SMV became part of the Konecranes Group in 2004

On September 15, it was exactly a quarter of a century since Konecranes Lift Trucks was established.

In 1994, a pioneering team of nine industry experts – Hans Carlsson, Nils-Olof Larsson, Hans Matzner, brothers Conny and Roger Persson, Anders Sandström, Göran Skogsborn, Paul Westergren and Olle Österlund – came together to buy a local manufacturing company in Silverdalen, in south-east Sweden, where they produced their first reachstacker before moving to Markaryd in 1995. The Perssons are still with the company, but the other seven have since left.

Starting out as SMV (Silverdalens Mekaniska Verkstad, which translates as "Silverdale Mechanical Workshop"), the business became part of the Konecranes Group in 2004. It opened a factory in China in 2007, and in 2013, added Linde container handling to the organisation. In 2017, Konecranes acquired Terex MHPS, whose forklift business has brought Konecranes Lift Trucks substantial growth opportunities and the market leadership position they continue to hold today.

Since that first machine in the mid-1990s, Konecranes now produces lift trucks in Sweden, China and France, and has sold nearly 10,000 units across 120 countries.

"Since the acquisition of Lift Trucks, the business has become an integral part of Konecranes’ operations and success, helping to expand our company’s global footprint and setting the standard for production excellence and technology leadership," says Panu Routila, CEO of Konecranes. "I look forward to more growth and critical contributions from Lift Trucks in the future."

Konecranes Lift Trucks will mark the anniversary on September 20 with small ceremonies at each of their key sites around the world.