Construction machinery can be said to be big or small.
It is both the source of confidence for infrastructure maniacs and the roar of countless construction sites.
In the past two years, the entire industry has been on a roller coaster, and now it is steadily climbing higher.
As a senior machinery practitioner with ten years of experience, I would like to tell you about the construction machinery I see. There are no advertisements here, only real words and practical points.
When Trillions of National Debt Meet Renewal
Let’s look at a set of numbers first, which is quite encouraging.
In 2025, the number of excavators sold in China will reach 235,000 units, a year-on-year increase of 17%. Among them, the number of domestic sales is 119,000 units, and the number of exports is 117,000 units. The domestic and foreign sales numbers are almost equal.
What concept?
Three years ago, this number would have been unthinkable.
There are two pushing hands behind me.
One situation is “real money”, with trillions of national debt invested in infrastructure, and the construction of high-standard farmland, rural water conservancy and municipal projects have started one after another.
Another situation is the “law of nature”. The normal average cycle of construction machinery is to be replaced every 8 to 10 years. 2025 happens to be in the centralized replacement stage of old equipment.
In the face of new projects to attract demand, there are old equipment that are about to be eliminated. These two forces are superimposed on each other, and it will be difficult for the industry not to become popular.
The more powerful ones are yet to come.
In the first quarter of 2026, a total of 73,336 excavators were sold, an increase of 19.5% compared to the same period last year.
Among them, the number of exports was 33,757 units, a sharp increase of 36.1% compared with the same period last year.
Overseas markets are becoming the real “second growth pole.”
The “machinery family” you may not have heard of
When it comes to construction machinery, many people only have excavators in their minds.
In fact, it is a big family with many brothers and sisters.
According to Chinese standards, there are mainly these types: one is machinery used for excavation, such as excavators with a single excavating bucket, and excavators with multiple excavating buckets; the other is machinery that shovels and then transports soil, such as bulldozers and scrapers; the third is machinery used for compaction operations, including rollers and tampers; and there are also engineering lifting machinery, such as tower cranes and crawler cranes.
In the market in 2023, forklifts accounted for 74%, excavators accounted for only 12%, and loaders accounted for 7%.
Is it a bit surprising?
That excavator running all over the streets is actually not the biggest seller.
The fact is that forklifts actually occupy the largest proportion of the market share. They are found in factories, can be seen in ports, and can be found in warehouses, but they are not particularly easy to attract people’s attention in normal times.
The truth about construction machinery is this. There are excavators in front of the stage, and there are a large group of “hidden champions” behind them.
The Oil Tiger turns into the Hulk?
Electrification is coming faster than expected
When it comes to construction machinery, people always associate it with “black smoke”, “noise” and “high fuel consumption”.
But now, it’s really different.
By 2025, the market size of China’s construction machinery is expected to reach 910 billion yuan, and electrification is the most conspicuous variable among them.
Tell me some data that may surprise you.
In 2024, China has launched nearly 200 zero-emission construction machinery, of which excavators and loaders account for more than 80%.
In 2020, the penetration rate of new energy was only 0.2%. However, by 2024, this penetration rate has soared to 7.9%.
Entering January 2026, the number of electric loaders sold was 2,990 units, an increase of 175.32% compared with the same period, and its penetration rate exceeded the 25% limit for the first time.
The situation is even more prominent for concrete mixer trucks, where the proportion of electric vehicles has reached nearly 80%.
This is not a trivial matter, it is a real industrial transformation.
Regarding the matter of “converting oil to electricity”, people used to think that it was just a slogan, but now it has become a real market choice.
The economic account of an electric excavator
Why are everyone suddenly buying electric equipment?
Just do some math and you’ll understand.
Take a 20-ton electric excavator as an example. The fuel version of the excavator consumes 200 liters of diesel a day. Calculated at 7.5 yuan per liter, the fuel cost is 1,500 yuan.
The electric version of the excavator consumes 400 kilowatt-hours of electricity a day, and industrial electricity consumption is 8 cents per kilowatt-hour, and the electricity bill is 320 yuan.
Save nearly 1,200 yuan a day.
Calculated based on working 250 days a year, the light energy consumption alone can save 300,000.
The price of an electric excavator is only over ten or two hundred thousand more than other types, and the price difference can be earned back within a year.
What’s more, electric equipment is basically maintenance-free in terms of maintenance. It does not have an engine or a gearbox, and there is no need to replace the oil and filter.
Save money, trouble and environmental protection.
Who wouldn’t be moved?
From selling products to selling solutions: New logic for going overseas
In the past two years, domestic construction machinery companies have done a big thing in going overseas.
In 2025, the export value of construction machinery products reached US$60.169 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.8%.
You read that right, that’s nearly triple the amount from $20.96 billion in 2020.
But the real change is not in numbers, but in patterns.
In the past, the situation was “products shipped to the sea”, that is, after manufacturing was completed, they were put on a ship and then shipped outside.
Now the situation has become “capacity overseas”, that is, going abroad to establish factories, establish service centers, and establish and build supply chains.
What is the reason for doing this? In fact, the reason is very simple. If you just sell machines, you will not be able to fully keep up with the after-sales aspect, which will cause customers to have no peace of mind. The only way is to move the repair center, parts warehouse and even the factory to the local area. Only in this way can it truly take root. Why is this?
During the first two months of 2026, exports to the African region showed growth, with a growth rate of 77%, while exports to the Oceania region increased by 50.6%.
These markets are not formed by simply “giving away”, but are achieved by “taking root” with real abilities.
Intelligence is not a gimmick, it is real work
Speaking of intelligence, some people think that it is just a superficial form.
However, if you’ve ever been to an unmanned mine site, you won’t say that anymore.
In 2025, the world’s first fleet of 100 5G-A electric unmanned mining trucks will be put into operation in the Yimin open-pit mine in Inner Mongolia. The 5G remote control loader is no longer a laboratory product, the driverless roller is no longer a laboratory product, and the autonomous obstacle avoidance excavator is no longer a laboratory product.
The technology called 5G remote control can achieve large and lossless images during transmission, and at the same time, the delay is very low. Moreover, even if the operator is sitting in the office, he can accurately control equipment thousands of miles away.
Safety is improved, labor costs are reduced, and round-the-clock operation is more efficient.
There are mining areas, relying on driverless electric locomotives to replace 59 manual workers, and the information interaction efficiency increased by 20%.
This is not “science fiction”, this is “reality”.
How far are we from “artificial-free land”?
In the next 3 to 5 years, construction sites may completely change.
With 5G and Beidou, the tower crane has the ability to plan its own lifting routes and automatically avoid obstacles.
The excavator is equipped with AI vision that can identify rocks and adjust the excavation angle.
Bulldozers rely on millimeter-wave radar to perform construction at night with the same accuracy as during daytime construction.
What’s more critical is that construction machinery is transforming from “tools” to “data terminals”. Each piece of equipment uploads fuel consumption, speed and fault codes in real time. Remote monitoring, predictive maintenance and intelligent dispatch are gradually becoming standard.
“Unmanned land” is no longer a plot in science fiction movies, but a fact that is happening now.
Written at the end
Looking back on the past ten years, construction machinery has changed more than the past fifty years combined.
From fuel to electric, from manual to unmanned, from domestic to global sales.
This revolution is redefining what “dry engineering” means.
I hope that when you see an excavator or a road roller on the street in the future, you will be able to remember this article – it is not just a tool, it is a portrayal of China’s manufacturing industry climbing towards improvement.
