Fri June 15, 2018 - National Edition Katherine Devlin – CEG Editorial Assistant

In the early 1980s, Umberto Acco, an entrepreneur and owner of a civil construction company in Portogruaro, northern Italy, received a job that would require his company to build a custom crawler dozer and motor grader.

The machines needed to be big — really big — and were intended to be used on a project that involved moving earth — lots of earth — in large, desert areas.

While many components of the dozer had to be custom made, including the blade, Acco used mainly Caterpillar parts to build what has become known as 'Super Dozer'— the world's largest bulldozer.

As of 2018, it also is the most powerful tracked dozer ever made.

The specs for the more-than-40-ft., 183-ton crawler dozer are dizzying. Two 8-cylinder, 675 hp Caterpillar diesel engines combine for a 1,350 hp output. The blade measures 23 ft. wide and 9 ft. high. The rear ripper (a claw-like device) measures 10 ft. and is powered by hydraulic rams.

The tracks were custom made by Berco. The transmission operates through two drive sprockets for each track to create torque generated from the engines. The brakes and control mechanisms are operated hydraulically. This massive piece of iron was the only one of its kind produced.

For comparison, Caterpillar's largest model, the D11 dozer, is 115 tons, 35.8 ft. long, 14.9 ft. wide, had a 22 ft. blade and operates at 850 hp.

The world's largest production dozer is Komatsu's D575A 168-ton, 1,050-hp dozer. This machine measures 38 ft. 5 in. long, 24 ft. 3 in. wide and has a 11 ft. 11 in. blade.

The world's biggest motorgrader also was created in 1980 for the same project. It had two engines: the 700 hp front end articulated from the 1,000 hp rear end. It measured more than 24 ft.; weighed 200 tons; had a 33 ft. blade; and had a total of 12 tires — two per hub.

While in storage, the machine became a tourist attraction. It did not survive its time in storage and has been dismantled and sold for scrap.

The dozer and motorgrader were to be used for a massive earthmoving project in Libya. It is unclear whether the machines were to be used for a pipelaying project or for other land-development but just as the dozer was completed, Colonel Gaddafi encountered an embargo by the United Nations, which included trade restrictions. The ACCO dozer and motorgrader could not be shipped to Libya.

The dozer was operated only once on a job in southern Italy. However, the cost of transporting it was prohibitive and both machines were placed in storage and maintained at the factory where they were built.

Umberto Acco passed away in 2006 without appointing successors to the company. The decision was made not to continue with Acco's innovations and the business was shuttered. The property became a dumping ground for various earthmoving machines, including the giant dozer and motorgrader.

In 2012, an old friend and neighbor of Acco, Dino e Rino Valerio, who also is a collector of historic vehicles, saved the dozer from demolition. He purchased the monster machine and arranged for heavy transport to a new location. Although Valerio passed away in 2012, today the dozer is safely stored and on display with the rest of his collection for public viewing at the family's Bejaflor nursery.

Sources for this article include:

facebook.com/AccoDozer/?ref=page_internal; en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acco_super_bulldozer; forums.dhsdiecast.com/default.aspx?g=posts&t=120813; acmoc.org/bb/showthread.php?27525-The-ACCO; translate.google.com/translate?hl=en&sl=it&u=http://www.portogruaro.net/news/scheda.php%3Fcategoria%3D14%26news%3D30377&prev=search; khplant.co.za/blog/article/world%E2%80%99s-largest-motor-graders

Case Launches Minotaur DL550 Compact Dozer Loader

Volvo CE to Showcase Machine, Services Innovation in Immersive Experience at ConExpo-Con/AGG 2023

Kubota Awards $600,000 in 'Kubota Hometown Proud' Grants Nationwide

AEM Applauds Passage of Historic Investment in Domestic Semiconductor Production

Yanmar Compact Equipment Promotes Maintenance Kits for Convenient Servicing

Maine Hospital's Continuing Expansion Could Soon Get $2M Funding Boost

Tips for Minimizing Impact of Rising Fuel Prices

West Side Tractor Announces New Hires, Promotions

Construction Equipment Guide 470 Maryland Drive Fort Washington, PA 19034 800-523-2200

Construction Equipment Guide covers the nation with its four regional newspapers, offering construction and industry news and information along with new and used construction equipment for sale from dealers in your area. Now we extend those services and information to the internet. Making it as easy as possible to find the news and equipment that you need and want.

Contents Copyrighted 2022, by Construction Equipment Guide, which is a Registered Trademark, registered in the U.S. Patent Office. Registration number 0957323. All rights reserved, nothing may be reprinted or reproduced (including framing) in whole or part without written permission from the publisher. All editorial material, photographs, drawings, letters, and other material will be treated as unconditionally assigned for publication and copyright purposes and are subject to Construction Equipment Guide’s unrestricted right to edit and comment editorially. Contributor articles do not necessarily reflect the policy or opinions of this publication. Read our privacy policy here.