Hitachi upgrades European mini excavator facility

Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe) NV (HCME) has upgraded its European mini excavator factory to boost manufacturing efficiency. The firm has officially opened its mini and compact excavator factory at Oosterhout, in the Netherlands. The new 8,000m2 facility is the result of an extensive modernisation programme, which commenced in January 2018. The firm says that the upgrade will increase efficiency at the factory that is responsible for producing the ZX10 to ZX85 models. It will also meet the growing
July 19, 2018 Read time: 2 mins
Hitachi has officially opened its new mini excavator facility in the Netherlands

233 Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe) NV (1139 HCME) has upgraded its European mini excavator factory to boost manufacturing efficiency. The firm has officially opened its mini and compact excavator factory at Oosterhout, in the Netherlands. The new 8,000m2 facility is the result of an extensive modernisation programme, which commenced in January 2018.

The firm says that the upgrade will increase efficiency at the factory that is responsible for producing the ZX10 to ZX85 models. It will also meet the growing demand for Hitachi mini and compact excavators across Europe.

The factory’s general manager, Marco Verhoef, said, “We have already doubled our output since 2014 from 2,500 to 5,000 machines by 2018. The renovation of the factory was necessary to help us grow further, and will enable us to produce more than 7,000 machines/year, according to market demand.”

As part of the upgrade, a state-of-the-art, semi-automatic assembly line has been installed, as well as new equipment and paint booths. The staff at the factory have adopted a new approach, which means completing tasks within a certain amount of time, optimising work flow. Inventory has also been reduced by following the latest lean manufacturing methods.


“Thanks to all of our dedicated personnel, we now have a fully redesigned and modernised factory, and are very proud of what we have achieved. We are ready for the future, to supply more machines at shorter delivery times and lower costs.”

Finance & Funding

For more information on companies in this article

Related Content

  • Innovation for slipforming
    September 3, 2024
    Power Curbers is expanding its range if slipformer options
    Read More
  • Volvo CE’s Carl Slotte explains the division’s current line-up
    October 11, 2017
    Next year Volvo CE will be testing electric, hybrid and autonomous vehicles in a quarry. Carl Slotte, head of sales for EMEA, says no company by itself will win market share. David Arminas reports from Germany The driver of the charter bus stood outside the hotel in Trier, Germany, and waved at a passing local city bus. “I know the driver,” he told one of the assembled journalists waiting for the group’s ride to the nearby Volvo CE plant. “He is retired but they brought him back because young people th
    Read More
  • Hitachi’s excavator digs deep in the Swiss Jura
    May 1, 2015
    A new Hitachi ZX870LCR-5 owned by Swiss company Lachat is making a significant impact on the production process at the Asuel La Malcôte quarry in the canton of Jura. The large Zaxis-5 excavator is excavating a mixture of marlstone and limestone materials in a much cleaner way than before, as well as helping to sanitise the relatively unstable site. Lachat, founded in 1948 and taken over by the Steiner Group in June 2013, has 42 employees working in quarrying, recycling and the production of aggregates
    Read More
  • Hitachi’s ZW180-5 delights the Dutch with additional performance
    March 9, 2015
    Materials handling has been made more efficient for Molenaar Zand en Grond, a Dutch materials yard, after introducing its first Hitachi ZW180-5 wheeled loader. Parent company, the road construction, drainage, sewage and groundworks contractor A. Molenaar, bought the Hitachi ZW180-5 in November for its materials yard subsidiary. The machine is now loading a steady stream of trucks and trailers at Molenaar Zand en Grond BV’s stockyard at Bergambacht, east of Rotterdam. The Hitachi ZW180-5 was delivered by the
    Read More

Highlighted Content