I’m here in Munich at a pre-bauma series of press conferences in a windy and cold city.

Caterpillar will put on a really big show at bauma in April. The centerpiece will be the hybrid excavator 336EH.

Our readers will know something about the new machine from the work done by Editorial Director Marcia Gruver after she was present at its unveiling at Cat’s U.S. headquarters in Peoria, Ill. But at bauma, Cat will take off all the wraps, focusing on what the machine can do rather than its technology.

All the specs will be available, plus what it can do and how it works in the field. The hood comes up and show visitors can crawl over it.

Cat will also introduce the new 988K large wheel loader at bauma. It’s a complete upgrade of the H series with a Tier 4 Final engine.

Upgraded mini-excavators will also be on display, but its at the other end of the scale that Cat will turns heads – the 6020B hydraulic mining shovel will be the company’s biggest display.

At the moment, the machine is still being built here in Germany. I couldn’t confirm if it will be available in the North American market. –John Latta, Editor-in-Chief, Better Roads, reporting live from Munich, Germany.