JCB reveals global doubling plan, backs Australia growth

Adaptalift JCB's new dealer appointment – layering JCB's product range onto Adaptalift's established national network – is a local expression of a much larger global push, according to Jose Luis Gonçalves, JCB’s director of international sales, who said Australia’s scale made it one of the manufacturer’s most important markets worldwide.

The comments come as Adaptalift JCB officially opened its new premises in Truganina, in Melbourne's west earlier this month, welcoming customers and industry partners to mark the brand's local launch.

Gonçalves said JCB has a global five-year plan to double the size of the business, with Australia a key part of that ambition. “Right now we are under 10 per cent market share (in Australia). We should be, in the next three years, above 10 per cent share in the country, which obviously can happen once we have the right products."

He said JCB’s 13 product families and more than 300 models gave it scope to grow across categories, with backhoe loaders and telescopic handlers already strong locally, and mini excavators and wheel loaders identified as underexplored opportunities in the Australian market.

“Australia is a very important market for the business and for our brand,” Gonçalves said. “It’s a market where we come with 25,000 to 30,000 units, so it’s extremely relevant on a global scale, and it’s a must for JCB to be here and be successful.”

He pointed to the country’s scale and geography as a defining challenge. “It’s a continental country, great distances, many different cities, many different areas of activities. For us it was critical to have the right company, which means being close to the customers in all those areas, to have a real chance to be successful.”

JCB has been building a local subsidiary since the start of the year, Gonçalves said, assembling teams across sales, parts, service and dealer support to lift the brand’s presence in the country.

Gonçalves said the choice of dealer partner came down to service capability rather than sales reach alone.

“A strong dealer usually means a company that is capable and invests in the brand, but above anything is capable of taking care of the customers and has a strong DNA on service and aftersales – a strong DNA on taking care of the customers after you bring the machines to them.”

“That’s exactly why we see this as a proper fit for JCB in Australia – not only delivering the machines and technology but at the same time proper support and response to the customers in their day-to-day activities when they need.”

JCB has just launched new Stage V 40-tonne and 50-tonne excavators in the UK, extending its range from 13 tonnes up to 50 tonnes – a broadened scope Gonçalves said suited Australian conditions directly.

“Australia is the kind of market that requires those sizes of excavators, and we are working towards that – to grow in the excavator market in Australia.”

“More than ever now we have the level of commitment to bring every single product in the portfolio to the customers in Australia, and understand what the customers require and bring those solutions,” he said.

The Australian rollout comes as JCB marks its 80th anniversary as a family-owned business, a milestone Gonçalves said reflected the company’s scale as the third largest business in its industry by volume, now with Lord Bamford’s son, George Bamford, appointed deputy chairman.

“We will continue investing in innovation, new products,” Gonçalves said. “We just launched and presented to the world the first hydrogen engine. JCB was the first company to bring that to life and put it in machines. That shows how committed and driven JCB is.”

JCB intends to underline that with a hydrogen-powered attempt on the world land speed record in the Utah desert, targeting speeds above 500km/h. The attempt will take place at Bonneville Speed Week next week, running from August 1 to 7, 2026.

“I think that tells us that 80 years is not enough. We have much more to do at JCB, and there will be much more to come,” Gonçalves said.

Gonçalves said JCB’s technology strategy would continue to weigh electric, hydrogen and diesel options against the demands of different equipment classes.

“What we clearly see is that electric can be used for smaller products or compact products, in terms of being reliable and especially in terms of the duty cycles. When I think on the medium range and the high range, we’re looking into hydrogen," he said.

Gonçalves said engineering focus extended beyond power sources to operator experience, pointing to JCB’s new dual-drive backhoe loader as an example of practical innovation.

“The future will basically mean that we need to make [machines] more practical, much more efficient and less consuming as far as any kind of energy … our engineers are very creative, and we have hundreds of engineers looking at how can we make the machines better.”