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MS
Midwest Salt & Grit One
Heavy Equipment Operator Port Operations
Career Insights for Operating Engineer / Heavy Equipment Operator
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Based on Illinois data
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What they do
An Operating Engineer or Heavy Equipment Operator drives and operates heavy equipment used in quarries, construction sites, landfills, refuse and recycling centers, or ports. Heavy Equipment may include, but is not limited to, bulldozers, excavators, paving equipment and pile drivers.
$54,776 / year median in Illinois
+11% projected growth
Job Description
Run the Machines That Move a Mountain of Salt Vessels come in loaded. Somebody has to unload them, stockpile the product, blend it, and get it out the door to customers who are counting on it before the first snow flies. That's you. As an Operator at Grit One, you'll spend your day in the seat of serious equipment — Sennebogen material handlers, wheel loaders, conveyors, blending systems, pneumatic hoppers, and field unloaders. You'll learn machines you haven't run yet. You'll cross-train into roles beyond your own. And because we're still building this operation from the ground up, the way you do the job today shapes how it gets done tomorrow. No two vessel days look the same. If sitting still all shift sounds like a slow death, keep reading. Straight Talk Before You Apply We'd rather tell you now than have you find out in week two: This job lives outdoors. Chicago winters, Chicago summers, wind off the water. All of it. The schedule follows the vessels. Evenings, weekends, and overtime during vessel operations and peak season. When a ship is in, we work. Safety isn't a poster here. It's the standard, and we hold each other to it. Still with us? Good — that's exactly the person we're looking for. What You'll Actually Do Run heavy equipment safely and within spec, day in and day out Hit production targets and keep the product moving Follow care and maintenance instructions so the equipment stays in the fight Cover other roles when teammates are out — flexibility keeps the operation running Own your numbers and know where you stand Speak up when you see a better, safer, or faster way to do something Equipment you'll operate: Sennebogen material handler
- wheel loader
- wheel Bobcat
- material loader
- pneumatic and other hoppers
- blending system
- conveyors
- field unloader
- additional heavy machinery You'll Fit Right In If You Treat safety as personal — yours and your crew's Would rather be running a machine than sitting at a desk Step up when someone's out instead of waiting to be asked Notice the thing that's not working right and say something about it Want to grow into more as this facility grows What You Need High school diploma or equivalent 2+ years operating heavy equipment Comfortable following digital instructions and entering data into a system Reliable transportation to our port facility Availability for shifts, overtime, and weekends Industrial, production, or warehouse experience OSHA or equipment-specific certifications