By Anshel Pfeffer, Haaretz – 11 Mar 2009
Although the Armament Corps is generally responsible for maintaining combat vehicles, much of the work on the Caterpillar D9 armored bulldozer is being done by the company that represents Caterpillar in Israel because it is so complex.
“We work with the IDF very closely,” said Yossi Smira, director of Zoko Shiluvim, which owns the Israeli company that supplies the armored bulldozer. “During Operation Cast Lead and before, during the Second Lebanon War, our staff essentially volunteered, and were nearly at the front in order to care for the equipment. Sometimes they risked their lives.” The D9 is made by Caterpillar in the United States, but the IDF version is procured from ITE, a local company that sells tractors and other such equipment.
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