NEWS

July/September 2001 Cranes & Access 7

We regret that publication ofthis issue of Cranes & Accesshas been delayed by staffillness. The next issue willreach you in the second weekof October. Please accept ourapologies for any inconve-nience caused.

It is with great regret thatwe also announce that KerenSall, who has been onextended sick leave, will notbe returning to her position asEditor of Cranes & Access.Keren has been unwell forsome time and has decidednot to return. We are now inthe process of appointing hersuccessor, but would like towish her a speedy and fullrecovery.

Vanson Cranes has appointedPlant Safety Ltd, a part ofNorwich Union, as its safetyconsultants. Trevor Vanson,managing director, said that theindependent inspectors will“oversee each erection processto ensure that our safety prac-tices are beyond reproach”. Headded that this will offer cus-tomers “the highest standards ofsafety in the crane industry” andgive “a valuable edge in a com-petitive marketplace”.

UpRight has reached agree-ment with all shareholders ofUpRight UK Limited toassume day-to-day control ofongoing operations. Thecompany says this “is expectedto bring clear advantages toUpRight’s customers in theUK, creating a more direct andefficient single-tier channelfrom the company’s produc-tion and distribution busi-nesses in the USA andEurope”. The move follows anearlier announcement thatFrank Huish, chairman ofUpRight UK had decided to

UpRight has extended itsrange of MB electric self-propelled mast booms withthe introduction of a thirdmodel, the 0.99 metre(3.25 feet) width version ofthe 8 metre (26 foot 3 inch)working height MB20.

retire at the end of July. Thecompany is now owned byUpRight, 3i, Tony Jenningsand Frank Huish.

John Mulhern and SteveCouling will form the core of anew management team forUpRight’s businesses in theUK, operating from Telford in

Direct UpRight Shropshire andLeighton Buzzardin Bedfordshire.

UpRight UKhas won theUpRight world-wide TopDistributor Awardfor the last six con-secutive years.UpRight aerialwork platforms andaluminium towersystems have beencontinuouslypresent in the UKmarket place for 43years.

Operations havemeanwhile com-menced atUpRight’s new,purpose-built35,000 squaremetre plant, office,warehouse andinternational visitorcentre on the out-skirts of Dublin.The facility has fivetimes the produc-tion capacity of theexisting plant indun Laoire.UpRight believesthat it will be “thelargest aerial workplatform produc-tion centre in theworld in terms ofbreadth of productrange and AWP

volume capability on one site.UpRight is continuing with

the expansion despite thecurrent difficulties faced by itsUS parent company whichrecently sought Chapter 11protection. Leigh Sparrow,UpRight senior vice presidentglobal sales said the companyis continuing with the invest-ment because “in spite of thedramatic slowdown in the USmarket at the moment, it isclear that the Europeanmarket has a long way to gobefore it reaches anywherenear maturity”.

NEWS

July/September 2001 Cranes & Access 9

News highlights● Access Platform Sales has just delivered three narrowboom Denka Lift DL22N units to Facelift.

● Baldwins Industrial Services PLC has announced theappointment of Andrew Somerville as Group Finance Director.

Cranesafe Ltd has moved toexpanded premises inGuildford, Surrey. Managingdirector Tim Rowley (pictured)says: “Growing concern overconstruction safety has led to arapid growth in sales”. Headded that the company’s newsystem rental service was prov-ing particularly popular withsmaller plant hire companiesand stressed that the SMIE anti-collision and crane zoning sys-tems continued to be popular.

A rare sight in London is this BPR GT215B tower crane belonging to FalconCrane Hire which has been erected on the Chrisp Street site in Poplar to lift avariety of structural components, building materials and equipment for DurkanConstruction and its sub-contractors. BPR was an independent French cranebuilder which became part of the Potain group some years ago. This particularmodel has been retrofitted with an Smie AC30 electronic control system fromCranesafe Limited to prevent it oversailing the nearby Docklands Light Railway.Falcon Crane Hire has nine Smie AC30 systems installed on a variety of cranes.

European Cranes has beenbought by Terex and is nowknown as Terex Cranes UKLimited. The new companyremains based at Bicester inOxfordshire and has retainedmost employees who are nowunder the direction ofNorman Purves, sales andoperations manager.

The company, which wasformerly owned and run byAlan Charlesworth and hisson Simon, provides sale andsupport for Terex PPM andFranna cranes in the UK. TheCharlesworth family has relin-quished its interests in thecompany.

“This new organisation has

been formed to continue thework already initiated byEuropean Cranes, howeverwe are better placed to growour market share with awholly owned Sales, Parts andService organisation” saidColin Robertson, president ofTerex Europe.

Terex has meanwhileannounced the UK launch ofthe new 35 tonne capacityPPM ATT400/3 with a new30.4 metre boom and 15metre fly jib. Just delivered isa Franna Pick and Carrycrane to Mead Crane Hire.The Australian built 14 tonnecapacity AT14 SB is now atwork in and around Dublin.

Terex goes direct

Panther Platform Rentals wasformed when Panther WorkPlatforms bought PlatformRentals. The company has justexpanded its range of accessequipment with the purchaseof Genie machines valued ataround £0.5 million. Includedin the order are scissor lifts andarticulating booms which willform part of a huge investmentbeing made into two newbranches in Basingstoke andKent.

“The takeover was not theresult of competition, more themarriage of two very strongleaders in their own particularcomplementary market seg-ments” says Richard Miller, adirector of the newly-brandedcompany. Panther PlatformRentals now offers a fleet of400 of the most up to dateunits in the country. (Picturedin a Genie electric scissor liftare Richard Miller and BrianFleckney, directors of PantherPlatform Rentals).

Panther leaps

Grants available for CTAtraining mean that the CITBis currently offering to train aSlinger/Signaller for a totalcost to the employer of£32.13. Somebody who isalready ICC registered andwants to add Slinger/

Signaller to his CTA cardwill actually qualify for arefund of £25.62 to his/heremployer as the grant of£390.62 is more than thetotal cost of £365.00.Details from the CTA 01485 577877.

Free slingers

NEWS

July/September 2001 Cranes & Access 13

Fairview Crane Hire Limitedhas just bought its firstLiebherr all terrain crane toadd to its existing fleet of 12truck mounted cranes. “Wedecided to invest in the LTM103/2 simply because of itsversatility and excellent liftingduties through the range”commented founders and co-directors John and JeffHarris.

Fairview started life asboth a crane hire and trans-port company, but followinga downturn in the haulagemarket, decided to divestitself of the truck fleet and

concentrate on cranes. It hasoperated in and aroundLondon and the home coun-ties since 1988 and now has amain depot in Rainham,Essex and satellite depots inTunbridge Wells, Croydonand Dartford.

The twin-axle, 40 tonnecapacity LTM 1030/2 has all-wheel steering and is just10.30 metres in length. It ispowered by a Euro II compli-ant Mercedes-Benz 6 cylin-der diesel engine whichprovides 205kW and amaximum road travel speedof 80 kilometres per hour.

The new management at AtlasWeyhausen, Germany has saidthat no changes are plannedfor the Atlas facility inHamilton, Scotland. This isdespite plans to trim theGerman company’s workforcefrom 1499 to 914.

Earlier plans to close facto-ries in Germany have been

cancelled following theappointment of Steve Filipovas joint managing director.Filipov, whose father Fil is anexecutive vice president withTerex, has been seconded fromTerex under a co-operationagreement with new ownersAtlas Construction LLC. AtlasConstruction LLC is a newly

formed company based in theUS which bought AtlasWeyhausen earlier this year.

Steve Filipov told Cranes& Access that he “plans tomake Atlas a leading loadercrane manufacturer in Europeand to look for synergiesbetween the Atlas and Terexdealer networks”.

No change to AtlasWeyhausen Scotland

One of 20 new King beavertail bodies entering service with NationwideAccess. Nationwide has also just bought a 125 foot Genie S-125.

Beck & Pollitzer Engineering hasadded to its growing plant hiredivision wit the purchase of a 50tonne all terrain from Demag.The new AC50 is part of a£400,000 investment in cranes,fork lift trucks and heavyhaulage for hire from depots inDartford, Manchester andBirmingham.● Mannesmann Dematic Limitedhas changed its name to DemagMobile Cranes Limited to reflectchanges at its parent companyin Germany.

Fairview growth

LGH Customer Training, thetraining division of LGHGroup plc, has amalgamatedwith the Lifting EquipmentTraining Institute (LETI). TheInstitute aims to promote thecause of safe lifting in the work-place.

“Most companies are awareof the new LOLER andPUWER legislation that affectslifting operations. Yet theystruggle with finding the answerto the question of how to makesure they are complying with

the new regulations” said aspokesperson for the Institute..

LETI is seeking to helpbridge this ‘gap’ that existsbetween the company and theLaw. A key message from theInstitute is that companiesneedn’t be afraid of the regula-tions – it is simply a matter ofcorrectly interpreting them andunderstanding how to imple-ment the necessary practice. Alarge part of this initiative is theprovision of Lifting OperationAudits.

Lifting legislation

SiteaccessA new company offering spe-

cialist site access solutions hasbeen formed. TerraFirma usesaluminium extruded panelsmeasuring 3 metres wide by 2.5metres long. These are calledTerraMats and provide tempo-rary roadways and hardstand-

ing for use with cranes, accessplatforms and anywhere thattemporary access is needed.

The company can supplyand install the roadway and iswilling to make initial siteinspections.

NEWS

14 Cranes & Access July/September 2001

It’s “business as usual” atHolland Lift said MennoKoel, general sales managerat Terex’s Holland Lift. Hiscomment comes threemonths after the sale ofHolland Lift to Haulotte wasabruptly cancelled and asparent company Terex con-tinues negotiation with anumber of other potentialbuyers.

Holland Lift is now avail-able as a single unit ratherthan in a package with the

former Simon factory atCork in Ireland says Koel.He added that Holland Lift’s“high quality, well knownproducts and name will soonfind a buyer”. There is, hestressed, no considerationbeing given to closing theplant because “there is agood future for Holland Liftand “the parties we aretalking to see big potentialfor the products”.

Koel admitted that saleshave slackened in recent

months but added that thecompany is fighting backwith the launch of a new,large, crawler mountedscissor lift. TheQ135DL24TR will have a 16metre working height andfive units have already beenordered by Gunco andDoornbos. The first will bedelivered in November andbuilds on the success of therecently re-introduced 12.8metre Holland Lift X-105DL22-TR.

Holland Lift:“business as usual”

Kavanagh Cranes took delivery of three new Demag cranes, a 40 tonne AC40-1 and two 50 tonne AC50-1, earlier thisyear. The company now runs 18 cranes which range from 25 tonnes up to a 200 tonne Demag AC200. Of the 18cranes, ten have been supplied by Demag. The company was formed about 25 years ago by Paddy Kavanagh. Histhree sons Patrick, Aidan and Paul have now joined him.

VERTIKAL.NET/EN/EVENTS

OFFSHORE EUROPE 2001September 4-7, 2001

Aberdeen, UKTel: +44 (0)20 8949 9222Fax: +44 (0)20 8949 8186

MATEXPOBelgium’s Premier Construction Show

September 5-9, 2001Kortrijk, Belgium

Tel: +32 (0)56 21 08 32Fax: +32 (0)56 25 79 82

CONET 2001Japanese construction equipment

exhibition.September 19-22, 2001

Tokyo, JapanTel: +81 (0)3 3433 1501Fax: +81 (0)3 3432 0289

INTERLEVFrench exhibition of lifting equipment

September 20-22, 2001Lyon, France

ICUEE 2001International Construction and Utility

Equipment ExpositionOctober 2-4, 2001

Louisville, USTel: +1 262 633 4500Fax: +1 262 633 0249

SAIEItaly’s premier construction exhibition -

lot’s of access, loader cranes and towercranes.

October 17-21, 2001Bologna, Italy

Tel: +39 051 282 111Fax: +39 051 282 3322

SAMOTER 200225th International Earthmoving and

Building Machinery ExhibitionFebruary 13-17, 2002

Verona, ItalyTel: +39 045 8298 111Fax: +39 045 8298 288

CONEXPO-CON/AGGThe leading US construction show.

March 19-23, 2002Las Vegas, Nevada, USATel: +1 414-298-4133

CEMATMesse für Materialflusstechnik,

Automation, Transportsysteme undLogistik

April 15-20, 2002Hannover, Deutschland

Tel: +49 511 89 0Fax: +49 511 89 32626

SC&RA ANNUALCONFERENCE

Conference organised by theSpecialized Carriers & Rigging

Association.April 25-29, 2002

Tucson, Arizona, USATel: +1 703 698 0291Fax: +1 703 698 0297

What’s On

Grove/SkyjacksplitGrove Europe has announcedthat the year-old distributionagreement with Skyjack UKLtd. for the joint sales, mar-keting and product support ofaccess products (GroveManlift booms and Skyjackscissor-lifts) in the UK andIreland has been terminated.With immediate effect, sales

of all Manlift products arenow handled by the existingGrove UK sales organisation.Product support (includingparts, service and warranty)will be provided, as it is forGrove cranes in the UK, bySamuel Walker Ltd.

The Grove Delta range ofToucan and PM vertical mastproducts will be distributed inthe UK under a new, exclusiveagreement with Warwick-based Blue Line Access Ltd –an independent companywhich represents Bronto, andwhich has a successful AWPrefurbishment business.Jointly managed by AndyNorthwood and Ian James,

there is a strong historical con-nection with Grove and itsproducts (Ian James was onceSales Manager for Grove).

“The access equipmentbusiness, particularly in theUK, is going through a toughtime,” said Mike Lamb, managing director of Grove. “We need to focus on andconsolidate in the areas whereour well-proven and highly-developed range of productsis already well-established,especially in the building,construction and steel-erection sector, and wherethere is greater synergy withour main business, the mobilecrane market.”

NEWS

July/September 2001 Cranes & Access 15

This “Shinkansen” bullet train recently arrived at Southampton docks where Marsh Plant Hire used its new 100 tonneLiebherr LTM 1100/2 and 80 tonne LTM 1080/1 to unload the precious cargo. Bullet trains can travel at more than 200kilometres per hour – this one, a gift from the Japanese people, travelled rather more slowly by road to the NationalRailway Museum in York.

Haulotteon theupFigures released for Pinguely-Haulotte’s first financial halfyear show an increase inturnover of 80 per cent ascompared to last year. Thephenomenal growth putsturnover for the six months toJune 30 at 146.3 million(£92 million). The companyis predicting a total turnoverof 355 million (£224million) this year. Exportsaccounted for 108.7 million(£69 million) of the six-monthly turnover figurewhich is 163 per cent more ascompared to the first half of2000.

The second quarter of2001 saw sales grow by 85 percent to 80.6 million (£50million) as compared to thefirst quarter in which theygrew by 75 per cent.

Haulotte has continued itsinternational expansion byopening three new distribu-tion subsidiaries in Portugal,Sweden and the US. InEurope it recently boughtFrance’s ABM, whichwidened its range of verticalmasts, and has now signed adealership agreement withDino Lift to distribute theFinnish manufacturer’strailer-mounted platforms inFrance, Italy and Portugal.

NCK Crawler Cranes Ltd isthe new name of the companythat will be building andselling the NCK range ofcranes. Bronek Gnyla, man-aging director of the SPWGroup of companies, toldCranes & Access that hiscompany had acquired theassets of NCK Cranes Ltdfrom the liquidator and hadcreated NCK Crawler CranesLtd. Les Derbyshire has beenappointed sales director of thenew company which is currently building new cranes

at its factory in Stoke onTrent.

NCK Cranes Ltd ran intoserious financial trouble threeyears after SPW had bought itfrom receivership. The newarrangements will allow thecompany to continue developing and building newcranes said Mr Gnyla whoadded that the next crane wasscheduled for delivery at theend of October.

NCK’s turnover in 2000was £2.3 million but it madea net loss of £107,486.

London based Lawfords has taken delivery of three more Hiab lorry-mountedcranes. The cranes are two 102 knuckleboom on two new 26 tonne, six-wheel Mercedes vehicles and an 085-2. All three were supplied with theoptional top seat control system as Lawfords believes this allows safer andmore efficient handling.

CPA ModelConditionsThe Construction Plant-hireAssociation’s revised Hireterms have now been intro-duced and are being activelypromoted by the association.

The CPA has asked allmembers to ensure that theyare using the new conditionsand that they have advisedHirers that future hire contracts will incorporatethe new version – “a briefnote with the contract or acircular to all live accountsshould suffice” said

Colin Wood, CPA director.

The association has alsoreleased a summary of thechanges and a CD rom contain-ing the new Model Conditions.Open days are being held inLeeds, (September 20),Birmingham (September 27) andLondon (October 2).

NCK Cranes is back

NEWS

16 Cranes & Access July/September 2001

The former chairman ofAcrow, Bill de Vigier, now inhis 90th year has been madean “honorary Cobbler”writes Dick Lloyd. Cobblersstands for Coles Old BoysBeen Left and Early RetiredSociety and is made up offormer employees of Coles.

The chairman ofCobblers is Martyn Wilsonwho organises the periodicdinners and who producedthe Coles “100 Year Book”in 1979. “Sadly, the predic-

tion that “Coles sees 1979 asa beginning” proved to beironically accurate as it wasin fact the beginning of theend” says Lloyd who addsthat the Coles Empirenonetheless lasted for over100 years.● Don Hassall, the last man-aging director of Coles inSunderland prior to its acqui-sition by Acrow in 1972 andthe subsequent founder ofCosmos Cranes, died on June29th at the age of 78.

Hek + Alimak =Intervect UKAlimak Limited and the UKregional office of HekManufacturing BV will sooncombine within IntervectUK. Russell Bates, currentpresident of Alimak Limitedwill assume overall responsi-bility. The move follows thecreation of Intervect, thenew company in which Hek

and Alimak are equal part-ners.

“There is no timetable forthe full implementation ofthese new companies” saidAnders Nordwall, presidentand CEO of Intervect AB. Asimilar strategy is beingimplemented in France,Germany and the US.

Cobblers to you

Beck & Pollitzer has recently taken delivery of this Tadano TL350E fromMarubeni Komatsu Ltd. Tadano Faun and MKL parted company earlier thisyear and Tadano Faun told Cranes & Access it expects to announce a newdealer very shortly. In the meantime MKL is looking to sell the last remainingcranes that it has in stock.

NEWS

July/September 2001 Cranes & Access 17

Next year’s SED show,complete with Cranes &Access Village, will takeplace on Tuesday,Wednesday and Thursday the 14th, 15th and 16thMay. This year’s SED attracted nearly 17000 visitorsand was a record breaking event.

During the show Genie won the Silver Medal inthe Cranes & Access category, (there is no gold), forits innovative GS-4390 and GS-5390 big deck scis-sors. This is the third year in a row that Genie haswon the medal.

Promax Access meanwhile announced that it soldsix of its Articulated Spider RQG15 units during theshow – typically at £43,500 per machine. Shaun Day,Promax Access director said that despite bad weatherduring the show they had had excellent visitor levels.Also happy was SkyKing which sold five scissor lifts toMidland Access Platforms and four van mountedunits to Municipal Highway Services.

Cranes & Access, as the offi-cial co-sponsor of the Cranes& Access Village, was also

exhibiting and had a very successful show. Next yearsees the return of the crane industry and the biennialCrane Dinner which is sponsored by leading cranemanufacturers and organised by Cranes & Access.

New SED dates

JLG in EuropeJLG has announced that it intends to open aEuropean factory in Belgium’s Limburg provinceduring the first quarter of its fiscal year 2002. Thesite that has been chosen is an existing 80,000square feet facility in the city of Maasmechelen.

“Among the first products to be available fromthe facility over the next 12 months will be JLG’smost popular scissor lift and boom lift modelsdesigned specifically to meet European marketrequirements” said Bill Lasky.

At the same time the company announced theclosure of its Weber Lane factory in Bedford,Pennsylvania and announced that a total of 635 people will be made redundant across the company. The Weber Lane facilities will be relocated to other factories.