In November, Caterpillar built its 250,000th backhoe loader (BHL) since the product was introduced 26 years ago. Cat's BHL is now in its fifth generation and started production in Leicester, U.K., but has since also been built in Clayton, N.C., Brazil and India.

The introduction of the BHL was the first Cat volume product below 100 horsepower. Small contractors and owner operators were not Caterpillar's usual customers before 1985 and Cat dealers needed to transform their business to get closer to this customer base. The BHL design also needed different components than were commonly "on the shelf" within Caterpillar. All other Cat machines used larger engines, transmissions, cylinders etc. Initially, these smaller components were bought from external suppliers, but over the 26 years Caterpillar has vertically integrated, so that most of the critical components for the BHL are now produced in-house.

In addition, the BHL was the first product line in Building Construction Products Division, which now features seven product families.

The 250,000th unit is being sold by Wagner Equipment to CF Jordan, a large construction business in El Paso, Texas. John Goodrich, the executive vice president of CF Jordan, flew over to Leicester to receive the 420E IT for his company.

The event was celebrated at the Leicester Visitor Centre with a number of Leicester employees, local dignitaries, and press in attendance.