A unique hands-on experience that introduces children to the world of heavy construction equipment is coming to the Erie County Technical School at 8500 Oliver Road.
On Sept. 27 from 9 a.m. until 2 p.m., the Erie County Technical School, in partnership with Chivers Construction, is hosting a free community event that is open to children and adults of any age.
The event, called Diggers and Dumpers, will allow participants to get behind the controls of multiple heavy construction equipment under the guidance of experienced operators.
Multiple construction machines will be on site during the second Diggers and Dumpers event taking place at the Erie County Technical School at 8500 Oliver Road.
Multiple equipment suppliers and contractors in Erie have loaned the heavy equipment to the Diggers and Dumpers event.
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Diggers and Dumpers provides insight to the workforce
The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports that in the United States in 2024, more than 892,600 people were construction laborers, more than 277,500 were construction managers and more than 295,000 were equipment operators.
The Diggers and Dumpers event will give participants an inside look at what it takes to be an equipment operator.
“The heavy civil construction industry is a foundation to our daily lives,” said Emily Yochim, director of employee development at Chivers Construction. “Not only does it make a significant impact on our community by ensuring everything runs smoothly but it also offers a wide range of jobs that provides family-supporting wages.”
The Diggers and Dumpers event will take place on Sept. 27 at the Erie County Technical School at 8500 Oliver Road.
Seeing machines in action during the Equipment Rodeo
Along with the hands-on experience involving heavy machinery, the event will also feature an Equipment Rodeo starting at 10 a.m.
At the Equipment Rodeo, seasoned operators will showcase their skills by competing in an obstacle course known as the Excavator Games. The Excavator Games will include tire stacking, slalom, knocking it off, dunking the ball and around the world competitions.
The competition is open to the public for viewing.
Erie County Technical School and Chivers Construction Company will be hosting the Diggers and Dumpers interactive event on Sept.27 at the Erie County Technical School at 8500 Oliver Road.
According to organizers, there will also be food trucks, obstacle courses, sand boxes, games and other fun activities.
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If you go…
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Location: Erie County Technical School at 8500 Oliver Road.
Contact Nicholas Sorensen at Nsorensen@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Erie Times-News: Diggers and Dumpers event lets attendees use construction vehicles
