Loaders are large, industrial machines consisting of a hydraulically powered, front end bucket and lift system capable of lifting and dumping large quantities of earth and material. They are wheeled vehicles (as opposed to being tracked) to allow them to turn often without damaging the haul roads and paved areas they may travel on. Such equipment is used to lift material into haul trucks or other haulage equipment.

Dozers are large, powerful vehicles with a concave blade on the front for pushing earth and material along the ground. They are often tracked as they are usually used in areas where traction is imperative and there is no worry of damaging the surface they operate on. This blade is movable, but does not have the range of motion a loader has, and so cannot be used for loading purposes.

Figure: Dozers and loaders are both forms of excavating equipment, although a dozer does more pushing and clearing of the mining area while a loader picks up and loads the mined material.