E. Moses, Vice President(Sales & Marketing) - KOBELCO Construction Equipment India

KOBELCO has always been at the forefront of technology and innovation and is credited for improving the operating efficiency, reliability and productivity of its machines by incorporating tech-rich features.

Our machines have clocked over 40,000 hours.
KOBELCO excavators are designed for delivering high levels of productivity through a combination of best-in-class fuel savings and faster operating cycles for more output. This helps in minimizing operating costs. A reliable and prudent selection of components ensures long service and economic life of the machine, thereby reducing the owning cost per hour. Some of our machines have performed admirably for years clocking over 40,000 hours – the highest on record is over 50,000 hours!

In India, KOBELCO has been offering select models of Hydraulic Excavators to cater to the more popular segments. However, this is changing and, already, the Mini Excavators as well as the Mining Excavators are here, and more segments may be covered in the future. We have adopted a ‘Solution Provider’ approach for our customers to take care of their specific requirements by offering a wide range of Special Attachments, sourced from reliable partners.

Owning & operating cost and availability of equipment is what buyers look for.
Practical experiences and analysis of performance data from the work sites have pushed these important factors to the top of their priorities while evaluating their equipment choices. A large number of buyers still tend to go by the landed cost and the freebies to make their choice.

Our latest Generation 10 series offers unique features. For example, the Auto-Idle-Stop saves maximum fuel by switching off the machine if it is kept idle for over 60 seconds. The hydraulic filter clog indicator prevents filter by-pass, which can lead to possible damage to hydraulic components. High-altitude settings enable auto adjustments if the machine is moved to high altitude locations, for trouble-free operations.

KOBELCO has always set high standards for customer support so that the customer can get maximum machine availability during its service life and adequate support in the vicinity of the machine location. Currently, there are over 140 touchpoints for parts and service support. The company also provides customized support arrangements for the maintenance and repair of excavator fleets.


KOBELCO has always believed that technologies like IoT, Big Data, Machine Learning and AI bring value to the customer.
KOBELCO, being a leader in technology, has always believed in developing and adopting innovative technologies to maximize the value for its customers. Technologies such as IoT, Big Data, Machine Learning and AI are enabling us to monitor machine performance on key factors, improve safety, operating efficiencies, and productivity. Efforts are on to program the machines for carrying out certain common/repetitive operations for improving machine utilization and precise finish at the first instance.

KOBELCO was the first to introduced a Hybrid Excavator in 2005.
Trends in the CE industry the world over indicate demand for equipment that are more fuel-efficient, environment-friendly, lighter and hybrid in nature, and KOBELCO is well aligned with these market trends and has been constantly working on these priorities. Our excavators are well-known for their best-in-class fuel economy and their low carbon footprint. As for hybrids, KOBELCO was probably the first to display a Hybrid Excavator at the 2005 Intermat exhibition as far back as 2005. Our in-house R & D facility is working to keep us ahead of the competition.

Most financing organizations are ready to finance KOBELCO.
Most financing organizations, Banks as well as NBFCs, are ready to finance KOBELCO excavators mainly due to the high productivity, reliable performance with high machine availability, exemplary field support and long service life, all of which combine to give a much better RoI than others. Leasing is gradually becoming popular with buyers who are not looking at building their books.

The CE market is likely to pick up pace by the turn of the current financial year.
After an encouraging phase from 2015-16 to 2018-19, the market seems to have dipped considerably over the two quarters. The immediate prospect is not too encouraging though some improvement is expected on the back of steps taken by the Government to revive the economy. We would be happy to see a growing market by the turn of the current financial.