MANITOWOC CRANE GROUP’S annual sales topped a billion dollars in 2004 for the first time to reach $1.25bn, up from $962.8m in 2003, an increase of around 30%.
Operating profit was $57.8m, up from $33.6m in 2003.
Cranes now account for 64% of parent The Manitowoc Company Inc’s group sales of $1.96bn, with the rest coming from Manitowoc’s shipbuilding and food service operations. Group sales were up 25% on 2003.
‘2004 was an excellent year for Manitowoc. We posted record revenues, excellent cash generation, and strong profit growth, while improving EVA (economic value added) by $18m over prior-year levels and exceeding our net debt-reduction goals,’ said chairman and CEO Terry Growcock.
‘We achieved these results despite a net $13m increase in raw materials prices and pockets of weak demand within some of our businesses. These results clearly demonstrate the strength of our diversified business model and the value of our strategies to capitalise on growing international demand for our crane and foodservice products.’
The crane group performed particularly strongly in the fourth quarter, up 45% year-on-year to $358.4m, and operating earnings of $15m were up substantially from $5.5m in the fourth quarter of 2003. At 31 December 2004, total crane backlog (the order book value) was $327m, up from $221m one year before.
‘Our crane segment posted year-over-year improvement in sales, earnings, and margins due to our globalisation efforts, as well as our cost reduction initiatives and price increases to offset rising steel prices,’ said Growcock. ‘Worldwide demand remains strong for our tower cranes, mobile telescopic cranes, and boom trucks, and our crawler cranes are doing well outside of North America.
‘Looking ahead, our strong backlog gives us confidence that worldwide demand for our products continues to grow. Additionally, we see hints of optimism – including increased utilisation rates and quoting activity – that indicate the North American crawler crane market may gain some momentum later in 2005.’
