The new alliance, to be known as Elliott/AmQuip, The Crane People, will make a new range of larger crawlers, rough terrain, tower, and luffing tower cranes available to users in Elliott’s Tennessee and south east US region. AmQuip customers in the Ohio valley region will see 360 US ton Liebherr ATs available, where previously they would have had to choose between 300 US ton and 500 US ton models. While the privately owned firms would not disclose the precise terms or levels of investment involved in the deal, Frank Bardonaro, general manager of AmQuip, told Cranes Today that Elliott customers would see an influx of millions of dollars in new and state-of-the-art equipment into their region.
Dennis Bates, AmQuip VP of tower cranes, said “We are currently servicing our Atlanta and Nashville customers out of our Birmingham [Alabama] office. The Elliott/AmQuip partnership will help strengthen our localised customer support and service network in the Tennessee and Georgia region, and increase our ability to provide our customers with the best service and support.”
Elliott/AmQuip will continue to operate out of Elliott’s headquarters and branch facilities. The current Elliott team will continue to manage the operation in the region, with Clark Elliott heading the alliance’s operations in the area as regional vice president. Elliott will be the main point of contact for Elliott/AmQuip, and will have complete and exclusive access to all of the equipment and support staff of the AmQuip team.
As well as expanding the range of cranes both firms – and Elliott in particular – can offer, the arrangement will extend the reach of each firms service and support teams. Bardonaro explained, “The closest location to the customer will provide the best and fastest customer support. This means that if an Elliott customer is working closer to an existing AmQuip branch, we will respond to their needs, and the same reciprocity will be there if an AmQuip job is closer to an Elliott branch.”
Both firms are keen to stress the importance that their reputations, and staff, will play in making the alliance a success. Bardonaro commented “Both Elliott and AmQuip have successful operations and a well established name in the regions they currently provide equipment and services to. We know that some companies, in the past, have dropped their names and developed a “brand x” type of mentality to get a new name in the market for whatever reason. Both Elliott and AmQuip have outstanding reputations, and we expect to use the partnership to continue and even improve on those reputations. Bud Elliott and Joseph L. Wesley are two of the most well respected names in the crane rental industry.”
