JCB signs Swedish military deal
Staffordshire–based JCB has won a multi-million pound order for its high-speed military backhoe from the Swedish Army. The digger manufacturer will produce the vehicles for the Swedish Material Defence Administration (FMV), which will go into service in 2012.
FMV has procured the order for the Swedish Armed Forces 10 High Mobility Engineer Excavators (HMEEs).
The 12-tonne machine has a 5.9 litre diesel engine, four-wheel drive, four-wheel steer, it can lift more than two tonnes and dig to a depth of almost four metres.
In Sweden, JCB dealer Soderberg & Haak, based in Malmo, will provide training and product, service and parts support.
JCB’s latest deal follows an order by the British Army, worth £7m, for HMEEs which are now in service in Afghanistan.
Tim Burnhope, JCB’s managing director of product development and commercial operations, said: “The HMEE is already in use for a number of armed forces around the world, including the those in the US and the UK, so we’re delighted to have won another substantial order for this unique machine, which is the first from Scandinavia.
"A number of other nations are also expressing strong interest in the HMEE so we are confident of winning more business in the future.”
