Hitachi Construction Machinery Develops Technology to Restore Used Hydraulic Oil
Tokyo, March 12, 2025 - Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd. (TSE: 6305; "Hitachi Construction Machinery") has developed a technology to restore used hydraulic oil as part of its efforts to contribute to the realization of a circular economy.
Starting from March 12, Hitachi Construction Machinery will begin selling one medium-sized ZX135US-5B (13-ton class) hydraulic excavator that uses recycled hydraulic oil with a manufacturer's warranty as a used equipment in Japan. Going forward, the company plans to apply this technology to remanufactured hydraulic excavators in Japan and remanufacture the entire machine body including the hydraulic oil.
The Hitachi Construction Machinery Group has been remanufacturing the used genuine parts of customers to the same level of quality as new parts and supplying them to the market for many years. In addition, the Group has been remanufacturing the main bodies of hydraulic excavators and other construction machinery since 2021. In this case, a medium-sized ZX135US-5B hydraulic excavator with over 3,200 hours of operation was remanufactured to a level of performance equivalent to that of a new machine and will be supplied to the market once again as used equipment operating with restored hydraulic oil. This is the first time that Hitachi Construction Machinery has commercially used restored hydraulic oil in used equipment.
Hydraulic oil plays a role similar to blood in that it moves a hydraulic excavator. However, because it degrades due to contamination, heat-induced composition changes, and oxidation, etc. associated with hydraulic excavator operation over many hours, hydraulic oil must be periodically removed and replaced with new oil.
Hitachi Construction Machinery has been engaged in research and development aimed at making hydraulic oil last longer by pouring additives, etc. In this recent initiative, Hitachi Construction Machinery used specialized equipment to combine an oil purification method that removes impurities and contaminants and the insertion of additives to develop restoration technology that meets the level of quality specified by the company, including the kinematic viscosity and degree of oxidation, without replacing the hydraulic oil. In addition, the company verified that the hydraulic excavator operates normally using restored hydraulic oil. This technology decreases the burden of replacing hydraulic oil and made it possible to efficiently remanufacture machinery. Furthermore, a 13-ton class medium-sized hydraulic excavator uses 125 liters of hydraulic oil. Production of this hydraulic oil generally requires several dozens to a hundred times as much crude oil. Therefore, it is estimated that approximately 10,000 liters of crude oil are consumed in the production of the hydraulic oil used in a 13-ton class medium-sized hydraulic excavator. Restoring used hydraulic oil can reduce the consumption of the crude oil which serves as the raw material.
Going forward, the Hitachi Construction Machinery Group will help solve social issues by strengthening its remanufacturing business, reducing the environmental load, and engaging in initiatives to realize a circular economy.
About Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd.
Hitachi Construction Machinery Co., Ltd. (TSE: 6305), headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is a construction machinery manufacturer which globally deploys development, manufacturing, sales, and service businesses for its hydraulic excavators, wheel loaders, compaction equipment, and mining machinery, etc. In addition to its new machinery business, Hitachi Construction Machinery is expanding its "value chain businesses" of parts and services, remanufacturing (parts and machines), rentals, and used equipment as it aims to grow together with customers as a true solutions provider that offers innovative solutions to customers. As our vow to all stakeholders to achieve this mission, we established and are currently disseminating and promoting the LANDCROS as our new concept. With roughly 26,000 employees around the world, the consolidated sales revenue for Hitachi Construction Machinery was 1,405.9 billion yen for fiscal year 2023 (ended March 2024) with an overseas sales revenue ratio of 84%. For more details, please see the company's website.
Information contained in this news release is current as of the date of the press announcement, but may be subject to change without prior notice.
