29.09.2016

Senior management changes at Spierings

Leo Spierings has regained 100 percent ownership of the Dutch self-erecting mobile crane manufacturer that bears his name, and appointed two new directors.

Spierings Holdings ran into difficulty back in 2010 when a part of the group was placed into administration and Spierings Kranen had to go through a financial restructuring, with substantial layoffs and cut backs. The company quickly set out on a recovery plan, and within four months showed early signs of bouncing back.

The first of the two new directors appointed is Ivo Kolman who will focus on its day to day general management, and improving the professionalisation of the company. He joins Spierings from Groeneveld ICT Solutions where he has been managing director for almost four years, having been operations director for Groeneveld Lubrication Solutions in the three years prior.

Kolman, 45, began his career in 1995 as operations manager for Eurovos, six years later he joined Den Hartogh Liquid Logistics as transport director moving on to Groenveld in 2010. Speaking of his new role he said: "The ambitions are clear and it will be my role to develop the organisation and of the company, while letting everybody focus on his core competence."

The second appointment sees Koos Spierings (33) - Leo Spierings' nephew – join the board as commercial director, with responsibility for all sales and marketing. For the past few years he has been looking after sales in the UK and Benelux region. He has also helped reshape the overall commercial activities of the company. “Spierings has enormous potential for the future and we will expand our concept within Europe and possibly on a global scale, he said."
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(L-R) Ivo Kolman, Leo Spierings and Koos Spierings

Meanwhile Leo Spierings, 62, will now focus all his efforts on the technical development and innovation of the company's mobile tower cranes. Speaking of the changes he said: "The choice is made to fulfill the ambitions of our company and to give Spierings the long term continuity it deserves as a fully owned family business."

Vertikal Comment

The events of 2010 were a difficult time for Leo Spierings for whom the company and its products are his life. The employees like family. The return to full family ownership will have been a major milestone for him, and this new management structure will allow him to focus all of his efforts on his number one passion- the cranes that bear his name and ongoing product improvement and perfecting the current range, while developing new models.

Perhaps this move will help finally bring the City Boy single cab model -that appeared as a prototype in 2010 - to market? Or at least confirm its fate.