Kobelco Construction Machinery (KCM) recently held a ceremony at its Itsukaichi factory in Hiroshima, Japan, to celebrate the production of the 300,000th excavator at the facility.

In April 1983, Kobe Steel acquired the shares of Yutani Heavy Industries and established a hydraulic excavator production site in Hiroshima. Later, through a merger, the development of a unified model was carried out combining the technologies of the two companies, leading to the development of the first machine in the SK series.

The SK series has been attached to the names of many models ever since. According to KCM, the 300,000 units achieved is an accumulated number of construction machines manufactured at the former Gion factory, the Numata factory, as well as the Itsukaichi factory launched in 2012, counting from the first SK model.

“We are now manufacturing them at the Itsukaichi factory with a production capacity of 10,500 units a year, and the accumulated production of 300,000 units was achieved in September 2021,” said KCM. With a site area of approximately 100,000 sq m and building area of about 35,000 sq m, the Itsukaichi factory manufactures 7- to 85-t-class hydraulic excavators as well as environmental and recycling machinery.

“The achievement of the accumulated production of 300,000 units is the result of our creation of an array of products that satisfy the needs of the times, while overcoming challenges and continuing to innovate. Our mission now is to pass on our corporate philosophy of ‘user hands-on approach’, which has been driving our business, to the next generation,” said Yoshinori Onoe, president and CEO of KCM.

The company concluded that “we would not be able to achieve the milestone if it was not for the support of our customers as well as everyone who is involved with us. With a sense of gratitude toward everyone, we will continue to provide high-quality products to customers around the world.”