100 Ton Truck Comparison

[Arleigh Campeau]

Hello everyone!
I'm in the process of assessing a construction fleet for purchase. Currently I have quotes in for the Cat 777, Volvo R100, and Komatsu HD785 trucks. I know Cat is widely known for being tough and generally reliable, hence the highest price option. My question is, do any of you have any experience with these Volvo or Komatsu trucks? Mainly regarding their reliability. Both are very comparable in price; I just have no background knowledge on these guys to base a decision off of.

Thanks in advance!

 

[Nige]

It's not just the price of the machines you need to consider but also what support package is on offer from the various suppliers.?
How many trucks are you looking at buying.?

 

[Arleigh Campeau]

Agreed, I'm on a mine site where all three of these vendors currently provide support for our existing fleet. Each vendor has provided costs for MARC (Maintenance and repair contract). Each vendor promises top notch performance. I lean toward Cat based on lots of previous experience, but my finance department will like these other two based on price. That's why I'm looking for input on the trucks history.

 

[Arleigh Campeau]

It's not just the price of the machines you need to consider but also what support package is on offer from the various suppliers.?
How many trucks are you looking at buying.?

10 trucks

 

[Nige]

In that case have any of the potential suppliers offered some sort of support package.? This could be anything from having a guy on site to swing components in their local depot to extended warranties.
Have you looked at the local dealer support capability for the 3 companies in your area.? I assume Cat will be Cashman but what sort of presence do the other two have.?

 

[funwithfuel]

Keep in mind that Volvo is still new to the rigid market. They had Euclid and then sold it off. Kinda turned their back on the extra large platform and focused on the articulated haulers. Now they've bought Terex's rigid line out of Scotland, iirc. Volvo can't leave a product be. They have to pi$$ on it to make it theirs. That didn't work so well with I-R/ Blaw-Knox acquisition. There was a steep learning curve.
Does Volvo make a good product? Yes, absolutely. Is this a proven line with all the bugs worked out? That's up in the air. Less than 10 years since acquisition and less of real production.
Komatsu, they're built for quarries. They have a proven line. They're very dependable as is Cat. Both dealer networks should be capable of supporting the products. Unless Volvo can do something to tip the scale in their favor, I'd go with Komatsu. That said, full disclosure, I currently work for a Komatsu dealer in the midwest. I used to work for the Volvo dealer. Most folks here know, I talk up Volvo pretty good, but in this application, I suggest Komatsu.

 

[Nige]

Continuing from FWFs comments above, basically you have to be presented with a full sale & after-sales support package by all the bidders in order to evaluate who's offering you the best deal. Worth pointing out though that the best deal at the time of purchase might not be the best deal long-term so you have to look past the numbers. This is where the crystal ball comes in.........

 

[Welder Dave]

With 10 trucks see what parts the dealers are going to keep in stock for you. I know with some big machines parts availability is part of the sale. The Komatsu D575 super dozer was one of those machines. I can't recall but I think the dealer had to have a millon $$$$ in parts in order to secure a purchase. Probably a big reason why not many were sold. These aren't the biggest trucks but 10 of them should warrant the dealer having several hundred $$$ of parts in stock for them or at the very least have parts available within 48 hours.

 

[631G]

Agree with FunWithFuel and Welder Dave. The purchase price with this size fleet is a large but not only deciding factor in the decision equation. Down time, missed deadlines on a schedule could wind up costing you a significant portion of your purchase price along with damaging the relationship you have with your client and your pocket book….

In worked for a Kiewit for about 10 years often in major capital projects around the country and broadly speaking this was always a major factor in the equipment dept. decisions for what they bought on major projects and the fleet in general. It helps they’re one of if not the largest private company buying Cat equipment, but they buy Cat because they support their equipment, always have going way way back.

When your on project where the liquidated damages can exceed $100,000/Day, not having equipment up over something like parts not being available you want to know the dealer and manufacture will be ready to go when something goes down to get the show back on the road.

one other thing to think about is resale value. Cat holds its value much better than most any other brand. I’m a Komatsu fan, but the resale on trucks of the type your looking at is way different if you stand two machines side by side with basically the same component times and overall condition. So if these are a project specific buy, might want to look at this as well.

 

[John C.]

I prefer Cat and Komatsu because of their's and my histories. I've worked on both. Both have very deep and long histories and both products have technologies that are well proven. Support has been very good in the places I've worked. The Cat product was always more expensive and many times there was plenty of Catatude to deal with. That's a minor issue but one that does tend to cause personal conflicts at times.

One consideration to think about might be 24/7 service personnel commitment. Many times dealers on both sides would designate one or two techs to cover a large operation. They would be burned out within months and leave. In my experience you should ask for some kind of plan for multiple personal to cover all shifts of operation in a way that doesn't burn people out. All the personnel involved seem to believe that all new equipment will not require a lot of labor to keep things going. In my experience the new stuff always has lots of bugs to work through and labor requirements are not much different than what would be expected of any mid life machine. Get all this stuff worked out in writing and before the purchase. Once the papers are signed, there is little room for any negotiation. Good Luck!