29.04.2011

Manitowoc lifts revenues 7.1%

Manitowoc Crane revenues for the first quarter improved 7.1 percent while the order backlog jumped 40 percent.

Revenues were $392.8 million, while strong order intake coupled with deliveries hampered by Tier IV engine challenges boosted the order backlog to $800 million, up by 40 percent compared to the start of the year.

The company says that most of the growth came from the Americas the Crane Care product support business. It also adds that the delivery disruptions have now been resolved.

Operating income increased to $12.5 million, almost triple the $4.5 million recorded in the first quarter of 2009. Margins climbed to 3.2 percent from 1.2 percent in the same period of 2010, due to the increased volume but constrained by material cost increases and the reinstatement of certain employee benefits.

Chief executive Glen Tellock said: "First-quarter performance for our Crane segment reflected a continuation of the strong order rates from the fourth quarter. Orders were particularly strong in the Americas, which benefited from a very successful ConExpo show in March. While economic conditions in parts of Europe continue to be challenging, the first-quarter performance reaffirms our view that 2010 was the trough year for this segment and provides us with greater confidence in our full-year 2011 outlook."

"We continue to believe that 2011 will be a transition year, with uneven demand levels and increasing commodity costs creating certain challenges. However, we're pleased with our current position and believe we are in an excellent position to drive year-over-year growth in 2011 and beyond."

The company as a whole which includes the foodservices division, saw revenues climb seven percent to $732.2 million, while posting a pre-tax loss of $15.9 million, compared to a loss of $37.5 million in the same period last year.

Tellock added: "Continued momentum in the first quarter provides us with increasing confidence that we have appropriately positioned our businesses for growth as the global economy recovers. In addition to our unwavering investments in new product development throughout the downturn, we have also continued to make improvements in our operations through Lean initiatives, technology improvements, and facility consolidations, which should drive enhanced profitability long-term as volumes continue to increase."

Vertikal Comment

A good result from Manitowoc which seems to build on the strong finish it reported for the fourth quarter of 2010. The company still has a lot of strong – long term upside potential going forward, but at the moment it is benefiting from its strong market position in North American. However its new products, such as the GMK6300 and RT9150E are proving to be highly popular and selling well in what is still a nervous market.

The crane business tends to lag the economy as a whole by a year or more, so to see two good quarters like this from Manitowoc, so soon into what is a slow pick up, is very encouraging.