A Customer Who Named His Company After a Cat® Dozer
July 16, 2024
Every Caterpillar customer’s story has a beginning. Still, perhaps none is more closely tied to the love of Cat® machines than DXT, a leading construction and civil engineering company in the Nordic region.
DXT co-owner Peter Hedendahl learned early in life to love Cat dozers, having begun work in his father’s construction business at a young age. One of Peter’s earliest childhood memories is sitting in the corner of a D7 cab alongside his dad, who was operating the machine.
In the Beginning.
“I began working for my father when I was around 16. In the 70s, he retired, and I took over the company. But it was only me. I was doing everything from forestry to gravel pits, roads, railroads, and even airports. I had two Cat machines – a D8 and a Cat 953 Track Loader,” Peter said. “I never thought I could buy a D10; it was a big piece of machinery for my work.”
Peter’s father, Royne Hedendahl circa late 1960s on his Cat® D7 17A.
Then, one evening in 2016, Peter’s career path took a turn. “A friend called me and said he had the opportunity to buy a D10T from a mining company going out of business in Northern Sweden. We got together, placed a bid on the machine and purchased it.”
Peter and his business partners named the new company DXT, a nod to the nomenclature for the beloved Cat D10T dozer that started it all.
DXT Today.
DXT’s company structure has changed over the years. But one thing that has never changed is Peter’s loyalty to Cat machines. Today, the company’s fleet consists of three D6s, three D8s, three D10s, and a Cat excavator and scraper.
Late last year, Peter and his dealer rep from Zeppelin made the 12-hour flight from Stockholm to see the latest addition to DXT’s family of Cat machines – the first Next Gen Cat D10 to be sold in Europe. As the group toured Building SS, in Peoria, Illinois, Peter was able to see his machine on the factory assembly line and sign the frame.
DXT’s Next Gen D 10 arrived in Stockholm last month and received a warm welcome at a celebration held at the local Zeppelin office.
Peter received the keys to the DXT Next Gen D10.
Why the Cat Brand?
When asked what about the Next Gen D10 made it the next obvious choice for DXT’s fleet, Peter exclaimed, “Everything!”
“The Cat dozers have always been very good. But every year, Caterpillar adds new things – technology, safety features and improved efficiency. The new machine is going to save a lot of fuel. Now, I can tell my customers that I have a brand-new dozer. It’s a most unique selling point.”
In addition to Cat equipment, DXT purchases Customer Value Agreements (CVAs) from Zeppelin. “That’s a very good thing,” Peter says with a smile. “Zeppelin is always very helpful and keeps my machines up and running.
“We are friends and family.”
