Linde Material Handling is boosting Eastern European sales with a joint venture in Croatia.

Linde Material Handling has strengthened its sales business in Croatia after signing a joint venture agreement with Zagreb-based distributor TPZ doo that took effect on 1 March.

TPZ employs about 50 staff and has over 24 years of experience in the sales and service of forklifts and warehouse equipment. The joint venture, named TPZ Linde Forklifts Croatia doo, is based in the Croatian capital of Zagreb.

"Thanks to our clearly expanded capacity, we now have an excellent basis upon which to implement our long-term growth strategy," says Jens Menneke, Linde Material Handling's sales manager for Eastern and Southern Europe.

The joint venture will safeguard the distribution and servicing of Linde vehicles in Croatia. In the past, these tasks were the responsibility of Linde MH, carried out through subsidiary Linde Vilicari in Samobor.

Ivan Kutija, managing director of the joint venture company, says Linde had been successful in Croatia for decades, and hopes to expand on its success through better support and services for customers.

Linde Material Handling GmbH, based in Aschaffenburg, Germany and part of the KION Group, employs about 13,800 people worldwide and had an annual turnover of EUR2.856 billion (USD3.808 billion) in 2011.