In the trade and financial articles about major worldwide heavy equipment which I ve surveyed, the lists of manufacturers are similar but not unified. Although their lists are not quite the same, for the purpose of simply identifying who the major players are, as opposed to ranking them in order by sales, these various journals are adequate references.  

From this alphabetical list of fifteen manufacturers, you will surely recognize some, if not most, of them.  

Caterpillar,

CNH Industrial,

Deere & Company,

Doosan (now known as HD Hyundai Infracore Co),

Hitachi Construction Machinery,

Komatsu Ltd,

Kubota Corporation,

Liebherr Group,

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries,

Sany Heavy Industries,

SDLG (Shandong Lingong Construction Machinery Co., Ltd),

Volvo Construction Equipment,

XCMG (Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group),

Zoomlion Earthmoving Machinery Co.  

Which ones you know well and which ones you don t may depend on several factors, such as where you live and how closely you follow the construction industry.  

Recognizing a manufacturer s name is just a starting point. Knowing what types of construction machines these companies manufacture is a quite different matter. If, for example, you are in the market for a new or used articulated dump truck for a big earthmoving job, can you identify which of the above manufactures has such a dump truck in its line of products? After some online research, if there are several manufacturers that have a dump truck with suitable specifications for the job, which one would you be likely to purchase?

What factors would influence your choice? How important is it for the manufacture of the machine to have a dealership / parts & service center within a reasonable distance to perform scheduled maintenance or, if necessary, repairs that are beyond your in-house mechanics skill / experience level? Then, of course, there is always the "brand loyalty" factor. If your working fleet or rental fleet is composed exclusively, or nearly so, of machines from one manufacturer, is it even likely that you are going to explore other options?  

In future installments, I will present some basic information about the manufacturers listed above. Hopefully, such information will give you a little insight into both the depth and breadth of the construction machinery industry.