Capital Equipment News November 2016

The compact excavator market is about 130-140 units per year in South Africa, with model ranges varying in size and capacity.

Backhoe loaders and skid steers have always been the trusted ‘picks and shovels’ of the local construction industry, and continue to dig their ways onto sites. However, the compact excavator and the articulated loader are continuously digging for a sizeable share of the market as the move towards compact solutions on African sites continues to gain pace, writes Munesu Shoko . DYNAMITE COMES IN SMALL PACKAGES

models are by far the ‘bread and butter’ lines in the construction and plant hire industries,” says Brenton Kemp, managing director of CSE, the local dealer of CASE Construction. “The versatility of the TLB makes it a machine of choice on construction sites where applications call for digging and loading of material.” Kemp also believes skid steers are ver- satile machines which continue to flex their prowess on a range of applications. Howev- er, demand for the TLB and skid steer loader, compared to last year, has dropped signifi- cantly. “The total industry volume for both products has dropped by approximately 22% (12 months rolling), at the back of an accel- eration of regression in the last three months (-32% TLBs and -35,9% skid steers),” says Kemp. Francois Griesel, national sales manager at Wacker Neuson, shares the same senti- ment, saying the local equipment markets are down approximately 30% in 2016, and suppliers are feeling the pressure. Demand dominators For both the TLB and skid steer loader, Kemp says the construction and plant hire sectors dominate the demand. “There has also been an increase in the proportionate number of

T he ever-growing trend towards smaller construction equipment is at this point anchored by mature markets, where about 70% of total equipment sales are driven by compact ranges. In Africa, the opposite is true; 75-80% of machines sold are still heavy ranges. However, there is a gradual growth of smaller gear in Africa. The first big driver for compact gear is urbanisation, according to Franco Invernizzi, senior director for Africa and Middle East at CASE Construction. “As towns continue to grow, space is at a premium at many construction sites, hence the need for a compact machine,” he says. “The second driver is the change in application. Away

from mining and infrastructure where you need big-sized excavators, we see more jobs in applications such as landscaping, sewage, trenching and cabling. These sorts of applications are continuously growing and compact equipment becomes a big need. South Africa is already one step forward in this regard than its African peers. But, it is also encouraging to note that other African countries are, slowly but surely, following in this trend.” The local construction equipment industry generally agrees that the backhoe loader, better known as the trailer loader backhoe (TLB), and the skid steer, have for years become the trusted “picks and shovels” of the industry, accounting for a sizeable chunk of the total equipment sales. “These

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS NOVEMBER 2016 20