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Caterpillar is taking a long term view in China, seeing the country as having immense potential for construction. The company has a large presence at bauma China, with its display focussing on equipment crucial to the Chinese market and this reflects its long experience in the country, having commenced operations in the early 1970s. Speaking at the firm’s bauma China press conference, Ed Rapp, Caterpillar Group President Construction Industry said, “Our display is about our long term position in China. Ther

Built to cater for hauling needs and with three body options, Cat is showcasing its 772G rigid-frame truck at bauma China 2012. The productive, durable and reliable machine comes with a fuel-efficient, yet powerful C18 diesel engine and has multi-mode operation to tailor performance to the duty cycle. The centrally mounted cab is said to offer high levels of operator comfort compared to rival models, with mirrors providing good rear and side views. Manufactured in India this truck is designed to cope with c

Increased manufacturing capacity has been a key focus for XCMG in recent years, with the firm having committed to upgrading its production facilities. XCMG has invested heavily in new manufacturing capacity for its ranges of cranes and wheeled loaders and both the Heavy Machinery and Wheeled Loader divisions now have new factories. The heavy crane facility produces machines in the 90tonne category and above and all production moved to the new plant in 2012 as the old factory was too small. The new facility

Zoomlion has come a long way in 20 years, from small beginnings to becoming a major equipment manufacturer on the international stage. Tower cranes and truck cranes in particular make up the bulk of the firm’s operations and it is a leading producer in this field. Zoomlion makes the world’s largest crawler crane, which has a maximum lift capacity of 3,200tonnes and features a novel design with twin chassis and twin booms. However, Zoomlion is also a major player in the market for concrete pumps both with it

LiuGong is one of China’s longest established construction equipment firms – Mike Woof reports Based in Liuzhou, LiuGong is one of China’s longest established construction equipment manufacturers and the company dates back to the 1950s. This large and successful firm has grown both organically and by acquisition and its most recent strategic purchase has been for the Polish HSW company making the Dressta range of bulldozers. This plant forms a key part of LiuGong’s international growth plans and will be use

Hill & Smith Holdings PLC, the international group with leading positions in the supply of infrastructure products and galvanising services to global markets, said performance of the group between July 1 and November 14, 2012, had been “robust”. Net debt as at 31 October 2012 was £93.3m, compared with £89.1m as reported at the half year. The increase, revealed in Hill and Smith’s Interim Management Statement, was said by the Group to principally reflect its investment in a new galvanising plant in the USA,

The Indian government and the state government of Assam signed an agreement with the World Bank for a US$320 million loan for the Assam State Roads Project. According to a statement, the project will be carried out over a period of six years and it will comprise three components: road improvement; road safety management; and road sector modernisation and performance. The statement also said that the project aimed to improve road connectivity in Assam and support its Public Works Road Department to effective

India’s massive highway expansion programme is continuing, boosting the country’s construction industry. The National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) awarded contracts for some 4,375km of roads in the first nine months of 2012, with the work worth an estimated total of some US$70 billion. With this strong construction sector, prospects are also good for the upcoming bC India construction equipment exhibition in February 2013 in Mumbai. This news is a welcome change following a slowing of new Indian road p

In India a major bridge building programme is being planned by the authorities. The country’s Border Roads Organisation (BRO) intends to erect over 35,000m of bridges within the next five years. The road network in India at present features around 100,000 bridges, of which some 15,000 bridges are on National Highways. India's Road Transport and Highways Ministry is keen to use pre-fabricated bridges where possible, so as to reduce costs and speed erection. These may well be used in areas of the country feat

One leading Weigh in Motion technology manufacturer is helping governments in developing countries reduce excessive road damage, while several others have seen their latest WIM systems recently used on the highways of Eastern Europe. Guy Woodford reports Recent Central Weighing WIM installations in Bangladesh are helping its national government reduce the financial burden of excessive road damage, while also protecting many bridges that are vital to transport and trade. The need for such installations was e

Best known as an equipment maker, JCB has been steadily building its profile in the engine market – Mike Woof reports JCB has now produced over 200,000 engines, despite having entered this market as recently as 2004, while the company is also launching an all-new diesel. The company has built over 17,000 engines at its JCB Power Systems plant, and in excess of 30,000 atits factory in India where production started as recently as April 2011. Alan Tolley, director engine programmes said that, “…2004 was a tur

The latest in the series of major road safety conferences hosted by IRF’s India Chapter will take place in New Delhi from 1-2 November 2012, with the focus on Urban and Rural Roads Each day, thousands of people are injured or killed on roads around the world. According to the World Bank, “the social and economic losses from road deaths and injuries in low and middle-income countries are projected to be on a catastrophic scale. . .” Globally, road injuries and deaths are due to a number of factors. This unde

In this second of a two-part interview, Rohit Baluja introduces the work of the Delhi-based Institute of Road Traffic Education that he established in 1991 by way of practical response to the particular challenges of road safety in a developing world context Despite the alarming trends outlined in the first part of this article (World Highways: Vol.21, Issue No.6), Rohit Baluja remains optimistic that, if only the proper foundations of traffic management systems can be established, there is no reason why dr

The global economy is still suffering, and many believe investment in road and other infrastructure is the key to its revival Over the past 14 years in Italy, only 187km of new highways have been made, but, at the same time, the amount of vehicles using the country’s roads has grown by nearly 10 million. It is in this context of financial concern and growing burden on existing road infrastructure that the sixth edition of ASPHALTICA, the only European event exclusively dedicated to the world of asphalt, bit

The construction equipment market has been hit hard in Europe and further afield, with economic uncertainty slowing orders. But there is light on the horizon. A range of key industry speakers made presentations at the recent Committee for European Construction Equipment (CECE) congress in Berlin, outlining prospects for the next few years in Europe as well as around the world.

The IRF is currently working on a series of programmes intended to help boost road safety and reduce the casualty rate on the world’s road network. On November 1st-2nd the IRF is organising a conference in India focussing on road safety in urban and rural roads. This follows immediately after the IRF’s road safety group of experts meeting on October 31st in Delhi. Starting from the 2nd December, the IRF is also planning a Safer Roads by Design event in Miami in the US. This last, the Road Safety Across Six

JCB intends to further invest in its manufacturing operations in India. The company plans to spend US$99 million (£62 million) on developing a new factory on a 20.83ha site in the city of Jaipur. The signing of the land purchase agreement in Rajasthan marks the beginning of a new expansion phase for JCB India, reinforcing its strong position in the Indian market.

The bauma 2013 construction equipment exhibition in Munich is set to be the largest event in the show’s history. Organised by Messe München, this will be the 30th bauma exhibition in Munich and will run from the 15th-21st April 2013, with the show covering some 570,000m2 and attracting 3,300 exhibitors. Some 450,000 visitors are expected to attend and Dr Wolf-Dietrich Müller, chief representative and senior executive officers of capital goods shows for the Messe München said, “We are able to increase our ca

MIRA in central England has begun a huge redevelopment of its 830 acre site that will see the renowned centre for transport technologies expand its capabilities while, at the same time, create the largest transport research and development technology park in Europe. Guy Woodford reports This is all very impressive,” said Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg in April 2011 on hearing a presentation of MIRA’s ambitious expansion plans. As succinct appraisals go, Clegg’s view of MIRA’s plans to develop its brand of

Wirtgen Group expects to achieve record net sales of €1.8 billion in 2012, according to joint company president Jürgen Wirtgen. The performance forecast for the German road building and quarrying equipment manufacturer – a slight rise on 2011 net sales of €1.76 billion – was revealed as Jürgen and brother and co-Wirtgen Group president, Stefan Wirtgen, told a press conference at the recent Wirtgen Mineral Technology Days event about the company’s sales push in emerging markets.