US rental company AmQuip is building up what it says is one of the largest tower crane fleets on the east coast and has recruited the former boss of rival Maxim’s tower crane operations.
Dennis Bates has been appointed vice president of AmQuip’s tower crane division. Bates has been in the industry since 1975 and has worked in sales for American Pecco, Morrow Equipment and Noell, as well as Maxim.
AmQuip bought its first towers in 2002. In November 2004 it added nearly 20 more, with the acquisition of the assets of Skyline Crane, the tower crane division of East Coast Hoist.
Today AmQuip has 35 tower cranes. They are working in Florida, Mississippi, Wisconsin, Ohio, Washington DC, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. The fleet consists of Potain and Peiner cranes, ranging in size from the Potain MDT 302 (2.3t at 75m jib end) to the Peiner SK575 (3.9t at 80m).
In October 2004 AmQuip put a $300m offer on the table to Maxim’s creditors to take over Maxim, which was then in Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The offer was rejected in favour of restructuring under the existing management team, which has since proceeded. AmQuip says that it is now focusing strengthening its core business and has opened a new depot in Cincinnati, Ohio.
‘We believe we will be able to continue to improve our fleet and improve customer service by spending the money on new equipment and facilities in our existing markets,’ said Joe Wesley Sr., founder and owner of AmQuip. ‘We are going to reinvest in new equipment and add even more expertise and training to the people who work for AmQuip Corporation. By focusing on our east coast operations, our national tower crane fleet and our Ohio facility, we feel we will be able to service our customers anywhere in the US.’
