KATY, TX KOBELCO Construction Machinery USA furthers its dedication to the North American market with the expansion of its U.S. manufacturing team. The KOBELCO production facility in Spartanburg, South Carolina, made several new hires in all operational areas including fabrication, paint, assembly and warehouse.

"This phase of hiring represents a 43 percent increase in the size of our U.S. production workforce," said Pete Morita, Vice President - Excavator Division of KOBELCO USA. "We plan to aggressively increase overall production and expanding our team of experts is the first step."

Current mass production at the KOBELCO North American facility includes the SK210LC-10 and SK350LC-10 excavator models. KOBELCO will increase the facility's manufacturing capacity in 2017 with the addition of two new models - the SK300LC-10 and SK500LC-10 - as well as 60-foot booms and arms.

The new employees join KOBELCO USA with a combined 120 years of experience in their respective fields. They bring extensive knowledge and a rich history from diversified and well-known companies to their new roles at KOBELCO. Each team member will be fully trained to exacting KOBELCO quality standards. Assemblers and welders will be trained through the strong partnership KOBELCO has with ReadySC and Spartanburg Community College, while paint and warehouse associates will be trained onsite at the KOBELCO North American manufacturing facility.

"KOBELCO is pleased to welcome our newest group of employees to the U.S. manufacturing team," said Hiroshi "Rocky" Morita, Vice President - Manufacturing at KOBELCO USA. "We're excited to have their passion on board and we look forward to their contributions in producing top quality excavators that are "˜Built in the USA.'"