Searching for customers

Versatile, easily transportable and ready-to-use without assembly, there is little doubt that a loader crane is a very useful piece of equipment, popular with a range of users from small one-man bands to large building contractors. However, the use of this machinery has predominantly been in Europe where finance has become less available to customers.

This has meant manufacturers of loader cranes have been forced to look to other geographies to balance their order books. Some firms have gone one step further, partnering with companies around the world to increase the range of products they offer. In particular, knuckleboom makers have joined with straight boom manufacturers to provide customers with a broader set of choices.

The sick men of Europe
"General demand worldwide is increasing, some places are still not using our devices, but more and more countries are coming round to using loader cranes," says a spokesman from F'lli Ferrari, "So far the growing markets cannot balance with the developed ones. Latin America isn't as big as Europe was in the good years. The biggest market continues to be Europe, although Latin America and Asia are growing."

In the past, Europe has been where loader crane demand has been at its strongest. There continues to be growth in a few countries in the region, but manufacturers have found some nations, particularly in Southern Europe, that had a traditionally high demand have now tailed off completely. The F'lli Ferrari spokesman continues: "Europe is a complex market, it varies from country to country. Greece, a historically big market for loader cranes is dead, it's a very depressed market. Spain and Italy have experienced a big drop, although we are now seeing positive signals in Italy, I can see numbers increasing, but probably not before the next year.

"Germany, Holland, and France are still going up although we cannot compare the increases to five or six six years ago. Having said that, generally the rise has been significant. Eastern Europe is generally low, and hasn't really recovered from the economic downturn. In the UK, there are positive signals; between 2011 and 2012 there was a big increase in the market. It's growing, so I'd probably group it alongside France and Holland."

It's something that fellow Italian manufacturer Cormach has also seen says export manager, Giulio De Luca: "The state of the European market in relation to lorry loaders is not good and I think it will remain weak for a longer time. The shift in the demand is surely there, rather than speculating on where the demand has been shifting, I would say that Europe is getting smaller while other developing markets are absorbing more and more segments of the equipment that was shipped in European countries.

"Our company is actively seeking new markets for our product, for two reasons: first, covering the reduction in sale in some of the traditional markets; second, selling products that can be sold only in some markets and not in others for standards and regulatary reasons."

New found land
One market that has proved to be a good place to do loader crane business has been the USA, where loader cranes are seeing growth in demand. John Field, product manager of material handling at Iowa Mold Tooling (IMT) explains: "The US market for loaders has been growing steadily over the past 18 months, and it appears that trend will continue. The construction market is showing signs of a rebound, and the railroad and utility markets are consistent. Growth has slowed somewhat in oil and gas , and we expect some pullback in the mining segment. When you look at all the numbers, it appears the market will keep trending upward."

"The rebounding US housing construction market has led to increased demand for IMT hydraulic wallboard loaders along with articulating cranes in the 30-50tm range. The drywall market is as good as it has been in seven years. We continue to experience solid demand for articulating cranes from the mining and energy segments, and the railroad and utility markets have remained consistent."

US growth is not as fast as other areas of the Americas, the F'lli Ferrari spokesman explains: "South America and the Latin region are the fastest growing areas: there wasn't a historic demand in these markets, so now there is a big need for lorry cranes. Construction is going up, there are many other applications that are also increasing, such as mining and palm oil production. It's a different market: Labour costs are still low, so smaller lifts are perfomed manually. Bigger cranes predominate in South America, whereas in Europe [where labour costs are higher] we sell a full range of loader cranes.

"Some years ago, end users in Asia and Latin America didn't see the benefit of using cranes, as time was not as important and labour was cheap. However, as these economies continue to grow, time and labour have gained increasing importance. As labour costs rise it becomes crucial to perform a job quicker and more efficiently. This is why the user needs to invest in cranes. If a job that in the past took one hour can now be completed in 15 minutes using our crane, the user can clearly see the benefit"

Far East movement
The Asian loader crane market is that growing too. However, getting access to the region can be difficult, with many local producers to compete with. Even companies from Asian nations are looking at different ways to tap into their neighbours' markets in a cost effective manner.

Japan's Tadano has opened a new factory in Rayong Pref, near Bangkok, which it hopes to use to further its entry into Thailand's growing loader crane market. A Tadano spokesman says: "Thailand is one of the biggest markets for Tadano. The country has wellestablished industrial infrastructure based on the automotive industry, electric appliances, and heavy equipment. It is a fairly stable country in terms of its economy and political situation, compared with other Asian countries.

"The factory will have many advantages: it allows us to specifically focus on products aimed at emerging markets, unlike cranes that designed for the Japanese market. It will make us competitive in terms of price, it moves us closer to the market. Basing ourselves locally also stops any foreign exchange risks that come from Japanese Yen currency fluctuations. We plan to sell 1,000 units in 2015 and 2,000 units in 2018: that will be record high sales volume for us."

In Europe, meanwhile, Finnish manufacturer Hiab is continuing with its project to develop a factory in Poland where it hopes to develop machines that can be sold into a range of different geographies, Lotta Clausen explains: "Hiab is building a multi-assembly unit in Stargard Szczecinski, Northern Poland. The new painting and assembly area, which will be suitable for assembling all load handling products in the Hiab range, is expected to reach completion in 2014. The value of the investment will be close to €20m.

"We also have received funding from the European Union, for a three-year research cooperation project with three academic partners in Poland and Sweden. This project will boost research and development aimed at creating more sustainable load handling equipment. EU funding for the project totals €1.4m. Under the project, a new approach to control systems will be developed, in order to improve operational safety conditions and the efficiency of load handling equipment. The project will also involve the creation of design strategies for advanced light materials used in load handling structures, in order to reduce both their weight and fuel consumption."

Hiab are also looking to move into other continents and have taken part in a JV with a Chinese firm in a bid to increase its presence in Asia: "We are always seeking new market and opportunities. In 2012, Hiab announced that we will establish a joint venture with China National Heavy Duty Truck Group Co., Ltd (CNHTC), a leading Chinese manufacturer of heavy duty trucks and the parent company of Sinotruk. This enables us to expand our presence in the Chinese load handling market. The approval process and establishing of the JV is proceeding according to plan. Other strategically important areas include mature markets like Brazil and Russia."

Functional stability
One driver of technical innovation and sales are changes to regulation, which ensure a certain level of orders. The most recent update to the European standard covering loader cranes, calling for the stability of the crane and its carrier to be considered as a single function. This approach, of moving beyond just a capacity limiter or display on the crane to a system that considers factors such as (for example) the position of outriggers, is being adopted across the sector.

IMT have noticed a range of developments in this area as customers demand more from their loader crane investments, says John Field: "Articulating loader cranes continue to trend toward lighter weight, better lift-to-weight ratios, longer reach capabilities and reduced mounting-space requirements to meet customer needs. IMT customers are requesting material handling solutions that provide increased payload-carrying capability and mounting flexibility without sacrificing strength.

"The safety of articulating cranes has become increasingly important in recent years. IMT articulating cranes are built to the ANSI B30.22 standard, ensuring a safer piece of equipment for the operator. The increased focus on safety throughout the industry has led to more training and certification needs for crane operators, service personnel and distributors."

"IMT articulating cranes continue to offer the option of an Electronic Vehicle Stability (EVS) system, which monitors and secures the stability of the vehicle during crane operation.

"Generally the crane's maximum load moment cannot be utilised in the entire working area due to lacking stability of the vehicle. The EVS system helps increase productivity as it decreases the risk of vehicle instability because the EVS allows the operator to utilize the full capacity of the crane.

"As the load is manipulated, the EVS system ensures that the crane is within level tolerances right up to its stability threshold, meaning that the vehicle's stability is maximized throughout the entire rotation area of the crane. On the jobsite, that means positioning a load in an effective and safe manner."

"IMT integrates the EVS system into the Rated Capacity Limitation (RCL) system, creating a comprehensive communication and control system that keeps the crane operator informed of the interaction of load positioning and vehicle stability."

F'lli Ferrari explained how their approach to design varies from place to place: "There is a clear distinction between the European market and outside Europe. In Europe we are required to by law to make systems with greater stability, but we are also working on flexibility and making a product that is easy to use for skilled and unskilled users."

"The focus is to make a customer-friendly crane, that is not complicated and can be used by everyone. Low maintenance costs are also important, but this needs to come with a high technology content, this means that we develop a lot of our products to be electronic"

"Versatility is also a crucial consideration, vehicles need to be multi-purpose units, with several attachments. Our cranes are designed so that a customer can perform a range of different applications with a variety of materials. For example we have a crane that is fitted with a waste compacter so it can perform recycling jobs as well as regular lifts."

Collaboration
In tough times, companies often seek partnerships. In the loader industry, there has been increased cooperation between knuckleboom manufacturers and straight boom loader crane makers.

F'lli Ferrari has certainly been keeping an eye on things, as its spokesman explained: "In terms of collaboration with straight boom manufacturers it is something that we have been observing but not actively moving into yet. We have seen that some knuckleboom manufactures who entered this market and started making straight booms weren't successful. The flexibility that a knuckleboom offers means that demand for stiff booms is always less."

IMT are more enthusiastic about these type of arrangements, John Field says: "I think there are synergies between the two types of loader cranes. They use similar hydraulic systems. They both use steel and specific profiles for their booms. They are produced using similar manufacturing techniques. There are certain applications that the articulating crane is best suited for, and there are particular applications that a straight boom is ideal for. With partnerships between straight boom manufacturers and loader crane makers, in essence you get the best of both worlds."

A spokesman from Palfinger agreed with this sentiment "Even if the products differ in design, synergies in production and purchasing will support improvements for both. We see increasing appreciation among customers for our investments in the technology of the product and our manufacturing processes."

Demand is key to the development and survival of many types of crane. Loader cranes still have a large spectrum of potential users, but as financial constraints limit investment in some markets, companies must move to find new places where people can afford to buy new units. The US and Latin America are just two regions where an increase in sales has made up for a lack of European demand, but time will tell how this progresses.