HD Hyundai Construction Equipment and HD Hyundai Infracore to Merge as 'HD Construction Equipment'
Compact Division Elevated to Strategic Core Business... Building a Full Product Lineup
Targeting Sales of 22,000 Units in North America and Europe by 2030... Pursuing Industry Leadership
HD Hyundai has decided to independently operate its compact construction equipment division as a separate organization. This move elevates the compact division, which had previously been managed without a dedicated organization due to its relatively small scale, to a strategic core business. It marks a turning point in HD Hyundai's construction equipment business structure. As the company begins to aggressively target advanced markets such as North America and Europe, it is expected to engage in a market leadership competition with Doosan Bobcat, a major player in the compact construction equipment sector.
According to industry sources on July 3, HD Hyundai Construction Equipment and HD Hyundai Infracore plan to launch a merged entity tentatively named "HD Construction Equipment" next year. They will reorganize the compact and aftermarket (AM) businesses as separate, specialized organizations. In particular, the strategy for the compact equipment business is to strengthen channel competitiveness in North America and Europe, and to secure dedicated personnel and investment resources for focused development. This restructuring reflects HD Hyundai's strategy to establish compact equipment as an independent business unit and foster it as a new growth axis.
The DEVELON compact track loader (DTL35) model, first unveiled by HD Hyundai Infracore at the 2023 global construction equipment exhibition, CONEXPO 2023 in the United States. Provided by HD Hyundai Site Solutions
Through this organizational restructuring, HD Hyundai aims to fill gaps in its product lineup?such as track loaders, skid loaders, and wheel loaders?by 2027. The company also plans to establish dedicated dealer networks, particularly in underserved regions of the eastern and western United States, with the goal of raising channel coverage (the proportion of regions where equipment sales and service are available through the dealer network) to 98% by 2030. In Europe, HD Hyundai intends to strengthen dedicated dealer systems and diversify product offerings, focusing on high-growth-potential countries such as Germany, France, and Italy, in order to enhance market responsiveness. The target sales volume is set to increase from approximately 9,000 units in 2024 to 22,000 units by 2030, which corresponds to a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of about 13%.
Until now, HD Hyundai has maintained a portfolio centered on medium and large equipment. The compact division, lacking a dedicated organization, was managed in a dispersed manner and was relatively deprioritized. Internally, there has been feedback that "resources were concentrated on medium-sized equipment, which slowed execution speed."
The company's global market position is also expected to strengthen. According to the "Yellow Table" global construction equipment company rankings published last month by the UK-based construction equipment magazine KHL, HD Hyundai Infracore ranked 21st and HD Hyundai Construction Equipment ranked 25th globally as of last year. If the two companies’ revenues are simply combined, the ranking would be around 14th. The industry believes that if compact division sales more than double by 2030, the likelihood of entering the global top 10 will increase significantly.
This strategy is also seen as a move with an eye on full-scale competition with Doosan Bobcat, the leading company in Korea’s construction equipment sector. Doosan Bobcat specializes in compact construction equipment for the North American and European markets, generating 78% of its total revenue from the compact segment. As of last year, its compact equipment sales amounted to $4.87945 billion (approximately 6.7 trillion won), ranking 11th globally. With a strong distribution network and brand recognition, its market share in North America is estimated at over 40%.
Doosan Bobcat is also closely monitoring HD Hyundai's efforts to strengthen its compact division. One industry insider commented, "The target of 22,000 units by 2030 is an aggressive figure," and added, "It clearly shows a determination to move away from the existing focus on medium and large equipment."
Through this merger, HD Hyundai also plans to simultaneously strengthen other strategic businesses, including expanding in-house engine production, advancing the aftermarket (AM) business, and developing electrified and smart construction equipment. The company aims to raise the proportion of self-manufactured engines in its equipment to 70-80% by 2030, and to increase AM division revenue from 650 billion won in 2024 to 1.4 trillion won by 2030. An HD Hyundai representative stated, "We will build a full lineup of construction equipment, ranging from compact to ultra-large machines, to enhance our market competitiveness."
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