By Christine Liew

Forklift industry members worldwide say there is a shortage of maintenance personnel, technicians and good salespeople in the industry.

Henry Whitney, president of Argentine marketing company Marketeck SA, told Forkliftaction.com News most South American forklift distributors suffered a "serious shortage of maintenance personnel".

"One distributor said 'I have five service vehicles but rarely have more than four out on the road because I can't get experienced mechanics to go out without supervision.' He said he has plans to purchase and equip two more service vehicles but has put off buying them for fear of not being able to man them."

Whitney said forklift salesmen were scarce because, for many, forklift sales was "just a job, not a career".

Forkliftaction.com News South of the Border columnist Rolf Slobotzky said Mexico was especially short of technicians for electric forklifts.

"There are so many innovations coming out [for] controls and systems.

"On the other hand, there is a question of what comes first - the chicken or the egg? Most times salespeople put new models in the market and then start to worry where to get a technician familiar with the new system."

Slobotzky said there was also a shortage of salespeople. "If you have a good one, keep him happy. Meanwhile, try to train young guys. One out of three will work out, but then you multiply your training costs by three."

US big forklift manufacturer Taylor Machine Works vice president for operations Robert Taylor agreed there was a shortage of maintenance personnel and technicians."Sales[men] you can find but good salesmen are tough to come by.

"Experienced engineers are definitely tough [to find] in our area in Mississippi. We have found the only way for Taylor to get the right engineers is to get young guys and train them the Taylor way," he said.

Jungheinrich AG corporate communications spokesperson Wolfgang Fessel said the German manufacturer also recruited young people.

"We train our own junior staff in-house and in co-operation with universities. The young people work half the time and go to college or university the other half. They earn money during their studies and Jungheinrich does not lose contact with them."

Fessel said the company was in a "good position" because it had hired "highly qualified" engineers contracyclically in 2002 and 2003. He said the company's flexible work times, good work culture and career advancement opportunities were attractive to employees.

"Most Jungheinrich employees stay in the company once they have entered it. The average length of employment is more than 14 years."

Carlo Fallarini, sales and marketing director of Bolzoni Auramo Group, said forklift dealers told the Italian forklift attachment maker that hiring a good service engineer was "always a headache; a high cost but an investment".

He said Bolzoni was in a different situation after acquiring Auramo, Brudi and, more recently, Meyer (Forkliftaction.com News #281).

"Thanks to the acquisitions, we have on board many experienced, skilled people in the field of forklift attachments ... especially in technical areas like engineering, manufacturing and quality."

UK-based Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA) chief executive David Ellison said the situation in the UK would be similar to Europe. In May 2006, Forkliftaction.com News reported the FLTA was promoting forklift engineering as an exciting career option. The initiative was a response to the aging forklift workforce in the UK (Forkliftaction.com News #260).

Doosan Infracore Europe SA sales & marketing manager Daniel Vanhemelrijck said that, in his opinion, the skills shortage problem was not new.

"When I discussed with national dealers all over Europe, many complain about difficulties finding technical staff as well as sales. [They] are even more difficult to keep once you have found them.

"This trend will probably get worse in the future [as] forklifts become more and more sophisticated," he said.

Do you experience a similar problem in your country? Make use of the Forkliftaction.com Jobs & Resumes section to advertise jobs or recruit employees.