In the military, heavy equipment operators were in charge of operating heavy equipment such as bulldozers, cranes and graders to complete engineering and construction projects. They served in the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Army, the U.S. Air Force and the U.S. Marine Corps. Heavy equipment operators were also responsible for interpreting information on grade stakes and for clearing, backfilling, excavating and stockpiling with a tractor crawler or a loader. They would also cut and spread fill material with a scraper, scarify and level soil with a grader and transport the heavy construction equipment with a tractor-trailer. Furthermore, military heavy equipment operators were responsible for assisting in the performance of combat engineer missions.
Relevant job titles
- equipment operator
- construction manager
- crane and tower operator
- excavating and loading machine operator
- heavy and tractor-trailer truck driver
- industrial truck and tractor operator
- fork lift operator
- auxiliary equipment operator
- granulator operator
Asbestos-related cancer eligible for filing a claim
If you developed one of the following cancers as a result of occupational exposure, you are eligible for compensation. If you are too ill, a family member can help you with the legal process. In the unfortunate event that you pass away before recovering compensation, your surviving family members will receive compensation on your behalf.
If, however, you struggle with non-cancerous pleural diseases such as asbestosis, pulmonary fibrosis, pleural plaques, pleural effusion, diffuse pleural thickening, COPD (emphysema & chronic bronchitis), pleurisy, lung nodules, lung spots, asthma, pneumonitis, tuberculosis, rounded atelectasis or lung scarring, please seek a second or even a third opinion as the rate of misdiagnosis is very high among the victims of asbestos exposure.
Companies that exposed heavy equipment operators to asbestos
Asbestos products handled by heavy equipment operators
Since they would perform construction and engineering work, heavy equipment operators came in contact with numerous asbestos products, such as cement, pipes and insulation. When these products were disturbed, asbestos fibers would be released in the air, which would subsequently be inhaled or ingested by heavy equipment operators. This way, asbestos exposure would occur in heavy equipment operators who were serving in the military. For this reason, veterans who served under this rating have a high risk of developing a serious disease as a result of frequent asbestos exposure.