tooling specs and scheduling, crewmember skills and contact information, job management with details, location, photos, documentation, task management, and time logging. ​ EQ offers HDD-focused tools such as a bore logger and HDD calculators.

Melsheimer also incorporated soil and dump site mapping. This allows the contractor to indicate on a map the soil encountered to refer to. Dump site mapping allows them to indicate where they can dump their slurry, what they take, how much it costs, etc. This information can be shared across all users in the EQ platform if desired.  â€‹

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One of the app’s key benefits is organizing all job-related documentation, including permits, stake sheets, drawings, locate tickets, bore logs, and daily production reports, in one place accessible anytime, anywhere. ​

Another challenge EQ addresses is the training and productivity of new hires in the HDD industry. The app allows crews to be more autonomous by providing them with task lists, expected durations, and equipment specifications. This helps new hires understand what is expected of them and allows managers to track progress effectively. EQ also helps ensure that crews have the right equipment for the job, reducing the burden on supervisors or owners. ​

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EQ recently released locate ticket management, which will allow users to easily access and track the status and expiration dates of multiple locate tickets associated with a job. ​ The next release will add in-app fillable forms for tasks such as job safety analyses and vehicle to further streamline documentation and keep everything in one location. ​

For more information, visit equappment.com.

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SOURCE – Equappment

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