28.08.2020

Genie & HDW 25 year partnership

Dutch aerial lift distributor HDW and aerial lift/telehandler manufacturer Genie have celebrated the 25th anniversary of their distribution partnership in the Netherlands.

HDW was founded in 1982 by Wim Haasbroek, Frans van den Dool and Bas van de Wetering, when they took over the Coles crane dealership from Van Kranenburg after it had gone into bankruptcy. After a short while they added the JLG distribution to their portfolio, and then when Grove acquired Coles in 1984 and merged the Europe operations of the two companies in the following year it and selected HDW as the combined distributor. in 1995 JLG moved its Dutch distribution to Riwal, and Genie and HDW spotted the opportunity that this presented and formed a partnership that has not only lasted but has been extended to cover parts of Eastern Europe, Belgium and Luxembourg.
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HDW founders - (L-R) Wim Haasbroek, Frans van den Dool and Bas van de Wetering,

In 2001 the business was acquired by Caterpillar dealership owner Pon, which also owned aerial lift sales and rental company Gunco. The crane distribution business was closed in 2003, since when the company has expanded its access portfolio to include, Teupen, Isoli and Versalift. In 2011 TVH acquired the Gunco/HDW operations. Earlier this year HDW moved into brand new, purpose built 10,000 square metre premises in Heinenoord. Today it serves customers in 40 countries.
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(L-R) Jacco de Kluijver of Genie with Remko Jonkergouw of HDW

Genie’s Jacco de Kluijver said: “For Genie, the success of a solid working partnership comes with both mutual trust and sharing the same vision. In this respect, HDW has always been a steady partner that believes in quality and innovation in terms of the products it sells, as well as the level of service that it provides. They also have a very straightforward approach that makes them easy to work with. We can say that during these 25 years, our companies have grown together. Genie is proud to be represented by the HDW team and looks forward to continuing our collaboration for many years to come.”

Remko Jonkergouw of HDW added: “The key to the success of our long track record with Genie is that we do not see ourselves as a Genie customer, but as a partner. On top of that, we share the same values and put a strong focus on quality, customer service and purposeful innovation. In this respect, we can say that Genie is at the forefront. For HDW, innovating with our customers is important. The fact that we have been able to rely on Genie to support us has played an important role in our company’s successful expansion. The development of the new Genie four metre platform for Genie XC booms is a recent example of how well our companies work together to support our customers’ job specific requirements.”