PODCAST: Behind-the-Scenes Story of Caterpillar’s Excavator

March 3, 2020 

Excavators are called the Swiss Army knife of a jobsite – and for good reason. These hard-working machines make a lot of things possible: digging, trenching, truck loading, demolition. They’re exciting to see in action and, as you’ll hear in this special edition podcast going Beyond The Iron, excavators are even more exciting to operate.  

Let’s go behind the scenes (and around the world) with a few folks who know the incredible story and history of the machine better than most.

Program Guide* (41:48 total run time): 

2:25 – Smarter, better, safer. Ryan Neal, ​​​​​​North American Product Application Specialist for excavators, is a former full-time operator and demonstrator who tells us all about the power of the excavator as we dig in the dirt at our Edwards, Illinois Demonstration & Learning Center. 

15:06 – An uncommon history. Corporate Archivist Lee Fosburgh tells us the unexpected story of how Caterpillar began to make excavators and how that project changed the course of how product is brought to market. He joins us from our Archives in Mossville, Illinois. 

27:18 – Keeping it focused on the customer. Brian Abbott, Large Hydraulic Excavator product manager, talks about why he loves his job, his hopes for helping customers, plus what’s ahead for the machine and the industry. Brian shares his passion for excavators via a phone call from Singapore. 

*This podcast conversation has been edited for clarity and length. 

Go to the Beyond The Iron website to check out our previous podcasts!