McCarthy Heavy Equipment, a division of McCarthy and member of the Bidvest Group, is expanding its product range on offer to the booming construction industry.
McCarthy Heavy Equipment has signed a sole distribution agreement with the Sany Group, the largest privately-owned equipment manufacturer in China.
Established in 1994 and listed on the Shanghai stock exchange, Sany employs about 19 000 people, with sales revenue reaching R8-billion in 2006.
Sany is represented in 135 countries around the world, and currently holds two world records in concrete pumping; namely the highest vertical pumping of concrete (406 m at the Hong Kong International Finance Centre) and the world’s tallest truck-mounted concrete boom pump (reaching a vertical height of 66 m).
The company develops, manufactures and distributes engineering machinery, with products covering 25 categories, including graders, excavators, concrete pumps (trailer and truck-mounted), crawler cranes, drill rigs and batch plants.
"The Sany products are high quality, no-frills equipment, which are offered at competitive, value-for-money prices," says McCarthy Heavy Equipment MD Dylan Chicken.
"We believe the products are well-suited to the requirements of the South African market."
The Sany products use known brands such as Deutz and Cummins engines, as well as Kawasaki and Rexroth hydraulics.
Sany Southern Africa, with its head office in Sandton, is currently providing training to McCarthy Heavy Equipment technicians, and has four long-term engineers based in South Africa to provide additional technical support.
Since its launch in March this year, McCarthy Heavy Equipment has captured a 7,5% share in the local bulldozer market, and is aiming for a 5% share in the total heavy equipment market during its first three years of operation.
"We are determined to build a sustainable business and we have the full support from the manufacturers in China, as well as from McCarthy and Bidvest," says Chicken. "We are striving to provide customers with proper parts backup and technical expertise, supporting them throughout the lifespan of their equipment."
McCarthy Heavy Equipment has a 2 100 m² parts warehouse facility, and an equally-sized workshop at its head office in Boksburg.
The company has more than R5-million of parts on hand, and R45-million worth of new machines in stock.
New machines to the value of R42-million are on order, and expected to arrive early in the new year.
McCarthy Heavy Equipment’s facilities include a head office and branch in Boksburg, as well a recently-opened branch in Cape Town. Arrangements are also being formalised to establish sub-dealers in Kwazulu-Natal, Limpopo, the Eastern Cape and Mpumalanga.
The Sany procut range is being added to McCarthy Heavy Equipment’s existing line-up, which includes two other Chinese yellow-metal brands, namely Shantui and Yuchai.
The Shantui bulldozer is the number one selling dozer in China (with a 51% market share) and the fourth-largest dozer manufacturer worldwide.
Sales of heavy equipment in South Africa increased by an estimated 20% in 2006 compared to 2005, reaching R6,2-billion in sales.
The industry has also grown by more than 25% a year between 2001 and 2005, with up to 15% growth a year expected leading up to 2010.
