Chinese AWP companies hone-in on Brazilian market

One company investing into the Brazilian market is Chinese hoist and tower crane manufacturer GJJ. GJJ's Chairman Mr. Liu told AI that it currently has over 200 mast climbing and hoist units in Brazil.

"We are a leader in the hoist market and that's why we are here," Liu said.

The company wants to double its numbers in South America in the coming year and plans to improve its services and brand name, as well. "We are going to improve confidence by partnering with local companies and providing training [on the equipment]," Liu said.

Another Chinese access manufacturer, Sinoboom, exhibited at M&T and was using the show to promote its products as well as find dealers. The company is one of the largest access platform manufacturers in China with a production capacity of around 400 units a year, but is investing in a larger facility in Changsha, which will boost its capacity to around 2,000 machines annually.

At the show, Sinoboom's newest dealer - local air compressor manufacturer ARBrasil - displayed a Sinoboom AWP at its booth. "It just arrived two weeks ago," ARBrasil's director, Gilson Macedo Santana, told AI.

Santana said he became interested in distributing Sinoboom products because of the "very strong market for this type of equipment." ARBrasil will offer customers four models of Sinboom booms.

Mantall Heavy Industry, a privately owned aerial work platform manufacturer based in Jiangsu, China, also exhibited at M&T. The company plans to open an office in Brazil by the end of 2012 to better serve the market, the company told AI.

Company president Lee Shen, who founded Mantall six years ago, said Mantall has been involved in the Latin American market, particularly in Brazil, for the last three years but want to open an office to provide after-sales services for customers.

"This is a big market and we want Mantall dealers and we are looking for rental companies," Shen said.

The company currently exports machines from China to Chile, Argentina and Brazil. "There's good development in Brazil," Shen said. "Our quality is good, price is good and people like [the products.]"

For more on this story and an in-depth review of the M&T Expo, see the July/August issue of Access, Lift & Handlers and Access International.