Yanmar to Build Hitachi's Compact Track Loaders in Minnesota: Inside the Landcros OEM Deal

Hitachi Construction Machinery has signed an OEM supply deal with Yanmar that will move production of its compact track loaders to Yanmar's plant in Grand Rapids, Minnesota. The machines will carry the Landcros name — Hitachi Construction Machinery Americas is rebranding as Landcros in 2027 — and sales are scheduled to begin in the fall of 2027.

The agreement is a notable piece of manufacturing news on its own, but the two companies also confirmed they are negotiating a second arrangement covering mini excavators. Under the proposed reciprocal OEM deal, Hitachi would supply compact excavators for distribution through Yanmar's North American dealer network. Hitachi previewed a Landcros-branded mini excavator in July, and four next-generation models — the ZX30U-7, ZX35U-7, ZX50U-7 and ZX60US-7, spanning 3 to 6 metric tons — are set for release in the first half of 2027.

Yanmar launched its own compact track loader line this year, built around Yanmar engines and ASV PosiTrack undercarriages, and the joint release credits the Grand Rapids facility's engineering and manufacturing strength as the basis for the new supply program. Both companies say they will keep their respective brands and sales channels distinct while exploring further cooperation.

The scale behind the deal is the North American compact segment itself. Hitachi Construction Machinery president Masafumi Senzaki noted that the region's CTL market exceeds 100,000 units of annual demand, making it the largest slice of the compact equipment market. With demand that deep, manufacturers are increasingly willing to share production capacity rather than build new plants for a single nameplate.

For equipment buyers and fleet managers, the practical takeaway is about documentation rather than machinery. A brand and a nameplate may change — Hitachi-branded compact machines will gradually sit alongside Landcros-badged ones in dealers' yards — but the model codes that identify the machine, and the engine and undercarriage suppliers behind it, remain the most reliable anchor when sourcing parts. Cross-supply deals like this one also tend to broaden the shared-component pool, which can make parts for these compact platforms easier to find through more than one channel.

Anyone buying used compact equipment internationally would do well to record the full model code, serial number and engine make for every machine in the fleet. When a nameplate changes or gets rebranded, those details are what keep the right parts arriving.

Source: Equipment World