The future, today Komatsu

Constant innovation keeps Komatsu Italia at the leading edge of construction equipment technology

the FutuRe today

Komatsu Italia Manufacturing S.p.A. is a leading designer and manufacturer of construction equipment for the European market. Its products include small and medium-sized hydraulic excavators, mini excavators, medium-sized wheeled hydraulic excavators, backhoe loaders and skid steer loaders.

The company is the Italian arm of Komatsu Ltd, the Japanese corporation, headquartered in Tokyo, that is a world leader in equipment for the mining and construction sectors. Komatsu’s interest in Italy goes back to its 1991 investment in the Italian company FAI, which became a wholly-owned company in the Komatsu Group in 1996. Today Komatsu Italia operates from a 95,000 square metre facility in Este, in the Veneto region of northern Italy and currently produces some 4,100 units a year. The company plays a key role in the operations of Komatsu Europe International n.v., which is headquartered at Vilvoode in Belgium.

Versatile and user-friendly

With operating weights from 1 to 5.3 tonnes Komatsu’s mini excavators are remarkably versatile. Compact, light, and very powerful they work anywhere, particularly in tight spaces.

Komatsu skid steer loaders feature operating loads ranging from 500 kg to 900 kg. They display an impressive digging force and lifting capacity and are perfectly suited for a large variety of jobs. A powerful and compact Komatsu engine ensures low fuel consumption and exhausts emissions.

Komatsu wheeled midi-excavators are the perfect compromise between the compactness and manoeuvrability of mini-excavators and the power of larger earthmoving machines.

With a long tradition of quality and experience in the worldwide industry of backhoe loaders, Komatsu aims to set new benchmarks for this market. Its range of two- and four-wheel steering machines offer optimisation of the operator’s work environment, state-of-the-art technical solutions, and a wide choice of optional equipment and configurations.

New products every year

In July 2020, Komatsu Europe launched the new WA800-8 wheel loader. Designed for maximum operating comfort, the WA800-8 comes with many interesting features, including a Modulation Clutch and Variable Traction Control, an Auto Kick Down and an RPM set. Combined

with Komatsu’s redesigned extra-large 11,5 m³ bucket and its optimised maximum fill factor, the WA800-8 offers superior efficiency.

Komatsu says that the all-new WA800-8 rewrites the rules for stability, giving the operator a safe and comfortable work environment. With a 115 tonnes operating weight, the WA800-8 allows for 20,700 kg rated load capacity in a standard boom configuration.

Another new product in 2020 is the PW158-11 wheeled excavator. Tipping the scales at an impressive 16 tonnes, the all new PW158-11 short-tail excavator offers all of the unrivalled versatility and innovation of the Komatsu PW-11 range - extraordinary comfort, intelligent safety features, exceptional ergonomics, superb productivity, factory-installed Quick Couplers, and the highest levels of standard specifications ever seen in an excavator. It also delivers great lifting capacity in a highly compact package. Designed and developed in Europe, the PW158-11 taps into 100 years of Komatsu development and manufacturing know-how to deliver a product built exclusively for European customers.

Komatsu’s new 112 tonnes D475A-8 crawler dozer was also launched this year. Its powerful and economical Komatsu engine integrates the latest emission control technologies and fuel-saving features. Increased engine power provides faster reverse climbing speed, lower cycle times and a drastic increase in productivity.

Gregory Peeters, Product Manager at Komatsu Europe, says: “The new D475A-8 was designed with the operator in mind, to easily enable the full use of the increased engine power and to safely and comfortably improve productivity. It’s a safe, fast and powerful addition to any customer’s fleet”.

Standard features can be activated by the operator for comfortable operations and high productivity. The variable giant ripper is ideal for digging through tough material. The Auto Downshift function, reverse slow mode or Track shoe slip control mode are all easily available and can be quickly cancelled. The K-Bogie undercarriage system increases the length of track on ground to improve machine stability and traction.

The latest KOMTRAX and KOMTRAX Plus telematics, and the Komatsu Care maintenance programme offer top fleet management and support, protect the D475A-8 against misuse and guarantee maximum efficiency and uptime.

A tradition of innovation

Constant innovation is at the heart of all Komatsu’s product development programmes. Back in 2013, the company created a revolution in the industry with the launch of its first D61EXi/PXi-23 “Intelligent Machine Control” dozer. This signalled a dramatic change in traditional construction concepts - and significantly improved efficiency across the entire construction site.

Komatsu’s proven intelligent Machine Control concept has now penetrated markets worldwide. Thousands of operators and owners enjoy the safety and precision of Komatsu’s exclusive technology, factory fitted on both dozers and excavators, and the outstanding improvement in productivity it brings to the jobsite.

Komatsu is also pioneering advances in hybrid technology for construction machinery. Its unique hybrid system harnesses free kinetic energy, converts it to electricity for a powerful and quiet performance and helps to reduce the carbon footprint and fuel consumption by up to 40 per cent.

Komatsu Hybrid excavators feature a unique 100 per cent electric swing system. All the hydraulic power is freed up for the boom, arm, and bucket movements, with cycle times and productivity greatly improved. The electric swing motor/generator captures and regenerates energy as the upper structure slows down and converts it into electric energy. The captured energy is stored in the ultra-capacitor and used by the generator/motor to assist the engine when it needs to accelerate.