Driving Innovation and Growth in the APAC Lift Truck Market

By: Kathryn Gerardino-Elagio

What do warehouses, factories, ports, and terminals have in common? They all rely on lift trucks to handle, store and transport materials efficiently and safely. Lift trucks are not just vehicles. They are smart, powerful and versatile solutions that can handle any material handling challenge.

Recently, International Metalworking News for Asia (IMNA) had the opportunity to interview Ben Newey, Vice President, Sales and Marketing (API) of Hyster-Yale Group, a global manufacturer of lift trucks and material handling equipment. In the interview, Ben talked about the company’s branding strategy in APAC and how it differentiates itself from the competition.

IMNA: Please share more about Hyster-Yale.

Ben Newey: The Hyster-Yale Group, Inc. is a leading, globally integrated, full-line lift truck manufacturer offering a broad array of solutions that meet the specific material handling needs of customers across industries. Besides the comprehensive line of lift trucks and aftermarket parts, our portfolio includes attachments, telematics, automation, fleet management services, as well as a variety of other power options for lift trucks.

Hyster-Yale Group is a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. (NYSE:HY).  Hyster-Yale Materials Handling, Inc. and its subsidiaries, headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, employ approximately 8,300 people worldwide. Our operations are supported by a global network that includes manufacturing facilities, service, and product development centres across five different continents, including Asia Pacific.

We also partner local, independent dealers in each country to provide a seamless, responsive customer experience for all our customers. In Asia, Oceania, and the Indian subcontinent, we have 23 dealers across 18 countries that help provide a higher level of customer support.

IMNA: What does Hyster-Yale’s branding mean for APAC?

Ben Newey: In recent years, there has been an increasing focus on sustainability and environmental concerns, including zero-emission initiatives. Hyster-Yale has been manufacturing electric-powered trucks for over 100 years, and we are continually investing in and expanding our product portfolio of clean-energy solutions that not only help our customers achieve environmental benchmarks, but also deliver the performance needed to get the job done.

For example, our lithium-ion battery-powered trucks help enhance productivity and performance, delivering a quicker return on investment (ROI) compared  to lead acid battery alternatives.

IMNA: Hyster-Yale is positioned as the preferred material handling provider, especially for companies in the supply chain sector. Please share more on the key factors that make Hyster-Yale a preferred choice for full-line lift trucks.

Ben Newey: We design, engineer, and manufacture a comprehensive line of lift trucks and aftermarket parts marketed globally under the Hyster^® and Yale^® brand names. Hyster is a trusted 90-year brand that specialises in tough lift trucks. With lifting capacities ranging from 1,000kg to 52,000kg, Hyster lift trucks combine award-winning designs, industrial-strength components, and high-tech manufacturing to deliver versatile and dependable solutions.

Yale, on the other hand, supports customers with warehouse solutions and intralogistics knowledge that deliver advantages in productivity, energy efficiency, and total cost of ownership. From traditional lift truck equipment to emerging technologies, Yale combines a process of continuous improvement, technology, and over a century of experience in the electric lift truck business.

Our worldwide presence and product portfolio, among the largest of all material handling manufacturers, enables us to commit the resources necessary to provide consistent quality, streamlined processes, greater buying power, and more configurations to meet customers’ needs and preferences.

Over the years, we have also developed partnerships to support customer needs in equipment, alternative energy, and high-quality global product availability. For example, our telematics solutions are now available to all our customers across the Asia Pacific region, and we are also relocating our Parts Distribution Centre from Sydney, Australia, to Johor Bahru, Malaysia. This shift will help our parts reach customers in a timely and cost-efficient manner, as the closer proximity to Southeast Asia helps enable better inventory management. Parts can be restocked and replenished more promptly, reducing the chances of stockouts. This provides customers with access to the parts they need when they need them, further minimising downtime.

IMNA: How does Hyster-Yale address the supply chain challenges through its solutions? Please provide some examples or case studies.

Ben Newey: At Hyster-Yale, addressing safety challenges without sacrificing productivity is priority. Hyster-Yale’s global, factory-fitted telemetry systems enable our customers to track the performances of their trucks, entire fleets, and operators, at any time, from anywhere in the world. By monitoring equipment in real time and scheduling preventive maintenance, the Hyster Tracker and Yale Vision fleet management systems help customers address safety problems before they even begin.

Our Dynamic Stability System (DSS) — another feature we developed to help promote safe operating practices — sends audible and visual alerts to the lift truck operator. The DSS is engineered to give operators real-time stability support they can rely on. For example, when the system detects that the lift truck has exceeded specified stability thresholds, it immediately intervenes with measures to support steady travel Four different subsystems help to smoothly decelerate the forklift when traveling around corners and in turns, and to limit truck speed, tilt speed, and tilt range when carrying elevated loads.

IMNA: As a leader in the material handling space, what is Hyster-Yale Group’s vision for the future? How does the company aim to shape and revolutionise the industries it serves through its solutions?

Ben Newey: We anticipate a growing demand for environmentally friendly manufacturing, products, and solutions over the next decade. Nuvera, a company owned by Hyster-Yale Group, is dedicated to advancing hydrogen fuel cell technology, which will provide material handling products with a fuel source to achieve these environmental goals.

Additionally, the ongoing development of electrification technology is expected to enable electric trucks to outperform Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) trucks in terms of both performance and reliability across all customer applications and environments in the near future.

Lastly, in alignment with Hyster-Yale’s vision of “Transforming the way the world moves materials from Port to Home,” we are committed to continuous investment and the development of industry-leading products and services. This commitment helps our customers meet their sustainability targets with safe, efficient, and reliable products.