Fuelling the red diesel debate

It is a matter of principle for me that I will always be on the side of the crane guys, especially when the opposition is a government seeking to take money from us. But I am ashamed to say that I find myself not wholly behind the current campaign by the UK crane hire industry to fight a government proposal regarding fuel.

The UK government is proposing to end a concession that allows mobile cranes on the highway to use red diesel instead of the more expensive white diesel that trucks have to use. The country’s biggest crane owner, Martin Ainscough, has reportedly calculated that the extra 41p per litre (that’s about three bucks a gallon for US readers) will cost him an extra £3m ($5.6m) a year. Now clearly that is a huge hit that no one should be expected to take lying down.

However, taking off my crane hat and putting on my taxpayer hat, are mobile cranes really such a special case that they should effectively be subsidised by me and other taxpayers? The switch to white diesel would affect all crane hire companies equally. Pass the cost onto customers and get on with it. Just because change hurts, it doesn’t make it unfair. Sorry.

The China syndrome

I am deeply impressed by Manitowoc’s decision to build a new factory in China. Manitowoc has had the reputation of being one of the most conservative companies, but I think this now needs reviewing. The acquisitions of Potain and Grove, the OEM licensing deals with Kobelco and Shuttlelift, and its far-sighted Asian strategy are firm indications of a company not happy to rest on its laurels.

One could say, given the state of the North American crawler crane market in the past few years, that it had no choice but to adapt or die. And Manitowoc Crane Group still faces significant challenges in the market place - certain machines (such as the model 15000 crawler that was designed for Europe) have not sold as well as forecasted.

But when it comes to China and (to a lesser extent) the rest of Asia, Manitowoc was already ahead of other Western crane manufacturers. With its new factory, it is pushing ahead further still.

I hear that Terex has identified a couple of potential partners/acquisitions in China to get itself a tower crane manufacturing base there, but that is just the first step. Invisible infrastructure - Guanxi, the Chinese version of networking - is as important as the visible. Developing and nurturing Guanxi takes time and effort. Terex has a lot of catching up to do.

US crane market on the up and up

It is not just Manitowoc that is building a new factory. Comansa is building a new tower crane factory in Spain, truck loader producer Effer is building a new factory in Italy, Amco Veba is extending its facilities and Liebherr continues to develop new service centres around the world.

These are all signs, perhaps, of an industry about to return to health. However, Manitowoc’s new Shanghai factory was not a factor mentioned by either Standard & Poors’ Equity Research, which recently issued a ‘strong buy’ recommendation for Manitowoc shares.

It attributed the rating to forecast that the US crane market is ‘on the verge of a rebound’ with an 8% growth in non-residential construction. UBS also rated Manitowoc a ‘buy’ last month.

The right tools for the job

I have discovered a talent that I never knew I had - carpentry. (Would all those who know me please get off the floor now and stop laughing…). I’ve not built my own boat or anything grand like that, but there have been a few tasks around the house and garden that I have undertaken with a degree of competence that surprised me (and stunned my wife even more).

Simple jobs to you, perhaps, but ones that I would previously have contracted out. My success was attributable solely to the fact that finally I have the right tools (instead of trying to make do with a sharpened screwdriver for a chisel, for example).

It got me thinking about how many people there are around the world making do with inappropriate tools for lifting, whether it is a case of the wrong crane, too small a crane or no crane at all. I have learned that there really is no substitute for the right tool. It makes the job quicker, simpler and much, much better. And if you can’t justify buying it, hire it.