Kobelco has agreed to supply Manitowoc Crane Group with lattice boom crawler cranes under 150 ton capacity on an OEM basis for sale in the Americas.
The cranes will be branded as Manitowoc and will be introduced in the second quarter of 2004.
The cranes will be ‘clearly differentiated from Kobelco’s own product offering’, Manitowoc revealed in a statement dated 17 November. All new models will be sold and supported through Manitowoc’s existing dealer and product support networks. Manitowoc has not yet issued the model designations for the new cranes.
Kobelco will continue to market and distribute its own full line of lattice boom crawler cranes, from the 55 US ton CK 550 model up to the 250 US ton CK 2500, and will support its products under its own distribution system in the Americas.
Manitowoc Crane Group president Glen Tellock said: ‘As a world leader in the production of lattice-boom crawler cranes, Manitowoc is continually seeking new lifting solutions for our customers. We are very excited about our alliance with Kobelco. They are an excellent partner to supply cranes because of their product quality and broad range of lifting products. The agreement between our two companies also serves as a base for future opportunities.’
Kobelco Construction Machinery president Takashi Ishida said: ‘Manitowoc Crane Group has an outstanding reputation around the world and offers a strong distribution network in the Americas region. I am excited about these two highly respected industry players joining forces.
‘Kobelco is pleased to supply our crawler cranes under 150 tons on an OEM basis to Manitowoc, the most reliable partner we could ever find in our industry. I feel strongly that both companies share the same approach —focusing on customers with care and bringing to market reliable products which have a high standard of quality and safety,” Ishida said.
CONNECTINGCRANES COMMENT Manitowoc’s smaller models, the 100 ton 222 and 80 ton 111, have had mixed success since being introduced in the 1990s by West-Manitowoc. The West name was later dropped and the cranes were re-worked with EPIC controls. The deal with Kobelco appears to represent another nail in the coffin of what was an interesting experiment. Kobelco offers Manitowoc proven lines of multi-purpose and duty cycle cranes in the 50 ton to 100 ton classes. Manitowoc has long ruled the American market for big crawler cranes but the Japanese machines offered by both Link-Belt and Terex have dominated at the smaller end of the scale. Kobelco, meanwhile, has been looking vulnerable from the global consolidation that has been taking place and certainly needed a partner to bolster its position. This deal is clearly good for all sides. Let’s hope it is extended to include Kobelco’s terrific RK mini-roughters in the Grove product line-up.
