MAKING IT BETTER The order books are full at Atlas GmbH, the German specialist in cranes, excavators and allied technologies. But, as Felicity Landon reports, it is the drive to increase productivity that is the ongoing story.
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2010, Fil Filipov was confirmed as the buyer of Atlas Cranes & Excavators from Terex. As the sole shareholder in Atlas Maschinen GmbH, which acquired the Atlas business, he confirmed that the new company would be headquartered at the Atlas crane plant in Delmenhorst in Germany and he would serve as the chairman of Atlas Maschinen Group. Atlas would continue manufacturing excavators in its Ganderkesee plant, cranes in its Delmenhorst plant, and hydraulic cylinders and other components in its Vechta plant, he said. And he successfully reintroduced the Atlas name and colour, a move welcomed by the company’s extensive dealer network. However, there was soon conflict on the factory floors as he began implementing changes in his mission to turn a struggling
business around. Terex had more or less given Atlas away, feeling that the cost of closing the plant or restructuring to make it profitable was too much in both management time and financial terms. The belief was that an independent owner would be better placed to tackle the changes needed. Hence the arrival of Fil Filipov, an entrepreneur born in Bulgaria, who has lived in the USA since the 1960s and owns several companies around the world. Mr Filipov is no stranger to tough turnarounds and, as one publication put it, “is not noted for his delicate or slow approach; he does know, though, that if he is to make the most of what is potentially a strong business with a good product range and strong brand name, he needs to make significant changes to working practices at the plant.” Industry Europe 131
