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Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator resume example

A resume for a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator needs to show the work itself: operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement. Day to day that means work like this: learn and follow safety regulations; take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects. Recruiters and applicant tracking systems both read for the tasks and tools this role actually involves, so the strongest resume names them in your own experience rather than describing the job in the abstract. Below are the tasks O*NET records for this occupation, the software and tools it uses, the titles it is advertised under, and the skills worth naming if they are genuinely yours.

Also advertised as

The same job is posted under many titles. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.

  • Equipment Operator
  • EO
  • Heavy Equipment Operator
  • HEO
  • Machine Operator
  • Operating Engineer
  • Back Hoe Operator
  • Engineering Equipment Operator
  • Forklift Operator
  • Hot Mix Asphalt Operator
  • Motor Grader Operator
  • Track Hoe Operator
  • Landfill HEO
  • Angle Dozer Operator
  • Backhoe Operator
  • Blade Grader Operator
  • Blade Operator
  • Bulldozer Engineer

O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation in total.

What this work actually involves

Tasks recorded for this occupation, in O*NET's words. If your experience covers one of these, it belongs on your resume in your own words.

  • Learn and follow safety regulations.
  • Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects.
  • Start engines, move throttles, switches, or levers, or depress pedals to operate machines, such as bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, or backhoes.
  • Coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads in response to hand or audio signals from crew members.
  • Align machines, cutterheads, or depth gauge makers with reference stakes and guidelines or ground or position equipment, following hand signals of other workers.
  • Locate underground services, such as pipes or wires, prior to beginning work.
  • Signal operators to guide movement of tractor-drawn machines.
  • Repair and maintain equipment, making emergency adjustments or assisting with major repairs as necessary.
  • Load and move dirt, rocks, equipment, or other materials, using trucks, crawler tractors, power cranes, shovels, graders, or related equipment.
  • Drive and maneuver equipment equipped with blades in successive passes over working areas to remove topsoil, vegetation, or rocks or to distribute and level earth or terrain.
  • Operate tractors or bulldozers to perform such tasks as clearing land, mixing sludge, trimming backfills, or building roadways or parking lots.
  • Monitor operations to ensure that health and safety standards are met.

26 tasks are recorded in total; these are the most central.

Example bullets for this role

Built from this occupation's own tasks. The brackets stay empty on purpose: we will not invent a number for you, and a fabricated metric is the fastest way to lose an interview you had already won.

  • Learn and follow safety regulations, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Start engines, move throttles, switches, or levers, or depress pedals to operate machines, such as bulldozers, trench excavators, road graders, or backhoes, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].
  • Coordinate machine actions with other activities, positioning or moving loads in response to hand or audio signals from crew members, for [who or what it served], at [what volume].

Software used in this role

Recorded for this occupation by O*NET. An applicant tracking system matches the exact product name, so write the tool the way the posting writes it.

  • Maintenance record software
  • Microsoft Excel
  • Microsoft Office software
  • Microsoft Outlook
  • Microsoft Windows
  • Work record software

Tools and equipment

The physical equipment this occupation is recorded as using. Worth naming when a posting asks for it by name.

  • 15-ton truck cranes
  • 18-ton hydraulic cranes
  • 20-ton tractors
  • Adjustable wrenches
  • Aeroil propane kettles
  • Air compressors
  • Angle dozers
  • Aquatic weed harvesters
  • Asphalt compactors
  • Asphalt pavers
  • Asphalt spreader boxes
  • Axes

What this job rates as most important

O*NET rates every skill for importance to this occupation. These are the highest rated, in order.

  1. 01Operation and Control
  2. 02Equipment Maintenance
  3. 03Operations Monitoring
  4. 04Monitoring
  5. 05Active Listening
  6. 06Time Management
  7. 07Troubleshooting

Knowledge areas

The subject knowledge this occupation draws on, rated by importance.

  • Mechanical
  • English Language
  • Public Safety and Security

What qualifications people in this job have

From O*NET's survey of people doing this work. This is what postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.

  • 82%High School Diploma, or the equivalent
  • 16%Some College Courses
  • 1%Less than a High School Diploma

What level this role is pitched at

O*NET places this occupation in “Some Preparation Needed”. These occupations usually require a high school diploma.

Some previous work-related skill, knowledge, or experience is usually needed. For example, a teller would benefit from experience working directly with the public.

Common questions

What does a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator do?
Operate one or several types of power construction equipment, such as motor graders, bulldozers, scrapers, compressors, pumps, derricks, shovels, tractors, or front-end loaders to excavate, move, and grade earth, erect structures, or pour concrete or other hard surface pavement. Day to day that includes work like learn and follow safety regulations and Take actions to avoid potential hazards or obstructions, such as utility lines, other equipment, other workers, or falling objects.
What skills should a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator put on a resume?
O*NET rates Operation and Control, Equipment Maintenance, Operations Monitoring, Monitoring, and Active Listening among the most important skills for this occupation. Name the ones that are genuinely yours and show where you used them. A resume that lists skills you do not have is weaker than one that lists fewer.
What software should a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator list?
Software recorded for this occupation includes Maintenance record software, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, and Microsoft Windows. Applicant tracking systems match on the exact product name, so write the tool as the posting writes it rather than describing it in general terms.
What other job titles cover Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator work?
O*NET records 40 titles for this occupation, including Equipment Operator, EO, Heavy Equipment Operator, and HEO. Searching only your own job title hides most of the openings you could apply to.
What qualifications does a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator need?
In O*NET's survey of people doing this job, 82% reported their level of education as "High School Diploma, or the equivalent". That is what current postholders reported, not a requirement any single employer sets.
Will this resume pass an ATS for a Operating Engineers and Other Construction Equipment Operator role?
No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer's system is configured, including ours. What you can control is that the resume parses cleanly, names the work in the words the posting uses, and does not claim anything you cannot back up.

Related roles

Occupations O*NET records as closest to this one, and worth looking at if this search is not moving.

What this page cannot tell you

  • No tool outside an employer can tell you how that employer’s ATS is configured, including ours.
  • This page makes no claim about pay, demand or how many people hold this job. O*NET does not publish that here and we will not estimate it.
  • Keyword overlap is one input to a resume’s score, not a verdict on you. A resume that names skills you do not have is worse than one that names fewer.

If this is the job you are aiming at, the guide to tailoring a resume covers how to aim one posting properly, and building and exporting a resume here is free.

Occupation data from the O*NET 29.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under CC BY 4.0. O*NET is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. SpartanResume is not endorsed by USDOL/ETA.