LiuGong Machinery Corp., the leading China-based construction equipment manufacturer, announced it is entering the Western European and North American markets with a new line of forklifts, including diesel, electric and LPG fueled machines.

The entire new line was introduced for the first time at CeMAT in Hannover, Germany, where LiuGong had a significant show presence with 10 machines at its booth at B25, hall 26. These were the first models to launch, but more are in development, company executives said.

LiuGong has already established itself as a formidable global competitor in the construction equipment market. It is one of the fastest growing machinery manufacturers worldwide and is the number one wheel loader manufacturer. 
Having posted 30% annual growth rate for the past five years, LiuGong is now ranked as the 20th largest construction equipment manufacturer in the world, up from 22nd  last year. LiuGong’s executives have a stated goal to rise to the top 10 largest construction equipment firms in the world. Company growth has been fueled by the domestic Chinese market where LiuGong is the number one construction machinery manufacturer, and by LiuGong’s rapid expansion to all regions of the globe. To further fuel its growth, LiuGong also announced in March it is acquiring HSW Dressta to solidify its presence in Europe. HSW is a leading manufacturer of bulldozers.

 “We’re excited about this new expansion for LiuGong,” said Deng Tao, Sales Director, LiuGong Europe. “To be a leader, we need to expand into the lifting and handling arena. LiuGong has been very strategic in preparing to tackle two of the world’s most exciting markets that demand a broad variety of machine,” he added. Deng noted LiuGong first showed its forklifts at INTERMAT in 2009. Since then, the company has had significant success selling Tier II machines to Eastern Europe, South America, and in Asia. In the meantime, LiuGong has been refining and redesigning machines to prepare to enter Western markets.
 Already, Deng noted, LiuGong has become a leader in the crane market in China, and has plans to soon begin exporting cranes.

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In Europe, the forklift business will be managed from LiuGong Europe with its headquarters offices and parts depot in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. Tier II forklifts are already sold in Eastern Europe through existing LiuGong construction equipment dealers, including those in Poland, the Baltics, Serbia, Turkey and Hungary.  LiuGong’s LPG and diesel internal combustion models are currently the company’s most popular models in the Eastern European region. In Western Europe and North America where specialized lifting and handling outlets are required, LiuGong will also continue to recruit new dealers primarily focused on the material handling industry.

All the forklift models meet EU emission standards and the cab space ergonomics have been reconfigured to ensure operator comfort and ease of use.  Because of strict emission laws in Western Europe, electric forklifts are in strong demand. LiuGong will be rolling out a series of DC and AC battery operated models there. LiuGong plans to aggressively pursue the Western European rental market, as many operators prefer to rent rather than buy.