KCI Konecranes acquired the assets related to the replacement parts and service business of Crane Manufacturing & Service Corporation (CMS) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.
The deal completed on 16 October 2002.
Founded in 1961, CMS has provided heavy duty process cranes to a variety of industrial users, particularly in the aluminium and steel industries. CMS also supplies replacement parts, upgrades, and service for Cleveland and Northern Engineering branded cranes. In total CMS has an installed base of 15,000 operating cranes.
Crane production will be discontinued and only the service and spare parts business will continue with offices and a warehouse remaining in the Milwaukee area. Annual sales of replacement parts and service are currently $5m, KCI said. Strong additional sales are expected from this large customer base through modernisations and new cranes which will be produced by Konecranes America Inc.
The ongoing business will be organised as part of Crane Pro Parts, KCI’s North American spare parts business. With this acquisition, Crane Pro Parts now provides external customers with factory authorised parts for 12 brands of cranes and hoists.
‘This acquisition marks yet another step in the ongoing consolidation of our industry,’ said Chuck Vanarsdall, KCI Konecranes group VP in charge of American operations. ‘Konecranes is one of the early pioneers in crane service. Complementing our service offering with original parts will further strengthen our margins in this business.’
