Page 76 • April 4, 2020 • www.constructionequipmentguide.com • Truck & Trailer Section • Construction Equipment Guide
PGH Excavating Owners’ Love of Earthmoving Runs DeepFor Chris and Nick Thornhill, owners of
PGH Excavating, moving dirt runs deep intheir DNA. By watching their father ownand operate a successful hauling businessthat served excavating companies, the twobrothers learned how the industry worked atan early age.“When my brother Nick and I each turned
18, we went to work for our dad,” said ChrisThornhill. “I drove a Kenworth dump truckand delivered material to backfill job sites.My brother helped contractors grade jobsites to create level surfaces. We learned somuch through the years, we decided to startour own company.”In 2007, Chris and Nick founded PGH
Excavating. Before the Enumclaw, Wash.-based company could haul its first load ofdirt, it needed to acquire heavy equipment,as well as a few trucks and trailers. Chris andNick’s first purchase was a Kenworth long-hood from their father.“From the days of operating a Kenworth
truck myself, I knew first-hand that aKenworth would run for years,” saidThornhill. “My dad was a Kenworth cus-tomer for more than 40 years and he waskeen on running equipment that would bereliable, while at the same time, offer driverstrucks they would be proud to drive.”Since that first purchase, the company has
steadily grown its fleet to include 15 heavy-duty trucks, primarily a mix of Kenworthlong hoods and vocational models. Thecompany operates two Kenworth T880s andtwo T880S models equipped with PACCARMX-13 engines rated at 510 hp. The compa-ny also has a W990, Kenworth’s new long-hood model.“Kenworths have always been reliable.
The performance we’re getting from ourT880s is especially high,” said Thornhill. “Inthe past four years, our T880s have onlymissed two days of work. That speaks vol-umes to the quality of the PACCAR MX-13
engine. We’re a dependable company; mini-mal downtime keeps our drivers on the road,delivering for our customers and makingmoney. It’s a win for us across the board, sowe plan on adding more Kenworth T880Smodels with MX-13 engines.”PGH Excavating fitted one T880 and one
T880S with super solo dump bodies, capableof hauling 25 tons. The other T880 andT880S are equipped with Sturdy-Welddump bodies that can haul up to 17 tons.The company’s T880s and T880S trucks
deliver material to job sites that require extramaterial for grading, or they can take excessstraight to the dump site. PGH Excavatingoffers grading services at the locations whereit removes material and also can delivergrading product fresh from one site to anoth-er. “We’ll often drive up to 90 miles through
the congested city streets in and aroundSeattle, so it’s important to us to maximizeeach payload,” said Thornhill. “Some jobsites will take a week or less to clear andgrade. Others, like massive neighborhooddevelopments, can take more than a decade.We’ll typically send our super solo trucks toareas with heavy traffic, so we don’t have tomake as many runs to that area. The PAC-CAR MX-13 engine gives our trucks plentyof power even with the added weight.”To transport the company’s excavating
equipment to and from jobsites, PGHExcavating relies on its new W990 pur-chased through Papé Kenworth Northwest— SeaTac. So far, the truck has surpassed allexpectations. “When the W990 first became avail-
able, we wanted to be one of the first com-panies to own one,” said Thornhill. “We
did our research and placed an order withRay Lute, salesman at Papé KenworthNorthwest, who worked with our dad for anumber of years. Since we began operat-ing the W990 earlier this year, it’s beenperforming flawlessly.”The Kenworth W990 is equipped with a
605 hp engine and an 18-speed Eaton Fullermanual transmission. The W990 pulls a 5-axle lowboy trailer; the company expects itwill put on 60,000 miles in its first full yearof operation.“We get plenty of comments on how
clean and beautiful our trucks look, but theW990 in particular, has received a lot ofattention,” said Thornhill. “I’ve always beena fan of the traditional long-hood. As wephase out some of our older rigs, the W990will replace them.”High driver turnover can sometimes be an
issue for fleets in the trucking industry. ForPGH Excavating, driver retention has neverbeen an issue.“Many of our drivers have been with us
from the very beginning,” said Thornhill.“Our driver retention is well above theindustry average, thanks in large part, to theequipment we own. Our drivers really enjoythe enhanced comfort provided by the wideKenworth cabs, as well as the enhanced vis-ibility.”Thornhill will be the first to admit that
PGH Excavating doesn’t drum up new busi-ness from the looks of its excavation equip-ment. Its Kenworth trucks, however, are adifferent matter.“People recognize us for the Kenworth
trucks we have on the road,” said Thornhill.“They are a great marketing tool for us, andhelp us establish the image we want to por-tray to potential customers. We strive to putthe best trucks on the road, and Kenworthcontinues to be that truck.”For more information, visit
www.kenworth.com.
PGH Excavating operates two Kenworth T880s and two T880S models equipped with PACCAR MX-13 engines rated at 510 hp. The company also has a W990, Kenworth’snew long-hood model.
Chris Thornhill and his brother, Nick, founded PGH Excavating in 2007.
