Komatsu celebrates 40 years of North American manufacturing

For 40 years, Komatsu machines have been rolling off the production line at the company's Chattanooga, Tennessee, facility (CMO). On July 10, the company welcomed employees, customers, elected officials, and community members to celebrate its commitment to manufacturing in North America.

The anniversary coincides with another big milestone at CMO: Komatsu has now produced more than 60,000 excavators at the facility. That achievement was marked with the ceremonial handover of the 60,000th excavator. Following a demonstration of its latest machines, Komatsu honoured its legacy of manufacturing in Chattanooga with a restored 1988 WA450-1 wheel loader.

Komatsu hands over 60,000th excavator manufactured at CMO

The 60,000th excavator, painted to pay tribute to Chattanooga's geography and community, was handed over to demolition, environmental, and infrastructure contractor D.H. Griffin during the celebration.

"Sixty-thousand machines is more than a number. It represents 40 years of commitment to safety, quality, innovation, and continuous improvement. It represents skill, dedication, and I'm proud of generations of employees who have helped make this facility what it is today," said Shaye Thompson, quality manager at CMO.

"Every machine that leaves Chattanooga carries the work of hundreds of people, our production teams, engineers, quality professionals, maintenance teams, suppliers and support staff. Together they have built a legacy of equipment trusted around the world. This excavator represents that legacy. It carries the experience gained from the 59,999 machines that came before it and the determination to make the next one even better. The first excavator built in Chattanooga proved what this facility could do. This 60,000th excavator proves what our people have accomplished."

The plant's longest-serving employee, David Dolan, also spoke at the event. Reflecting on his tenure with Komatsu, Dolan praised the positive impact that CMO has had on his family and the town.

Dolan concluded: "We build machines that customers depend upon every day, and we know quality is not something put on the machine at the end of the assembly line. It is built into every part, every weld, every assembly, and every decision people looking at that part make to put it together.

"As we celebrate this anniversary, I hope we remember what brought us here. Hard work, integrity, teamwork, and unwavering commitment to quality, because a machine can be repaired, production numbers can be adjusted, costs can be improved, but once you lose integrity, you've lost everything."

40 years of manufacturing in Chattanooga

Established in 1985, the Chattanooga plant was Komatsu's first manufacturing facility in the United States. Today, Komatsu manufactures mid-size excavators, including the new PC220LCi-12; articulated dump trucks, including the new HM460-6; and forestry equipment at CMO. To date, over 70,000 Komatsu machines have rolled off the Chattanooga production line. 

At the celebration, Komatsu invited attendees to tour the excavator and ADT factories.

Highlights on the tour included the Safety Dojo, where employees and visitors learn about common factory hazards through examples of unsafe hardware, equipment, and scenarios; Komatsu's proprietary welding robots; excavator booms produced in Komatsu's Flexible Manufacturing System (FMS); and calibration of Komatsu's IMC 3.0 on the PC220LCi-12 excavator.

The tour concluded in the CMO Quality Dojo. This teaching room houses examples of defective equipment and components, with one exception: a crumpled — but intact — cab from an excavator that had been involved in an accident during demolition operations. The cab may have been heavily damaged, but it did its job. Komatsu retains the cab to show that quality manufacturing matters, and it saved the life of the operator.

Komatsu restores a special wheel loader

Outside the factory, Komatsu has installed a new tribute to its history in Chattanooga. The restored WA450-1 wheel loader, known as the "Ochi Loader," was originally built in 1988. According to Komatsu, this machine was closely associated with CMO's first Japanese general manager, Mr. Shohei Ochi.

As part of its dedication, Komatsu says, "Mr. Ochi was known to operate the loader throughout the facility, personally observing operations and ensuring adherence to 5S, a key part of Komatsu's foundational safety framework. He routinely used the machine to reposition materials and maintain yard organization, including clearing snow to prevent weather-related shutdowns."

The loader was later transferred to another Chattanooga manufacturer that produced excavator counterweights in partnership with Komatsu. It remained in service at that facility from the early 1990s through 2025, when it was returned to CMO for restoration and permanent display.

"For 40 years, our Chattanooga plant has demonstrated what can be achieved when talented people are committed to quality, innovation, and continuous improvement," said Rod Bull, CEO, Komatsu North America. "Reaching 60,000 excavators is an incredible milestone, but what makes Chattanooga truly special is the generations of employees whose dedication has helped build Komatsu's reputation with customers across North America."