Kobelco to deploy remote operation tech for Ukraine reconstruction
26 June 2026
Kobelco Construction Machinery, based in Japan, signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the United Nations Development Programme to test its K-DIVE remote operation system at debris removal sites in Ukraine, with verification work scheduled to begin in October 2026.
Kobelco’s European headquarters in the Netherlands. Photo: Kobelco
K-DIVE combines remote operation of construction machinery with real-time operational data, allowing operators to work from a cockpit outside the machine.
The system is intended to address two specific challenges at Ukrainian debris removal sites: protecting operators from asbestos exposure in demolition debris and maintaining productivity amid labour shortages.
Kobelco demonstrated K-DIVE in Ukraine in October 2025 at an event organised by Japan’s Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism, which had established a bilateral infrastructure recovery platform in January 2025.
Under the MOU, Kobelco and its European subsidiary Kobelco Construction Machinery Europe will install machinery and remote-operation cockpits in Ukraine and provide operator training.
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