Hitachi Construction Machinery’s heavy machinery fan community “Heavy Machinery Fandom” has won the 2026 Good Design Award. It is the first award for an activity other than a product, following the start of full-scale operations in June 2025.
Hitachi Construction Machinery’s heavy machinery fan community “Heavy Machinery Fandom” has won the 2026 Good Design Award. It is the first award recognizing a community activity rather than a company product.
The initiative was launched against the backdrop of labor shortages in the construction industry. It aims to secure human resources in the future by broadly promoting the appeal of heavy machinery and increasing interest among younger generations. Full-scale operations began in June 2025. As of the end of September 2026, membership exceeded 1,920, and 71 co-creation events had been held over the previous 2 years, in addition to online interaction.
The initiative was recognized because, rather than relying on one-way communication from the company, participants are involved in planning and disseminating events and videos, helping to share the work and experiences of people involved with heavy machinery more broadly with society. It was also recognized for creating a forum for interaction across industry boundaries, driven by participants’ enthusiasm for heavy machinery through the community.
The award represents the first recognition of Hitachi Construction Machinery Group’s community activities, amid the group’s long record of receiving awards. Attention is expected to remain focused on the future development of these activities.