OKW12 vs OKW12Q vs OKW12ECO: Which Mini Excavator Fits Your Job?

At Nicosail, we build and configure the OKW12, OKW12Q and OKW12ECO for different site requirements. To help you choose, we start with the narrowest access point and the finished digging depth your job requires. Our published specifications list OKW12 and OKW12Q at 850 mm wide and 1,200 kg, and OKW12ECO at 933 mm wide and 1,150 kg. OKW12Q has the deepest published maximum digging depth at 1,850 mm. Tell us your site limits so we can check the configuration for your quotation. The factory-yard image above shows an OKW12Q-family configuration.

Compare our published specifications

These are the specifications we publish for the three models as of 22 September 2026. They help us narrow your options, but the engine, bucket and other choices can change the machine we quote. We will provide the technical sheet for the selected configuration and confirm its final specification in the quotation.

Which model can reach the work area?

When you tell us a machine must reach a restricted work area, we ask for the whole route: gate or doorway, turns, slopes, overhead obstacles and unloading space. A width that clears a straight opening alone does not tell us whether the machine can turn or work there.

Our model pages list OKW12 and OKW12Q at 850 mm wide and OKW12ECO at 933 mm. If you tell us the narrowest gate is 900 mm, we would rule out OKW12ECO on its listed width. The other two leave only 50 mm of nominal total clearance, which does not establish safe passage. We would also need to check irregular edges, turns, slopes and any attachment that must pass through the gate.

Height can change our recommendation too. We publish overall heights of 1,535 mm for OKW12, 1,520 mm for OKW12Q and 2,152 mm for OKW12ECO. If your route includes a low doorway or covered trailer, tell us so we can verify the machine’s travel configuration. We will confirm whether any canopy or other part is documented as foldable or removable for that configuration.

How much digging depth do you actually need?

Give us the required finished depth at the deepest point and the position from which the machine must work. The maximum digging depth in our specifications is a reference limit. It does not tell us how the machine will cover the entire trench, where spoil can be placed or how it will work on sloping ground.

Of our three models, OKW12Q has the deepest published maximum digging depth at 1,850 mm. We publish 1,787 mm for OKW12, which is 63 mm less, and 1,651 mm for OKW12ECO. We use those figures to screen candidates by depth, while checking the full working geometry before recommending a model. The figures alone do not establish digging speed or performance across your entire site.

For a 1,800 mm finished trench, OKW12Q’s published maximum is 50 mm above the target; the other two published maximums are below it. Those figures alone do not establish that any model can complete the job from the required working position. Send us the working position, bucket and ground conditions so we can check usable reach; your job may call for a larger model.

For a shallower job, we will compare access, bucket and transport needs with you before recommending a model. For more on maximum depth and trench planning, see our mini excavator digging-depth guide.

Does the smaller bucket make OKW12ECO the wrong choice?

Not necessarily. We publish a 0.018 m³ bucket capacity for OKW12ECO and 0.025 m³ for both OKW12 and OKW12Q. We would not use bucket capacity alone to promise hourly output, digging force or fuel use. Soil, bucket type, hydraulic performance, working cycle and operator conditions all matter.

Tell us which bucket and attachments you plan to use. For an auger, breaker or grapple, we will check the coupler, hydraulic flow, pressure and return arrangement for that exact combination. We publish 7.6 kW rated power for all three models; that does not mean every ordered machine has the same engine or hydraulic package.

How we shortlist a model for your site

• Restricted gate: We compare the route with our listed widths of 850 mm for OKW12 and OKW12Q and 933 mm for OKW12ECO. We also ask about attachments, turns and unloading space.
• Deeper trench: We compare your finished depth and working position with each model’s published maximum and allow for a practical digging margin.
• Low overhead obstacle: We check the documented travel height of the configuration we would quote. Our overall height figures are lower for OKW12 and OKW12Q than for OKW12ECO.
• Towing or loading limit: We list OKW12ECO at 50 kg less operating weight than the other two, then check the complete transport load and local rules; see our guide to operating and shipping weight.
• Repeated bucket or attachment work: We confirm the quoted bucket, coupler and auxiliary hydraulics for the actual work cycle.

If one of our models misses a hard access or depth requirement, take it off the list. We can then provide configuration documents for the models that remain.

What to send us for a model recommendation

Send us one short job brief rather than only asking for a price:

1. The narrowest measured width and height on the route to the work area.
2. The required finished digging depth and any required horizontal reach.
3. The soil, slope, surface and space available for spoil and machine movement.
4. The main tasks and the bucket or hydraulic attachments you expect to use.
5. The loading method, trailer or container limits, and where the machine will be delivered.
6. The destination country, required machine documents and preferred engine or operator station, if applicable.

Compare our OKW12, OKW12Q and OKW12ECO pages, then send us your job brief. If none of these three meets a hard site limit, we can review the full mini excavator range with you. We will confirm the final specification, attachments, delivery scope and commercial terms in the quotation and purchase order.