22.11.2001

First Euro Skyjacks arrive

The first two scissor lifts, a 3220 and a 3226, to be built at Skyjack's new European facility in Hungary were delivered to the company's Dutch offices this afternoon.
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The first two European built Skyjack scissors arrived in the Netherlands this afternoon.

The Hungarian factory is three hours from Budapest and is known as Mezogep RT. It is 60 per cent owned by Linamar, Skyjack’s majority shareholder. Floris Van Dam, managing director of Skyjack Europe is very enthusiastic about Mezogep – “we get excellent quality at a decent price, in fact in some specific areas we get better quality than on existing products”. He expects the first units off the new production line to be almost identical to those built in North America but that the amount of European-built componentry will gradually increase. “We are looking at ‘make or buy’ decisions on virtually every component” says Van Dam, noting that the Mezogep factory already makes components for the car industry and has “plenty of room for expansion”.

Skyjack plans to build nearly 1000 platforms in Europe by the end of next year and to more than double that by the end of 2003. (See also full interview with Van Dam that appears in the next issue of "Cranes & Access")

* Skyjack is re-organising its European network to reflect the increasing importance of its Hungarian manufacturing operation. The LB range, which was previously made in Germany at Loebau, will now also be built in Mezogep, Hungary. Skyjack’s German sales and service operation is now centred on Bochum while Loebau becomes European research and development centre. “We will soon see some new prototypes being built and tested here” says Floris Van Dam.