Sumitomo looks to its HA60C-11 paver for increased European sales

First published at bauma - April 10, 2019

Shi Weichao, Sumitomo’s Europe regional manager for road machinery sales, and the HA60C-11 paver

Sumitomo aims to make inroads into the European market and boost brand awareness with its new HA60C-11 paver, soon to start field trials with customers.

Sumitomo is a well known and respected brand of paving and excavator equipment in Japan, its home market. The company sells around 350 pavers a year, equating to around 70% of the market, said Shi Weichao, Sumitomo’s Europe regional manager for road machinery sales.

Europe is a very large market and dominated by well-known European manufacturers, making it highly competitive. Sumitomo wants to grow in Europe said Weichao: Poland and the UK are good markets

Operating weight of the prototype HA60C-11 is 15,000kg and transportation width is just under 2.5m, making it ideal for the European market. The machine is powered by a Yanmar 4-cylinder intercooled turbo engine with an output of around 110kW for the Stage 5 unit. The paving speed is 20m/min while travel speed is 3km/h.

The single-layer paver HA60C-11 comes with Sumitomo’s best-selling J-Paver 2360 screed, said Weichao. The paving width is variable from 2.3-6m without the need for any bolt ons. Updates to the screed have also made it more rugged and rigid.

Weichao said the HA60C-11, along with a wheeled version, will be available commercially by mid-2020. As part of Sumitomo’s strategy, the company is looking to expand its European dealer network. The company began by selling to a single, main European distributor but in 2017 it moved to dealing directly with appointed dealers in each European country.

Sumitomo’s strategy is to encourage its current client base to try the HA60C-11 in order to develop market confidence in Sumitomo pavers, said Weichao. The company has the patience to build up a solid client base, he noted, and to do this Sumitomo is looking long term for increased sales.

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