Japanese construction equipment manufacturer Yanmar Construction Equipment and  its GCC distributor M H Al Mahroos  – alongside  its GCC dealers – will launch Yanmar’s new, highly-versatile, 10-tonne-capacity medium-sized excavator at the Big 5 show.

The companies will also highlight the excellent response that the Yanmar concept of compact excavators has received from the Gulf region, a year after its introduction at Big 5 2007.
The new 10-tonne excavator that will be launched at this year’s show has many unique features including a ‘Zero Tail’ swing, three progressive pump systems, among others, says the company. It can also be substituted for a big 20 tonne-plus-capacity  excavators in medium-sized jobs.
Last year, Yanmar and Al Mahroos had introduced the Yanmar compact range of highly versatile excavators with capacities ranging from 0.8 to 5 tonnes. Equipped with a flexible track system of rubber and steel, these excavators can operate on different surfaces, in construction applications ranging from excavation to demolition and levelling.
Since Yanmar introduced the first compact excavator to the market in 1971, it has remained at the forefront of the industry, says Youichi Sugino, manager of the export department at Yanmar Construction Equipment Company.
He continues: “The durability, reliability, versatility, innovation and environment-friendly and greater cost-effective operation of these excavators comes from more fuel-efficient engines coupled with design-matched hydraulics which are highly recognised worldwide.”
Listing the benefits of the Yanmar excavators, especially when it comes to replacing labour, Hasan AlMahroos, managing director of M H Al Mahroos, says: “The excavators allow increased mobility in narrow places and different surfaces for various applications including piping (for water, sewage, electricity networks), and cabling. With these features, the machines can take over operations that would generally be performed by manual labour, thus saving time and money. Deploying these machines, work is more accurate in excavation and demolition and therefore, jobs are completed much faster.”
But can backhoe loaders be used to perform some of these tasks?
 “Yanmar excavators are far more efficient and time-saving than the backhoe loaders,” Sugino asserts. “For instance, the arm of the backhoe loader is not as flexible, which gives Yanmar excavators an advantage as its Zero Tail swing feature can rotate the cabin by 360 degrees and the boom by 160 degrees without damaging the surroundings. Also, the excavators can be safely and easily manoeuvred in narrow passages as they move on tracks and not on wheels. Yanmar excavator is more cost effective and economical than backhoe loaders.”
Compact excavators, according to him, have been progressively replacing the backhoe in Japan and the West, he points out.
“The excavation job has been revolutionised with Yanmar’s innovative concept and patented technology of compact excavators in markets such as Japan, US, Europe and other major developed countries. Contractors prefer using compact excavators instead of backhoes due to their various features and valuable performance. This increasing trend of replacing the backhoes has been accepted in the Gulf market as the region understands the features and benefits. At the Big5 show, we will highlight  these advantages. A trial use and demonstration of the Yanmar excavator in action itself can easily reveal the difference between the Yanmar excavator and the backhoe,” he says.
As a leader in compact excavators, Yanmar has always set the trend that others have followed. “Thanks to its continual research and development efforts, which have produced some striking innovations, for instance the Zero Tail swing feature, Yanmar is a clear leader in this segment with no other competitor of its calibre in sight. Yanmar is also ahead of the competition as it manufactures the excavators using its own engine, hydraulic system and patented technology whereas others have to depend on outsourced technology,” he points out.
Al Mahroos emphasises on the need for the construction industry to turn to more efficient technology. He comments: “The rapid economic growth in the Gulf region has created an acute labour shortage and inflated labour costs in the construction field.  The biggest challenge facing contractors today is to meet the project deadlines with the available labour force and budgeted resources. The time has come for a change, to save this time, labour and money with more efficient work.
“Al Mahroos, Yanmar’s distributor for the Gulf market, will remain committed to serve the industry through its network around the GCC, ensuring the high level of service and products that Yanmar is known for,” he adds.
Yanmar excavators can be found through the GCC network of dealers including Ahmed Ramadhan Juma in the UAE, Sultan Al Khalaf  in Kuwait, and M H Al Mahroos in Bahrain, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Oman.