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I often wonder how construction gets done in Europe. Everyone in the US who works construction or even has the possibility of maybe one day needing to carry a s

by Lendal 3y ago

I often wonder how construction gets done in Europe. Everyone in the US who works construction or even has the possibility of maybe one day needing to carry a shovel claims they absolutely must drive a truck with a 3-ton curb weight everywhere they go. How does Europe build anything, without these massive trucks everywhere?

redox99 3y ago
Anecdotally I think it's much more common for people in the US to do some work on their house by themselves than in the EU.
- tomtheelder 3y ago
  Even if that’s true, it’s an absurd reason to own a truck.
mattashii 3y ago
Any option of the following: Truck rentals, At-home delivery of building materials and hardware, Actual trucks with drivers licensed for trucking, Using a car with fold-down back seats
kzrdude 3y ago
Here's what they drive: https://www.byggnadsarbetaren.se/test/har-ar-bilarna-som-visar-var-skapet-ska-sta/ https://www.byggnadsarbetaren.se/test/har-ar-bilarna-som-vis... Seems like these weigh 1.8-2.0 tons
lelandbatey 3y ago
I realize you're being sarcastic, but taking this a bit seriously: I feel like a minority of "serious working professionals" (in my area, Seattle) ever actually drive "consumer pick-ups" as their working vehicle. The majority of tradespeople I've known all drive vans or specialized trucks, not consumer pickup trucks. It seems to be several reasons: - Few tradespeople are moving large loads of loose material or goods around e.g. debris or lawnmowers. If you do move dirt or lawnmowers around regularly, you're not buying a consumer Ford F150 for the purpose, you're going to buy something like an F250 with what's called a "work body" or "landscape body" (hilariously, strongly implying an off-the-shelf F250 is not equipped for work): https://cmtruckbeds.com/truck-beds/lb-landscape-body/ https://cmtruckbeds.com/truck-beds/lb-landscape-body/ - A fully enclosed van means less risk of casual stealing, and less concern for tying down every little thing during transport - Vans are generally a bit narrower than the big trucks so you can squeeze them into the strange city job sites much easier. - They don't have to worry about protecting their cargo from the elements - If you get the right van, you can stand up inside that van - A van is going to have a pretty low floor that you can generally step into and out of. A large pickup you may need to literally climb into. A tradesperson is going to have to do that like 10+ times a day It always seems like the foreman or project manager is the one you see driving the pickup truck, all the other working stiffs choose vans though.
elkos 3y ago
I'm a European living in Greece, I drive a 2009 Suzuki Swift and have a wife and kid. It's a bit of a challenge to set it up to go for a trip on our island house during summer, and I seldom do any construction work more than simple stuff around the houses. But it is super easy to park around, has OK mileage, and the ferry ticket is cheaper than a big car and it is OK to park. It has a laughable boot, but if you fold the passenger seats it can be useful to move some bigger stuff. There are trucks in Greece, just not that many twin cabs, mostly you will see them outside the city in the country. Construction workers use mostly vans, and flatbed versions of vans (Like the ford transit) also called cab-over pick-up trucks. There are lots of small light cab-over trucks in the islands by Piaggio and Daihatsu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truck#/media/File:PiaggioTruckMikinos06473.jpg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truck#/media/File:PiaggioTruck... which are pretty hand and often provide a pretty big flatbed for stuff. There are some construction workers like electricians, plumbers etc that love to use panel vans or their passenger versions using folded seats like the Fiat Doblo (Similar to the Ram Promaster City). We are actually thinking of buying a mild-hybrid version of the passenger version of a panel-van to cover our family needs.

by Lendal 3y ago

redox99 3y ago

Anecdotally I think it's much more common for people in the US to do some work on their house by themselves than in the EU.

tomtheelder 3y ago
Even if that’s true, it’s an absurd reason to own a truck.

mattashii 3y ago

Any option of the following: Truck rentals, At-home delivery of building materials and hardware, Actual trucks with drivers licensed for trucking, Using a car with fold-down back seats

kzrdude 3y ago

Here's what they drive: https://www.byggnadsarbetaren.se/test/har-ar-bilarna-som-visar-var-skapet-ska-sta/ https://www.byggnadsarbetaren.se/test/har-ar-bilarna-som-vis... Seems like these weigh 1.8-2.0 tons

lelandbatey 3y ago

I realize you're being sarcastic, but taking this a bit seriously: I feel like a minority of "serious working professionals" (in my area, Seattle) ever actually drive "consumer pick-ups" as their working vehicle. The majority of tradespeople I've known all drive vans or specialized trucks, not consumer pickup trucks. It seems to be several reasons: - Few tradespeople are moving large loads of loose material or goods around e.g. debris or lawnmowers. If you do move dirt or lawnmowers around regularly, you're not buying a consumer Ford F150 for the purpose, you're going to buy something like an F250 with what's called a "work body" or "landscape body" (hilariously, strongly implying an off-the-shelf F250 is not equipped for work): https://cmtruckbeds.com/truck-beds/lb-landscape-body/ https://cmtruckbeds.com/truck-beds/lb-landscape-body/ - A fully enclosed van means less risk of casual stealing, and less concern for tying down every little thing during transport - Vans are generally a bit narrower than the big trucks so you can squeeze them into the strange city job sites much easier. - They don't have to worry about protecting their cargo from the elements - If you get the right van, you can stand up inside that van - A van is going to have a pretty low floor that you can generally step into and out of. A large pickup you may need to literally climb into. A tradesperson is going to have to do that like 10+ times a day It always seems like the foreman or project manager is the one you see driving the pickup truck, all the other working stiffs choose vans though.

elkos 3y ago

I'm a European living in Greece, I drive a 2009 Suzuki Swift and have a wife and kid. It's a bit of a challenge to set it up to go for a trip on our island house during summer, and I seldom do any construction work more than simple stuff around the houses. But it is super easy to park around, has OK mileage, and the ferry ticket is cheaper than a big car and it is OK to park. It has a laughable boot, but if you fold the passenger seats it can be useful to move some bigger stuff. There are trucks in Greece, just not that many twin cabs, mostly you will see them outside the city in the country. Construction workers use mostly vans, and flatbed versions of vans (Like the ford transit) also called cab-over pick-up trucks. There are lots of small light cab-over trucks in the islands by Piaggio and Daihatsu https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truck#/media/File:PiaggioTruckMikinos06473.jpg https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Truck#/media/File:PiaggioTruck... which are pretty hand and often provide a pretty big flatbed for stuff. There are some construction workers like electricians, plumbers etc that love to use panel vans or their passenger versions using folded seats like the Fiat Doblo (Similar to the Ram Promaster City). We are actually thinking of buying a mild-hybrid version of the passenger version of a panel-van to cover our family needs.