Forklift hirer SMH Ltd has reached an agreement with Italian forklift maker OMG-srl to exclusively import and distribute its warehouse forklifts in the United Kingdom.

SMH managing director Roy Fewster said the distributorship was a "very exciting" development for the company, which previously distributed Clark products, and ended an 18-month search for a supplier.

"We needed exclusive access to a range of warehousing equipment and ... although we were aware of the OMG range, we were looking at several manufacturers, keeping our options open," he said.

"It wasn't until the Hannover show (CeMAT, April 2002), where we saw the OMG trucks close-up and were able to compare them with other manufacturers, that we decided to progress further."

Mr Fewster said OMG had been looking for a partner in the United Kingdom, and SMH, with its existing dealers and large customers, was ideal.

OMG, based in Gonzaga, northern Italy, started producing forklifts in 1983. Its 70-model range includes reach trucks, four way reach trucks, rough terrain reach trucks, powered pallet trucks and stackers, order pickers, electric side-loaders and electric counterbalanced forklifts.