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Dear reader, WELCOME TO FORKLIFTACTION.COM, MATERIALS HANDLING ONLINE. This is issue #297 - 15 February 2007 of the weekly newsletter for industry professionals. |
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 “US President visits Caterpillar” |
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US forklift industry steady and shifting  Sales statistics on the US forklift industry show little change from last year. But, inside the forklift industry, in terms of business savvy and consumer patterns, there is a shift. Read more 
South African forklift sales double in five years PRETORIA, South Africa Forklift sales in South Africa have more than doubled since 2001, a materials handling company has found. Truck manufacturer and forklift distributor Nissan Diesel South Africa (NDSA) is 80 per cent owned by Nissan Diesel Motor Company, in Japan, and 20 per cent by the Mitsui Corporation. It holds a 12.6 per cent share of the South African truck market. Late last year, NDSA began distributing forklifts, a Nissan statement said. NDSA research & planning general manager Rory Schulz told Engineering News forklift and truck sales were linked. “The forklift market is linked to the truck market. With the economy as good as it is at the moment, there is an increase in the tonnage being moved, which means more forklifts are being used to load and offload goods.” Schulz said forklift sales totalled 3,057 units in 2001. In 2004, 3,591 units were sold and, in 2006, the figure more than doubled to 6,803 units, an increase of 11.7 per cent on 2005 forklift sales of 5987. He said 2007 sales could reach 7,890. Last August, Nissan Forklift, a division of NDSA, was named exclusive distributor and marketer of Nissan forklift products in South Africa. They include diesel, petrol and LPG models, counterbalanced electric units, three-wheel electrics and electric reach trucks, and TO/ V02 series tow tractors. Since August, 86 forklifts have been sold, the statement said. Nissan executive vice president operations Frans Cloete said the heavy truck distributor was keen to add forklifts to its business. “We are a broad spectrum supplier of medium, heavy and extra-heavy commercial vehicle segments of the truck market, and now we have proudly added Nissan Forklift to our product offering. We will be working hard to enhance our service network nationwide,” she said. Schulz told Engineering News forklifts used in South Africa were fully imported and there were about 10 forklift importers in the country. NDSA said it hoped to introduce forklift models such as reach trucks and pallet stackers into its operation. The Nissan range was on show at the Auto Africa Expo 2006, held in Johannesburg in October/November last year.  President Bush praises Caterpillar PEORIA, Il, United States President George W Bush has visited Caterpillar’s manufacturing facility in East Peoria, Illinois, and commended Caterpillar for demonstrating that US companies could “successfully compete on the world stage”. A Caterpillar statement said President Bush was “impressed with the quality of Cat machines and with the American workers who built them”. Bush talked about how communities like Peoria contributed to the strength of the American economy. Caterpillar vice president operations division Bob Williams was delighted. “Today's presidential visit was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our employees. Many of our employees got to meet the President and he praised them for their hard work building Caterpillar's signature product, the track-type tractor. These machines are the workhorse behind some major construction projects. They are a strong export product for our company.” Caterpillar chairman and CEO Jim Owens said Caterpillar had benefited from US government policies. "The US and global economies have benefited from the President's pro-growth tax and free trade policies, which have stimulated strong economic growth. I thank ‘team Caterpillar’ for representing the competitive American spirit and positioning our company to take advantage of the opportunity created.” He said Caterpillar exported more than USD10 billion in machines and products made at the East Peoria facilities in 2006, a company record. Caterpillar reported 2006 sales and revenues of USD41,517 billion and a profit of USD3,537 billion, an increase from 2005 of USD683 million due to “strong cash flow to fund growth in capacity, aggressive new product development, completion of the acquisition of Progress Rail and a USD3 billion stock buy-back”. The Caterpillar statement said despite a sharp decline in two key North American industries, on-highway truck engines and US housing, and an expected reduction in dealer inventories, it was projecting another record year in 2007.  Dutch warehouse wins safety award BERGEN, Netherlands DHL Exel Supply Chain, a logistics warehouse operation in The Netherlands, has been awarded ‘Safest Warehouse of 2006’ after its safety initiatives were judged “best integrated into the daily operation”. DHL distributes Ricoh copy machines in Europe. A Dutch safety jury chose DHL from a field of 14. They praised DHL’s use of separate aisles for order picking and reach trucks. Separate lanes were provided for mobile transport vehicles and pedestrians. Truck drivers could watch while their trucks were loaded, provided they remained within a blue circle marked on the side of the docks. A statement said the aisle separation meant more space was required in the order picking area and that had been costly, but DHL had been happy to cover the costs. Judges noted DHL’s high level of order and tidiness. Every machine, from scissor-lifts to forklifts, had its own place in the warehouse. “There are cleaning stations and lists everywhere on which cleaning jobs can be ticked off,” the statement said. Warehouse manager Ralph Hendrix was “ecstatic” about the prize. The judging criteria were prevention of accidents and damage; presence of a traffic plan; presence of appropriate tools and infrastructure; execution of safety inspections; presence of an emergency plan; and adequate training and education for all staff. DHL won a certificate and a cash prize of EUR5,000 that must be spent on strengthening workplace safety.  Linde Material Handling North America at 2007 MCPX Concrete Show, Orlando. FL. Linde MH NA will participate in the 2007 MCPX Concrete Show in Orlando, Florida on February 22nd - 24th 2007 at the Orange County Convention Center. Linde will feature its unique hydrostatic IC truck series 394 and 353 Please come and see us at Exhibition Booth No.1677. Click here to visit the Linde ShopFront.  Mitsubishi expands in the UK OLDHAM, United Kingdom One of Mitsubishi Forklift Trucks’ UK dealerships has opened another premises due to customer demand. Lancashire Fork Truck Services (LFTS), a dealer in Oldham, UK, said it had increased its sales team and opened a new dealership in Blackburn. LFTS sales director Brian Connor said the move was strategic. “We wanted to have a more obvious presence in the northern half of Lancashire. With our rapid-response mobile units, service engineers can get to callouts quickly, wherever they are, but it’s good to have a place up there where we can easily store and demonstrate forklifts.” The new facility includes offices, a workshop, and a parts store. It houses a fleet of new and rebuilt forklifts for sale, rental and hire, a statement said. Forklifts delivered to California government BALTIMORE, Maryland, United States Marina forklift manufacturer Wiggins Lift Company, based in California, has delivered three W520Y RoRo forklifts to California’s Metropolitan Transport Commission (MTC). Wiggins is a family-owned manufacturer of rough terrain and special application industrial forklifts. It specialises in the boat handling, stevedoring, agriculture, construction and mining industries. Wiggins celebrates 50 years in business this year and has been manufacturing forklifts for more than 36 years. The Wiggins RoRo forklifts were designed for MTC’s RoRo operation at Baltimore’s Dundalk Marine Terminal. They had to be capable of handling steel products and project cargoes. The Wiggins W520 RoRo has a lift capacity of 52,000lbs at a 36-inch load centre, a removable counterweight and a quick disconnect carriage for when different lift attachments are required. The removable counterweight allows the forklift to be lifted into vessel hatches by average capacity ships’ gear or dockside cranes, a statement said. Wiggins has a European office, Wiggins Lift Company Europe, in Newcastle-upon-Tyne in the UK.  IMHX (International Materials Handling Exhibition) is only four weeks away !!! With IMHX (International Materials Handling Exhibition) only four weeks away now is the time to register for your ticket to the UK’s leading logistics events. Taking place at the NEC Birmingham, 13-16th March, IMHX will showcase thousands of products and services from the handling, storage and logistics industries. We have challenged our exhibitors to present their ideas to help visitors minimise costs, maximise efficiency and reduce risks. By visiting IMHX you can make your logistics operations more efficient and cost-effective. Register now On-line Registration couldn't be simpler. To secure your free ticket simply click Register Now and complete the online registration form or visit our website at www.imhxonline.com Click here to visit IMHX ShopFront. Hoist sails into marina market ILLINOIS, United States Illinois-based Hoist Liftruck Manufacturing has entered the international marina market after delivering two Neptune marina forklifts to a marina company in the UK. Hoist’s Neptune M220 forklifts have been delivered to MDL Marinas at Cobb’s Quay, in Dorset, and Hamble Point Marina, in Southampton, UK. A Hoist statement said the deal “signified a successful entrance into the international marina market for Hoist and its marina forklift”. The Neptune series was released in the US last February. About 75 per cent of the machines are manufactured at Hoist’s Illinois factory, with outside components supplied by North American vendors, the statement said. More than 20 Neptune forklifts were sold last year. Neptune forklifts’ lifting capacities are between 15,000lbs and 52,000lbs with a 96-inch load centre. They have 20-foot forks, Cummins 5.9L diesel engines and flip-open hoods and steps. The Neptune forklifts for MDL will have a different colour scheme from the standard blue and yellow. They will be navy blue with black masts and carriages, the statement said. There are about 50 Hoist dealerships in the US that distribute all forklift series, including the Neptune. Locators Ltd is the exclusive Hoist Neptune series dealer in the UK and Europe. The statement said exclusive Hoist and/or Neptune dealerships in other countries were being discussed.  South African forklift company reports strong growth JOHANNESBURG, South Africa South African-based forklift business Goscor Lift Truck Company (GLTC) has reported strong sales growth in 2006. GLTC is a division of the Goscor Group of Companies, an engineering, materials handling and cleaning equipment distributor, established in 1984. GLTC has operated since 1984 and is the sole South African distributor of Crown and Daewoo products. It has distributed Crown forklifts for more than 20 years and has branches in Johannesburg (head office), Gauteng, Kwazulu-Natal, Port Elizabeth, Cape Town and Nelspruit. In 2006, Goscor sold more than 500 Crown units, a statement said. “After the first 10 years of success with Crown, Goscor added Daewoo, now Doosan. Since the introduction of Doosan, Goscor has grown its market share in a very competitive market. The market share in electric units is 28 per cent and 10 per cent in IC units, giving us a total market share of 15 per cent,” the statement said. It said the 500 Crown units sold were very narrow aisle forklifts, reach trucks, counterbalanced forklifts and powered pallet trucks. They were supplied to Spar, Makro and Pick ‘n Pay “to name a few”. Pick ‘n Pay placed an order for 155 units for its new distribution centre. Goscor’s Western Cape managing director John Petrie said sales increases prompted his distributorship to leave its 400 square metre premises last October and move to a warehouse four times that size in Parow industrial estate. Petrie said there had been keen interest in Crown’s TSP 6000 series pallet, counter-balanced forklifts and “the Wave”. The Wave Work Assist Vehicle, manufactured by Crown Equipment Corp in the US, is an electric vehicle that can elevate an operator at heights up to 17 feet and has a zero turning radius. “Until Crown developed the Wave, workers struggled to manually carry boxes, equipment or tools from one place to the other. Now the dangers of using ladders and workers climbing on boxes, racks and shelves can be avoided," Petrie said. The statement said: “Goscor also competes in the diesel-powered forklift sector with Doosan Daewoo heavy duty machines and its Goslift series. The Goslift series is pallet trucks sourced from China for sole distribution in the South African market.” GLTC has dealers in Pietersburg, Bloem, East London, Botswana and Swazi Land. The statement said the South African distribution market included South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It was “normally cheaper to buy from South Africa and have product shipped to neighbouring countries than having products imported to African operations from international destinations, such as Europe or the US”. Visit FORKLIFTACTION.COM at IMHX: Hall 20 – Booth 20B135 Birmingham, United Kingdom, is getting ready for the internationally acclaimed materials handling exhibition IMHX. The exhibition takes place at NEC Birmingham, 13-16th March. Come and meet with Stephen Burford at the Forkliftaction.com stand: Hall 20 – Booth 20B135, in between Speedshield (20B134) and Meijer (20C130), only metres away from Still (20C100), Aisle Master (20B111), MHIA (20D130) and Europart (20D131). Stephen is keen to meet with you. Take a few minutes to browse our web pages, tell us your news, read the newsletter or search used equipment listed in the Marketplace. Why not set up a meeting with Stephen? He’ll come and see you at your stand or welcome you at our stand: email info@forkliftaction.com to arrange a personal meeting. Briefs Yale wins large UK order COVENTRY, UK Yale UK has won a deal to supply more than 40 forklifts to transport and logistics company GEFCO. GEFCO, Groupages Express de Franche Comté, is a European automobile company founded in 1949. Its 2005 turnover was EUR3,000 million, a statement said. Yale will supply IC counterbalanced models from the Veracitor series in 2.0-tonne to 3.0-tonne capacities, pedestrian-operated pallet trucks and several three-wheel electric counterbalanced trucks. The statement said numerous suppliers bid for the deal. “GEFCO’s decision to choose Yale was based on key criteria, including feedback from depot managers and truck operators, the level of supplier service support and cost,” it said. The fleet deal is a five-year contract and the forklifts will be used to move high volumes of goods “around the clock”. Yale Europe designs and manufactures forklifts from sites in Italy, the Netherlands, Northern Ireland and Scotland. Yale has forecast “significant increases in sales across Europe in 2007”. BT diaries BT Europe has updated its BT Lifter Diaries after 40 BT lifter hand trucks have been operating in Europe since last September. BT dispatched 40 LHM230 trucks to 18 european countries to work free for new and existing customers. Oscar, in France, has been order-picking at a warehouse where owner Jeff de Bruges said he appreciated the hand truck’s light weight and how quickly the forks lifted. At one of Poland’s largest freight-forwarding companies, Tytan has been unloading trucks and “earning praise” for being reliable and easy to use. Arni, also in Poland, has been working at chilled food supplier Eskimos, working in minus 24 degree temperatures. E-Liza is in Romania loading and unloading and order-picking. Operators remarked on her stability when working on ramps. In Spain, Altamira has been working in a porcelain factory taking lacquered pots to the furnace and handling finished boxed dishes in the warehouse. Desktop forklift delivers cappuccinos A remote-controlled forklift, no bigger than your hand, is the latest “hot gadget” from an online gadget shop. The mini forklift has rear wheel steering, six-way movement, lifting and lowering forks, forward drive tyres and top-tilt and anti-tipping features. The desktop forklift can deliver a Coke, a cappuccino or a calculator. It retails for USD19.90 without batteries or USD23.90 with batteries. The Hong Kong-based online shop sells small toys, including the world’s smallest helicopter, which is listed in the Guinness Book of Records.
Crown celebrates 10,000th rental forklift SYDNEY, NSW, Australia Crown Equipment Pty Ltd’s forklift rental fleet has reached 10,000 units. A Crown statement said the rental fleet reached 10,000 units last October and included electric, diesel and petrol forklifts, pallet movers, stackers, IC forklifts and stock-pickers. It said Crown’s rental business operated from 24 company owned national branches. Crown general manager rentals Steve Takacs said the rental system was an important part of the business. “Being flexible with our rental fleet has been a major factor in the growth of our rental business. Now that we have expanded the fleet to more than 10,000 units, we can be even more flexible,” he said. “People often think of rental trucks as beaten-down old units, but that is certainly not the case with Crown’s fleet. We offer new models or those that are only a few years old.” The statement said Crown maintained the forklift fleet and had more than 280 service vehicles operating in Australia stocked with about 2,000 individual spare parts. Crown achieved response times of less than two hours in 90 per cent of fleet maintenance situations.  Send this newsletter to an associate
Dealers wanted – Microlift targets worldwide market! Microlift Co. Limited, a leading manufacturer of high-quality forging forks and rolled bar forks, is looking to expand it's dealer network. Click here for the full text of this release, including pictures. Watts Tyres to invest in Mexican distributor Watts Tyres Plc has today announced the completion of a majority shareholding purchase of one of Mexico’s largest industrial tire dealers. UK Tires SA has represented Watts in Mexico for many years and is successfully developing the market place. The new venture will trade as Watts Mexico. Click here for the full text of this release, including pictures.
RAEDER-VOGEL – innovative high-quality wheels and castors for the forklift industry Click here for more information on this product, including pictures.
Thousands download new forklift safety standards WASHINGTON DC, United States The Industrial Truck Standards Development Foundation (ITSDF) says more than 10,000 copies of its B56 series of standards dealing with forklift safety have been downloaded from its website. Click here for the full Fork Talk feature, including pictures.
The future is already here How many of us have come to depend on the wonderful world of technology for both our safety and convenience? There are systems on the market today that can do just about everything. Click here for the full Safety First feature, including pictures.  |
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