Volvo Construction Equipment

Volvo Construction Equipment (originally Munktells, Bolinder-Munktell, Volvo BM) is a subsidiary and business area of AB Volvo. Volvo Construction Equipment develops, manufactures and markets equipment for the construction and related industries.

Overview

Volvo CE's product leaders in many world markets include a comprehensive range of wheel loaders, wheeled and crawler hydraulic excavators (aka diggers), articulated haulers (aka dumpers), motor graders, backhoe loaders, skid steer loaders, as well as mini and compact excavators, skid steers, and pipelayers, demolition equipment, waste handlers and scraper haulers. Volvo Construction Equipment has production facilities in Sweden, France, Germany, China, Brazil, Mexico, South Korea, India, and Poland. With the purchase of the road division of Ingersoll Rand, Volvo acquired a Road Construction facility in Pennsylvania, their only presence in the United States. The company offers worldwide service and spare-part distribution as well as a wide range of attachments.

Volvo Construction Equipment mainly distributes its machines through independent dealers and, in parallel with their rental program, to customers in more than 200 countries. Principal Volvo products for the rental centers include the company’s comprehensive line of compact excavators, skid steers, and backhoe loaders.

The corporation's equipment rental arm, Volvo Rents, began its equipment franchising initiative in 2001. The company now has nearly 90 equipment rental centers—mostly in North America—and continues to expand its operations in Europe with rental centers in Portugal and Spain. As part of the Volvo acquisition of Ingersoll Rand road machinery, approximately 30 former "Ingersoll Rand Equipment Stores" have been transitioned to "Volvo Construction Equipment & Services" locations that will sell, rent and support road machinery, compact equipment, and material handling products, such as milling equipment, pavers, compactors, tack distributors, road wideners and material transfer vehicles. In 2008, Volvo formed "Volvo Construction Equipment & Services California," from the IRES and recently acquired "Mathews Machinery" locations based in California.

History

The company was founded in 1832. In 1932 the decision was to merge the two companies Bolinders and Munktells. So, exactly one-hundred years after Johan Theofron Munktell’s start in Eskilstuna, Sweden, Bolinder moves to Eskilstuna and both companies merge under the name AB Bolinder-Munktell. In 1950, AB Volvo bought the machine manufacturer Bolinder-Munktell (BM). In 1973, the company name was changed to Volvo BM AB. During the 1980s and 1990s, a number of American, European and Asian construction equipment manufacturers were purchased. In 1995, the name was changed to Volvo Construction Equipment. Up until 1985 Volvo BM also produced tractors and other agricultural machines; the tractor manufacturing division was sold to Valmet in 1985.

For more information see the Volvo Construction Equipment global history site: http://www.volvo.com/constructionequipment/corporate/en-gb/AboutUs/history/introduction.htm

In February 2007, Volvo announced it had agreed to buy the road construction equipment division of Ingersoll-Rand for $1.3 billion in cash to re-enter the Road Construction market.^[1]

The unit manufactures and sells asphalt paving equipment, compaction equipment, milling machines and construction-related material handling equipment and generated net revenues of approximately $850 million for 2006. The sale includes manufacturing facilities in Pennsylvania, Germany, China and India, as well as 20 distribution and service facilities in the U.S. The business employs approximately 2,000 people worldwide.

On December 11, 2009, Volvo announced that it would close its manufacturing facility in Asheville, NC on or before March 31, 2010; resulting in the loss of 228 jobs, and the lack of any construction equipment facilities in the United States outside of Road Machinery. The products built at the Asheville Plant, including wheel loaders and crawler excavators, were transferred to Volvo manufacturing facilities in South Korea and Sweden.

On January 13, 2010, Volvo announced that it would invest 65 million SEK to begin producing crawler excavators in Brazil, taking advantage of government run, low financing options for products built in country.

Beginning in 2010, Volvo announced its new focus entitled "Fit for the Future". Key initiatives include focusing growth and expansion in the "BRIC" countries (Brazil, Russia, India, China). The new focus is set to run through 2012.

On March 15 2011, Volvo announced that over the next couple of years, Volvo CE plans to spend 100 million USD in its Shippensburg, PA, USA manufacturing facility and start production of Volvo wheel loaders, excavators and articulated haulers in North America. Also, the Volvo CE North American sales headquarters and Volvo Rents will relocate from Asheville, NC to Shippensburg, PA by 2014. A world class Customer and Demonstration Center will be built in Shippensburg. In addition, Volvo CE will put up a new office building on the campus to house its Regional Sales Headquarters, its Volvo Rents offices, and its Training Center. As of 2014, the Shippensburg, PA site employs over 700 employees representing nearly 20 nationalities working in operations, technology, sales and marketing, and customer support.^[2]

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