UK-based drilling company Dando Drilling International is now an agent for the Furukawa range of hydraulic crawler drills and tooling.

Japanese company Furukawa Rock Drill's roots stretch almost as far as those of Dando, with the company established in 1875 following the opening of the Kusakura copper mine. In 1900 Furukawa opened a manufacturing facility to build its own mining equipment and was eventually split into three divisions, with the Furukawa Rock Drill Company beginning to sell worldwide. Since then, the division has produced over 35,000 crawler and jumbo drills from its two manufacturing facilities.

Sales account manager Callum Mee commented: "We believe their [FRD's] experience combined with that of Dando's results is a winning combination. Dando now has a range of high-quality and technically advanced equipment ideally suited to the quarrying industry; we are very proud to be able to bring these products to the UK market."