21.06.2005

JLG announces organisational changes

JLG has announced what it calls an “organizational alignment” to support its strategic plan and specific initiatives that is intended to grow its service operations, diversify its channels to market and bring increased focus to its Six Sigma programme. .

The changes include:

The move of JLG’s equipment services operations at the McConnellsburg headquarters into the Houston based subsidiary, Service Plus Inc.
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The Service Plus logo

Service Plus offers repairs, maintenance, reconditioning, and training on both JLG products and other brands of Aerial lifts and telehandlers. As part of this change, the Houston location will be renamed Service-Plus, South Central region, while the McConnellsburg location will become Service-Plus, Mid-Atlantic region. Joseph M. Gullion remains as president of the larger Service Plus business.

“Consistent with our longer term strategic plan, we are expanding the Service Plus umbrella to include the commercial Equipment Services operations located in McConnellsburg, PA,” commented Bill Lasky, Chairman of the Board, President and Chief Executive Officer. “This organizational structure will better serve the multi-faceted needs of our customers. It will be scalable and flexible, with plans to expand to multiple sites throughout the United States.”.

Formation of the Commercial Solutions Group

The Company also announced an increased focus on commercial and industrial markets for its access products, such as vertical mast lifts and trailers, through the formation of the JLG Commercial Solutions Group (“CSG”).

“This group is a key element in our strategy to diversify our revenue base and expand our market penetration.” commented Lasky, “The unique requirements of this channel for product design and customer service will be the complete focus of the newly formed CSG which will have dedicated resources in manufacturing, design, supply chain, marketing and sales.”

Philip H. Rehbein, currently Senior Vice President, Strategic Operations, will assume responsibility for the Commercial Solutions Group, reporting directly to Bill Lasky. Rehbein, joined JLG in 1997 as Corporate Controller moving becoming vice president and Corporate Controller in 1998, taking over as general manager of Gradall in 2001, and senior vice president of Finance in 2002. taking up his current role in 2004.
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One of JLG's many Vertikal Mast products

Six Sigma, Quality and Training

John Louderback has been named vice president of Six Sigma, Quality Processes and Training, reporting directly to Bill Lasky. Louderback joined JLG in 1993 as director of sales and distributor development, he moved to customer support in 1996, assuming full responsibility for all aftermarket customer support activities in 1997, when he was promoted to vice president customer support services. Prior to joining JLG Louderback had been chief financial officer of a construction equipment rental company and as controller for an equipment manufacturer.

“The first year of our Six Sigma program has been very successful, and now is the opportune time to expand its impact by focusing our commitment to this strategic initiative under John’s leadership,” stated Lasky. “John has been the Six Sigma champion from day one, and he is to be commended for his passion and desire to institutionalize the principles of Six Sigma at JLG. We expect that he will lead our efforts to even greater levels of success.”

Vertikal Comment

The pace of growth at JLG is rapid, to say the least, the growth percentages do not properly reflect the fact that JLG has added a $billion in annual revenues within a two year period. In order to keep up with this pace, organisational changes such as this are inevitable and necessary..

The transfer of the McConnellsburg based service and reconditioning activities into Service Plus Inc makes eminent sense, one simply wonders why it was not done before. Although having set up Service Plus as a new business barely a year ago, it has given the operation time to establish the concept prior to rolling it out.

The Commercial Solutions Group, attempts to solve the age old problem of combining large high value construction equipment and big volume customers with the low cost end user type products such as the push around, vertical lifts and trailers. Many companies, including JLG, have in the past separated, then bought them back together and tried all manner of initiatives to focus the efforts on these smaller products and different customers.

No one though has ever gone quite as far as JLG appears to have with this announcement. Given the size of JLG’s business and the resource that it is putting behind it, not to mention Laskys determination in such things, it could work this time.

It is important that the two changes above succeed in expanding JLG's revenues in these markets. Both areas traditionally remain strong, or even grow when the company's main market, construction, passes through the downward phase of its typical 10 year business cycle.