22.12.2004

Mateco take over Scholpp fleet

In a further consolidation of the German powered access market, Stuttgart based Mateco has announced that it has purchased the Scholpp aerial work platform business from Scholpp Kran & Transport GmbH also based in Stuttgart.

Mateco has bought 180 platforms from Scholpp taking its fleet up to around 2200 units with a range from 5.8 to 88 Metres working height. Mateco CEO Wolfgang Roth said that Mateco intends to shorten the distance for customers to rent platforms especially in the region between Stuttgart, Karlsruhe and Heilbronn.
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Matecos HQ in Stuttgart

Scholpp is a well known crane, rigging and special transport company with 11 locations in Germany and will now concentrate on this “main” business. Scholpp are well known for special rigging and lifting jobs, not only in Germany but also around the world. The group has over 700 employees in Germany, China, Malaysia and Spain.

Scholpp was the first company to import a telescopic boom crane into Germany when it purchased one of the first two 22 tonne Grove cranes that were shipped to Europe back in 1964, that unit is now on display in a German Museum.
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Scholpp will now concentrate on its other businesses including crane hire and heavy transport

As part of this deal Mateco will also take over all of the employees of Scholpp’s access division.

Vertikal Comment

Mateco are clearly in expansion mode, in the past few months it has announced a significant purchase of new machines from JLG, opened a new facility in Bielefeld and now acquired the Scholpp business.

This consolidation comes on top of the announcement by the Lavendon group of its Zooom Germany restructuring which including depot closures and staff reductions. The German Self propelled aerial lift market development lags behind most other major European markets in terms of development, including Holland, Sweden, the UK, France and even Spain. The big question is How soon will the next phase of strong growth take off in Germany? Perhaps Mateco believe the answer is soon?
Mateco senior management may also sense an opportunity to take back market leadership in Germany having lost it a few years back to Lavendon.