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LiuGong purchase HSW Dressta.....................

stock

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We have moved on and now were lost....
LiuGong Announces Acquisition of Polish Manufacturer
LiuGong Machinery Corp., the global, China-based construction equipment manufacturer, is finalizing plans to acquire HSW (Huta Stalowa Wola) Construction Equipment Division and its distribution subsidiary, Dressta Co, Ltd., company executives announced at ConExpo.
The acquisition is another step in LiuGong’s global growth strategy said LiuGong Vice Chairman and President Zeng Guang’an.
“We are pleased to partner in this agreement with HSW as this provides an excellent opportunity for LiuGong to acquire manufacturing capacity in Europe, as well as technology that will supplement our machine lines,” said Zeng. “This acquisition helps us continue success with our five year strategy to become a top 10 construction equipment manufacturer.”
When concluded, the acquisition will be LiuGong’s first outright purchase of manufacturing facilities and distribution outside of its domestic market, Zeng said.
Currently LiuGong is one of the largest wheel loader manufacturers in the world with 15 percent global market share and is the 15th largest construction equipment manufacturer in the world in 2010. LiuGong has 12 product lines, including wheel loaders, bulldozers, backhoes, skid steers, forklifts, graders, excavators, rollers, truck mounted and crawler cranes and pavers. Last year, LiuGong produced and sold more than 56,500 machines worldwide with production from 16 manufacturing facilities inside and outside of China.

Established in 1937, HSW is known for its manufacturing of crawler dozers at its plant in the Podkarpackie province in southwestern Poland. HSW also produces wheel loaders, side boom pipe layers, and machines customized for landfill applications and logging operations.
Dressta Co. Ltd. is the exclusive marketer of HSW equipment with offices around the world. Machines are sold under the HSW brand in parts of Eastern Europe, but are sold under the Dressta brand throughout the rest of the world.
HSW stock is primarily government-held, with Poland’s State Treasury as the largest stockholder.
With HSW Dressta, LiuGong will acquire a brand with a strong bulldozer line complementary to LiuGong’s product mix, said David W. Beatenbough, vice president of research and development of LiuGong, and a leader in the acquisition effort. He noted the purchase accomplishes several strategic goals for LiuGong.
“With HSW Dressta, LiuGong acquires proven technology within the bulldozer segment,” said Beatenbough, adding that LiuGong will acquire all the patents for technology and designs, for complete machines as well as component technology including undercarriages and driveline components such as axles, transmissions and torque converters.”
“HSW is one of only seven manufacturers in the world with a full line of bulldozers. And the machines have a long design history that reaches back to International Harvester, which was an early developer of track-type undercarriages that led to true construction machinery as we know it today. LiuGong will benefit from HSW’s world class engineering expertise and we’ll gain access to some large, high horsepower machines and advanced driveline component technology,” he added.
Beatenbough observed that like LiuGong with its 750 engineers working in R&D, HSW has an emphasis on innovation with a sophisticated research and development center. Both companies have an intense focus on quality.
“We’ll quickly be sending teams back and forth between Poland and China so we’ll be able to share innovations,” Beatenbough said. “We will continue production in Europe of HSW’s current product range, and supplement this with production in Poland of some of LiuGong’s core models to serve the European markets.”
LiuGong also willbenefit from the reach of HSW Dressta’s distributor and dealer network. This will help Liugong continue to penetrate important markets, Beatenbough added.
LiuGong has already located a plant outside its domestic market, having opened a wheel loader factory in India two years ago. The HSW acquisition gives LiuGong a plant already in operation in Europe close to its customers, with a highly skilled workforce, Beatenbough said.
Financial arrangements for the acquisition will be disclosed when the final agreement is signed, he said. The deal is expected to be finalized by the end of the second quarter, 2011. LiuGong said it will not acquire HSW’s military manufacturing business
 

CEwriter

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One of the interesting bits in this release is that the Dressta organization includes 35 North American dealers. If they all retain their Dressta lines under LiuGong ownership, that would take LiuGong up to 50 North American dealers, which starts to sound like a real player here.

Unlike most of the Chinese equipment manufacturers, LiuGong is learning how the game is played outside their domestic market. Jim Donoghue, their chairman for North America, is a 30-year + veteran of Case, Ingersoll-Rand and other equipment makers. They're filling positions throughout the North American operation with people who know this market. They're filling out a pretty complete product line (unveiled a new backhoe loader and a 260-hp excavator at CONEXPO).

It's also significant that LiuGong North America signed a deal with De Lage Landen to provide in-house lending -- floor planning for dealers and flexible customer financing.

I interviewed Donoghue and his president, Curt Unger, at CONEXPO about these announcements, and their strategy. They appear focused on signing dealers and getting into rental fleets with their "value" product.

Long and short; LiuGong isn't going to convince Cat, Komatsu or Deere buyers to switch any time soon. But where they have distribution, they may turn some third-tier and maybe second-tier buyers' heads. Especially given their lower price point and access to financing.

Sany is another Chinese firm to watch for. They purport to be filling out their product line, including some North-Americanized RT cranes, but remain somewhat difficult to communicate with. With $60 million invested in a Georgia facility, though, they seem to be committed to making a stand here.

Funniest story of my CONEXPO trip: I was taking some pictures of a Sany truck crane, trying to get some detail shots of welds and hose routings -- the kinds of things you look at when you're trying to assess how well it's made, and this hand comes waving into my viewfinder. "No, no. No picture," says this Chinese guy, and he's waving me off.

Consider the irony. A Chinese manufacturer shooing people away for photographing details of their machines. Guess they know all too well what some people will do with those photos.

Larry
 

Zeke

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I too was told...no photos!!!...makes ya kinda wonder...!?
 

Turbo21835

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Funniest story of my CONEXPO trip: I was taking some pictures of a Sany truck crane, trying to get some detail shots of welds and hose routings -- the kinds of things you look at when you're trying to assess how well it's made, and this hand comes waving into my viewfinder. "No, no. No picture," says this Chinese guy, and he's waving me off.

Consider the irony. A Chinese manufacturer shooing people away for photographing details of their machines. Guess they know all too well what some people will do with those photos.

Larry

I noticed most of the chinese manufacturers didnt want pictures taken. I also noticed a lot of them had access doors and cab doors locked up.I noticed a significant difference between brands though. If you looked, you saw the newer, or lower tiers, you could see caulk smeared on by finger as window seals. If you took a close look at some of the truck cranes on the north end, by liebherr, you saw cable payed out of winches. The cable was laying on the boom, bad sign to have winches bleed cable off while sitting around. That being said, sany was looking fairly decent, they still looked and felt cheap, but their fit and finish has come a long way. It will be interesting to see what they have done by the next conexpo.
 

CEwriter

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I noticed most of the chinese manufacturers didnt want pictures taken. I also noticed a lot of them had access doors and cab doors locked up.I noticed a significant difference between brands though. If you looked, you saw the newer, or lower tiers, you could see caulk smeared on by finger as window seals. If you took a close look at some of the truck cranes on the north end, by liebherr, you saw cable payed out of winches. The cable was laying on the boom, bad sign to have winches bleed cable off while sitting around. That being said, sany was looking fairly decent, they still looked and felt cheap, but their fit and finish has come a long way. It will be interesting to see what they have done by the next conexpo.

Appreciate the machine-quality observations.
 
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