Doosan Bobcat

Doosan Bobcat to build a new plant in Mexico to meet the increasing demand in the North American market

Doosan Bobcat is building a new plant in Mexico to respond to the continuous demand for construction equipment products in the North American market. This marks the first time the Doosan Group is establishing a production facility in Mexico.


Doosan Bobcat announced on June 14 that it held a groundbreaking ceremony for a compact loader production plant in Salinas Victoria near Monterrey, Mexico. The ceremony at the site of the new plant in the Interpuerto Monterrey Industrial Park in Nuevo Leon, Mexico, was attended by around 200  individuals, including Doosan Group executives such as Park Gee-won, Vice Chairman of Doosan Group; Scott Park, CEO and Vice Chairman of Doosan Bobcat; Mike Ballweber, President of Doosan Bobcat North America, as well as Samuel Garcia, Governor of Nuevo Leon, representatives from partner companies, and media.


Doosan Bobcat plans to invest approximately 400 billion won ($300 million USD) to build a 65,000-square-meter factory, set to open in 2026. The plant will produce Doosan Bobcat's 'M-Series' compact loaders for supply to the North American market.


Park Gee-won, Vice Chairman of Doosan Group, stated, "Doosan Bobcat has led the global construction equipment market with bold investments and innovation." He added, "The new plant in Mexico will support Doosan Bobcat's continuous growth by responding to the increasing demand for Doosan Bobcat products, including its largest market, North America."


Over the past five years, Doosan Bobcat has doubled in revenue, leading to an increase in product demand. The decision to establish a new plant in Mexico was made to meet the growing demand for construction equipment in the North American market.


Mexico offers the benefits of the US-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), a strong manufacturing infrastructure, and a skilled workforce, making it an ideal global production hub. Considering accessibility to the North American market, Doosan Bobcat selected Salinas Victoria near Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, known as the "industrial capital of Mexico," as the location for its new plant.


Once operational, the production capacity of Doosan Bobcat's loaders in the North American market is expected to increase by about 20% with the new plant in Mexico. Doosan Bobcat's global production hub will expand to include eight countries, including existing locations in Korea, USA, Czech Republic, France, Germany, India, and China.

2024-06-14

Doosan Bobcat Determines to Acquire Hydraulic Component Manufacturer Mottrol

Doosan Bobcat is seeking to acquire Mottrol, a hydraulic component manufacturer based in South Korea.


Doosan Bobcat announced on June 12 that it decided to acquire 100% Mottrol’s shares for 246 billion KRW.


Founded in 1974, Mottrol is the country’s first company to enter the hydraulics industry. Mottrol produces travel and swing motors, pumps, main control valves and other hydraulic components for construction equipment. In response to equipment electrification, Mottrol has also been developing “E-Drive,” a technology for inverters, and swing and travel devices that can electrically drive and control machines.


Scott Park, CEO and Vice Chairman of Doosan Bobcat said, “Mottrol’s hydraulic and precision control technologies represent significant opportunities to support Doosan Bobcat’s growth strategy, as we further diversify our company portfolio through vertical integration.” He added, “Doosan Bobcat and Mottrol will create synergies while also seeking to expand Mottrol’s business by extending external volumes.”


The transaction is expected to close in September 2024, subject to the Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC)’s customary closing conditions.

2024-06-12

Doosan Bobcat Expands Chennai Factory in India... Taking the Leap to Become a 'Global Manufacturing Hub'

On June 5th, Doosan Bobcat announced that it had expanded facilities in the Chennai factory to support production of a mini excavator and held an inauguration ceremony on the 4th (local time).


The inauguration ceremony brought together esteemed global executives, including Doosan Bobcat CEO and vice chairman Scott Park and Hyungwon Park, president of Doosan Bobcat Asia, Latin America, and Oceania.


After approximately nine months of construction, Doosan Bobcat completed the expansion of a mini excavator production facility spanning 11,300 square meters within the existing Chennai factory site.


Mass production of mini excavators is scheduled to start next year after installation and stabilization of the production line. Doosan Bobcat India(DBIN) aims to sell 8,900 units of equipment annually by 2028, including existing products such as the backhoe loader and skid-steer loader, the newly added mini excavators and portable power products manufactured at the Bengaluru factory. This goal represents a nearly twofold increase in sales volume compared to the previous year for DBIN.


Doosan Bobcat inaugurated the Chennai factory in 2019 and has been producing backhoe loaders. The Chennai factory is the sole global production base for Doosan Bobcat's backhoe loaders, and it has been expanding its product lineup by manufacturing the smallest skid-steer loader 'S70' since last year, significantly increasing its export volume. As a result, DBIN has shown a compound average annual growth rate of 22% in sales revenue (in Indian Rupees) over the past five years.


Scott Park stated, "India is a key region that will propel Doosan Bobcat’s future growth, and the Chennai factory will leap to become a ‘global manufacturing hub’ based on the quality that meets global standards.”

2024-06-05

Doosan Bobcat expands agreement with HD Hyundai Infracore to extend product portfolio

On May 23rd, Doosan Bobcat and HD Hyundai Infracore signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to expand their existing strategic agreement in support of portfolio expansion. Doosan Bobcat CEO and Vice Chairman Scott Park and HD Hyundai Infracore CEO and President Cho Young-cheul attended the signing ceremony at the DoubleTree by Hilton Seoul Pangyo Hotel.


Through the MOU, the companies will explore product portfolio growth opportunities through complementary markets. Starting from North America, Doosan Bobcat will receive select models of heavy construction equipment from HD Hyundai Infracore and sell it under the ‘Bobcat’ brand, while HD Hyundai Infracore will be provided with Doosan Bobcat’s select equipment. This partnership positions the Bobcat brand to offer an even broader range of products and solutions to empower dealers and customers to accomplish more.


This agreement is part of Doosan Bobcat’s portfolio expansion strategy. Doosan Bobcat, a renowned leader in compact equipment, has continued diversifying its business in various fields, including agricultural and landscaping equipment, material handling, and industrial air compressors. Through new product launches and acquisitions over the past five years, it has successfully introduced more types of products than it had in the previous 60 years.


“We are pleased to strengthen our partnership with HD Hyundai Infracore further,” said Scott Park, adding, “This strategic move emphasizes our commitment to diversification and expanding the Doosan Bobcat brand to more product offerings and solutions across industries and in key equipment categories.”

2024-05-23

Doosan Bobcat’s Credit Rating Upgraded to BB+ Stable by S&P Global Ratings

Doosan Bobcat announced on April 30 that its credit rating from the global rating agency S&P has been upgraded from BB Stable to BB+ Stable. Rating agencies typically adjust the credit rating outlook first and then observe the company before changing the rating. Therefore, it is unusual for the rating to be upgraded directly without altering the outlook from 'Stable' to 'Positive.'


S&P noted Doosan Bobcat's robust performance and analyzed, "Despite operational slowdown and investment increase, Doosan Bobcat will maintain solid financial metrics for the next two years." Doosan Bobcat marked its record-high performance last year with sales revenue of USD 7.5 billion, operating profit of USD 1.1 billion, and an operating profit margin of 14.2%.


Due to its strong operating performance, Doosan Bobcat has steadily reduced its net debt. The net debt, which was close to USD 870 million at the end of 2017, has gradually decreased, and it successfully transitioned to a net cash position, surpassing borrowings for the first time at the end of the third quarter of 2023. As of the end of the first quarter of this year, net debt stands at minus USD 357 million, continuing the net cast trend.


The company official stated, "Another global credit rating agency, Moody's, also upgraded Doosan Bobcat's credit rating from Ba3 Positive to Ba2 Stable earlier this year," and added, "With consecutive credit rating upgrades, Doosan Bobcat expects to save interest cost of approximately USD 9.2 million over the next five years."

2024-04-30