As construction equipment executives look ahead to 2026, they are navigating a landscape shaped by persistent economic pressures and targeted pockets of strength.
Tariffs, high interest rates and inflation may cause contractors to delay big purchases and increase equipment rentals to reduce near-term risk. At the same time, the data center and energy infrastructure demand tied to the AI boom is fueling growth in many regions throughout the country.
For this series of Q&As, Equipment World tapped more than a dozen construction industry leaders to find out what trends are shaping their strategy in 2026, how they plan to invest in their manufacturing and dealer operations and how the current political climate is impacting their product roadmap – from regulatory changes to supply chain constraints.
Our slate of experts also touched on technology – from telematics to automation – and the next steps in their alternative power transformation.
This year’s participants include:
Kyle Fuglesten, Vice President of Construction, Hitachi
Paul Barlow, President, Huddig
Mike Ross, Senior Vice President, HD Hyundai Construction Equipment
Paul Manger, Executive Director of Product Marketing, Kubota
Illmars Nartish, Vice President, Manitou North America
Jeffery Ratliff, Director of Sales & Marketing, and Jeff Stewart, President, Takeuchi
Scott Young, Head of Region North America, Volvo CE
Keep reading to see where Mike Ross, Senior Vice President at HD Hyundai Construction Equipment North America, is placing his bets in 2026.
HD Hyundai Construction Equipment
We expect continued growth in the Southeast and South Central United States. Given population growth trends and favorable investment climates, we expect Florida, Georgia, the Carolinas, Texas and Louisiana will continue to be high-demand areas for construction equipment for the foreseeable future.
EW: How are customer requests and feedback shaping the types of equipment or attachments you plan to release next year?
As high as 15 to 20 percent of buyers are asking for equipment with integrated machine guidance/machine control systems, and those numbers are only going up. Hyundai is working diligently in this area, and that will be reflected in our equipment lineup at ConExpo 2026.
We are also responding to customer demand for smart safety features. We are always looking for ways to make operators and others on the jobsite safer while keeping productivity high. Some examples include robust standard lighting packages, backup cameras and all-around view monitoring.
EW: What role will emerging technologies—automation, electrification, AI, telematics, etc.—play in your R&D and product launches?
Automation is increasing across all industries and is something Hyundai has been working on for some time now. You may recall that we had remote automation demos at the last two ConExpo events, and we will be bringing new automation solutions to market soon.
The push for electric vehicles has slowed dramatically in this country under the current administration, so Europe and Asia are driving those efforts. As mentioned, interest in machines with integrated telematics is huge and growing. Hyundai was one of the first OEMs to have telematics-ready machines, and today, our dozers come standard with machine guidance integration.
In addition to machine guidance systems that raise operator performance, especially for precision work, machine-monitoring technologies help customers and dealers be timely with preventative maintenance and service to keep machines up and running at peak performance. Geo-tracking helps with fleet management and theft protection. In response to growing demand and interest, Hyundai will soon be rolling out a new version of Hi MATE, our proprietary fleet management system.
EW: How do tariffs, infrastructure funding and broader political factors factor into your strategic planning for 2026?
Tariffs and the uncertainties around tariff rates are already impacting machine pricing, and if the uncertainty continues, we will see an even greater impact on equipment sales, with customers holding off decisions for renewing their fleets. We are hoping, of course, that the volatility lessens, so prices stabilize.
Infrastructure funding is already allocated and, with the end of the government shutdown, funds should continue to be released at a rate that keeps contractors busy. We should see continued growth for traditional infrastructure, as well as the infrastructure needed to support the AI boom, commercial building and more.
EW: Do you expect supply chain constraints for components, steel or electronics to ease, worsen or remain steady?
We expect supplies of components, steel and electronics to remain steady. We don’t have any indication component parts will rise further.
EW: What’s your outlook on hiring and retaining skilled manufacturing talent in the year ahead?
Hyundai’s manufacturing operations are overseas, so this is not an issue for us here.
EW: How are you working with your dealer network to ensure availability, service and customer support?
In the face of market concerns like those you have just asked about, many companies are quick to trim staff in supporting roles. At Hyundai, we continue to recruit and hire strong service and parts managers and training team members. These are the people who train and support our dealers’ service and parts teams so they can better support Hyundai customers.
Hyundai has onboarded several strong dealerships in the United States and Canada recently, and they tell us that they are happy about joining the Hyundai dealer network, not only because of Hyundai’s reputation for high-performance, reliable machines, but also because of our reputation for providing great field support. We recently opened a new parts distribution center in Toronto, which further boosted our support capabilities for Canada.
Attracting top-quality dealers and investing in our people and our support capabilities will benefit our customers in 2026 and beyond.
EW: How are evolving emissions regulations and customer sustainability goals influencing your product development?
U.S. Tier 5 emissions regulations are on hold, but our product development teams in Asia and Europe continue to work on new engine platforms to ensure the best possible combination of emissions compliance, efficiency and productivity.
EW: Where do you see the biggest competitive pressure coming from—established OEMs, new entrants or technology companies?
Established OEMs remain our primary competition. As the pool of available pre-tariff equipment dwindles, all OEMs, including Hyundai, will face pricing pressures. Hyundai’s continued focus on recruiting strong dealers and working with them to provide best-in-class customer support will keep Hyundai competitive moving forward.
EW: Looking beyond the next year, what’s your outlook for the global equipment market over the next 3–5 years?
We expect 2026 to be flat. Under the best of circumstances, government reporting lags by three to nine months, and information losses due to the long shutdown and continued instability around tariffs, we think the near-term will be challenging, with many manufacturers looking to expand their market reach outside the United States. We do expect that, as constituents force a response to these concerns, the outlook for the next three to five years will improve.
About Mike Ross, Senior Vice President, HD Hyundai Construction Equipment
A West Point graduate in economics with a history of military service, Michael Ross has spent his nearly 30-year post-military career in the construction equipment industry. He worked his way up from territory sales manager to director of product/operations with competitive manufacturers before joining Hyundai in February of 2020 as VP of CE Sales. He worked closely with HD Hyundai Construction Equipment North America’s president and CEO, Stan Park, to help the company navigate through COVID, grow its dealer network and expand its product and parts support operations. Today, he is senior vice president over Sales, Service, Product and Marketing.
