Hitachi ended its decades-long excavator agreement with John Deere in 2022, branching out on its own from beneath the shadow of its larger U.S. partner.
So what’s happened since then for the Japan-based company?
On this week’s episode of The Dirt, we find out with guest Patrick Baker, product manager for excavators at Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas.
Baker notes that since the end of the agreement, in which Hitachi manufactured excavators under Deere and Hitachi brands that were sold and distributed by Deere, a whole lot has happened.
“We’re here for the long-term,” he says of HCMA.
Less than two years after the split, Hitachi has launched nearly 20 new products, established a multimillion-dollar Americas headquarters in Georgia and been building a larger dealer network. The new products include 13 dash-7 models of excavators, ranging from 13 to 90 tons; four dash-7 wheel loaders; and compact excavators.
Baker reveals the details of the new excavators, which he says were designed for “productivity, performance, reliability, durability and technology.”
