31.01.2008

ManiAccess up 40%

Manitou the French based telescopic handler and aerial lift company has issued a preliminary trading statement for 2007. It shows group revenues up by 12 percent to €1.26 billion, a new record.

The strongest growth geographically came from EU countries outside of France where sales increased by 16 percent to €629 million, almost half the groups revenues. Sales in France increased by nine percent to €463 million while revenues from the rest of the world edged up six percent to €171 million.

Looking at revenue growth by product line, the greatest increase, in percentage terms, was for sales of Manitou aerial lifts, which are sold under the ManiAccess banner, sales leapt by 40 percent to a new record of €88 million, mostly made up of articulated boom lifts.

The company’s core product range of rough terrain forklifts increased by nine percent to €857 million, the majority of which were telescopic handlers. The company says that while sales to the construction sector “held-up” agricultural sales grew rapidly.

Sales of industrial forklifts and warehouse equipment increased by 33 percent to €89 million. Replacement parts were up by 14 percent to €137 million and revenues from services grew by 34 percent to €31 million.

Manitou says that production was held back due to a number of difficulties in sourcing sufficient quantities of certain components. It adds that this issue is now “in the process of being stabilised”.

The company says that it entered 2008 with a strong order book which is giving it a confident outlook at least for the first half of the year. It has also launched a number of initiatives which it says should see sales grow by a further 10 percent in 2008, to a level approaching €1.4 billion.