World economy watchers follow the bulldozers

YUKO TAKEO

A fleet of excavators, bulldozers and dump trucks spread out across the globe provides an early peek at what’s happening in construction, mining and the broader economy.

The 470,000 machines sold by Komatsu Ltd. almost continuously transmit their position and other key information back to the company in Japan.

Komatsu makes this available to its individual customers through the internet or an iPhone app, so they can see where all their machines are, how much they’ve been used, and when they may need maintenance.

1st Class Tile & Bathroom Remodeling LLC, Ted Gerick, 11930 Sallie Drive, Rogers

A & R Specialty Meats LLC, Kevin Taylor, 2705 Whispering Woods Court, Lowell

Amanda Rose Appraisals LLC, Amanda Anderson, 2904 S.W. Wentworth Ave., Bentonville

Better Shine LLC, Darian Keyes, 2405 S. 15th Place, Rogers

Carney Distributing Inc., Richard Carney, 609 S.W. Eighth St., No. 600, Bentonville

Elevate NWA LLC, Bill Watkins, 1106 W. Poplar St., Rogers

Fashion Refresh LLC, Barbara Iuso, 11 S. Shetland Lane, Rogers

Foster Home Solutions LLC, Neal Foster, 2606 S.W. Windy Way Court, Bentonville

G and C Properties of NWA LLC, Bill Watkins, 1106 W. Poplar St., Rogers

Genesis Sales and Marketing LLC, Scott Taylor J., 1701 S. 27th Place, Rogers

Holli Roberts Ministries, Jeannie Carpenter, 2 S. Samoset Court, Rogers

Inseitz Group Women’s Empowerment Foundation Inc., Rebecca Paneitz-Danks,

The company combines all this information and posts it free on its website, producing a powerful tool for tracking what’s happening in the global economy. The data show the average number of hours Komatsu’s equipment is used in Japan, China, North America and Europe.

“We’re essentially releasing raw data,” said Fumio Muto, general manager in charge of the program, called Komtrax. “Whenever the data is good, there’s no doubt that both our company and our clients are moving in a positive direction.”

It’s released around the 10th of each month, faster than almost any other economic 1200 W. Walnut St., Suite 1083, Rogers

Inside Presence LLC, Jennifer Beatie, 12907 Arkansas 72 West, Bentonville

James Adkins Trucking LLC, Cindy Adkins, 24 Chatburn Drive, Bella Vista

JFC Realty Group LLC, John Clark, 29 Quantock Hills Drive, Bella Vista

Long Tax Solutions Inc., Mitchell Dwayne Long Jr., 1 Melanie Circle, Bella Vista

Neal Foster and Associates Inc., Neal Foster, 2606 S.W. Windy Way Court, Bentonville

NWA Paddle & Fitness LLC, Rebecca Wilson, 3405 N.E. Oaktrace Ave., Bentonville

Point Five Industries NWARK LLC, Kisha Lowery, 1400 S.W. Susana St., Bentonville

Quality NWA Roofing LLC, Maria G. Aleman, 1607 Wilson Court, Rogers

Revolver Rail LLC, Allan Lindy, 301 S.W. 18th St., Suite 1, Bentonville

ROC Complex Property LLC, Matthew D. Mitchell, 3350 S. Pinnacle Hills Parkway, Rogers

Rpgcrate LLC, Chris Hinson, 2005 S.W. Spruce Road, Bentonville data. For Japan, the figures have a good correlation with industrial production data, which shows the output and sales of the nation’s industrial giants like Toyota Motor Corp., Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd., and Komatsu itself.

When Komatsu, the world’s No. 2 constructionequipment-maker, first introduced GPS into construction machinery in the late 1990s, it was partly a way to discourage thieves who stole the machines to bust into ATMs. The use of the technology has expanded since then and is now used to anticipate demand, plan sales and extend vehicle life.

The company collects

Bucks and Bows LLC, Alyssa Michelle Whiteley, 378 Carroll 405, Berryville

Dovie Land and Cattle Inc., Judith Badley, Caroll 436, Oak Grove

The Natural State of Mind Outdoors Inc., Tara Ross, 38 Overton Lane, Eureka Springs

928 Rentals LLC, John B. Ervin, 4257 Gabel Drive, Suite 2A, Fayetteville

Barfield Investigative Services LLC, data from about 140,000 machines in operation in Japan, 110,000 in China, 50,000 in Europe and 70,000 in North America.

Rival Caterpillar Inc. collects the same kind of data but doesn’t disclose it due to its customer contracts, according to a company spokesperson in Japan.

“It does work as a reference point,” said Yoshikazu Shimada, an analyst at Tachibana Securities Co. in Tokyo who covers Komatsu. “It shows data on public sector works, and data on China especially affects the global economic overview. Komtrax is part of the data that shows you what state the world economy is in.”