Spanish global manufacturer Roquet Hydraulics supplies a wide range of hydraulic components and systems to major OEMs in the construction, agriculture, mechanical handling and transport sectors around the world.

The company’s portfolio comprises cylinders, gear pumps and motors, control valves and castings. In the construction sector, Roquet develops products largely for compact equipment, including mini excavators, skid steer loaders, compact track loaders and compact wheel loaders. It also provides solutions for telehandlers.

During a recent press event, Roquet said 51.30% of its sales in 2023 came from construction applications, followed by agriculture with 32.94%. In total, the company produces up to 700,000 cylinders, 100,000 pumps and motors and up to 500,000 spools per year. It has different manufacturing plants – located close to Barcelona, Spain (the company’s headquarters and four production plants); in Ploiești, Romania (one cylinder production plant); and one commercial office in Atlanta, USA.

Founded in 1940, Roquet today has a global workforce of about 800 people, selling its products in over 30 countries across five continents to OEMs as well as dealers. The company is also active in the construction and agriculture sectors in Asia, with a warehousing facility in Bangkok, Thailand.

Components for tough applications

Roquet cylinders have been designed for demanding applications. The majority of the cylinders feature case-hardened rods with extremely high corrosion resistance. Tubes are honed after welding ports, which contributes to long seal life and makes piston-over-port damping an option. 

Roquet also manufactures aluminium and cast-iron bodied gear pumps and motors. All covers are cast-iron (from the company’s own foundry) which reduces noise, increases life and makes possible in-built valves for speed control, etc. In addition, Roquet offers various mobile hydraulic control valves and new valves for specific mobile OEM applications. 

Apart from its three main product lines, Roquet also develops valves and systems for specific applications where experience with a variety of different hydraulic components can be combined to offer an interesting solution. These include levelling valves, agricultural marker valves, compact power-packs and electro-hydraulic actuators, among others.

R&D is another priority at Roquet. The company’s current research is focused on ‘smart’ components/systems and increased energy efficiency. In recent years, it has completed the following projects:

• Four-year design-for-life research project which led to substantial reduction in raw material (cylinders).

• Three-year research project to increase energy efficiency and reduce environmental impact (castings for pumps and control valves).

• Three-year research project to improve reliability and increase energy efficiency of gear pumps and motors.

Note: SEAC visited Roquet’s facility in June 2024, as part of a press event organised by ANMOPYC in collaboration with ICEX (the Spanish Institute for Foreign Trade). This story has also been published in the Nov/Dec 2024 issue of SEAC. Click here to read it online or here to download the PDF file, on pages 50-51.