A warm Friday morning welcomed the AEM Manufacturing Express to Katy, Texas, a suburb of the Houston metropolitan area and the headquarters of LiuGong North America, a construction equipment company with an ambitious vision.
As we’ve seen throughout the Manufacturing Express’s tour, the equipment manufacturing industry is made of people and manufacturers pushing the boundaries of innovation to do things no one else has done before. Whether that’s through inventing new technologies that solve incredibly unique problems, creating new standards for operator safety, or building more efficient engines that allow customers to get more done, equipment manufacturers are constantly changing the way we build, power and feed the world.
What makes LiuGong different is its relentless commitment to leading the way in electrification of construction machinery. At CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2023, LiuGong announced that within 5 years, it would have an electric version of every piece of equipment it has available for customers to purchase. Two years later, the company is still on track to deliver on that promise.
According to Andrew Ryan, LiuGong North America President, this focus is about more than just reducing carbon emissions. “Honestly, it’s about delivering value for our customers,” Ryan said. “We’ll help you meet your ESG goals without sacrificing the economics.”
Take one of their 18-wheel loaders for example: A typical machine of that size and class usually costs about $25 to $30 an hour in diesel fuel costs. One of LiuGong’s electric loaders costs closer to $2 an hour in electricity to operate. These dramatic reductions in owning and operating costs mean that those who are doing the hard work to build our communities are able to get more done for less.
LiuGong was founded in 1958 and gradually built a reputation for itself across Asia as a high-quality construction equipment manufacturer before starting North American operations in 2008. The company attributes its success to a series of successful partnerships with companies such as Caterpillar, Cummins, and others.
Fast forward to today, LiuGong has become a leader in the equipment manufacturing industry. Its team takes enormous pride in the company’s market leadership position despite its smaller scale compared to their competitors. But the reason LiuGong has risen to the top is because it is not afraid to do things differently. “Customers like working with a smaller scale business that’s able to adapt to their needs,” said Ryan.
By delivering top-of-the-line construction equipment that offers high performance with low downtime, LiuGong has been able to help customers across the country build communities at a lower cost – all while allowing them to better reach sustainability goals. Companies like LiuGong think big to allow us to realize what is actually possible. LiuGong may be one of the first companies to fully embrace a fully electric product line, but it surely won’t be the last.
