It is 50 years since German manufacturer Weidemann produced the first Hoftrac articulated wheel loader in 1974.
Born out of a number of simple three-wheel loader prototypes developed by Weidemann brothers Reinhold and Oswald in the early 1970s, the first production version of the Hoftrac, the Perfect 130, was launched in 1974.
It was a big success and in 1978 the company moved to a new production site in the German village of Flechtdorf (near Kassel). Milestones since include the launch of the 900 in 1984, and a series that was produced for over 13 years. The first Hoftrac with a cab left the factory in 1992, and in 1995, Weidemann produced the 25,000th machine.
Acquired by Wacker Construction Equipment in 2005, it was not long before yellow wheel loaders were made for the construction industry, and a new production site in the nearby village of Korbach was opened in 2007. Weidemann launched the T4512, its first telehandler in 2009, and reckons to have developed the world’s first electrically driven compact wheel loader in 2014 with the 1160 eHoftrac.
In addition to the Hoftrac, Weidemann, which was founded in 1960, also makes a range of wheel and telescopic wheel loaders, and a seven-strong range of telehandlers that peaks with the T9535, a 9.5m/3.5t machine. Operating since 2021 solely from the Korbach facility, the company reckons to have made produced more than 160,000 machines to date.
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