Video: The Best of bauma 2025. Europe’s Biggest Equipment Show Through a Compact Lens
We Went. We Filmed. We Found the Future of Compact Construction.
The Compact Equipment team recently returned from the world’s biggest construction tradeshow — bauma 2025 in Munich, Germany. Held every three years, bauma brought together more than 600,000 visitors and 3,600+ exhibitors from 57 countries. Over three packed days, we toured massive booths, filmed machine demos and interviewed compact equipment innovators from Caterpillar to Zquip. Our latest video recap above showcases the best booths, breakthrough tech and standout machines from the show. It’s also got a funky score.
Exploring the Latest in Compact Iron and Beyond
We started our coverage back in February at bauma’s Media Dialogue. There, we previewed next-gen machines and tech trends set to headline the April event. At the main show, we hit the ground running — cameras in hand — to capture compact equipment highlights across 200+ acres of exhibition space. Here are some of the highlights.
Liebherr Builds One of the Craziest Booths We’ve Ever Seen
The Liebherr exhibition booth at bauma 2025 was absolutely insane. It was among the largest temporary exhibition booths ever created and included all types of giant equipment + a three-story building. The exhibit covered more than 14,000 square meters, equivalent to over two football fields.
Caterpillar’s 100-Year Showcase
Caterpillar took over Hall B6 with a 9,000 m² booth celebrating its centennial. We filmed new compact track loaders and old crawler dozers. We filmed demos of Cat Command remote operation tech. Cat’s booth took up nearly an entire hall and was our vote for the best indoor booth. Take a look.
Bobcat and Wacker Neuson Entertained with the Best Shows
Bobcat and Wacker Neuson brought serious energy to their outdoor booths at bauma 2025. Both displays were packed with compact equipment — loaders, excavators, telehandlers, electrics — all showcased by knowledgeable and engaging staff. Bobcat wowed crowds with high-energy machine dancing. Just across the way, Wacker Neuson turned their booth into a full-blown party with live band performances and compact machines performing in time to the music.
Manitou Goes Rail-Ready
At booth FS 908/1, Manitou showed off a clever track loader built for rail cable construction. It’s fast, clean and operates safely alongside live rail systems. This rail track loader solution earned Manitou and its partners the Supplier Innovation Award from Deutsche Bahn in 2024. It was easily our favorite attachment/upfit kit at the show.
Mecalac Reinvents the Backhoe
We got a great look at the Revo990, a backhoe loader with a rotating cab. It eliminates awkward seat swiveling and offers 360° visibility. The new design lets drivers maintain control while switching seamlessly between digging and loading modes, significantly minimizing the risk of back and neck strain caused by uncomfortable twisting. Sidenote: Mecalac just got bought by Fayat.
Zquip’s Swappable Powertrain System
Zquip turned heads by swapping a tracked excavator’s diesel engine with a battery module — and back again. Its modular system enables machines to run electric in sensitive zones and switch to diesel for longer days. Fast charging, overnight charging or swapping ensures minimal downtime. We’ll have another Machine Heads video coming out that dives deeper into this cool tech.
Hyundai Dives Deeper into Clean Power
Hyundai Construction Equipment showcased lots of standout compact equipment. Announced at the show, the HX19e mini excavator comes with either a 32- and 40-kWh lithium-ion battery pack. Hyundai said the 40-kWh battery will allow customers to work for over 10 hours between charges. Hyundai also debuted its HS80V and HS120V skid steer loaders alongside the HT100V compact track loader. Hyundai designed these machines for versatility and productivity in off-highway construction and landscaping.
This Was Only a Fraction of the Compact Innovation on Full Display
bauma 2025 showed us where the compact equipment industry is heading — and the direction is clear: smarter, cleaner and more versatile machines. We filmed some of it, from breakout attachments to full-sized booths buzzing with innovation, but there’s a lot more. Click this link for more bauma coverage. Want a boots-on-the-ground look at the machines that stole the show? Watch our bauma 2025 video recap above or on the Compact Equipment YouTube channel. Make sure you subscribe too!
We’ll continue rolling out more video coverage and product deep-dives in the weeks ahead.
Keith Gribbins is publisher of Compact Equipment.
