Konecranes expands in North Africa
Hyvinkää, FinlandKonecranes has acquired port crane service company Techniplus SARL in Morocco.
This is Konecranes' first acquisition in North Africa. Techniplus has 120 employees and 2009 net sales of EUR7 million (USD9.7 million). The value of the acquisition is not disclosed.
Techniplus, a family-owned company, was founded in 1991. Its headquarters are in Casablanca and it has service branches in Agadir and Tangier. There are no changes to the staff and management. Techniplus was the distributor of Konecranes forklifts and port equipment in Morocco.
Cascade able to reduce borrowing rates
Fairview, OR, United StatesCascade Corp has lowered its interest rate and commitment fee obligations through amending a loan agreement with Bank of America NA and Union Bank of California NA.
"As our financial results have improved through recovery over the past three to six months, our borrowing rates have gone down," says Joseph Pointer, Cascade chief financial officer.
Cascade is utilising the available funds for its general line of credit.
Cascade filed the regulatory paperwork on 4 November including signatures from representatives for 11 domestic and foreign Cascade-related corporate entities.
Publicly traded Cascade is based in Fairview, manufactures materials handling load engagement devices and reported profit of USD3.2 million on sales of USD97.7 million for the three months ended 31 July. Those results reflect improvement from Cascade's loss of USD38.6 million on sales of USD314.4 million for the fiscal year ended 31 January.
Narrow Aisle's new identity
United KingdomNarrow Aisle Ltd will now be known as Flexi Narrow Aisle Ltd.
Company spokesman John Maguire says it made sense to make "Flexi" prominent in the company name as the Flexi range of articulated forklifts has been successful.
"For many people, the word 'Flexi' has become the generic term for articulated forklifts," Maguire says.
He explains that as the company has grown and turned global, it is now essential to have a clearly defined brand image. 'Flexi' will now be at the forefront of the company's global marketing material.
Doosan sees rebound in Latin America
Warrensville Heights, OH, United StatesIn Latin America, "the (forklift) market is coming back quicker than in North America," says Lyndle McCurley, manager of sales and marketing with Doosan Infracore America Corp of Warrensville Heights.
An indicator is a Mexico City end-user's order through a unit of Seoul, South Korea-based parent firm Doosan Group for 118 pneumatic-tyred LPG-powered forklifts, most with lifting capacities of 5,000 lbs (2,250 kg), McCurley says.
Doosan Infracore America held an early November meeting for South American and Central American dealers at the Château Élan Inn, a golf and tennis resort in Braselton, Georgia, near Atlanta. McCurley says 19 dealers and a total of 26 people attended the gathering.
Conference boasts comprehensive program
Milan, ItalyID World International Congress 2010, a symposium on security, traceability, mobility and wireless technology, will take place in Milan, Italy from 16-18 November.
Event director Federico Faleschini says the event program is very comprehensive, with over 150 speakers participating in 25 conferences. High-profile government representatives from five continents will speak over the three days on topics ranging from border control and secure identity management to citizen's services, hub security smart supply chains and sustainability.
For more information, go to
www.idworldonline.comFuel-cell forklift appears at energy conference
New York, NY, United StatesA hydrogen fuel-cell powered stand-up counterbalance forklift was on display during the Advanced Energy Conference in a New York hotel from 8-9 November.
The exhibition booth of the New York Battery and Energy Storage Technology Consortium Inc featured the Raymond model 4250.
In July, Raymond of Greene, New York introduced the model 4250 with ComfortStance-brand suspension. The GenDrive fuel cell from Plug Power Inc of Latham, New York is qualified to power the model.
The advanced energy research and technology centre, a public-private partnership at the State University of New York at Stony Brook, produced the conference, now in its fourth year. The public research university is located in Stony Brook, New York.
Global divisions go by common name
Milton, GA, United StatesThe new name for Exide Technologies' global industrial divisions is GNB Industrial Power.
CEO Jim Bolch says the change will strengthen the company as it "leverages the power of its global industrial businesses under one common name".
The changes affect the names of the global industrial divisions but not the types of products manufactured and marketed or any other aspects of the business.
 From left: Eric Zumbrun, David Geurts and Larry Lawrence |
Cascade sponsors top rodeo trophy
Springfield, OH, United StatesCascade Corp, a Fairview, Oregon-based maker of materials handling load engagement devices, sponsored the winning-team trophy in the 16th US Open Forklift Rodeo & Safety Expo.
David Geurts (centre), manager of Cascade's Springfield manufacturing plant, presented the trophy to the top two master forklift operators with the team winner KTH Parts Industries Inc of St Paris, Ohio. KTH's two-person A and B teams prevailed among nearly three dozen entrants in the rodeo.
KTH's Eric Zumbrun (left) was overall rodeo champion again, and KTH's Larry Lawrence (right) finished second in the individual competition from 29-30 October in Springfield.