Shifting Dirt using Tech in Texas with contractor Stephenson Dirt

John Kent Stephenson, part of the family run business, who explains how they deliver earthworks projects using  Leica Geosystems part of Hexagon 3D machine control. 

He also explains how, after an accident that broke his back, the technology is supporting him to operate equipment and train others. 

John: “We actually ‘Grow Dirt’ here in Texas, as we have to add moisture to it in order to get to the levels we need onsite. And our business strapline is ‘we put dirt in its place’ and there’s always a lot of it!”

And that’s exactly what the team were doing with a fleet of Caterpillar equipment, including dozers and even a scraper, using 3D machine control on a large house building project at Fort Worth Metroplex in Dallas. 

John: “We were early adopters of Leica for our surveying, and now with their machine control, it has completely changed our business, allowing us to expand. 

“We now run a number of crews across the region with over 80 large earthmoving machines, with at least 60% now fitted with machine control through our Leica dealer Four Point Solutions, LLC.

"Having used other systems before, the service we get from them smokes what we had in the past. If we have a problem, they just jump on it, and the next day or even hours later, we are back up and running. 

“They also supported our rollout of the Leica ConX system, which allows us to send all our models using the mobile network to our machines across any job site.”

John added: "As this will be a high end development, each home has its own ditch lines. These have to be perfect, and this is where machine control really comes into its own for us. 

"Recently, we have also paired drone surveying with our 3D earthworks models, which helps to visualise the project. Let our clients know if we are growing dirt or losing dirt in real-time.”

"For me, this combination of technology connects me to the project as I had a motocross accident in 2009 and broke my back, so I can't now walk around a site.

"But thanks to a Leica foreman kit in my truck and a special rig on the back of it, I can drive the site and also lift myself into the cab of our machines. 

“So I can work the site as well, which is massively important for me, and I also use the technology to train our operators.”