With increasing international expansion as the established goal, what are the obstacles for Chinese manufacturers to gain market share in the traditional and mature tower crane market? Christian Shelton reports

With new, cutting-edge domestic and foreign production capabilities, improved products, and enhanced sales and service networks, Chinese tower crane manufacturers are in a good position to take advantage of the already booming global tower crane market in a post-Covid environment.

In Europe, the demand for tower cranes from rental companies and manufacturers has been relatively high throughout the pandemic. Considered to be "essential", work on many prestige, infrastructure and large-scale residential projects continued throughout the lockdown period.

As we emerge from the pandemic, infrastructure spending in many countries has increased as government investment stimulates growth.

The continued adoption of prefabricated, prefabricated volumetric structure (PPVC) construction technology around the world has further promoted the demand for tower cranes.

As a result, they remain largely comforting sights, signs of progress, straddling the urban skylines of developing and developed countries.

As leasing companies resume suspended projects and accept large new commissions, the emergence of a pandemic has also increased the demand for tower cranes.

In addition, due to anti-coronavirus and social distancing measures that slow down work, many tower cranes stay on existing construction sites for longer than expected. In order to meet demand, some rental companies increase their fleet by purchasing new equipment.

However, parallel to the rapid rise of tower cranes made in China (in terms of unit productivity and market share in developing markets (price is king)) is the robustness of mature tower crane elites in Europe, the United States, and the United States. . Is Australia as safe as it first seems?

One tower crane is produced every 18 minutes

In terms of tower crane production, Chinese manufacturer Zoomlion said it is rapidly increasing production, claiming that its tower crane sales in the first half of 2021 exceeded RMB 10 billion (£1.13 billion).

The key is the smart tower crane factory opened in Changde, Hunan in May. According to Zoomlion, the plant uses cutting-edge technology, runs at full capacity, and produces one tower crane every 18 minutes.

Zoomlion said that it will take only 6 months to reach total annual sales in 2019 by 2021, partly due to a US$70 million order from China Steel Corporation Pan China at the beginning of this year.

"In the first half of this year, Zoomlion achieved leapfrog growth again, with tower crane sales exceeding 10 billion yuan. It took 9 months in 2020 and 12 months in 2019," said Tang Shaofang. Vice President of Zoomlion: "The company is developing faster and faster."

"It is expected that our overall production capacity will double on the basis of the first half of the year," added Dai Liang, deputy general manager of Zoomlion Engineering Hoisting Machinery.

The Chinese manufacturer Xugong also claims that its tower crane output has grown rapidly. It set a sales target of RMB 8 billion (£900 million) for 2021, an increase of RMB 2.5 billion from its claimed profit of RMB 5.5 billion (£620 million) for 2020, which is derived from the sale of more than 10,000 towers. Crane. The XCMG Group's turnover in 2019 was approximately 3 billion yuan, in 2018 it was approximately 1 billion yuan, and its 2017 turnover was approximately 500 million yuan.

In addition, a new tower crane plant in Foshan, Guangdong Province will soon be put into operation, which will further enhance the company's economies of scale. XCMG's goal is to produce 600 tower cranes under 600 tons per month.

XCMG invested RMB 2 billion (US$306 million) in the new plant, which will serve the southern China region. Once the cranes of more than 600 tons are up and running, they will be produced at XCMG's Xuzhou (Headquarters) Plant, which is also being expanded on a large scale.

In addition to a large number of targeted investments, what are the reasons for the significant increase in the productivity of Chinese manufacturers? Price points, international expansion of sales and service networks, and increasing end users’ confidence in Chinese equipment and technology have all played a role.

XCMG and Zoomlion already have a large market share in developing countries, and many crane owners mainly purchase equipment based on price. One of the positive effects of this on the Chinese is that they are sowing the seeds of brand loyalty in these (rapidly) developing countries.

In addition, they also enter overseas through production, sales and service networks.

For example, Zoomlion’s new tower crane assembly plant in Solferino, northern Italy (see: www.cranestodaymagazine.com/features/investing-ineure-8813842/) clearly aims to help the company expand into Europe. The management of Zoomlion said that identifying Europe as a key strategic market for its international business expansion is the key reason for investing in the new European factory.

Since 2020, Zoomlion has provided two flat-top tower cranes to the European market: the 12-ton T7020-12 and the 8-ton T6515-8. It now plans to launch two other heavy-duty flat-top tower crane models: the 205-ton W6522-10 and the 270-ton W7025-12.

Petre Babiceanu, General Manager of Zoomlion Europe, said: "Starting from September 2021, the second phase of development will begin, including the introduction of heavy-duty flat-top cranes in order to have a full range of flat-top cranes by 2022."

Babiceanu also hinted that the company's European product line may soon join luffer, "We realize the importance of having a complete series (flat top and luffer) in order to be able to introduce the Zoomlion brand throughout Europe and achieve outstanding performance. Market share, even in countries such as the United Kingdom where boom cranes are king. Zoomlion’s R&D department is working hard."

If Chinese companies want to gain traction in the mature tower crane market, one factor they need to deal with is the number of cranes produced and the quality of competition in terms of high-end nature. For example, this year alone, we have seen the release and upgrade of a large number of new tower cranes from multiple manufacturers.

The most recently launched product comes from the Spanish manufacturer Jaso in the form of its J198HPA hydraulic horn, which the company says will become one of the largest products on the market. The maximum lifting capacity of the crane is 18 tons. Jaso stated that it was built to meet the growing demand for higher capacity cranes in the 200 to 350 ton-meter range for urban projects or crowded downtown high-rise buildings. 

In March, Manitowoc, a crane manufacturer based in the United States, launched the Potain MCT 185 with a lifting capacity of 8 tons for the Asian market. The crane is located at the lower end of Potain's no bodywork range. It has a 65-meter-long boom that can be transported in five containers.

Based on the positive response from MCT 185, Manitowoc launched MCT 135 (available in 6-ton or 8-ton versions) in July, thereby increasing its Potain product line. The maximum boom length of the crane is 60 meters, and the height under the hook is 50.9 meters. Both cranes are manufactured at the Manitowoc plant in Zhangjiagang, China.

Manitowoc has also expanded its MDT flat-top series with Potain MDT 489, offering 20 and 25 ton versions.

Also in March, Jaso also entered the flat-top tower crane market for the first time and developed the 10-ton J200.10 and the 12-ton J200.12. These two cranes are designed to bridge the gap between urban cranes and low-top tower cranes.

Another Spanish manufacturer, Comansa, has added two new flat tops to its 21LC series this year: 21LC600 and 21LC650. Both increase the load capacity. Comansa has also upgraded its 11LC and 16LC series, and now their cat head and jib parts have adopted new designs. It also launched a new 6-ton 11LC150 version with Comansa’s quick setup system designed to reduce setup and calibration time

Italian tower crane manufacturer ENG Cranes has launched the ETH96 hydraulic luffing jib tower crane to eliminate sailing problems (see: www.cranestodaymagazine.com/news/luffer-designed-to-eliminate-oversailing-issues- 9001336). The maximum boom length of the crane is 41 meters, and the stop radius (OOS) is only 3.8 meters. The maximum lifting capacity is 6 tons and the boom length is 41 meters, but it can be increased to 8 tons.

In June, the Swiss-based manufacturer Liebherr launched the 205 EC-B 10 with a capacity of 10 tons (please click here for the full text: www.cranestodaymagazine.com/news/liebherr-extends-ec-b-series-8873273) . The maximum capacity can reach a radius of 18 meters, and the hook height is 54.4 meters. According to Liebherr, the first new models have been sold in France and Italy.

In August, the Italian manufacturer Moric launched the Moric RTM200 flat top with a capacity of 10 tons. It has a 65-meter boom and a 2.2-ton tip load. The company also plans to launch a six-ton ​​class (RTM130), an eight-ton class (RTM170); a 12-ton version (RTM250); and a 16-ton version (RTM300). The 18-ton low-top (RTT 350) for North American and Nordic customers is under preparation.

In terms of boom, after successfully launching its 16-ton RTL195 boom and low (8m) outage rate, Moritsch is now pushing its new 18-ton capacity RTL265K, especially in the Middle East and Asian markets, with the first batch of eight cranes Going to Korea. The company also plans to launch a 10-ton capacity RTL155 and a 24-ton RTL505 luffer (for Asia, Australia, North America and the United Kingdom).

Also this year, the Spanish tower crane manufacturer Sáez introduced an increased cutting-edge capacity update for its flat-top TLS 75 16T and TLS 80 24T models (TLS 75B 18T and TLS 80 20T), and it also plans to launch a 36-ton capacity change The jib, SL 730 and SL 730 ROS reduce the deactivation rate.

Another area that Chinese crane manufacturers may find difficult to navigate when trying to break into mature markets is the close cooperation between some manufacturers and leasing companies, which has led to cooperation in the development of tower cranes with specific attributes.

For example, Jaso's J198HPA and ENG Cranes's ETH96 were developed in close cooperation with the British tower crane rental company Falcon Tower Cranes. Falcon has ordered 5 sets of Jaso's J198HPA and 5 sets of ETH96. Falcon Managing Director Andrew Brown explained: “We have been working with Jaso since the early 2000s, but recently we have been working with them to develop new models. We like to have opinions, especially to help them get erections. Especially for J198HPA, we are Last year we worked closely with Jaso to ensure that it can be installed in one day.

"We have known ENG for about two or three years. About six months ago, I contacted Massimo of ENG because we wanted a hydraulic diverter with a much smaller failure radius than other hydraulic diverters. A few weeks later, ENG came back with ETH96 designs, and we have now ordered five."

Brown clarified that there is no minimum order requirement in this relationship. "We do not promise to purchase any specific number of cranes, but the plan is to erect cranes in our yard and then provide ENG with any feedback or changes that we would like to help erect. They are willing to change the design and make any improvements that we determine Improve."

"Our core business is manufacturing and designing custom cranes. We turn our customers' dreams into reality," said Massimo De Lazzero, export manager of ENG Cranes. "Now everyone wants something new and different, and we can achieve this goal. We receive customized orders from all over the world-from Australia, Canada and all of Europe. These companies are very happy to find someone who listens to them. People. I always say, "If it is technically feasible, then we will never refuse!"

Manufacturer Wolffkran also has a history of cooperating with customers to develop new products. For example, its Wolff 235 B launched in 2020 has design features required by the manufacturer's UK customer. Wolffkran product manager Wouter van Loon explained: “Wolff 235 B was developed in close cooperation with Wolffkran customers from the UK who have decades of experience in handling luffing cranes on construction sites in the city centre.” Wolffkran said, Thanks to this cooperation, the 235 B lifting device can be positioned on the jib instead of on the jib, so that the lifting rope can be placed on the ground and the entire boom can be fully pre-assembled.

Another example of a close partnership is between the British leasing company City Lifting and the Swedish manufacturer Artic Crane, which makes the Raptor articulated jib crane. City Lifting purchased the first Raptor ten years ago. "We have a long-term relationship," Stefan Olsson, owner of Artic Crane, commented on the City Lifting booth at Vertikal Days, a British trade show. "We have been working with them since 2008, and the first Raptor came out in 2010."

This cooperation has laid the foundation for the development of the latest design function on the latest Raptor iteration product Raptor 85, which is designed to assist the work of limited space projects. These include tower mast pins that can be removed internally using a hydraulic puller, allowing the crane to be installed, and most importantly, it can be easily removed from the elevator shaft of the building when space is limited, and the OOS radius is reduced to only 3.9 meters. “We talked with Stefan about the pin system,” Bob Jones, director of City Lifting, said at the Vertikal Days trade show. "We found a joint solution and it worked very well."

Are fierce competition and partnerships enough to prevent Chinese tower cranes from entering mature markets?

Maybe not on your own. However, combined with the existing strong dealer sales and service networks of European and American manufacturers, coupled with cultural and language barriers, the progress of Chinese manufacturers may not be smooth sailing.

Another obstacle to China's expansion is the lingering negative perceptions of product quality by end users, which has been exacerbated by past attempts to penetrate the European market.

However, as Chinese manufacturers invest a lot of money, as memories of the past fade away, and the improvement of their product quality is confirmed on the construction site, will the market share definitely increase?

XCMG pointed out that it currently has more than ten large-scale international manufacturing bases, with factories in Germany, Brazil, the United States, India and other countries. It has more than 300 overseas distributors and 40 overseas offices, and its products are exported to 187 countries and regions. At present, overseas revenue accounts for nearly 30% of total revenue. For the company’s senior management thinking, the next step is to increase penetration into mature markets.

While expanding internationally, XCMG continues to increase R&D investment. It has more than 7,100 valid authorized patents, more than 1,700 invention patents, and 75 international patents. It has successfully completed the formulation and revision of 4 international standards.

Industry commentators may describe this as an optimistic "spread betting" method, but as the saying goes, "lucky favors the brave."

Zoomlion also warned that it believes that the valuation of China's domestic construction machinery companies is seriously underestimated, and said that considering the rapid growth of construction machinery exports, its strength and influence should not be underestimated.

Progressive Media International Ltd. Registered address: 40-42 Hatton Garden, London, EC1N 8EB, UK. Copyright 2021 Progressive Media International Limited. all rights reserved.