HEAVY LIFTING Based in the northern Italian city of Piacenza, Bolzoni has established itself over 60 years as not only the largest lift truck attachment producer in Europe but also a world leader in its field, writes Beverley Young.
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ounded in 1945 and family owned until the 1970s, Bolzoni began its European expansion by opening branches in Spain, France and the UK. In 2001 Bolzoni acquired Auramo, a Finnish company, forming the Bolzoni Auramo group. This growth then continued in 2006 when the group acquired Hans H. Meyer GmbH, merging the high quality products of two leading companies to provide the best product range on the market for forklift attachments. With seven production plants and 18 companies, Bolzoni employs more than
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700 people, and its recent investments in China guarantee its future growth. It now has branches throughout Europe and on every continent and turned over around €115 million in the year ending 2011, representing a healthy 25 per cent rise in revenues. But Bolzoni was not completely immune to the economic downturn of the past years as marketing director Carlo Fallarini explains: “2009 was, without doubt, a difficult year in our sector as forklift sales dropped to less than half that of the previous year as companies cut back on investment. Fortunately
things began to pick up in 2010 and this has been further consolidated in 2011 which can definitely be seen as a year of recovery. 2011 also saw other success stories for Bolzoni and its reputation as a well respected industry, and one which its city of Piacenza is proud of, can be seen when, in July 2011, Chairman Emilio Bolzoni, was appointed President of Confindustria for Piacenza. Confindustria is Italy’s leading organization for the representation of its manufacturing and service industries and is present both locally and nationally.
