Compact equipment manufacturer Bobcat Co. signed a long-term strategic agreement with Korean manufacturer Daedong Industrial Co. to produce a line of Bobcat-branded compact utility tractors.
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“By combining the Bobcat global brand, dealer network and service with Daedong’s commitment to compact tractor design and technology, we can provide our customers with the quality compact equipment experience they’ve come to expect from Bobcat," said David Rowles, president of Bobcat Americas. "We plan to start offering compact utility tractors to customers later this year.”
“Daedong is very pleased to have entered into this agreement with Bobcat Company,” said Jun-Sik Kim, president of Daedong. “We, as a company, look forward to building on our strengths by providing Bobcat customers with quality, affordable tractors with marketplace staying power through this alliance.” Daedong has produced compact equipment products for the past 60 years.
“This compact utility tractor line will complement our current Bobcat compact equipment lineup, which includes skid-steer, compact track, all-wheel steer and mini track loaders, compact excavators, telescopic tool carriers, utility vehicles, utility work machines and job-matched attachments,” said Bruce Collins, vice president of attachments and vehicles for Bobcat.
In evaluating this market, Bobcat did voice-of-customer and voice-of-dealer work to validate specific compact utility tractor features. The Bobcat project team worked with a team from Daedong to create a compact utility tractor that meets Bobcat-brand expectations.
The announcement came a day after Bobcat's parent company, Ingersoll-Rand Co., revealed that it is selling its Bobcat, Utility Equipment and Attachments business units to Doosan Infracore for about $4.9 billion. The sale is expected to close early in the 2007 fourth quarter.
