Forklift News - RAPID 2001 EXPANSION FOR KALMAR INDUSTRIES

LJUNGBY, Sweden -- Kalmar Industries will acquire Dutch company NHC Holding BV, including Nelcon BV, which manufactures equipment including ship-to-shore cranes, mobile harbour cranes, rail-mounted gantry (RMG) cranes and straddles.

The acquisition also includes Nelcon's sister company Groot-Hensen, a servicing company.

NHC's annual turnover is about US$72 million, but neither company will disclose the price of the acquisition. The deal is subject to approval from competition authorities.

Kalmar says it will now be able to offer more comprehensive container handling solutions. And it expects improved in servicing capabilities.

Nelcon markets an innovative range of diesel-electric straddles worldwide.

Kalmar, which manufactures equipment in Sweden, Finland, and the US, specialises in rubber-tyred yard gantry cranes, reach stackers, lift trucks, terminal tractors and diesel-hydraulic straddles.

The companies' product ranges are a perfect fit, says Kalmar Industries president and CEO Christer Granskog.

"There is very little overlap between the products. Nelcon's RMG and SSC cranes fill gaps in the Kalmar range, while Nelcon's diesel-electric straddle sits comfortably alongside Kalmar's diesel-hydraulic machines," he said.

"In the case of straddle carriers, some terminal operators prefer diesel-hydraulic machines and others diesel-electric. Now, Kalmar will be the first supplier offering (both options), in the same way as we offer a choice between reach stackers and lift trucks."

Mr Granskog said Kalmar placed great emphasis on service, and saw Groot-Hensen, based in Rotterdam, one of the world's largest ports, as an excellent addition.

"Kalmar has won several major maintenance contracts recently, including a 34-machine deal in Marseille. We now have a substantial servicing and maintenance capability in the North German ports of Hamburg and Bremerhaven. Groot-Hensen, with its Rotterdam operation, completes our infrastructure along the North European coastline," Mr Granskog said.

Nelcon managing director Tom Kocken said there was a growing concentration in the container handling equipment market worldwide.

"We know Kalmar is determined to develop Nelcon. By giving Nelcon access to Kalmar's global sales and servicing network, we expect our Rotterdam-based operation to be clearly more competitive than before, especially in the straddle carrier and RMG sectors," Mr Kocken said.

Mr Granskog becomes chairman of the Nelcon supervisory board, while Mr Kocken continues as managing director of Nelcon BV.

Meanwhile, Kalmar has expanded its terminal automation range with the addition of Smartpath, an automation package for straddle carriers and reach stackers.

Smartpath is a real-time container positioning system which can be used in conjunction with yard planning and equipment systems in container parks.

It is a multi-sensor positioning unit, with an inbuilt Global Positioning System, augmented by vehicle-mounted sensors and a large colour display.

In normal operation, no data input is required. Container positions are automatically relayed to a central database when container twistlocks are released.

Kalmar says Smartpath will increase terminal productivity by being able to pinpoint containers at all times. Smartpath also provides real-time positioning of handling equipment.

The first Kalmar customer to introduce straddle carriers fitted with Smartpath will be the Port Authority of Jamaica, at its terminal in Kingston. Twelve new Kalmar straddles are being built with the system - fully integrated and installed during the manufacturing process.

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