Q&A: Discussing the Mini Excavator Market with Peter Bigwood at Mecalac North America

Mini excavators are great for digging holes, utility trenches, pool work, graves, whatever. Just wave in a mini or compact excavator (same thing), and you can get that hole dug right quick. Mini excavators are also great tool carriers, wielding breakers, grapples, compaction plates, augers, mowers and more. These long-armed attachment-takers can easily fit into congested or open-space environments and spearhead a variety of operations from building retaining walls for landscaping to tearing down walls in indoor demo.

Our recent March/April issue of Compact Equipment has a big focus on mini excavators. And we mean big. The issue kicks off with a giant feature that includes everything you need to know when buying or renting a mini excavator in 2024. We interviewed a bunch of experts to craft that mega story, including Peter Bigwood, general manager at Mecalac North America. Read on to see what the company’s GM had to say about the mini ex market and Mecalac’s extensive line of machines.

Compact Equipment: Peter, thanks so much for taking the time to talk to Compact Equipment. We’re big fans of the Mecalac brand. Maybe we can start off our discussion on mini excavators by talking about how many units Mecalac offers today?

Bigwood: Mecalac offers both the MCR Series of crawler-skid excavators and the MWR Series of compact wheeled excavators. The MCR Series consists of three compact models: 6MCR, 8MCR and 10MCR, with the 6MCR and 8MCR falling into the less than 8-ton compact category. The four-wheel-steer MWR line-up includes the 7MWR, 9MWR and 11MWR — ranging from 7 to 11 tons. All of Mecalac’s compact excavators offer multi-function capabilities. They can dig, of course, but they can also act as loaders, material handlers and tool carriers. Tracked models offer travel speeds twice those of any other compact excavator.

Mecalac’s unique multi-part boom system provides true 360-degree compact turning radius and allows the machines to operate effectively in tight urban spaces. They also enable Mecalac excavators to out-lift, pound for pound, any other excavator in their weight class. A compact footprint, superior speed and incredible versatility brings Mecalac’s signature end-user-focused design to new applications and industries for increased productivity for large and small organizations.

If you had to pick one or two big differentiators in your mini excavator product offerings, what would it be?

It’s all about the boom! Mecalac excavators feature a robust, compact frame, but their unique boom design raises the bar on making the most of a small footprint. Unlike traditional compact excavators, where the boom is mounted on a king post in front of the cab, the multi-part Mecalac boom is mounted to the side and can fold back on itself. This means when the operator rotates the cab, the turning radius is truly compact through 360 degrees, not just at the back. Additionally, the same boom design means that a portion of the boom can retract behind the center line of the front of the machine when lifting heavy loads. This offers greater stability in contrast to traditional king post designs where the excavator has to lift the entire weight of its boom in addition to what it is loading. Finally, the boom, and specifically the quick attach system at the end of the dipperstick, enables Mecalac excavators to act as fully-functioning loaders — with much higher dump heights.

Another thing that an operator will notice about an MCR crawler-skid excavator is its speed. Each machine in the series is capable of travel speeds up to 6.2 mph, which is twice that of a mini excavator and close to many compact track loaders on the market. Given that approximately 15 percent of an excavator’s time is spent traveling around the jobsite, going from Point A to B in half the time means more productivity.

Our 6-ton tracked unit, the 6MCR crawler-skid excavator is by far our most popular model — its 75 hp Deutz engine provides more than enough power and its lifting capacity approaches that of a 9-ton traditional excavator. The MCR range is generally the most popular rental item for our dealers though, typically, these are for longer term rentals where the contractor is already familiar with the unique capabilities of the range. Our wheeled models appeal to municipalities, counties and DOTs for use in on-road work and vegetation control. Mecalac’s boom system lends itself to applications in tunnel rehab where the compact envelope makes it invaluable.

In your opinion, what technologies are pushing the small excavator market to evolve? Electric, attachments, telematics, automation like grade control? Briefly explain if you can.

At Mecalac, we like to say, “innovation is in our DNA.” So, to us, the question is not which technologies are driving the development of the compact excavator, but rather, what role does innovative design play? As we’ve said earlier, our compact excavators by their very nature offer tremendous versatility to users ranging from one-man shops to large utilities and DOTs. They harness the speed and agility of a compact track loader, the maneuverability and digging capabilities of a mini excavator and the reach of a telehandler — all in a single machine with a small footprint. When you can replace two or even three machines with one, your productivity soars and, with today’s nagging shortages in labor, the market is beginning to take notice. Certainly, technologies such as telematics and tiltrotators are making a difference, along with attachments like flail mowers, mulchers and drum cutters. They help customers do more with their excavators than just dig trenches and are driving the evolution of the compact excavator market. True innovation takes all this a step further.

Which companies have the biggest market share for compact excavators in the North American market today? Where is your company ranked in market share for small excavators in North America?

The usual suspects: Caterpillar, Deere, Kubota, Takeuchi and Bobcat. There is no shortage of manufacturers seeking a share of the massive market for compact excavators in North America. Mecalac is a relatively new player here –— we are in our seventh year — but we are celebrating our 50th anniversary in business in Europe, where our factories are based. Our shares in North America are relatively modest, but what we lack in volumes we make up in the passion that our customers have for our innovative designs. Just look us up on YouTube.

What growth markets do you see for compact excavators in North America? What declining markets do you see?

Compact excavators are becoming increasingly popular with the size of their market expected to reach $14.6 billion by 2031, according to market analysis by Straits Research. The construction industry is a large factor driving this growth due to the need for smaller, but still versatile equipment on ever-shrinking urban sites. Compact equipment that delivers the same end results — and then some — than bigger, often single-function models while also reducing operational costs with less labor and higher fuel efficiency is hard to ignore. The rental market is another major player given the need for machines that can easily switch between road projects one day and digging a foundation for a house the next.

Unit volumes for the smaller end of the spectrum — especially the 4- to 5-ton class — tend to be higher due to the ease of transport. Probably the single most popular feature would be a thumb, followed closely by a heated, air-conditioned cab, though cost-conscious buyers still gravitate to the ROPS versions.

Mecalac Tiltrotator

Tiltrotators are finally starting to take hold in North America. Long a popular option in Europe, and almost standard equipment in Scandinavia, these versatile devices practically turn excavators into an extension of an operator’s hand. They provide greater functionality across a wide variety of applications, such as construction, landscaping and utilities, and create the opportunity to do fine work that was previously only possible to do by hand. Mecalac offers a fully integrated tilt-rotator option. Fitted between two CONNECT quick couplers, our tilt-rotator allows for 360-degree rotation in both directions as well as a 40-degree tilt left and right for various attachments, such as grapples or ditching buckets. The integration between the two quick couplers makes it possible to detach the tiltrotator when it’s not needed — for digging and lifting, for instance — and immediately resume work with another attachment, such as a loader bucket. This flexibility means that customers can get more done in less time and with fewer machine repositions. These benefits translate to reduced fuel consumption, higher efficiency and better end results.

What advice would you give to a contractor looking to rent or buy a compact excavator? How should a potential operator evaluate size, application, attachments, brand and price?

If you’re just digging a hole in a field, any decent compact excavator will do the job. If you’re looking to save on labor, increase your productivity and operate in tight quarters (or if you just don’t want to shut down multiple lanes of traffic), then, by all means, consider a Mecalac compact excavator. Whether tracked or wheeled, the versatility that we’ve discussed earlier means that you can accomplish more with just one machine — digging, loading, lifting, moving pallets around and much more.

Return on investment — how can you turn an upfront cost into long-term gains? Choose machines that can do more than just one function. The ROI on a Mecalac machine, as you might imagine, is rather strong — and obvious — given the multi-functional nature of the beast. Users should always consider the size and scope of the job at hand before opting for one brand or another. One classic application that suits the versatility of a Mecalac MCR is hardscaping. Here, the job entails digging and grading, backfilling behind retaining walls and maneuvering pallet-loads of pavers around a jobsite. In the Mecalac world, this is the trifecta: digging bucket, loader bucket and a set of forks, all on one machine. Imagine how much more efficient you can be on each and every job.

Awesome info, Peter. Anything else you’d like to mention?

I can’t emphasize enough the value of multi-functionality. It is the essence of Mecalac. A compact excavator that is equipped with a range of attachments and the technology to switch between them quickly and safely is ready to take on any application from material handling to mowing. My favorite quote from a customer: With my MCR, I can do everything I did with my mini-ex, and everything I used to do with my compact track loader, but the secret to my success is all the things I can do with my Mecalac that I can’t do with either my mini ex or compact track loader.

Keith Gribbins is publisher of Compact Equipment.

Mini excavators are making big waves on jobsites all over North America. Click here for the latest news on these machines and the companies that make them.

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