Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe)
We were delighted when Swedish contractor Bäckströms accepted our invitation, along with our authorised dealer, Delvator, to participate in the first leg of our “Powering the Future” tour earlier this year.
Building a better Stockholm
The company’s slogan, “We’re building a better Stockholm”, sums up Bäckströms’ environmentally friendly approach. This includes the supply of construction machinery and materials, as well as the removal of materials, recycling and transportation.
They agreed to try out three electric excavators, ideal for a project being carried out on behalf of energy provider Stockholm Exergi. The ZE135 developed by KTEG (a joint venture between Hitachi Construction Machinery and German dealer Kiesel) helped to install a 500m stretch of cooling pipes in February and March this year.
Three main reasons…
“We were incredibly happy and grateful when we were asked by Delvator if we were interested in testing the Hitachi electric machines,” says Bäckströms CEO Jerry Magnusson. “There are three main reasons why we agreed to cooperate so quickly.
“Firstly, the City of Stockholm will implement a low emission zone in part of the city centre – where many of our machines work – at the end of this year. An expansion of this area is also being investigated in 2024 and decided in the first half of 2025.
“The second reason is that we aim to stay ahead of our customers' requirements and satisfy them before they ask for a different solution. And finally, our group has set sustainable goals and indicated how these will be met – and the test is an important part of this programme.”
Positive impressions and future collaboration
While Bäckströms is not an existing Hitachi customer, Jerry and his team have been impressed with Delvator and Hitachi throughout the project. They have also received “excellent support” and met with Hitachi representatives from Europe and Japan. As Jerry concludes, “We are starting to feel confident that the overall operation could work for us in terms of future collaboration.
“We have always liked Hitachi as a brand. Now that we’ve seen how determined Hitachi has been to make things happen – with support that works from a dealer we know and feel we can work with – it is starting to tick all the boxes!”
