Hammer Finally Falls on US CNH Backhoe Loader Factory

The previously announced potential closure of the New Holland production facility in Burlington, Iowa, has finally been confirmed by parent company CNH.

Production at the Burlington plant incredibly dates back as far as 1937, but sadly is now expected to end by mid-2026, resulting in the lay-off of around 200 employees. In more positive news, CNH states that about 60 employees from the engineering team, will continue to work at the companies state-of-the-art proving ground in Burlington, testing Case-New Holland equipment.

The company claims that the Burlington facility is its most expensive plant to operate, and also adds that demand for the backhoe loader product has dropped by nearly 50%.

On the flip side demand for other CNH products such as skid steers and compact tracked loaders produced at other facilities has increased by nearly 70%, these statistics make Burlington the lowest-utilized and most costly facility to maintain.

While we have seen something of a mini revival in backhoe loader usage in the UK, especially since a well-known manufacturers launch of a Dual Drive feature, in addition, India and Turkey remain as strong end users of the BHL, however, this is clearly not the case in the US, where skid steers and increasingly so, compact tracked loaders appear to be the go-too tool of choice for small to medium groundworks contractors

The manufacturer says that these adjustments will reinforce the companies plans to invest nearly $5 billion over five years into U.S. manufacturing and R&D facilities, supporting over 8,000 American employees.

CNH itself was created 25 years ago by the merger of Case and New Holland. The company is controlled by an Italian family whose patriarch co-founded the Fiat Motor Company in 1899.