MARKET REPORT COMPACT PLANT
“Stable and sustainable”
While some global markets are slowing down, the UK compact plant market is still proving resilient.
2015 has been another strong year for compact plant suppliers serving the UK market, having built on progress made in the previous 12 months. Mini excavator manufacturers generally estimate that total sales of machines up to 8 tonnes will have reached 15,000 by the end of the year, compared to approximately 14,000 in 2014. With demand having peaked in 2007 with sales of 17,000 units, before the global financial crisis, the last two years have seen welcome growth.
“The upward trend has certainly continued, although the market has been unpredictable,” said Dave Roberts, MD of Kubota (UK). “We thought the last quarter of 2014 would be quiet, but sales went like a train, followed by six months of steady sales growth until the usual summer slowdown. However, we did not see the normal bounce-back from September. Nevertheless, we have had a great year as hirers and end users replace and expand their fleets. Sales have been steady across all weight classes.”
David Munns, Sales and Marketing Director for Volvo Construction Equipment told EHN, “The market has been buoyant, with approximately 8,000 machines sold in the first six months. Sales of one tonne and two tonne models still represent the majority of sales, at around 40%, and orders from hirers have continued to pick up strongly. With some other parts of Europe not seeing the same levels of growth as we are in the UK, we should have good availability of equipment for this country if demand in early 2016 is as strong as it was at the start of this year.”
Minis from 1-2 tonnes still account for the largest proportion of sales.
Tomonori Tamaru, MD of Takeuchi Mfg UK, highlights several growth factors. “Increased house building activity is leading to strong demand for 5 tonne and 6 tonne machines, particularly in urban areas where most of this work is taking place. Contractors working for utilities are using machines for a variety of projects, and some companies that sold their own fleets during the downturn have not returned to buy again, but are continuing to hire instead. The same is true for some equipment being used by owner/operators, and tool and plant hire still represents the strongest market for Takeuchi.”
Sales of mini excavators are driving overall growth in the UK market, according to JCB’s UK and Ireland Sales Director, Dan Thompstone. “The rate of growth has slowed a little, but remains well into double digits. This is due to strong investment and re-fleeting by national hire companies, but also to strong underlying demand from core users such as house builders and general construction contractors. As the range of sizes of mini excavators continues to grow, they have become the tool of choice for many applications, with strong utilisation. Hirers are also more and more looking to attachments to increase returns and drive their differentiation strategies.”
Paul Clarke, MD of Hanix Europe, reports satisfactory sales of models weighing in at 0.9 tonnes, 1.7 tonnes and 5.4 tonnes. “There is more confidence now and more work is being done. From the beginning of September, the market was quieter, and some people who thought we were going to have a cold, wet autumn delayed projects, but the weather remained mild and we saw a surprising pick-up in demand in October as new jobs started.”
Kubota reports steady sales across all mini excavator weight classes. 51
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