Contractors across the industry are moving past technology as a novelty to a key business strategy. As telematics and grade control become more common, solutions like remote-operated and autonomous equipment are adding their value to increase safety; help attract, train, and keep skilled labor; and meet rising productivity standards.

During the customer panel at Caterpillar’s 2026 Construction and Technology Days in Peoria, Illinois, leaders from companies across the country shared their experiences with a variety of technology solutions.

Andrew Hoffman, Senior Equipment Operator Trainer at Allan Myers, a heavy civil contractor serving the Mid-Atlantic, shared a story about 3D grade control and their top dozer operator, who had achieved exemplary results for the past 20-plus years.

About five years ago, “He had just gotten a brand-new D6 [Caterpillar dozer] a few weeks before, so I asked him, ‘How do you like the new machine?’” Hoffman related. “He said, ‘Yeah, it’s great. I think it finally has me beat.’”

With 3D grade control, “I think quality-wise he could probably still match it, but efficiency-wise, there’s no way you can keep up with these new systems,” Hoffman said. “From a production and efficiency standpoint, these systems, they’re saving us. And this is our best operator talking about this. The rest of the tiers of our skilled labor force — it’s only helping them even more.”

Jordan Swanson, Director of Engineering at Edgerton, a Wisconsin-based earthwork and underground utility contractor, related how grade control helped their entire workflow become more efficient.

“Grade control is a wonderful product, and it helps us build things without doing rework,” he said. “But what we found is it actually created this requirement of having to build the job digitally before anyone’s on the job site. We build the whole job in the office, and we can find all the mistakes…and help fix the mistakes before we have a full crew sitting there waiting for questions to get answered.”

On the maintenance side, Morgan Corp., a heavy civil and industrial contractor serving the Southeast, has used telematics to develop a preventive maintenance program that increases machine uptime.

“We went from a very dated system of Excel spreadsheets and hard recorded hours via the job sites and phone calls to implementing telematics…and able to very accurately see where these machines are at in terms of when they need service,” said Jack Lord, Shop Equipment Maintenance Supervisor.

“We’re also able to plan out our workforce better,” he said. “At Morgan, we’re at 450 machines spread over three states, and I only have two trucks to service all these machines. I’ve got to be able to effectively plan my week out to get these machines serviced. It really helps us stay accurate on the machine health and also get our work done in a more effective flow.”

Autonomous haul trucks at Luck Stone in Virginia also impact planning and productivity.

Previously, they might plan for four truck drivers but two of them called off, affecting how much they could accomplish in a day. They no longer face that issue. With the autonomous fleet, "We can maximize our production and productivity,” said Jack Harwood Briles, Pit Lead–Autonomous Trucks.

As the company incorporates the new trucks, it’s given operators the opportunity to learn other positions. “No one lost their job,” Briles said. “It’s given them a chance to grow and do other projects.”

Kwest Group, a heavy civil contractor working across most of the U.S., leverages technology for training and coaching designed to meet their labor needs.

“As we all know, good operators can be really hard to come by,” said Andrew Hacker, Heavy Equipment Coach. “We opted to start what we call a bench program. We’re hiring less-experienced people with the right attitude, and we’re placing them in a training site for 90 days, or longer if need be.”

At their two training facilities, Kwest Group uses 2D and 3D grade control, as well as other technologies, to train operators on equipment.

“That really cuts down on the learning curve,” Hacker said. “They can see the goal they’re trying to reach quicker by using that technology.”

Hacker also commented on the impact for retention. “Giving our people every tool available is the only way we’re going to show them that we care and want to keep them.”

At Martin Marietta, drones and Caterpillar’s VisionLink track machines while operators are running them. That data allows trainers to develop targeted, one-on-one training where they can show operators the mistakes they’re making and how to improve results, said Youssef Kbayli, a Senior Technical Trainer based in Colorado.

At Saiia, an industrial heavy civil contractor in the Southeast, remote equipment operation in a trailer away from the job site increases safety while helping combat the industry’s wave of retirements.

“Older operators that still want to work but don’t want to beat themselves up in the machines are now able to come into the trailer and sit in a fixed position with air conditioning, a refrigerator, and a microwave,” said Clay Vance, Construction Manager. “They’ve got everything they want and they’re willing to stay in it.”

The remote technology also opened up a new workforce option.

“We’ve got the ability now to bring in people with disabilities who want to work in this industry that may not be able to be out on the site,” Vance said. “They can get in the trailer and run the machines, so it’s opening the door for that.”

In addition, Vance said the technology helps with operator retention as the company grows and expands into new areas.

“A lot of the guys we want to travel with us don’t want to leave their families,” he said. “Now we have the ability to leave them at home, work remotely on jobs that are away from their house, and still retain that operator.”

Most importantly, technology options contribute to safer job sites.

For instance, Saiia’s remote setup keeps operators out of harm’s way as their machines work on unstable ground for coal ash remediation. Luck Stone’s autonomous trucks keep drivers out of the pit.

At Nutrien’s facility in North Carolina, smart cameras and sensors increased awareness of what’s around the machines, but the safety benefits didn’t stop there.

“We’re driving awareness in our heavy equipment operators, but we’re also changing our work environment based on the information that’s given us,” said Jeremy Pierce, Director, Mining–Phosphate. “We’re using that information to understand where items are happening, when they’re happening, and then really driving to determine the root cause.”

That allows corrections ranging from operator coaching to modifying the work environment to prevent future safety incidents.

Education plays a key role in successful adoption of new solutions, panelists said. For instance, as Edgerton began incorporating soil compaction autonomy, they knew they needed to develop and communicate a detailed plan in order to ensure safety and buy-in.

“When you see a machine rolling, moving, and there’s no person in it, that makes a lot of people nervous,” Swanson said. “We recognized that was going to be a challenge and so we very proactively developed a whole safety program and protocol. How are we going to delineate our work zones? How are we going to make sure we’re able to communicate with all the other subcontractors on the job, make sure they’re aware of what we’re doing, and where they shouldn’t be?”

Since Edgerton often works as a subcontractor, they sat down with general contractors to share their plan. “Now we kind of have them excited and they’re trying to support us in learning this process and doing this together,” Swanson said.

Multiple panelists stressed the importance of working with dealers to learn and implement new technology.

For instance, Saiia coordinated with Carter Cat to learn how others were using the technology. “Networking is huge for us,” Vance said. “Without that knowledge, you’re dead in the water.”

Hacker added, “You can have all the technology in the world, but if you don’t know how to use it correctly, it’s not worth anything. When we decided to be proactive and start our training program, [Ohio Cat] got us the training we need to be able to train our people.”

Kristin Gaskill, Caterpillar’s Vice President of Construction Technology, offered attendees some final advice for choosing the right solutions for their business.

“Think about your first place to start, and don’t think you have to rule the world,” she said. “I think you start with one machine on one job site that’s been painful for you — that you’ve got to get a better solution. Put it into practice, try it out, prove the value, and then think about how you scale from there. It’s all about being able to make a plan, communicate the plan, and be able to execute that plan with urgency, because the pressures of the business continue on.”