27.09.2018

Sinoboom opens new European distribution hub

Chinese aerial lift manufacturer Sinoboom has opened a new European operation in partnership with Liftstore - in Jawczyce, Poland, to the west of Warsaw.

The new venture is seen as an important step for the company in strengthening its international profile and improving its market share. The company plans to build a team of experienced European and Chinese individuals to provide sales and after sales service throughout Europe. The new operation will have two locations, one in Poland with Liftstore - which is already operational, with another due to open at a later date in the Netherlands. The European business is a partnership between Sinoboom and the Niewinski family.
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The team will be managed by Erik Geene who also has a stake in the business, having joined the company over the summer, following 14 years with Genie, most recently as a sales director used equipment. Prior to joining Genie in 2004, we spent 12 years with Genie dealer HDW as a sales and service specialist. He is joined by Lucjan Bogdan based at Liftstore in Poland and covering that region.
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Erik Geene

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Lucjan Bogdan

The new Sinoboom Liftstore partnership will have the sole purpose of building and supporting the product sales and service in Europe, while building brand confidence and recognition among rental companies and their customers. The centre will stock a range of the manufacturer’s machines, starting with its latest generation slab electric scissor lifts with platform heights from 13 to 47ft. As well as replacement parts for immediate delivery, the start up inventory of 250 machines is already in place. Financing programmes will be added at a later date.
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Some of the new Sinoboom scissor lifts

The new generation Q-Line scissor lifts are said to include numerous improvements to meet the demands of the European market, including a higher standard specification and new nano paint technology for enhanced rust and corrosion protection.

Erik Geene said: “Sinoboom currently has the best scissor products on the market. This is one of the reasons why I chose to join the company. Looking at the scissor products today, I am very confident that it will also develop the perfect boom lift range for the rental channel in the near future, starting with new launches at Bauma China later this year and at Bauma next year. We are going for a ‘quality revolution’!”

Sinoboom owners chairman Liu Guoliang and Susan Xu general manager added: “Sinoboom is a family company, not only owned by us, but also by our big family of 400 Sinoboom people, today we are very glad that the Niewinski and Geene families have joined our family. We warmly welcome more European friends join us, to do family to family business. Sinoboom always focuses on supplying high quality products and taking care of all customers demands, in order to build a quality brand in the AWP industry with a family business and a long term vision and strategy."

The first units to be delivered by the new team in the Netherlands were four 47ft GN-4047 scissor lifts for rental company Techno West Services in Kruiningen, in the south of the country. In Poland rental company Gizo has added 160 units over the summer. Gizo owner Grzegorz Niewinski said: “We have tested 13 units of Sinoboom machines since June last year and six months later decided to order a further 160 units more."
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The first Sinoboom scissor lifts delivered by its new European venture Techno West Services

Vertikal Comment

This makes good sense for Sinoboom, or any other Chinese manufacturer with serious long term aspirations for the European market. If you have the sense of déjà vu, your instincts and memory are spot on. This is not the first time we have seen the establishment of a Sinoboom Europe, the manufacturer made a misguided European entry in 2014 with Hoogwerkerstunter, See Sinoboom Europe Confirmed. The company has clearly learnt from that adventure and has a first class partner and colleague in Erik Greene. The fact that this new venture is focused on sales and support, and part owned by the manufacturer also bodes well for the future and its success.

With Sinoboom looking to emulate the success of Dingli which is increasingly accepted in a wide range of major rental fleets, while JCB and others bring in badged scissor lifts from China, the slab electric scissor lift market is certain to become even more competitive and interesting.

In the words of a famous musician - The times they are a changing.