12.12.2019

Pettibone to enter the scissor lift market

Pettibone plans to enter the aerial lift market with a range of 13 slab electric scissor lift models ranging from a 12ft micro to a classic 40ft 4046 model, with working heights from 5.6 to 14 metres.

The units will be offered with a choice of direct electric or traditional hydraulic wheel motor drive configurations, while a common control box with LED screen is standard as are deck extensions. Pettibone will launch the new models at the ARA Show in February.

The range includes three micro direct electric drive models - the 12ft SS1230E, 14ft SS1432E and 19ft SS1932E - while the others are regular slab electric scissor lifts - the 810mm wide 19ft AS1932 or AS1932E, and 26ft AS2632 or AS2632E together with the wider - 46 inch/1.2 metre wide - 26ft AS2646 orAS2646E, 32ft AS3246 or AS3246E and 40ft AS4046 orAS4046E. The 'E' indicating direct electric drive.
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The narrow 26ft Pettibone S2632E

General manager Scott Raffaelli said: “We are extremely proud of our strong reputation in the material handling industry, and are excited to now enter a new arena with high quality work platforms. The new line is a great complement to our established machines, and we look forward to providing the same level of support and jobsite performance that our dealers and customers have come to expect from Pettibone.”

Vertikal Comment

Pettibone is clearly badging a Chinese built scissor lift - in a similar way to JCB – in order to dip its toe into the powered access market. While the company has not said which manufacturer is manufacturing/supplying them, they are almost certainly standard LGMG machines - badged as Pettibone. Nothing wrong with that, LGMG makes an excellent machine and runs a solid product support regime. It is also one of the few companies to offer a choice of direct electric or hydraulic wheel drive choice on the same machine.

Quite why Pettibone feels it needs to enter the aerial lift market is a mystery, it doesn’t exactly offer a full telehandler line, and might do better to focus updating and broadening that product line, where it has a foot hold, rather than diversify its focus into other markets. But then again it will have needed very little investment to kick off this new venture, and its dealers might well appreciate the additional product lines?

The fact is, the more companies promoting the benefits of self-propelled aerial work platforms over ladders and scaffolds the higher the market penetration achieved. And even the well developed US market is far from being mature, so why not? After all if its good enough for JCB then why not Pettibone?