Press Release
KION Group to conclude restructuring of Linde Material Handling's
container handler and heavy truck business in October 2013
 Consultation period regarding potential closure of Merthyr Tydfil site ended
 Production will cease at Merthyr Tydfil during Oct 2013
 Linde Material Handling will transfer heavy truck production
to contract manufacturing facility
 Linde Material Handling will continue to offer container handling
and heavy forklift trucks worldwide
Wiesbaden, 23 May 2013 - The KION Group, the largest pure play manufacturer of
industrial trucks in terms of revenue, today announced, following a period of consultation,
the closure of its heavy truck production facility in Merthyr Tydfil (Wales, UK) by the end
of October 2013. The reorganisation forms part of its continuing efforts to further improve
the efficiency of its European production network.
Production of the Linde Material Handling heavy forklift trucks will be mainly transferred
to a contract manufacturing facility in the Czech Republic during the coming months with
full production at the new facility timetabled for October 2013. In the area of container
handling trucks Linde Material Handling has already started a partnership with
Konecranes.
Linde Material Handling, which is wholly owned by KION Group, and its dealer network
will continue to sell a wide range of container handling products and heavy forklift trucks
to customers globally. The company will maintain the highest standards in quality, delivery,
performance and value - all standards that its customers are accustomed to.
The Merthyr Tydfil site employs 203 people in manufacturing, engineering, sales, service
and administration. The Group has agreed an appropriate loyalty and severance package
with the employees and their representatives and offers the opportunity to apply for
vacant positions at other sites to the employees affected.
KION is also committed to providing as much assistance as possible to employees
seeking alternative work or training.
The company
The KION Group - comprising the six brands Linde, STILL, Fenwick, OM STILL, Baoli

KION looking to float lets see if it is Hong Kong were they float

Looks like it will shut in October , try Sany for the Chinese who will buy it. KION will be gone in five years as it is now the Chinese will buy it and break it up or merg it into one of the Chinese companies. The people who own the Hydraulic business will take this out and leave KION with no real business only Germany and France. The Chinese will move into the new developing markets KION keep trying to tell every one they are doing well in.

anyone heard what chinese company are interested in buying the factory? australian firm as also been mentioned?still not confirmed we are shutting???

Looking at the job situation i hope the British Government support any company willing to move into Merthyr and create employment. There are a number of UK companies who could benefit from a good loyal work force. This should be a wake up call most companies given the chance will look after there home manufacturing plants. Its about time the UK Government stepped in to help

So true Wanderer, Most of the cash will spent on chopping half the worlds trees down to feed the back office printers with paper for WIP data to be sent out in the post, The data is wrong anyhow. oh plus the bill for the stamps and ink. What you have lost my time sheets again !!! Deffo finger pulling out time else we will be going the same way.

So sorry lads. some of the so called "cash rich" companies need to take note and get a grip on their chaotic "we've lost the paperwork" situation and the "you are currently in a que" situation............finger pulling out time!

Have to agree with dai. This is a classic case of mismanagement. This can either be in Germany or locally in Merthyr. The designers and the assembly workers can only do what they are told.

The statement from dai goes on about everything in the business being wrong from top to bottom. Isn't that is what management are expected to manage?

herd the 1401 and 1402 will go to eastern europe to be built

Any news on the Linde 1401?? Or 1402 for that matter? Very bad news for the container handlers going to Kone doubt the truck will be still on the market in the next few years Kone will take the best bits and decommission the production of the product so they take a better market position. Hope the lads at Merthyr get more than fair treatment over loosing they're jobs they should think back when the plant was booming when the old 353 was on the market, it's not the workforces fault that Linde pulled it to Germany like the other uk built high volume trucks Ie Basingstokes small counterbalance 392 and what happened to Basingstoke!!? Good luck lads you made a very high quality product lets hope that Germany can match it ;)

its utter madness that one of the best Machine going to die soon!!! who is responsible for that -Design?? Mismanagement??? at the end of the day its the work force ultimate sufferer!!
good luck and all the best!!!

Really sorry to here this guys... Total miss management has struck again... We have the best workforce in the world but alas the worst management to go with it.... utter madness.

And they wonder why the workforce doesn't believe a word they say and then say we are being militant.... All the best to you guys.

letter from european works council to management of kion gmbh.
position statement on the planned closure of merthyr.

gentlemen,
much to their regret,members of the EWC and the shop stewaeds of linde heavy truck didvision merthyr.the closure of the plant is dramatic in variuos respects.
1) many problems that have led to the closure of the site are attributed to grave management mistakes and shortcomings.these mistakes have been made in various areas in the heavy truck division.examples are design errors that have led to enormous warranty costs and the development of products that were not profitable and largly failed to fulfill market requirements.
due to lack of control from both basingstoke and aschaffenburg , the weakness in the accounting processes as well as "aggressive accounting" and a lack of honesty that were discovered by KPMG have been hused up for years.
substantial weaknesses in data processing , inventory management and logistics have repeatedly caused significiant losses.
mistakes in the organisation of work as described in the last KMPG study, i;e frequent changes of management personnel and managing directors,have not alloewed those in charge to identify and remedy problems in the past.what had made the overall situation was the fact that these managers and managing directors kept making the same mistakes.it is therefore particuarly tragicthat the workforce of merthyr now as to pay for those shortcomings with losing their jobs and risking thier livelihoods.

there is more but can't type no more. pracie it down to merthyr as all ready got double unemployment rate than the average for the UK.career opportunities in the region are very poor.
from me; this is a highly skilled workforce who as been let down from above. everything that as been asked of us we've done , from flexible banked hours to overtime to keep the trucks rolling out to customer's as been done.
now mr Frikse said we will be looked after but seems the redundancy pot is in favour of the people above us?someone in a shirt and tie is gonna get more for a few years over a grafter who has 20plus!!
moral is very low on the shop floor?? and yes we'll have forced banked hours thrown on us to fullil order's before they shut us!

Not good. Even sold off assets within the 90 day consultation period?and still they word memos if closure is confirmed? Post more tomorrow.

OOPS!!!!!

Does not look good for Merthyr

Best of luck lads.