Mitsubishi Nichiyu Forklift Co Ltd, the company that has merged the forklift operations of Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Ltd (MHI) and Nippon Yusoki Co Ltd (Nichiyu), wants to be in the world's top three largest forklift manufacturers.
The new company, which started operations this month, has listed worldwide expansion as one of its priorities. It will form an "agile and resilient" business structure to enable it to respond quickly to the rapidly changing global forklift market.
Through a spin-off of MHI's forklift business integrated into Nichiyu, the new company is capitalised at JPY4.89 billion (USD52.7 million) and headquartered in Nagaokakyo City in Kyoto Prefecture, where Nichiyu's head office is located
(Forkliftaction.com News #604). Operations will commence with about 5,000 employees and Hideaki Ninomiya, the current president of Nichiyu, is the first president of the new entity.
The new company now has an enhanced product line-up, which was limited under the previous partnership between the two companies.
In June 2007, MHI became Nichiyu's largest shareholder
(Forkliftaction.com News #313), and in April 2009, the two companies merged their Japanese sales operations to jointly establish a company named Nichiyu MHI Forklift Co Ltd, which is now part of the new company.
MHI and Nichiyu have had partnerships for over 40 years, benefiting from each other's strengths. Nippon Yusoki, which produces Nichiyu forklifts, is ranked number two in the Japanese electric forklift market while MHI is stronger in the global market with its internal combustion forklifts.
Other synergies include the sharing and optimisation of sales routes, efficient development of products matching market needs, and optimisation of raw material procurement and production.
The two companies will pool their global management resources to enable Mitsubishi Nichiyu to succeed as a top-tier manufacturer. Nichiyu will contribute its technological capabilities, marketing skills and strong service network for forklifts and other logistics equipment cultivated over the years and the new entity will benefit from MHI's comprehensive group capabilities.
MHI, headquartered in Tokyo, Japan, is one of the world's leading heavy machinery manufacturers, with consolidated sales of JPY2,820 billion (USD30.2 billion) in fiscal 2011, the year ended March 31, 2012. Nippon Yusoki became the first Japanese company to manufacture electric forklifts in 1939. Its forklifts are manufactured in Kyoto and Shiga, and Shanghai, China.