Henri de Groot: "We are really building a brand with Limach"

The Limach E18.1 was an outright first two years ago: the first homegrown battery-electric mini excavator. Since then, Limach already has several compact electric excavators in its lineup and larger models are in development. "We are really building a brand with Limach and are ready to scale up so that we can provide the Dutch construction industry with much-needed completely emission-free machines," is how development director Henri de Groot describes the Limach mission.

Over sixty Limach machines are already running in our country, and that seems to be just the beginning. The current range consists of mini excavators from 1.8 to 10 tons. To this will be added both a mobile crane and an even heavier crawler excavator, as there is a great demand for them in the market. "We don't build machines from stock," Henri explains: "We only build on demand, which allows us to put together customized machines and deliver them according to customer specifications." When asked if there are any very different electrical machines to expect, think wheel loaders or dumpers, the answer is clear: "Our focus is entirely on excavators for earth moving and demolition activities. We have our hands full with that. We currently build one machine a week."

Competitive product

To the common complaint that electric machines are much more expensive than comparable diesel versions, Henri has a startling answer, which immediately makes it clear why Limach is so popular with companies: "Because we are building a brand, we are investing heavily in it ourselves. We do that together with our dealers, among others. We pass on our high development costs to the customer only to a limited extent, so we deliver a competitive product. That makes it manageable for all concerned." Henri points to the substantial subsidy schemes for companies switching to emission-free machines. Noting that he notices a somewhat wait-and-see attitude among many potential customers because much of that subsidy money is not yet released. And that is very disappointing now that nitrogen emissions have the construction industry in a holding pattern.

Working with it all day

Limach uses lithium-ion batteries, whether or not in modular, counterweight replacement packages for the larger machines. The premise of every Limach machine is that you should be able to work with it for an ordinary working day. The advantages: no emissions (so less smell) and more peace for the workers and the environment, since battery machines produce considerably less noise. In the long run, the additional investment will be recouped fairly quickly due to the lower energy (electricity versus diesel) and maintenance costs. As for the latter, service is provided nationwide by the Volvo Compact dealer network. So that's good too.