20.02.2014

JLG to drop Lull

JLG has announced that it will discontinue the manufacturing of its Lull telehandler product line from the start of 2015.

This means that the Lull 644E-42, 944E-42, and 1044C-54 Series II models will be discontinued. The company will continue to provide product support for all Lull machines in the field, including replacement parts and service, but will now focus all new machine sales on its SkyTrak and JLG branded telehandlers.
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A Lull 644E-42

Brian Boeckman global product director for telehandlers said: “The market for Lull telehandler models has been in decline for several years, which combined with increased cost to comply with new EPA engine standards, led us to the decision to discontinue the product line. Our comprehensive telehandler portfolio remains solid however, and we believe there are significant models across our JLG line of equipment that will support the shift for our customers beyond 2015.”

A short history of Lull

The precise history of the Lull brand is somewhat sketchy, but here are a few facts given that the name will soon disappear. We are not absolutely 100 percent certain of all of these ‘facts’, so if anyone can add to this thumbnail or correct any innacuracies we would be delighted to hear from your.
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The early Lulls were not telescopic - a Lull High Lift from the late 50s or early 60s

The company was founded in 1959 by Legrand ‘Shorty’ Lull in St Paul, Minnesota later moving to a larger plant in nearby Eagan. The company changed its name to Lull Engineering Inc in 1963 and was eventually acquired by Stamatkis Industries and then declared bankruptcy in 1992. It was then owned for a short time by Badger Bazen of Johnsonville, South Carolina, and its name changed to Lull Industries and then Lull International.

The company became known for its patented horizontal carriage movement which allowed loads to me moved into a building. Somewhere along the way a number of key employees left the business and managed to get around the patent with the Traverse lift built by Pettibone.
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This photo shows Lull's patented sliding carriage

The Harbour Group of St Louis acquired the Lull business in 1996 joining it up with SkyTak, which the group had acquired a year earlier. Harbour acquired Snorkel a year later in 1997.

Ominquip took over all three companies in 1997 and closed the Eagan plant, transferring Lull production to the SkyTrak plant in Port Washington, Wisconsin. It then ran the businesses until 2003 when it closed Snorkel and sold the two telehandler operations to JLG, which also acquired Gradall to become North American telehandler market leader.