Kenya's infrastructure push drives demand for heavy machinery

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Kenya’s growing appetite for infrastructure development is driving demand for heavy earthmoving equipment.

The demand for weight class machinery is driven by ongoing road construction at the county and national govt level, the mechanisation of agriculture, and the boom in construction.

Currently, for both the government and commercial sectors, there is a heightened infrastructure push.

Also, there is an increased volume and complexity of active infrastructure  projects in Kenya and neighbouring Uganda.

As such, a new excavator, the heaviest yet, has been introduced to Kenya and Uganda by Ganatra Plant and Equipment. The JCB 345 LC is a heavy-duty excavator that the firm says is ideal for mining and construction.

It remains obvious that the two markets can no longer afford to run light on the infrastructure push.

This comes at the backdrop of Kenya's infrastructure challenge that has long outpaced the equipment available.

Today, roads are being built across terrain that lighter machines struggle to handle, dams are raised in counties where the ground pushes back hard, and quarries supplying the aggregate for all, running equipment to its limits.

Altaf Ganatra, Managing Director, Ganatra Plant and Equipment Ltd, noted that the JCB 345 LC launch is a deliberate response to the direction of travel in both markets.

“The JCB 345 LC is the right machine for the scale of projects Kenya and Uganda are undertaking right now,” Ganatra said.

According to Ganatra, the new excavator’s architecture delivers fast hydraulic response with reduced fuel consumption relative to less sophisticated systems.

He adds that the new  machinery is productive in the foundation excavation, drainage trenching, and bulk earthmoving that define Kenya's expressway and county road programmes.

The heavy machinery segment is dominated by Chinese players. Other brands, such as brands by Korean and Scandinavian designers, also have a strong hold in the segment.

Brands like Caterpillar were initially synonymous with Kenya, but now companies like Sany have also been made famous.

The heavy machinery onslaught in Africa today is led by the multipurpose excavator frontloader and jack hammer, combo which has found its niche in mining and construction.

According to Ganatra, the new heavy machinery can be used in the mining and quarrying sector, which supplies the aggregate underpinning much of the construction activity across Kenya and Uganda.