Komatsu Ltd.
Construction Equipment
Komatsu was founded in 1921 when the Komatsu Iron Works in northern Japan spun off from the Takeuchi Mining Company — and its breakthrough came from a crisis: in 1947, the Japanese government ordered the company to study Caterpillar's bulldozers as part of a national reconstruction program, and Komatsu reverse-engineered the technology to build its own machines. By 1964, Komatsu's bulldozers had matched Caterpillar's quality — and the rivalry became one of industry's great duels.
Today Komatsu is the world's second-largest construction and mining equipment maker (behind Caterpillar): hydraulic excavators, bulldozers, wheel loaders, and the giant dump trucks and drills used in open-pit mines. Its 'ICT construction' initiative — autonomous haulage systems, drone-mapped job sites, and remotely operated excavators — positions Komatsu as the technology leader in site automation, with driverless trucks now moving ore in Australian mines.
Headquartered in Tokyo with about 60,000 employees and annual revenue near ¥3.5 trillion (US$23 billion), Komatsu is one of Japan's most globally successful manufacturers, with production in Japan, the US, Europe, and China. Its joint ventures and dealers serve mining and construction on every continent — the yellow-and-black machines that build the world, engineered to beat the yellow ones from Peoria.
