Shandong is the core construction machinery production base in China, with more than 300 related companies above designated standards.
Last year, the revenue of the entire industry chain exceeded 210 billion yuan, ranking among the top three in the country. Exports increased by more than 30% year-on-year, and more than 60% of exports were directed to countries along the “Belt and Road”.
In the list of the top 50 global construction machinery manufacturers released this year, a total of 13 Chinese companies are on the list, and Shandong accounts for 3 of them. The total sales are close to 30 billion yuan. The strength of these three companies alone is equivalent to the scale of the entire industry in many provinces.
The world’s first and largest hydrostatic driverless bulldozer, the D82H, which was rolled out by SDLG Heavy Machinery at the end of last year, has now received many overseas orders.
This equipment breaks through the four-pump and six-motor hydrostatic drive technology that was previously monopolized by foreign investment. Its mechanical efficiency is 15% higher than that of foreign-invested products of the same level, its energy saving rate can reach 10%, and its price is 40% lower than the same model from Caterpillar. Foreign mine bosses are rushing to order it after all the calculations have been done.
Many people used to think that Shandong’s construction machinery was just about making hard money through assembly, which is not the case at all.
Just talk about Lingong. In the past, 90% of the core hydraulic parts of excavators had to be imported. Now they have jointly tackled key problems with local supporting companies and have completed the domestic replacement of more than 700 hydraulic parts. This alone can save billions in procurement costs every year without being choked by foreign investment.
Now, more than 200 supporting companies have gathered around Lingong’s factory in Linyi, and the local matching rate exceeds 80%. Parts can be delivered in ten minutes by car, without waiting for more than ten days of shipping.
During research and development, upstream and downstream companies sit together for a meeting, and problems can be solved on the spot through coordination. The efficiency is much higher than working alone before.
Now the entire industry is moving towards electrification, and Shandong companies are following up faster than many people think.
Take an electric loader as an example. The diesel model of the same tonnage costs about 40,000 yuan per month, while the electric model only costs a few thousand yuan when fully charged. Calculating, a single unit can save 30,000 yuan in energy consumption costs per month, and the maintenance cost can also be saved by more than half.
Countries along the “One Belt and One Road” now have a particularly large demand for infrastructure construction. In 2025, the proportion of domestic construction machinery exports to the “Belt and Road” has reached 66%, and Shandong’s products are particularly popular there.
In the past, most of the equipment purchased in these countries was European and American equipment. Not only was it expensive, but there were few after-sales outlets. If it broke, you had to wait half a month for someone to repair it, and two months for a replacement part.
If you buy equipment from Shandong now, the quality is no worse than that of foreign equipment, and the price is one-third cheaper. There are local after-sales points. If it breaks, you can come to your door the same day, and you can wait up to three days for replacement.
Nowadays, Shandong’s electric construction machinery is not only sold to the “One Belt, One Road” initiative, but also entered the European and Australian markets, which have the strictest environmental protection requirements.
There are high requirements for carbon emissions there. In the past, Chinese equipment with diesel models could not be used at all. Now the electric models have zero emissions and just meet their standards. The selling price is higher than the diesel models, and the profits are even more impressive.
Lovol’s pure electric excavators have now been put into use at construction sites in Norway. Local customers have reported that they have low noise, less pollution, and stable operation in low-temperature environments in winter.
Some people have always said that Shandong’s industries are all traditional industries without technical content, so it is better to engage in Internet finance to make money faster.
It’s really too one-sided. As long as traditional industries hold core technologies in their own hands, they can still make high-end profits and create employment for a large number of ordinary people. The supporting factories in the industrial chain can support hundreds of thousands of workers, which is much more than those empty-headed bubble industries.
Now the entire construction machinery industry in Shandong is still moving toward intelligence. The big data centers of Huawei and Tianhe have already landed in Linyi, providing computing power support for enterprises’ intelligent research and development. In the future, more unmanned and remotely controlled equipment will be launched, and the competitiveness will only become stronger and stronger.
Those who badmouth Shandong’s traditional industries should really go to the local factories and see that they are no longer what they thought they were.
