Plant for parts

Komatsu has revealed plans to set up a new facility in China which will manufacture undercarriage components for construction equipment. The new subsidiary, Komatsu Undercarriage Shandon Corp., will produce crawlers for hydraulic excavators and other construction equipment in Jining, Shandong.

In a statement from the company Komatsu said it is expecting to obtain official approval of this new development by November this year, and plans to start production in August 2008.

The statement said with respect to links and other undercarriage components for construction equipment, Komatsu has conventionally engaged in concentrated production in Japan and Indonesia and supplied them to other Komatsu Group companies around the world.

“Against the backdrop of surging demand for construction equipment worldwide, our supply capacity has reached its top level," a spokesman for the company said.

Demand for hydraulic excavators in China climbed to 30000 units last year and demand is expected to continue rising sharply as the Chinese government moves ahead with infrastructure development and other construction projects around the country, the spokesman added.

In the statement it said with this new facility in China, Komatsu will be better positioned to secure a stable supply of hydraulic excavators. It added the company is working to improve the parts and service operations to reinforce its parts business foundation in China.