September 2020

CED S E P T E M B E R

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CONSTRUCTION

CONSTRUCTION EQUIPMENT DISTRIBUTION P R O V I D I N G S O L U T I O N S T O D AY F O R T O M O R R O W ’ S E Q U I P M E N T I N D U S T R Y

S TRU GGLING WITH T E C H AD O PTION? This Could Be Why

PO ST CO V I D - 1 9 R EV EN UE R ECO V ERY It’s All About Culture. Part One.

D I G I TAL J OU RN E Y To Unexpected Leads

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 1

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DRIVING DEALERSHIP SUCCESS

ALTA COUNTS ON e-EMPHASYS “One of the KPIs that we've historically tracked is how long it takes for us to get from the completion of a work order to actually invoicing the work order. We've been able to cut that in half in the time we've been on e-Emphasys,” said Greenawalt. “The transparency of the system and it being a robust, real database is really helping with our business intelligence and our reporting. It's light years ahead of where we came from.“

RYAN GREENAWALT, PRESIDENT & CEO ALTA EQUIPMENT COMPANY

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CONSTRUCTION

SEPTEMBER 2020 | VOL 86 NO. 09 | www.cedmag.com

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STRUGGLING WITH TECH ADOPTION? THIS COULD BE WHY

One of the biggest struggles many of these companies encounter is thinking of their technology platform in a silo. They think of these platforms as nice-to-have, IT-driven tools, and fail to recognize the major impact they can have on the company’s employees, culture, customers, value proposition and business model.

23

2020 COMPACT EQUIPMENT SHOWCASE Take an exclusive look at the equipment that pertains specifically towards your business.

34

POST COVID-19 REVENUE RECOVERY: IT’S ALL ABOUT CULTURE. PART ONE.

COVID-19 has thrown everyone for a loop. Businesses must scramble, reinvent, pivot, and do whatever is necessary to survive and ensure a path forward.

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HOW THE DIGITAL JOURNEY TO SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE ENABLEMENT LEADS TO UNEXPECTED VALUE Although construction and industrial equipment dealers and distributors have taken the necessary steps to connect with customers online, most are early in their journey toward digitally enabling service and maintenance.

2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 3 September 2020

CONTENTS

SEPTEMBER 20 20 | VOL 86 NO. 09 | www.cedmag.com INSIDE

EDITORIAL Editor in Chief Sara Smith ssmith@aednet.org Design & Layout Phoebe MacGregor pbmacgregor3@gmail.com ADVERTISING Vice President Jon Cruthers 800-388-0650 ext. 5127 jcruthers@aednet.org Production Manager

P.6 Navigating The New Normal P.9 AED Summit 2021: What to Expect P.14 Product Preview: Volvo CE Electric Machines Available for Online Prebooking in North America

P.20 When It Comes to Service, Don’t Put On the Ritz P.42 Adrian Hillmann, Not The Typical Traveling Salesman P.44 Infrastructure Investments are Crucial to Canada’s Economic Recovery P.46 AED Doubles Down on Education During Challenging Times

Martin Cabral 800-388-0650 ext. 5118 mcabral@aednet.org

Since 1920 Official Publication of

SEPTEMBER CONTRIBUTING WRITERS Brian P. McGuire

AED’s President & CEO

Troy Harrison The Sales Navigator

Ron Barlet 2020 AED Chairman

Todd Cohen www.ToddCohen.com

Kyle Larkin Canada Impact

Michael Dexter Senior Director of Canadian Engagement, Chicagoland, IA

Dirk Beveridge UnleashWD

Lori Lovely CED Reporter

2019

As the official magazine of Associated Equipment Distributors, this publication carries authoritative notices and articles in regard to the activities of the association. In all other respects, the association cannot be responsible for the contents thereof or the opinions of contributors. Copyright © 2020 by Associated Equipment Distributors. Construction Equipment Distribution (ISSN0010-6755) is published monthly as the official journal of Associated Equipment Distributors. Subscription rate – $45 per year for members; $90 per year for nonmembers. Office of publication: 650 E. Algonquin Road, Suite 305, Schaumburg, Ill. 60173 Phone: 630-574-0650. Periodicals postage at Schaumburg, Ill. 60173 and other post offices. Additional entry, Pontiac, Ill. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Construction Equipment Distribution, 650 E. Algonquin Road, Suite 305, Schaumburg, Ill. 60173.

4 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

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CONSTRUCTION

FRO M T HE C HA I R M A N

R O N BAR LE T

I hear various levels of concern throughout our membership

N A V I G AT I N G THE NEW

NORMAL

during these unprecedented times. The reality is you as

well as your customers have a choice: “Eat or be eaten�.

Confident companies that have demonstrated years of

success know that every situation creates an opportunity.

At my company, we are hiring frustrated employees from our competitors and bolstering our transport, sales,

service, parts, and management team. The reality is this pandemic will pass and even if it stays with us as a new

norm, strong companies learn to navigate the new normal and weak ones disappear. Whatever the case, the strong will be better, smarter, and ready.

HERE TH OUGH AR E SOM E RE AL I TI ES R EL ATED TO TH E G EN ER AL MARK E T:

1 2

An infrastructure bill will be passed if not before the election, soon thereafter and it will help our industry and our customers Demolition will remain strong as most businesses will need to reinvent themselves. Examples:

a. Malls will be outdoor, not indoor

b. Restaurant will need to be outdoor focused

c. Streets in dense areas will close to accommodate outside traffic

d. Office buildings will remodel and likely reduce in size and need to be repurposed

e. Single family housing demand will and is increasing

3

f. Every venue, sports, movies, entertainment, will reinvent how they operate which will require some form of demolition/construction

Interest rates are at all-time lows and will stay extremely low for years to come

a. There is no better time to buy things or start those improvements b. Financially, low interest means low cost to build new projects 4

Many businesses are killing it

a. Aside from any IT/tech related, certainly freight, delivery, grocery, mail order b. RV and boat sales are exceptionally strong c. Generally anything related to the outdoors or exercise is doing well d. Home improvement is at record levels e. While travel and leisure certainly are taking a hit, these are typically not high wage

paying jobs, yet will bounce back to some level 6 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

5

The only industry to really suffer

a. Travel and leisure, especially related to businesses and conventions – airlines, hotels, convention centers b. Zoom meetings have demonstrated that you do not always have to fly there c. But in person sales meetings, job site visits, and some business travel will still exist

d. Leisure travel will come back, albeit slowly

C L OSER TO OUR B USINESSES:

1) Is your organization following up on those calls and thanking customers for their business?

2) Are your team members immersing themselves in your products and services to fully understand the benefits?

3) Does your team recognize that the single biggest reason people do business with your company is not even your brands -it is because the best organizations respond timely and take care ofcustomers which is hugely because of your people!

As leaders, we can invest in our organizations with personal development, product knowledge and enthusiasm to excite our teams and our customers or we can surrender to a doomsday scenario which our resiliency as a country seems very unlikely. At AED, with our virtual delivery events, seminars, training materials, benchmark reports and many others - it is incredibly easy to access the tools and materials needed to help continue to build and reinvigorate your organization.

Personally, I would prefer to “Eat than be Eaten�. We can easily strengthen our organizations if we commit to investing in our ourselves and employees. Those that do will almost certainly adapt to the new normal that is sure to be different but will also create some new opportunities for those that are ready!

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 7

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AED SUMMIT 2021

W H AT T O E X P E C T

A

s North America continues to take all necessary precautions to prevent the spread of Covid-19, AED has been consistently reevaluating the timeline of our events to keep them safe and productive. With the safety and wellbeing of our members being a top priority within our association, AED has decided to move the dates of 2021 AED Summit to the end of March, from the 2931. By taking this preliminary measure, AED expects that we will be prepared to offer a successful event without disruption.

AED will be working closely with the venue, The Mirage Hotel, and complying with CDC guidelines to ensure all recommended safety measures are implemented into the conference. Some of the safety measures we plan to put in place include utilizing facemasks, hand sanitization stations and temperature checks to prevent risk of infection. By practicing social distancing and thorough and frequent sanitation of the environment, AED is confident that our members will be able to enjoy the rewarding experience that Summit provides.

This adjustment will allow time for our communities to lower the infection rates as we navigate through the “new normal�. By pushing Summit dates further back, AED intends to provide our members with the quality experience that they deserve.

AED will always be here for our members through these times, and will continue to make the changes necessary to allow our members to prosper regardless of the situations we may face.

I would like to warmly invite everyone to our new dates for 2021 AED Summit. AED feels confident that with these dates, we will be able to provide a safe and productive environment for all. We strongly encourage our members to plan their means of travel and make reservations at the hotel for the event ahead of time. By allowing North America the necessary duration to adapt to the current health crisis, AED is committed to preparing a carefully considered event that will offer the experience that our members are familiar with.

B R I A N P. Mc GUI R E AED President & CEO

WE ARE LOOKING FORWARD TO S E E I N G E V E R Y O N E AT S U M M I T NEXT MARCH, AND HOPE ALL OF OUR MEMBERS S TAY H E A LT H Y A N D S A F E .

R OB ERT K . HEN DER SON AED Executive Vice President & COO

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 9

CI O NN DS U TS RT U RC Y TN IO EN WS

ASV added several new dealers to its dealer network in the second quarter of 2020. The new dealers offer ASV’s full line of skid-steers and compact track loaders, including the recently introduced RT-50 Posi-Track loader.

AS V E X PA N D S D EALER NETWOR K I N SE C OND QUARTER OF 2020

ASV Holdings Inc., an industry-leading manufacturer of all-purpose and all-season compact track loaders and skid steers, added new dealers to its dealer network in Q2 of 2020 – three locations each for new dealers CLM Equipment Co. Inc. and TraxPlus LLC, as well as the addition of Nick’s Skid & Steer and a location for Quality Forklift Sales & Service Inc. The new dealers represent a significant addition to ASV’s quickly growing dealer network as the company expands across the U.S. and Canada. The new dealers will offer ASV’s full line of Posi-Track® compact track loaders, featuring best-in-class rated operating capacity, cooling systems and hydraulic efficiency. The line includes the industry’s most compact track loaders, the RT-40, the RT-25 and the recently introduced RT-50; the mid-sized RT-65, RT-75 and VT-70 High Output; and the RT-120 Forestry, the industry’s most powerful CTL. The dealers will also offer ASV’s full line of skid-steer loaders.

“A widespread presence of reliable dealer partners is important to us at ASV because we know how our customers appreciate being able to count on their local

dealer,” said Jeff Pate, ASV director of sales. “We’re excited to welcome these new partners. They truly share ASV’s values of integrity, quality and customer service – which we consider critical for maintaining customer satisfaction.”

Visit ASV’s website at www.asvi.com to find a dealer near you.

About ASV ASV Holdings Inc., a Yanmar Compact Equipment company, designs and manufactures a full line of compact track and skid-steer loaders primarily for the construction, landscaping and forestry markets. Known as the creators of America’s original compact track loader, ASV has a strong belief that no matter where customers are working, they should be able to complete the job quickly and with ease. ASV builds its machines with groundbreaking features allowing customers to do more work in more places with maximum power, performance, serviceability and comfort. This is made possible through innovative design combined with ASV’s patented Posi-Track undercarriage technology that provides exceptional traction on soft, wet, slippery, rough or hilly terrain. Posi-Track is a registered trademark of ASV Holdings Inc. For more information: ASV Holdings Inc., 840 Lily Lane, Grand Rapids, MN 55744; call 1-800-205-9913; fax 218-327-9122; sales@ asvi.com; www.asvi.com; Facebook and YouTube.

POWER MOTIVE CO R P. AD D S TH E TERRA MA C LINEUP

Power Motive Corp. (PMC), a leading construction equipment dealer based in Denver, is proud to be Terramac’s newest fullservice dealer. The rubber-tracked crawler carrier line is wellrecognized for increased versatility and simplified maintenance.

With a variety of models to choose from, each is designed with the end-user in mind and is built to conquer the roughest terrains so crews can reach rugged and remote job sites.

Completely customizable, Terramac crawler carriers support a wide range of specialized attachments to serve industries such as pipeline, utilities, general construction, environmental restoration, forestry and more. When you’re looking for an equipment solution capable of handling your toughest jobs, choose Terramac so you can work confidently knowing you’re getting the best quality crawler carrier the industry has to offer.

10 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

T IEOWNS ICNODNUSSTTRRUY C N

DOOSA N BOBCAT NO RTH AMER I CA DONAT ES $81,000 TO WOUN D ED WARRIOR P RO JECT®

Doosan Bobcat North America announced on August 6 the donation of $81,000 to Wounded Warrior Project® (WWP), a national, nonprofit organization dedicated to serving injured veterans and their families. Proceeds raised by the campaign will help wounded veterans transition to civilian life through WWP programs and services ranging from economic empowerment to mental health care.

“We are proud to be giving back to an organization that has given so much to U.S. veterans, who are our employees, dealers and customers,” said Mike Ballweber, president of Doosan Bobcat North America. “We want to have a strong impact in our communities, so this donation is one way we can raise awareness for this great cause and support the men and women who have bravely served our country.”

Doosan Bobcat formally launched its partnership with WWP at CONEXPO-CON/AGG 2020, a Las Vegasbased construction industry trade show, as part of the company’s commitment to empower people and support communities. Show attendees were able to purchase a limited-edition, scale model of a T76 camouflagewrapped loader with the Wounded Warrior Project logo that was on display at the Doosan Bobcat booth and on Bobcat.com. The $81,000 donation is the result of all gross sales of the 2,000 scale model units sold, plus proceeds from other WWP-branded apparel and gifts.

“We’re proud to partner with Doosan Bobcat to empower warriors and raise awareness of life-changing programs and services available to them,” said Gary Corless, WWP chief development officer. “Doosan Bobcat’s support helps provide these much-needed resources to warriors and their families as they begin their next mission in life.”

Michael Newport, a territory support manager for Doosan Bobcat, emphasized the importance of WWP programs for injured veterans and their families, as he personally benefited from these programs when he returned from military life.

“When I medically retired from military service I entered some dark days. The support of Wounded

Warrior Project was my lifeline to a healthy, successful civilian life,” said Newport, a third-generation soldier and WWP warrior. “This is why Doosan Bobcat’s partnership with Wounded Warrior Project means so much to me. I am proud to be a part of this company and grateful for their commitment to address the needs of veterans and communities.”

Doosan Bobcat will continue its support of U.S. military veterans later this fall when a new T76 R-Series compact track loader and attachments — valued at more than $75,000 — will be presented to a deserving veteran. Details about the T76 giveaway will be shared in November, which is National Veterans and Military Families Month and Warrior Care Month, as well as being the month that includes Veterans Day and other military observances.

ABOUT DOOSAN BOBCAT NORTH AMERICA Doosan Bobcat North America, headquartered in West Fargo, North Dakota, is a leading global manufacturer of construction, agriculture, landscaping and grounds maintenance equipment, attachments and services.

The company is committed to empowering people to accomplish more. Doosan Bobcat North America is home to world-renowned brands, including Bobcat® compact equipment, Doosan® portable power products, BOB-CAT® mowers, Ryan® and Steiner® grounds maintenance equipment and Geith® attachments.

Doosan Bobcat North America is a trade name of Clark Equipment Company.

ABOUT WOUNDED WARRIOR PROJECT Since 2003, Wounded Warrior Project (WWP) has been meeting the growing needs of warriors, their families, and caregivers – helping them achieve their highest ambition. WWP is a national, nonpartisan organization accredited with the Better Business Bureau (BBB), toprated by Charity Navigator, and holding a GuideStar Platinum rating. Learn more about how WWP connects, serves and empowers at woundedwarriorproject.org.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 11

CI O NN DS U TS RT U RC Y TN IO EN WS

A LTA E QU IPMENT GROUP TO ACQUI R E MA RTIN IM PLEMENT SALES INC.

Alta Equipment Group Inc. (NYSE: ALTG) has entered into a definitive agreement to acquire Martin Implement Sales Inc., a privately held premium equipment distributor with three branches in the Chicago metro area.

Martin has an expansive range of new and used equipment available for sale or rent to contractors and municipal customers.

Martin sells primarily construction and agricultural equipment in partnership with industry-leading manufacturers, and offers comprehensive services, including equipment financing, replacement parts and factory-authorized service. Known for their award-winning service, Martin was recognized as a 2020 Top Equipment Dealer by SATISFYD. Martin generated approximately $28 million in revenue and had reported EBITDA of approximately $3.1 million in fiscal year 2019.

Ryan Greenawalt, chief executive officer of Alta, said, “We are excited to welcome the Martin team to the Alta family. Adding this exceptional equipment distributor accelerates our growth in the Illinois construction market and broadens our bestin-class product portfolio and service capabilities. We look forward to working with the Novak family and Steve Martin to build on the successful company that they have built.”

Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed. The transaction is expected to close in quarter three of 2020, subject to customary conditions.

About Alta Equipment Group Inc. Alta owns and operates one of the largest integrated equipment dealership platforms in the U.S. Through its branch network, the company sells, rents and provides parts

FE C ON A PPOINTS LUBY EQ UI PMEN T AS DIST RIB UTOR IN M ISSO URI AN D I L L INOIS Fecon announces the addition of Luby Equipment as a new distributor for Missouri and Illinois. They sell new and used construction machinery from locations in Cape Girardeau, Fenton, and O’Fallon, Missouri; and Caseyville, Quincy, and Springfield, Illinois. Luby Equipment also boasts extensive service capabilities, with 24/7 service either on-site or in their shops, and parts delivery.

“We’re glad to have a dealer of this caliber representing Fecon in this important territory,” says Mike Kucharski, vice president of dealer development for Fecon. “This partnership provides access to the 12 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

and service support for several categories of specialized equipment, including lift trucks and aerial work platforms, cranes, earthmoving equipment, and other industrial and construction equipment. Alta has operated as an equipment dealership for 35 years and has developed a branch network that includes 48 total locations across Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, New England, New York, Virginia, and Florida.

Alta offers its customers a one-stop shop for most of their equipment needs by providing sales, parts, service and rental functions under one roof. More information can be found at www.altaequipment.com.

Forward-Looking Statements This press release includes certain statements that may constitute “forward-looking statements” for purposes of the federal securities laws, including information regarding purchases by the Company of its common stock pursuant to any Rule 10b5-1 trading plans. Forward-looking statements include, but are not limited to, statements that refer to projections, forecasts or other characterizations of future events or circumstances, including any underlying assumptions. The words “anticipate,” “believe,” “continue,” “could,” “estimate,” “expect,” “intends,” “may,” “might,” “plan,” “possible,” “potential,” “predict,” “project,” “should,” “would” and similar expressions may identify forward-looking statements, but the absence of these words does not mean that a statement is not forward-looking. By their nature, forward-looking information and statements are subject to risks, uncertainties, and contingencies, including changes in price and volume and the volatility of the Company’s common stock; adverse developments affecting either or both of prices and trading of exchange-traded securities, including securities listed on the New York Stock Exchange; and unexpected or otherwise unplanned or alternative requirements with respect to the capital investments of the Company. The Company does not undertake to update any forward-looking statements or information, including those contained in this report. full lineup of Fecon products for this large, important territory with the reliability and professionalism that Luby Equipment is known for. Their dedication to service and parts availability mirrors ours, which will serve customers well. With their promise of in-shop or on-site service 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, we know that our customers are in good hands.”

“We’re excited to offer such a premium product to our customers for sale or rental,” says Luby Vice President of Marketing and Sales David Kedney. “Customers have been asking for Fecon, so it is great to be able to meet their needs.”

In addition to Fecon, Luby sells CASE Construction, Takeuchi, Toro, Indeco, Wacker Neuson and Atlas Copco products.

T IEOWNS ICNODNUSSTTRRUY C N

BE A RD EQ UIPMENT O PENS B R AN D NEW FACILITY IN OCALA, F L O R I D A

Beard Equipment Co. has opened the doors to its 48,000-square-foot facility in Ocala, Florida. The building is located at 4551 NW 44th Avenue, adjacent to Interstate 75, northwest of the recently built Chewy and FedEx facilities. This new building replaces two rented facilities in the Ocala area, a construction facility and a golf and sports turf facility.

Designed by Ausley Construction of Ocala, the new dealership features top-of-the-line tooling and technologies that will provide customers with best-inclass support. In addition to the modern support and infrastructure for construction equipment sales and service, there will also be a full undercarriage track shop where all makes of dozers and excavators will be housed.

“I couldn’t think of a better way to celebrate our 50th year in business than opening the doors to this brandnew facility,” said Drew DeLaney, president of Beard Equipment Co. “This facility, combined with our trained and experienced employees, equips us to provide the best equipment support and service in the Ocala market. We couldn’t be prouder to be a part of this community.”

Beard Equipment Co. was founded in 1970 in Pensacola, Florida, and has grown to 10 locations stretching from Mobile, Alabama, to Jacksonville, Florida. The Ocala branch was added in 2015 after Beard acquired Highland Tractor Co. In addition to its home office in Mobile, Alabama, Beard has Florida branches in Pensacola, Freeport, Panama City, Tallahassee, Perry, Lake City, Palatka, Ocala and Jacksonville. Three generations of the Beard family have operated the business over the last 49 years, with the family approach to customers and employees being the key ingredient of their success. Today, more than 300 employees serve Beard customers across their equipment divisions and are linked by one common goal: focusing on the customer and their equipment needs.

For more information, visit beardequipment.com September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 13

PCROONDSUTCR TU C P TR IEOVNI E W

VOLVO CE ELECTRIC MACHINES AVA I L A B L E F O R O N L I N E P R E B O O K I N G IN NORTH AMERICA

Customers who sign up will be among the first to have the opportunity to get one of Volvo’s new electric compact machines, the Volvo ECR25 electric excavator and the L25 electric wheel loader.

V

olvo Construction Equipment’s drive to electromobility continues to expand with the opportunity for customers in North America to prebook the ECR25 electric excavator and the L25 electric wheel loader starting Aug. 19. Customers who sign up will be one step closer to taking advantage of these zero-exhaust, low-noise machines to get tough work done while meeting a growing number of environmental regulations.

“Fifteen states and the District of Columbia have already signed on to have 100% of all new medium- and heavyduty truck sales be emissions-free by 2050,” said Ray Gallant, vice president, sales support, Volvo CE. “As more and more states set targets for on-road vehicles, the construction industry is preparing to follow suit. As part of the Volvo Group, which includes Volvo Trucks, we are uniquely positioned to be able to draw upon this collective expertise to bring this technology to the construction industry.”

14 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

S TC RT UPCRT EI O PC RON DU V INE W E X PA NDING TH E CUSTOM ER B ASE

The prebooking tool will be made available to customers in the U.S. and Canada, expanding the successful launch earlier in the year to key European markets. By signing up, customers can reserve a place in the production queue for the ECR25 and L25 electric machines. Afterward, they will be alerted if they have been selected to complete an order for the machines.

The first deliveries of production machines are expected in June 2021.

Customer pilots, like the grant administered by the South Coast Air Quality Management District in California, will be underway throughout Q4 2020 and into Q1 2021.

“These machines are designed for any state or local government fleet that has set or is anticipated to set electric vehicle targets or clean air regulations,” Gallant added. “They are also ideal for companies with aggressive sustainability targets and those that need equipment to operate in low-noise or zero-emissions environments.”

U TIL IZING AN EASIER, SAFER E -C OMM ERCE SO LUTION

Those selected to order one of the electric machines will use Volvo Group’s first machine retail e-commerce tool to process their order – a shift in the equipment purchasing experience that could have broader potential in the future. The online portal will also allow local dealers to follow through with customer support.

Volvo Financial Services, the global financial services provider for the Volvo Group, will support the purchase of these electric machines by offering flexible finance solutions – more information on pricing and financing solutions will be available in the coming weeks.

The North American prebooking site will be live on Aug. 19 at volvoce.com/electromobility/prebook. Those looking for a reminder as the date approaches can complete this electromobility prebooking notification form.

AB O UT TH E ECR 2 5 AN D L 2 5 E LE C T RI C MO D EL S

The electric ECR25 excavator and L25 wheel loader have significantly lower noise levels, reduced energy costs, improved efficiency, and fewer maintenance requirements compared with their conventional counterparts.

The ECR25 mini excavator is fitted with lithium-ion batteries and one electric motor that replaces the diesel engine to power the hydraulics in order to move the machine and attachment. The machine’s batteries store enough electric energy to power the ECR25 for up to eight hours in its most common applications, such as utility work.

The L25 compact wheel loader also uses lithium-ion batteries, which allow for up to eight hours of operation in the machine’s regular applications, including light infrastructure work, gardening, landscaping and agriculture. The L25 loader also incorporates two dedicated electric motors, one for the drivetrain and one for the hydraulics. Decoupling the subsystems has led to higher efficiency in both the systems and the entire machine.

Both the ECR25 and the L25 have onboard chargers that enable overnight charging adaptable to conventional household electrical systems. In addition, an off-board fast charger could be used to charge both machines and would require a three-phase outlet. With the fast-charge options, the ECR25 can be at 80% power within one hour of charge time, and the L25 within two hours of charge time. These models have performance levels similar to their conventional diesel equivalents so that customers will get the same performance in more efficient, environmentally friendly machines.

To be one of the first to operate these new electric machines, customers can save the prebooking site address, volvoce.com/electromobility/prebook, and sign up on Aug. 19.

FO R MORE I N FO R MATI O N , PL EASE CO N TACT: JOHN KRANTZ | Marketing Communications Volvo Construction Equipment North America jkrantz@2rm.com | Phone: 515-557-2072 DAVE FOSTER | Corporate Communications Volvo Construction Equipment Americas dave.foster@volvo.com | Phone: 717-300-6104

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 15

CONSTRUCTION

STRUGGLING WITH

TECH ADOPTION? THIS COULD BE WHY BY: DIRK BEVERIDGE

16 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

CONSTRUCTION

Living and breathing innovation in the distribution industry means I’ve worked

with a lot of companies as they’ve introduced new technology platforms.

One of the biggest struggles many of these companies encounter is thinking

of their technology platform in a silo. They think of these platforms as nice-tohave, IT-driven tools, and fail to recognize the major impact they can have on the company’s employees, culture, customers, value proposition and business model.

HE RE’S AN EXAM PLE:

I worked with the CEO and management team of a $300M distribution firm, examining the company’s culture and facilitating strategic planning for the next several years. But as we dove into the technology discussion, things went off the rails. What had been a positive conversation degenerated into fingerpointing, disillusionment and an overall lack of hope. The challenges exploded, from the struggles in providing simple reports and forecasting, to reticence to implement any kind of change at all.

The company was moving forward trying to implement technological changes with no clear plan for how the technology would solve staff and customer pain points, create efficiencies and improve business outcomes. Without a sound strategy, the impact of the technology – both in terms of how it impacts employees’ jobs and the potential value it can bring to customers and the business – has gone unrealized.

This is when it became very clear to me that technology can be an inhibitor of growth if it is viewed tactically, as individual platforms and oneoff applications. What became very clear is that the organization needed an overall mindset shift to look at technology holistically, strategically and with a vision for the future.

“There has to be an organizational mindset of thinking of technology as a journey, not just something we have to do, but rather it’s something that will enable the long-term success of the company,” says Ranga Bodla, who is head of industry marketing for Oracle NetSuite, a longtime partner of the Unleash Innovation Summit and cloud-based business

software provider. “Distributors have not thought of technology as a core competency or even thought about how technology plays into their business.”

That must change.

Distributors must rethink how they approach technology adoption, implementation and upgrades.

Here are three truths every distributor must come to terms with to create a technology strategy that works.

I F Y O U WAN T TO STAY I N BU S I N E S S , Y O U CAN N O T WAI T AN Y L ON G E R TO AD O PT TH E R I G H T TEC HN OLOG Y PL ATFO R MS

As Ranga puts it, “We’re finally getting to that point now where it’s really becoming a strategic disadvantage to not invest in technology.” Sitting on technology that is 10 or 20 years old to keep your tech budget slim means your company can’t take advantage of the changes taking place in the industry and in the world. Put simply: Traditional distribution is gone, and distributors who don’t embrace tech-assisted modern distribution will struggle to survive.

Here’s what’s really changed in distribution: You could once rely on the tried-and-true model of distribution – pick, pack and ship. But that model alone is not providing the value to customers or distributors themselves that it once did. “You have to think about value-added services, manufacturing, retail, how do I get closer to my consumers? The notion of a pure-play distributor, that’s really gone away,” Ranga says.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 17

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I agree. The reality is that your competition is no longer just the traditional local or regional competitor, it’s the entrant you don’t even know about. That entrant, like Amazon Business or any number of eager startups, likely does have technology as a core competency. In fact, these digital-native nontraditional competitors are changing the game through their technology-first mindset. It’s becoming very clear: You cannot wait any longer to embrace new technologies, and you cannot wait any longer to build a strategy around them.

DE F INE YOUR VISIO N, VALUE PROPOSIT I O N AND BUSINESS M O D EL , A ND YOU R TECH NOLOGY STR ATEG Y WIL L F OL L OW

David Nettemeyer, director of business planning and analytics at Valin Corp., which has undergone a successful digital transformation that continues to innovate the company, offered some great advice: “Define your vision, value proposition and business model, because your technology platform will then be designed to support those. These pieces must be in place to reap the rewards of your tech upgrade.”

Consider Berlin Packaging, a fantastic distributor I’ve worked with for many years. The company’s investment in enterprise resource planning (ERP) was born out of a desire to provide delightful, consistent, extremely excellent customer service by delivering 99% on time.

That statistic is a key component of the company’s vision; it defines part of their value proposition to customers and is important to employees. This is the framework around which the technology investment is built.

PMC Commercial Interiors, a NetSuite customer and distributor, similarly deployed its technology investment with a clear vision guiding it. PMC, formerly known as the Raleigh Office Supply Co., grew significantly after it was purchased by current CEO Harry Chalker, who has been rapidly transforming the brand from top to bottom. PMC grew from 20 employees and $22 million in revenue in 2011 to 91 employees and $44.6 million in revenue in 2015.

Chalker’s vision is clear: Allow people and their imaginations to work better through spaces that powerfully reflect a company’s brand and culture and help attract and retain. As a distributor, they have doubled down on service, designing workspaces by carefully listening to and collaborating with their customers. PMC’s process is highly dependent on deeply knowing the customer and delivering solutions that 18 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

address today’s rapidly changing workplace challenges.

But it was difficult to get that kind of collaboration and deep customer knowledge when the company’s legacy software systems were dated and required extensive manual, duplicative labor on the part of employees. Customer data was entered in a whopping 12 different places per customer order!

The company bet on technology upgrades and worked with vendors that intimately understood its business. The employees now work on unified systems that all talk to each other, and their customers can make small add-on orders through NetSuite without staff intervention. This frees up the staff to focus on larger projects – creating spaces that allow people and their imaginations to work better – and improves the customer’s overall experience. PMC knew exactly what it needed from the technology upgrade to match its vision, and as its strategy evolves, so does its use of NetSuite’s offerings.

The bottom line: Don’t think about your digital transformation or technology implementation in terms of technology. Don’t think about it as a process upgrade or the ability to track some interesting data. Think about it in terms of how it will bring your vision to life, how it will innovate your business model and create a whole new value proposition for customers.

B I TE SMAL L , CH EW FASTER “I M PLEM EN TI N G TECHN OLOGY I S NO T E ASY, A N D TECHN OLOGY PEOPLE HAVE NO T MADE

I T EA SI ER ,” RAN GA SAY S. “EVERY BO DY HAS A HOR R OR STORY A B OU T I M PLEM ENTING E RP. I T’ S JU ST A LOT OF WOR K A N D THING S G O WR ON G, THI N GS GO SOU TH.”

Here’s part of the reason why: “The traditional way these technologies were implemented was like a big bang; you do it all at once. You rip off the Band-Aid.” That strategy just wasn’t working. Seeing the struggle of implementation, technology vendors like NetSuite have learned how to better manage the shift to new technology. Ranga described their protocol as a “bite small, chew faster” method.

NetSuite’s current protocol is based on a stairway, with the intention of taking the customer on a journey, led by the company’s own early adopters and evangelizers who are identified early in the process and champion the journey.

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“That journey is going to be different for every customer, but in every case you build those pieces up first and then build on that for each subsequent phase of the stairway,” he says.

For example, customers would start with technology that helps with inventory management, expands into supply chain management and lands with Internet of Things or AI integrations. Each step is manageable based on the company’s comfortability with and utilization of its current tech stack.

This philosophy also firmly fights against the idea of a one-and-done technology upgrade, a “digital transformation” that has a start point and an end point.

That’s just not reality anymore; technology and business move too quickly. Agile methodologies are gaining in popularity, where short development cycles called “sprints” allow for continuous improvement in major technologies. This means that your digital tools are constantly being tinkered with, honed and upgraded.

If you’re ready to start implementing new technology but you want to do it right – with vision and strategy behind it – or you’re on a digital transformation or technology journey and you’re feeling like the pieces aren’t all fitting, our Innovation Summit can provide

you with the framework you need to handle this process in a way that maximizes the impact of your investment and gets your team excited about implementation.

Our summit each year involves conversation about how technology is impacting the business of distribution. This is not a conversation about bits and bytes or feeds and speed (though our experienced distribution leaders are always happy to talk tactics between sessions). Through our conversation about becoming an innovative distributor, we look at the trajectory of technology and how it is transforming business – in the context of your future vision, business model, and even culture and value proposition of the future.

For over 25 years as a consultant to a wide range of companies, Beveridge has helped leading firms align, focus, and strengthen their sales and leadership strategies to remain relevant, outperform the market, and provide deeper value to customers.

Dirk can be reached at dirk@unleashwd.com or 847-381-7797.

Glynn General Corporation Delivers “Tailor-Made” Extended Service Coverage Programs Coverage Types/Coverage Terms ● Extended service protection plans for New and Used Equipment ● Powertrain, Powertrain plus Hydraulics and Full Machine ● Used Equipment Terms available from 3 months (375 hours) to 2 years (2,500 hours) ● New Equipment Terms available from 2 years (2,000 hours) to 5 years (7,500 hours) ● Competitive Premiums/Fair and Reasonable Claims Reimbursement ● Insurer AmTrust International Loss damage waiver and physical damage insurance programs available.

171 Follins Lane, St. Simons Island, Georgia 31522 Tel: 912-638-4320 www.glynngeneral.com

Midwest/East Territory Eric Strickland Tel: 912-577-9799 Florida/Georgia/Alabama Slade Rowland Tel: 912-222-4268 Central/West Territory Michael Raley Tel: 817-301-7984

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 19

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BY TR O Y H AR R I SO N

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I

n my experience, most customer service training is about

conflict resolution, when in fact it should be about conflict avoidance. Many customer service issues – and their

attendant conflicts – don’t have to happen. I was reminded of

this when I decided to have a snack.

I love Ritz crackers. Well, at least I used to. For the past few years, I’ve noticed that far too many Ritz crackers turn into crumbs as soon as you open the package. I threw away a new box yesterday because I opened all four sleeves, and it was impossible to remove an intact cracker from the package. I’ve seen this a lot, and I decided to do a little research. My research quickly showed that thousands of other people had posted about the same thing.

On the Ritz Facebook page, there is a thread that is six years old, with over a thousand comments by people reporting the same issue. Here’s the funny part: Someone at Ritz took the time to respond to every post. They said (I’m paraphrasing; not all responses were identical in words, but they were in sentiment):

“We’re sorry this happened to you. Please send us a private message with the batch number and the store where you bought the crackers so we can investigate.” Thousands of times, thousands of comments, and this was the response – essentially, pretending that it’s an isolated problem with just a few affected boxes, when in reality this is pretty much a systemic problem.

What’s happening is that someone at RJR Nabisco has decided that they have two options: They can figure out why this is happening now and wasn’t before, and fix the problem, or they can train some entry-level employee to type out rote responses every time someone complains, knowing people will continue to buy the crackers because of the brand. They have chosen option number two.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 21

CONSTRUCTION This syndrome isn’t just confined to big corporations, either. I see small and medium-sized companies doing the same thing every day. Don’t do that. If you have a recurring problem, here are the steps you need to take:

1.

1 Be honest. Is this a real problem? In other words, is what the customers are experiencing a genuine problem with the product or service, or an isolated incident? If it’s happening consistently and repeatedly, it’s not an isolated incident. It’s like the person who has been married seven times – at some point, you have to admit that it’s not them; it’s you.

2 Embrace transparency. You must realize that, whatever the problem is, it’s going to get out.

2.

That’s one of the ways social media has changed the world. The old saying used to be, “If you do something good for someone, they’ll tell one person. If you do something bad to someone, they’ll tell ten people.” Now, either way, they have the capability to tell the entire world. Ritz is responding to those customer complaints as if they were communicating one-on-one. You have to recognize that not only will the problem get out, but how you handle the problem will get out.

3.

3 Investigate. Why is the problem actually happening? Is it traceable to a human error (most are), a product or raw material error, a process error, or a customer error? Nearly every service issue is traceable to one of those things.

4 Fix it. Human errors and customer errors are fairly easily fixable by training and setting 4. expectations; processes can be rewritten, and product or raw material errors can be addressed – but first, you have to know what they are.

5 Individualize your communication. One of the aspects of this that really upset customers on 5. the Ritz page was that, not only was Ritz pretending that these were isolated instances (hundreds of times over), but they were giving the same rote response and not responding to individualized queries. When customers ask questions, answer their question, not everyone else’s, and respect their situation. Yes, you might be communicating with the entire world (see No. 2 above), but you’re still dealing with their problem.

6.

6 Set customer expectations. Too often, customers are blamed for expecting too much of a product or service, when in fact it was the seller who set that expectation in the first place. I once worked in an industry as a sales manager where our service manager said, “It’s your salespeoples’ jobs to sell fantasy; my job is to sell reality.” In other words, my team was supposed to paint an unrealistic picture of what the result would be, get a contract signed, and then turn them over to service, who would reset their expectations. Not surprisingly, customers weren’t delighted with this approach, and I left that industry not long after that conversation. If your sales or marketing is painting an unrealistic picture, you need to fix that – false expectations will damage your business far more than losing a few deals because someone else is “selling a fantasy.”

7 Make it right. Find a way to make the customer “whole” again. This can be done any number of 7. ways, but the worst way is to give them more of a flawed product. I’m thinking of the airlines that, upon delaying you for hours and messing up your plans, give you a voucher for more flying. Or Ritz, who offered to send a replacement box of crackers.

If you know you have a problem, you need to either fix it or acknowledge the problem before the customer buys, so they can make an educated decision about whether or not to buy.

In the case of my beloved Ritz crackers, all I want is something I can put cheese or peanut butter on.

After reading that thread on Facebook (and throwing away many, many bad crackers over the last couple of years), I’ve decided to switch to a different cracker that holds together. Will I go back? Probably not.

If you have a problem but you don’t acknowledge or fix it, and your customer finds out, they probably won’t, either.

Troy Harrison is the author of “Sell Like You Mean It!” and “The Pocket Sales Manager” and is a speaker, consultant and sales navigator. He helps companies build more profitable and productive sales forces.

To schedule a free 45-minute Sales Strategy Review, call 913-645-3603 or email Troy@TroyHarrison.com.

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2020

compact Equipment

SHOW C A S E

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 23

2020 Compact Equipment Showcase ASV H O L D I N G S, I N C. ASV Continues Tradition of Premium Equipment with New MAX-Series™ Loaders ASV Holdings Inc., a Yanmar Compact Equipment company, designs and manufactures a full line of compact track and skidsteer loaders primarily for the construction, landscaping and forestry markets. ASV builds its machines with groundbreaking features allowing customers to do more work in more places with maximum power, performance, serviceability and comfort.

The company continues to give operators a premium operator experience with the introduction of the MAX-Series™ loaders.

The line includes the RT-65, VT-70 High Output, RT-75 and RT-75 Heavy-Duty MAX-Series Posi-Track® loaders.

Operators can work in comfort with the MAX-Series’ fully suspended seat, featuring adjustable recline, slide, weight, and four-way armrest settings. A one-sided lap bar makes entry and exit easier, and a roomier cab includes up to 2 more inches width at the shoulders, 8 inches more width at the knees and up to 4.5 inches more foot room. The cab also features available Bluetooth radio and improved speakers and speaker placement.

The new cab provides 360-degree visibility, featuring industry-leading floor to ceiling glass area. This gives the operator 52% more glass area in the optional enclosed cab compared to previous ASV models. The MAX-Series also includes an optional new state-of-the-art 7-inch touchscreen display. The screen includes all vital monitoring tools, provides a view of the backup camera, and integrates with service history and schedules, such as engine oil changes and other maintenance needs. Passcode operator lockout is also available. Operators will see more ease of use as a result of improved, intuitive switch locations and operator controls. Control is further enhanced with a new dual throttle option.

The machines also include the industry’s first compact loader roof escape hatch, allowing operators to get out quickly in emergency situations. In addition, models include rollover protection (ROPS) and reinforced windows for impact resistance. Learn more about the MAX-Series at www.asvi.com/max-series.

For further information, please contact: Ms. Regan W Meyer: regan.meyer@asvi.com

BE R G MAN N AMER I CAS Bergmann Americas started operations in January 2020 at its North American headquarters in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Bergmann Americas is the North American importer of the Bergmann product line from Meppen, Germany. The product offering for dealers includes compact articulated dump trucks (15 tons), track dumpers (12 tons) and, starting in 2021, the Bergmann site dumper lineup (3-10 tons). Bergmann is celebrating its 60th anniversary this year and is excited about its representation in the North American market. Every Bergmann machine provides the best possible combination of Bergmann’s four key design parameters: handling, safety, effectiveness and efficiency.

The Bergmann C815s is a 15-ton compact articulated dump truck with three dump body options: rear dump, swivel dump and three-way dump. The C912s track dumper offers a swivel dump and rear dump. The site dumper lineup is introducing a new 3-ton class electric-powered dumper. Contact Bergman Americas at sales@bergmannamericas.com.

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WIN. DELIVER. DIFFERENTIATE. If you’re ready to win more business, deliver a competitive advantage and differentiate yourself from the pack, ASV is your turnkey solution. The market for compact track loaders and skid steers is growing. And we offer purpose-built machines that outperform the status quo, exceed customer expectations and get you into markets no other compact brands can reach.

Become an ASV Dealer. Contact us today. www.asvi.com/AED

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2020 Compact Equipment Showcase CALD ER B R O TH ER S CO R PO R ATI O N The Mauldin M415XT maintainer is one of the most versatile pieces of equipment available and will truly complement any contractor’s fleet. The M415XT is a compact four-wheel maintainer grader designed to tackle a multitude of projects on any job site.

Newly redesigned for 2020, it features an entirely new dual solid-axle driveline. The small wheelbase four-wheel design with four-wheel steering makes this unit easy to maneuver in small spaces and tight areas. The M415XT also sports a limited-slip four-wheel-drive system offering the best tractive effort in its class. Power for the unit comes from a Tier 4 120-horsepower Cummins diesel engine. Standard features include a 10-foot blade, a front boom with a bucket, and a rear scarifier.

G EH L Since 1859, Gehl has focused on providing solutions to our customers’ needs by building quality, reliable products. With a long history of reliability and innovation, Gehl is responsive to the equipment and service needs of our customers. Our Gehl RT/VT series track loaders are offered in a large range, from the ultra-compact to the super-sized verticallift machines. These units feature high capacity power, increased breakout forces, and seatmounted pilot-operated controls that move with the operator. The durable design of these units makes it easy to push through dirt, mud or snow. When you purchase a piece of Gehl equipment, you have an entire organization behind you and your business. When you need support, whether it be financing, parts or service, know that Gehl will be there to provide an exceptional experience. We continually strive to preserve the level of personalized attention that Gehl began with in 1859.

QUALITY PARTS QUALITY BRANDS QUALITY SERVICE TVH offers a large selection of products from internationally recognized manufacturers to provide you with the best quality parts for your light construction equipment needs.

www.tvh.com 26 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

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2020 Compact Equipment Showcase H Y D R EMA US I N C. The Hydrema 920HM & 922HM are Articulated Dump Trucks in the 20 & 22 ton class, developed for sensitive, soft and rough terrain. The combination of the low unladen weight, its unique articulated pivot joint, bogie axles with high pendulum angle and the highest power to weight ratio on the market, provide the dump trucks unrivalled terrain manoeuvrability.

The trucks offer excellent driving capabilities at all speeds and on all surfaces, due to the oscillated and hydraulic stabilised pivot joint. The combination of the rigid front axle with electronically controlled suspension and level control that aligns the machine in an optimal position, and the heavy-duty bogie rear axles, provide the operator with a high level of stability. A short tipping cycle is reached through the 5-pump hydraulic system, two powerful tipping cylinders underneath the body with short stroke length and automated tipping functions, which is especially beneficial for the shorter hauls.

Changed from the F-series the 920’ 922G’s are Equipped with the EGR-free, 6-cylinder Cummins B6.7 Stage-V engine (the stage-V is European emission stage-V engine which exceeds EPA tier 4F). The 6.7 engine gives the trucks the absolute highest power to weight ratio on the market. The intelligent 6-speed ZF Soft-Shift transmission effectively translates the engine’s 314 hp and 950 ft lb (1288 Nm) of torque into the maximum tractive effort.

The machines are easy to operate, and the operator will soon feel at home with the machine’s manoeuvrability and functions that provides the best and most comfortable working conditions.

While the 922HM version features 800mm wide tires, the 920G is targeted toward ultra-Low Ground Pressure jobs and is developed and equipped to operate in the most demanding conditions. The 920mm tires with excellent grip and low ground pressure of 12 psi when fully loaded makes all the difference.

For less maintenance the machines features oil, emerge disk brakes and a manually operated hydraulic retarder providing max retardation power of up to a total of 405 hp.

For further information, please contact: Mr. Kresten Binder: kbi@hydrema.com

find us here...

Different sizes for different applications!

707G

920G

922G Hydrema U.S., Inc. | Cumming, GA Tel.: (404) 614 1747 | www.hydrema.us

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 27

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2020 Compact Equipment Showcase KATO /CO MPACT EXCAVATO R SAL ES L L C KATO HD514MR-7: Minimal Radius, Maximum Power KATO’s best-in-class 514MR is an industry-leading powerhouse excavator. With 19’10” (long-arm) dig depth and more than 22,000 pounds of breakout force, the 514MR moves the earth! With the 105-horsepower Tier 4 Isuzu 4JJ1X driving the operation, you’ll never be wanting for power. In addition, the 33 gpm auxiliary hydraulic flow allows for the implementation of any number of excavator attachments. With this power and flexibility, the 514MR doesn’t shy away from the big jobs.

In addition, the maneuverability of the 514MR allows the operator to work in the tightest of quarters. The MR (minimal radius) chassis has a radius of just 67 inches with only 18 inches of tail swing beyond the track width. This allows the operator to work around common job site obstacles with very little space. The maneuverability and operator-friendly features make the 514MR an operator’s best friend. The comfortable cabin, standard rear and side cameras, easy-to-use LCD monitor, and alert messaging center make the 514MR one of the easiest machines to operate.

For more information, contact KATO - Compact Excavator Sales at info@katoces.com or 1-800-538-1447.

About KATO - Compact Excavator Sales For more than 25 years, Compact Excavator Sales has been the North American leader in compact construction equipment. With the recent addition COMPACT EXCAVATOR SALES, LLC of the HD512LC-7, HD514MR-7 and HD823MR-7, KATO-CES offers excavators ranging in size from just over 2,000 to more than 54,000 pounds. KATO-CES also offers a range of concrete buggies, crawler carriers, skid-steers and track loaders. While several class-leading models make KATO an attractive equipment manufacturer, the unmatched customer service is what separates KATO-CES from the competition. Give us a call today, and see the KATO-CES difference!

For further information, please contact: Mr. Evan Brown: marketing@katoces.com

KOM PL ET N O RTH AMER I CA The K-JC 704 jaw crusher has been specifically designed for operators for whom versatility, maneuverability and transportability are of key importance. It is small enough to fit inside a container for transport but strong enough to withstand the toughest of applications. The K-JC 704 features a 27-inch x 16-inch single toggle jaw crusher that can be adjusted hydraulically.

•

680 mm x 400 m single toggle jaw crusher that can be adjusted hydraulically

•

Reversible belt fine material

•

27-in. x 16-in. inlet opening

•

Ladder to inspect the crusher

•

Side protection

•

74 horsepower

•

•

Production: 90 tph

Remote control for all the movements

•

Size range: ¾ inch – 3¼ inch

Visit www.kompletamerica.com to learn more. Financing available.

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HERE FOR ANY JOB. ANYTIME. Starting with the highest quality of equipment, KATO is built to handle the toughest excavation projects. KATO’s line of mini and full-size excavators, ranging from just 2,400 to over 54,000 lbs., meets the needs of any job-site. In addition, KATO’s US-based distributor, Compact Excavator Sales, is a family-owned business that puts customers first. Knowledgeable product experts are standing by to assist with any service or maintenance issues that arise, and our streamlined parts distribution minimizes your downtime. Call today to find out how KATO’s superior service can help you achieve your goals.

COMPACT EXCAVATOR SALES, LLC

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2020 Compact Equipment Showcase L B X CO MPAN Y L L C Link-Belt® 145 X4 MSR Excavator Performs in Confined Work Spaces The Link-Belt 145 X4 Spin Ace excavator delivers up to 3% faster cycle times, increased lifting capacity, and up to 6% better fuel economy than previous models. Smooth and nimble, it’s perfect for urban construction or working safely near moving traffic. A 102-horsepower Tier 4 Final Isuzu engine is paired with two electrically controlled Kawasaki variable-displacement axial-piston pumps, delivering power and control in tight working conditions. A 7-inch LCD color monitor lets you easily navigate a full menu of user-friendly control options. A standard rearview camera displays a panoramic view of the worksite, with sight guidelines that can be turned on or off by the operator. Add rear and side lights for more visibility. Our RemoteCARE® GPS-enabled telematics system allows 24/7 remote monitoring and security. The system tracks and records routine and major service intervals, as well as machine health, providing more flexibility and control. A lifetime subscription is included at no extra charge. All new X4 machines are backed by a 5-year/5,000-hour full machine warranty and a 5-year/10,000-hour structural warranty.

For further information, please contact: Mr. Chris Wise: cwise@lbxco.com

M AN I TO U N O RTH AMER I CA The Manitou 3200 VT vertical lift track loader offers operators the perfect combination of power, performance and comfort.

Since its market introduction in January 2019, the 3200 VT track loader has been tackling the largest tasks job sites have been able to throw at it, with ease. Boasting 3,200 pounds of rated operating capacity at 35% of tip, this beast of a machine is ideal in earthmoving applications like site preparation, land management and everything in between.

Powered by a 114 horsepower turbo Deutz engine, the 3200 VT sits alone at the top of the list of most powerful compact track loaders in the industry. “When I talk to customers and ask them to list the criteria they use to make purchase decisions, horsepower is typically among the top three and is often listed first,” says Aaron Haynes, global product manager of skid and track loaders at Manitou. “If you need to run a demanding attachment, the 3200 VT offers up to 37.7 gallons per minute of auxiliary hydraulic flow at 4,000 psi.”

Not only is the 3200 VT packed full of power, it is rich with features that make life easier for owners and operators alike. The industry-exclusive IdealTrax™ system automatically tensions the tracks while the engine is running, eliminating the chance of over-tensioning, reducing the likelihood of de-tracking and extending the life of the tracks by up to 15%. Cab comfort gets a boost with the optional IdealAccess™ bi-fold door, which gives operators the best of both worlds by allowing them to operate comfortably from the confines of an enclosed cab or with the door folded up above them without sacrificing headroom. Low-effort and adjustable pilot joystick controls are a standard feature of this model, reducing operator fatigue and improving productivity over the course of a long shift.

When the job gets tough, the tough get a Manitou 3200 VT vertical lift track loader.

For further information, please contact: Mrs. Lori Heidecker: l.heidecker@manitou-group.com

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2020 Compact Equipment Showcase MECAL AC N O RTH AMER I CA Mecalac, a global leader in the design, manufacture and distribution of compact construction equipment for urban environments, introduces its innovative line of crawler skid-excavators – the newly updated MCR Series. Comprised of three models, the 6MCR, 8MCR and 10MCR, Mecalac’s line of compact skid-excavators offers superior speed, productivity and compact operation over traditional miniexcavators. The machines provide the speed of a skid steer with the 360-degree rotation of an excavator. The new MCR Series features a dedicated pump to drive the motors, allowing for twice the speed – 6.2 mph – of any traditional mini-excavator on the market. In addition, the patented Mecalac three-piece boom system means true compact performance. The operator can dig in front and then rotate virtually within the radius of the tracks to dump behind. The Mecalac hydraulic CONNECT system allows the MCR Series to mount a loader bucket on the arm and operate like a compact track loader.

MUSTAN G Since 1888, Mustang by Manitou has offered one of the most robust and broadest lines of compact equipment available on the market today. Equipment includes a full line of skid loaders, articulated loaders and track loaders with industryexclusive features including our IdealTrax automatic track tensioning system.

With manufacturing facilities in Madison and Yankton, South Dakota, and Waco, Texas, Mustang by Manitou’s North American distribution network provides quality service, support, warranty and financing options to keep your customers’ operations on track.

TAKEUCH I MAN UFACTUR I N G (US), LTD .

Takeuchi features the completely redesigned TL8R2, which is engineered to provide superior power, strength and maneuverability. The radial lift design offers a tipping load of 6,041 pounds with an operating weight of 9,182 pounds.

The TL8R2 is equipped with a 74.3 horsepower turbocharged engine that is EPA Final Tier 4 emission compliant. The diesel oxidation catalyst (DOC) and diesel particulate filter (DPF) featured on this machine minimize emissions for clean and efficient operation.

Creep mode is a standard feature on the TL8R2 models equipped with high flow auxiliary hydraulics. This feature enables operators to precisely match the forward speed of the track loader to a particular attachment without having to constantly meter the travel lever. The creep mode function is ideal for attachments that require a consistent, repeatable travel speed, such as a cold planer or trencher.

To learn more about the TL8R2, visit www.takeuchi-us.com.

32 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

CONSTRUCTION

2020 Compact Equipment Showcase WAC KER N EUSO N CO R PO R ATI O N Wacker Neuson’s largest articulated wheel loader model, the WL95, receives excellent reviews for its performance and high payload in a compact design, allowing operators to load, move and place material more efficiently. Its variable hydrostatic transmission provides excellent traction and high travel speeds (12.4 mph). With a standard 2-cubic-yard bucket and straight bucket tipping load up to 14,394 pounds, the WL95 is capable of moving greater material loads quickly. The compact design, for a loader this size, enables a tight turning radius and a generous steering angle. The articulated joint and a pendulum axle at the rear of the machine ensure optimum maneuverability and traction in any situation. The WL95 offers a return-to-dig function, ride control and a reversing fan as standard, ensuring optimum productivity. Operators can work all day in this large cab with plenty of legroom, a comfortable seat and a clear view of attachments.

YAN MAR AMER I CA YANMAR released the all-new SV40 excavator in May 2020. This ultra-tight tail-swing excavator boasts power, flexibility and stability in a compact package and was the first of the company’s compact equipment line to be offered in the new red color. The 4-ton class mini excavator is powered by a 39-horsepower Tier 4 Final YANMAR engine. It is a game changer among compact excavators, with best-in-class power, digging force and lifting capacity for work on construction, utility and landscaping applications. The SV40, YANMAR’s most technologically advanced mini excavator, was designed specifically for the North American market. With its 3-pump hydraulic system, it has a separate pump to transfer power to attachments with high efficiency. The SV40 is built to work effectively with options for a second PTO function, a 4- or 6-way blade and an additional counterweight, so it has everything you need to get the job done right. Learn more at yanmar.com/us.

Don’t miss the SPECIAL OPPORTUNITY to be showcased in the AWARD WINNING CED Magazine available to all companies that offer industry leading equipment, products and services.

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Mike Kondrath 630-468-5121 mkondrath@aednet.org September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 33

CONSTRUCTION

BY: TODD COHEN COVID-19 has thrown everyone for a loop.

Businesses must scramble, reinvent, pivot, and do whatever is necessary to survive and ensure a path forward.

34 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

CONSTRUCTION T W O FACTS ARE CLEAR :

1. We cannot replace lost selling time. It is gone forever.

2. We cannot wait to act. Plans for recovery must begin now.

What you do now matters. The actions you take today will bear fruit tomorrow. That is what leaders do.

After the crisis passes, there will be two kinds of businesses: 1. Companies with active, robust and current pipelines and client relationships.

2. Companies with inactive, weak and stale pipelines and client relationships.

The momentum and sense of urgency you dare to create today will greatly impact the long-term health and stability of your organization, culture and revenue.

HARMFUL BEHAVIORS AND MINDSETS

These damaging activities and negative outlooks will create tension in the workplace, reduce productivity and delay recovery.

1 Silos Kill: Allowing people to recede into 1. their silos, hoping that things will improve, will inhibit collaboration and creativity and halt sales.

2.

2 Expecting Blood From a Stone: Do you think the sales team enjoys not producing?

Demanding more from a group of people who cannot give it is not leadership – it is the opposite, and it will destroy your company.

There is an old saying: “The beatings will continue until morale improves.” Fingerpointing, demanding and screaming guarantees the collapse of your team.

3.

3 It’s All About Me: Everyone has been impacted by this pervasive pandemic. Ignoring the fact that your employees, clients, vendors, donors, suppliers, etc., are also vulnerable and

trying to “figure this out” will quickly and permanently destroy your relationships.

4 Lack of Transparency: Operations have 4. returned to normal but your employees are still worried about their jobs and the future of the organization. Failing to engage and regularly communicate with your staff will create unwanted tension, a culture of negativity, and a loss of productivity.

5 Thank You’s Don’t Matter Now: Don’t 5. assume that because times are tough, employees won’t look for a new job or that a long-standing client won’t go elsewhere.

Recognize that your best assets are your relationships. Expressing your appreciation is always timely.

A F T E R TH E PAND EM IC: IS I T B USI N ESS AS USUAL ?

NO. You can’t ignore the fact that things have changed. But regaining your competitive edge and being successful post-COVID-19 does not require you to abandon everything you know and start from scratch. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel. What you need is the right combination of people, a positive mindset and an inclusive culture. And to work smarter.

The Rule of Thirds: We must work 300% smarter because what we were doing is now only one third as effective.

Stay tuned for part two: “A Recovery Culture in Action.” If you would like the full report now, send a note to luna@toddcohen.com and mention “Your Special Report” in the subject line.

Todd Cohen has been inspiring and motivating AED audiences for years, and he has been working with AED member companies, helping them to build a sales culture and create better and more profitable teams by instilling the concept that “everyone’s in sales.”Todd’s sales culture keynotes and workshops are in demand from audiences from every background, including salespeople! Delivering approximately 85 appearances every year worldwide, Todd leaves people with a story to tell and feeling great about themselves!

Todd can be reached at todd@toddcohen.com and toddcohen.com September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 35

CONSTRUCTION

BY: SUG ATH WAR N AKUL ASUR I YA About the author: Sugath Warnakulasuriya, managing director of Thalamus Labs, is a hands-on

strategist and business builder focused on digital value creation for industrial and services companies.

He is a former McKinsey & Co. consultant and entrepreneur with a track record of 25+ years of identifying and developing disruptive, transformational opportunities for enterprises and mid-market companies across multiple sectors. Sugath has led numerous companywide digital growth initiatives, developing and executing business cases for value capture through the use of emerging technologies including IoT and Advanced Analytics/AI along with the latest innovation techniques. Sugath has a Ph.D. in computer engineering and an M.S. and B.S. in computer science from the University of Southern California, where he also studied entrepreneurship at the Marshall School of Business. Sugath can be reached at sugathw@ThalamusLabs.com

36 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

CONSTRUCTION

A

lthough construction and industrial equipment dealers and distributors have taken steps to connect online and digitally market to customers, most are early in their journey to digitally enable field service and maintenance.

The good news is that even the fundamental first steps in digital service and maintenance can bring significant value to you and your customers. Wide availability of inexpensive, highly configurable mobile, IoT, and data solutions also opens the door to getting beyond simply eliminating the coordination hassles of on-demand and scheduled maintenance, to big productivity, safety and cost gains through conditional and preventative maintenance. Even bigger is collecting realtime data on equipment use and performance, which allows you to get much closer to your customers’ day-to-day, mission-critical operations and workflow. And when done with care, this type of digital service not only translates into happier, more loyal customers, but also leads to new revenue streams, business models and accelerated growth.

Most equipment dealers and distributors have taken only the very first step in their digital journey, focusing on helping customers buy and rent equipment using websites and online catalogs that share product, parts, configurations and service options. This is now table stakes in just about every industry.

The next worry customers have is about how to use and care for the equipment they’ve just acquired in the most productive and economically impactful way.

Facility and operations managers and on-site contractors often lose sleep over whether a critical piece of equipment will go down during a busy weekend or if the equipment is being operated properly and safely, whether they have back-up equipment and parts to handle peak loads, and if the equipment is stored securely.

A set of business questions also naturally arises around whether they have enough equipment to eliminate bottlenecks and avoid schedule overruns or overtime, or if they are losing money on a project because the equipment is underutilized.

However, only a very few dealers and distributors have begun to think about how to help their customers address these mission-critical needs and pain points as they consider further digitally enabling their business. For those that are able to take on this challenge, the rewards are significant.

BENEFITS

STEPS

FIGURE: OVERVIEW OF DIGITAL JOURNEY FOR FIELD SERVICE AND MAINTENANCE DIGITIZE SCHEDULED AND ON-DEMAND SERVICE: Track work orders, scheduled maintenance activity using tablet and mobile phone apps

•

Improved uptime, customer loyalty, retention, LTV

•

Reduced coordination costs, increased activity visibility and labor productivity

CONDITION-BASED SERVICE/MAINTENANCE:

PREDICTIVE/PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE:

Connect sensors to monitor assets, perform maintenance based on detected anomalies

Advanced analytics to detect patterns and predict failure, perform preventative maintenance

• Greater service quality, customer insight leading to new service offerings

• New pricing, business models, e.g., as-a-Service

•

Reduced service costs through dynamic staffing, dispatching and routing

•

Fully optimized service costs, reduce working capital via optimized parts inventory

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 37

CONSTRUCTION F IRS T S TEP

SECO N D STEP

DIGIT IZ ING SCH ED ULED MA INTENANCE

TEL EMATI CS AN D CO N D I TI O N A LB ASED MO N I TO R I N G

The first and easiest step to alleviating customer anxiety is to let them know that you are performing scheduled inspections and maintenance on time, regularly. Much of scheduled maintenance is still organized and coordinated with pen and paper, or at best with old enterprise software on desktops. But given that everyone in your service team now carries a smartphone, there are dozens of high-quality, full-featured, low-cost maintenance and service apps that will help you do this regardless of your particular market focus, operational practices or existing tech infrastructure.

While digital apps let your service teams and leaders get organized, better manage your workforce, and stay on top of scheduled maintenance, the biggest value for your customers is their visibility into the fact that you are on it – which can reduce a lot of headaches and real pain in their day-to-day facility or site operations. Rather than them being bombarded with emails, texts and reports with stale data, you can provide them real-time dashboards, preferably on-the-go, with any number of mobile apps.

A natural extension of this, of course, is to allow your customers to report issues and request service directly via an app, which opens up a valuable real-time, online “conversation” between you and the front-line users and managers of your equipment. There is a tremendous amount of information in such a communication channel from which you can glean valuable insights to better understand and serve your customer. Such a move from manual, in-office service coordination using pen, paper and reports to the use of mobile apps by a remote workforce has also become more compelling as health and safety concerns have heightened in recent months.

Creating this type of transparency around the quality and responsiveness of your service operations creates a high degree of trust and “stickiness” between you and your customers, leading to a genuine partnership. In terms of tangible outcomes, getting this right means streamlining your service operating costs, while getting an even bigger win for your customers – less downtime and uninterrupted operations – which ultimately translates into increasing the lifetime value of your customers!

Given how much value there is in this type of close coordination and transparency, some distributors are even developing their own custom apps: one such distributor we recently worked with has developed a robust prototype of a service app and is now piloting it with a selected set of customers, with early indications of the ability to reduce 30% of coordination costs, and perhaps a 10-15% gain in sales and rentals due to better customer service, engagement and loyalty.

38 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

The next opportunity and worthy challenge along the digital journey is to “instrument” your equipment to get detailed data on its use and performance, which also unlocks significant layers of new value.

Much of the equipment today comes with built-in sensors and telematics (already “IoT-ized”), able to provide everything from location (GPS), equipment status, performance parameters (e.g., rate of fuel use), and various other alerts and fault diagnostic codes.

For mixed portfolios, retrofitting older equipment with digital instrumentation and telematics is also quite feasible now, as there are powerful, inexpensive and configurable computing and telecom solutions suitable for most cases.

Once equipment is instrumented and connected, you are able to get data that allows you to determine, for instance, if it is being operated properly and safely or is experiencing issues. Note that this data contains both direct indicators from the equipment as well as much more valuable data that can be inferred, such as overall usage patterns, peak/time/volume of usage, parts/consumables inventory and depletion, and other valuable signals of customer behaviors and preferences.

Having detailed equipment status and error data, as well as insight into customer behaviors and needs, means you have a renewed opportunity to focus and prioritize service calls, eliminate wasted effort and achieve higher levels of service quality while also optimizing service resources and effort.

We recently helped a company that operates and services a mixed portfolio of several hundred thousand pieces of equipment. They were able to find and tailor a solution that allows instrumenting a myriad of machine makes and models to capture and transmit comprehensive sets of status and error codes in real time. This enables their service team to better understand machines issues, become highly responsive to where service is most needed, increase overall machine uptime and deliver better overall service quality to their 100,000 customers, all while eliminating 25% of unnecessary (“false positive”) service calls.

CONSTRUCTION F INA L STEP L EVERAGING D ATA-D RIVEN INS IGH TS TO ACCELER ATE VAL UE

The final step in this digital service enablement journey – which only a very few have undertaken – is to use the vast amount of data being collected regarding equipment use and performance to generate new value, both within and outside of the service and maintenance arena. This includes utilizing data-driven insights to further optimize service (e.g., predictive/preventative maintenance), generating new revenue streams, introducing new pricing and new business models and getting to improved customer outcomes.

Most talked about in this area is the use of advanced analytics/machine learning (AI) techniques to comb through vast patterns of machine and parts failure data, to develop learning models to predict equipment malfunction, and to pre-empt them through preventative maintenance measures. When done properly, this can lead to significant gains in service quality and operational efficiencies, as well as reduced working capital (e.g., optimized parts inventory). However, this requires a carefully considered and well-designed approach, along with considerable patience, to collect vast amounts of data and to develop and fine-tune predictive algorithms.

So only a very few have achieved tangible results in predictive maintenance at scale thus far. But we should see significant advances and success stories here in the next few years, especially with high-value equipment or in high-stakes applications.

But the bigger story is that collecting and analyzing data creates many other opportunities. For instance, having detailed data on behaviors in equipment use can lead to new training opportunities regarding proper equipment operation, safety, productivity and cost efficiency (e.g., how to operate equipment to reduce fuel consumption, idle time, and unnecessary

wear and tear). This allows benchmarking and optimizing performance at the fleet level as well as across company branches or facilities, further enabling best practices to be understood and shared.

Other opportunities in analyzing and gleaning insights from equipment use and performance data include helping sales teams craft better value propositions for customers and developing new learning to help manufacturers design better products. One such company we recently worked with, having acquired large sets of detailed, granular data on equipment use, is now able to use accountspecific performance dashboards to show value delivered to customers in renegotiating contracts to gain to more favorable terms.

A number of industrial companies we work with have extracted new insights from data collected via equipment to introduce new pricing as well as “-as-aService’ business models to get to better outcomes for both them and their customers. Getting to this type of shared success in relationships is a very real possibility for those dealers and distributors committed to finding transformational growth opportunities along their digital service and maintenance journey.

Although the prospect of taking the plunge to become a data-driven company may seem dauting at first to many dealers and distributors, there is now a large amount of accumulated knowledge along with inexpensive data infrastructure, services and tools that make the price of entry relatively low.

However, most companies approach this simply as a problem of selecting and implementing the right tools and staffing a data team. In reality, it is much more critical to take this on as an organization-wide transformation, instilling new skills, behaviors and mindsets across operating teams so that they can use data and insights to continually learn and iteratively improve service quality and productivity as a day-today habit.

HOW AND WH ER E TO GET STARTED

Significant financial returns await those dealers and distributors willing to take on the digital service and maintenance journey, and even simple steps can yield financially meaningful benefits. However, prior to undertaking your digital service enablement journey, it must be carefully thought through, with rigorous quantification of where the value is, validation that the needed technology works, assurance that you can get the data you need and, most importantly, knowledge that you can get the data into the hands of your team to properly operationalize in capturing value. The very first task is to perform an assessment of what value levers are available and the corresponding economic benefits of each, along with the requisite investment and corresponding challenges and risks. Doing this will give you a quick road map of where the “large, low-hanging fruit” is, and a clear sense of where to get started.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 39

FAE USA STRONGER THAN EVER FAE has a track record as a worldwide manufacturer of heavy equipment for the land management and construction sectors. It is widely known for the supreme quality of its product, forward thinking vision and impeccable integrity. In over 30 years since its inception, the company has positioned itself as a solid industry leader and has grown to operate five production plants in Italy and six different branches in key worldwide markets.

The US and the Americas is one of the key markets for the company. FAE USA, Inc, headquartered in Flowery Branch, GA, serves all 50 states in the United States along with Latin America. Today, even among a pandemic crisis, FAE USA sits in a stronger position than it has ever been. Consistently rating at the top of the charts for unmatched quality and service, the company reports a steady increase in sales and market share in recent years and comfortably predicts an even deeper market penetration in the future. In other words, FAE USA is thriving and there are multiple reasons behind such success.

BEHIND A GREAT COMPANY IS, UNDOUBTEDLY, A GREAT LEADER Solid values, clear and steady goals, long-term vision and well executed strategies have been paramount to FAE USA’s accomplishments in the highly competitive markets it operates in. Key to this major continuity and stability has been the company’s leadership under Giorgio Carera, a US based Italian native who for the last 15 years has diligently and committedly led the business to the prosperous state it finds itself today. When Carera first joined FAE USA in early 2005, he already had extensive experience in the equipment industry. He brought a wealth of knowledge to FAE USA as he lived and worked in Europe, Asia, South America and USA for other equipment companies before joining FAE USA. We sat with Carera to learn more about his journey and future plans as he approached the 15 year anniversary of his important role as FAE USA’s CEO.

What do you believe is the most important factor in the success of FAE USA? “I don’t believe there is one single aspect that alone is responsible for our success. It has rather been a combination of very important factors that work in synchrony to take us where we are today. High in the list is the unmatched quality of our product. We go the extra mile to ensure we deliver the very best machines and solutions in the market and Hand in hand with that is the fact that we truly lead in terms of innovation and technology and invest heavily in research and development. The result is new products and product improvements that constantly meet the fast changing market conditions and the needs of our customers. And of course this is only possible because we listen closely to our customers and our customers are at the heart and center of why we do what we do."

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Giorgio Carera, CEO, FAE USA

What drives the innovation and proactive approach in the development of new products?

“Definitely our customers. We rather see them as partners and their input helps drive and define the next steps in our innovation paths. We take all their ideas seriously. We listen closely to them, but most importantly, we deliver. In the last year alone we have released 10 brand new models with a few more in the pipeline and have made important upgrades to over a half a dozen current models all of this with the only goal to better serve our customer needs. FAE has designed over 90 different models and that alone speaks for itself.

We want our customers to know that when they buy FAE, they are buying next generation machines today.

We are always one step ahead and so are they. When our customers win, FAE wins”

What has motivated you to stay with the company for such a long time?

"The journey has been tremendously exciting and, at the core, I have always known that FAE is here to stay. It is not as common these days to find a company the age of FAE that holds its same original vision and intention and at the same time is constantly taking the market by storm.

This makes FAE quite unique. And the reason why we take the market by storm is the same that fuels my passion: FAE stays true to its word. For example, I can say everyday all day and without hesitation, that our machines are the highest in quality, that they are more productive and require less maintenance than similar ones in the market, that they have unmatched safety standards and really hold their value over time. In other words, I consider myself fortunate for working for a company whose product consistently sets industry

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standards and proves again and again that all claims made about it are precise and true. Oh, and on top of that offers the best warranty in the industry. It is easy to stay motivated to continue with FAE because it's simply and unquestionably the best. Not everyone has the opportunity to work for the best.”

What is your strategy for continuing to grow the business and staying on top of the competition?

“We currently are a one stop shop for the land management equipment with an extensive line of construction attachments. Our main general strategy is to stay laser focused in what we do best. Additionally, we have already implemented many internal strategies that are helping us carve our path to a successful future and continue to pivot to stay ahead of market and customer demands. For example, we reinforced our after sales and customer support teams with top quality individuals and have increased our customer service standards. We hired new territory managers with a wealth of knowledge and experience in different markets. We re-mapped our product areas to better support our dealers by product in the different markets. We are increasing dealer training programs and are creating parts training programs to offer better support in every territory. We increased our parts inventory and heavily invested in the latest warehouse technology to ensure our parts are available immediately. We reinforced our technical support team to offer superior product and application expertise. We upgraded our marketing and communications team to produce more product education tools and prioritized customer engagement channels in order to be closer to our customers and enhance our feedback gathering process. At the corporate level, we recently culminated the greatest expansion project of our main manufacturing facility in Italy. We increased operating capacity, built the most technologically advanced testing area, optimized our production and quality control systems and streamlined our shipping system. This ensures that our operations in the US are well supported and our technology roadmaps better carried on. In sum, we hold and execute our vision to be the leader in every aspect of the business, not just the product.”

What plans do you hold for FAE USA in the near future?

“Our plan is simple. To keep growing and expanding -not just in terms of the market, product and features but also internally as a company. To keep fueling our passion for high quality people and investing in our employees because they are our biggest asset. To keep putting as much effort and resources as possible in technology, innovation and details to always be one step ahead in the game. To keep holding our leaders and executives responsible for following through with the vision and purpose of being our customer’s #1 resource. All in all to keep setting industry standards in all aspects of the business as we have done so far.”

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What do you feel are your biggest assets as the company’s leader?

“Being in this business for so long, inside and outside knowledge of the industry is one of my biggest assets. I also work really well with people and in team collaboration settings. I am interested in win-win and long term relationships and always keep our dealers, customers and employees as priority and at the front and center of all my core decisions. Because I believe in the product and the brand so strongly and wholeheartedly, I am able to influence and motivate others to take the right steps and actions in the right direction. I fully trust my staff and I believe they trust me. I truly feel like we are one big family at FAE USA HQ and this extends to many of our customers and dealers whom after so many years of good relationships became trusted friends and advisors. At the office we always joke that working for FAE is a lifestyle.

After 15 years at FAE I realized this is because, over time, the culture of excellence even in the smallest details permeates who we are as individuals in most other areas of our lives. To become and embody what you stand for is, in my opinion, the biggest form of leadership.”

"FAE keeps gaining market share in the US and leads the global market" What do you feel are the market’s biggest challenges?

“This is a challenging industry in general. An important motivation for us to continuously improve and be better is our competition. While challenging, we embrace it because it pushes us to strive to be ahead of the game. It is encouraging, however, to know that FAE is a company that holds a continuous vision and strategy, very much like a ship that stays on firm course. While most of our competitors keep selling their companies and transitioning ownerships, FAE is working in consistency and solidity and is rather buying companies. In the long run, this is a big advantage for our business. Another challenge is our dealers and customers as they become more demanding and as fast-paced carrier manufacturers come up with new models and updates. We have to adapt our product, often pivoting our strategies to continue to educate everyone that works with us from employees, to dealers to customers and OEMs.” What is your dealer acquisition strategy?

“We are getting to a point in which we can be selective with our dealers and only choose to work with the ones who are willing to put in the time and effort to stay educated on our products and share the same vision. We choose to work with partners who value and foster long term relationships and are on board with us 100%. We also focus on full service dealers that can properly support and service our equipment and take our product and our customers seriously in all aspects of the business.”

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CONSTRUCTION

AE D TE C H PROFIL E :

ADRIAN HILLMANN, NOT THE TYPICAL

T R AV E L I N G S A L E S M A N B Y L O R I L O V E LY

W

hen he was a boy, Adrian Hillmann’s family moved around a lot – from Argentina to New Zealand to Canada to the U.S. One of the constants in his life was his affinity for repairing equipment, a trait he may have inherited from his grandfather, who was a mechanic in Argentina. “I was always mechanically inclined,” he recalls. “I always had an interest in equipment.”

By the time he finished high school, he had realized that his passion for working with equipment could develop into a good career. The traveling man began a personal journey to become an equipment technician.

It started with Caterpillar’s ThinkBIG Technician Education program, a two-year program in which a college and a Cat dealer partner to train techs to use state-of-the-art diagnostics and tools to repair Cat equipment.

After graduating from the ThinkBIG program at Florence-Darlington Technical College in South Carolina, Hillmann extended his education by enrolling in the ThinkBIGGER program at Pittsburg State University in Pittsburg, Kansas, where he added heavy equipment certification courses to his curriculum.

During his studies, which were assisted by The AED Foundation’s technical assessments, Hillmann was offered an internship with Caterpillar in Peoria, 42 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

Illinois, which provided hands-on, entry-level experience. When he graduated from the program, he remained with Cat, landing a role in their Industrial Engine Division.

TECH B EG I N N I N G S

Hillman says going through the program to earn his certification gave him self-assurance in his ability to work on equipment. “Being certified gives you the confidence that you’ve had the right training and are qualified to perform repairs.”

It also gave him the composure necessary to speak convincingly with dealers, OEMs and engineers.

While working as a tech, he accepted an opportunity to move into sales, where both his background in machine technology and his fluent Spanish gave him an advantage. “My first region was the Caribbean and Central America,” Hillmann says. His territory changed to include Europe and again since then to focus on the Midwest, but he still travels frequently; he logged 100,000 flight miles in 2019.

Even though he doesn’t work on equipment any longer, as an account manager for the Industrial Power Systems Division of Caterpillar Inc./Perkins Engines Company Ltd., he believes the program was beneficial to his career in unexpected ways. “For

CONSTRUCTION

anyone in the heavy equipment industry, whether it’s on the manufacturing side, sales, operations or service, having a technical background is immensely useful.”

T E C H-TALKIN’ SALESM AN

That education still helps when he talks with other Cat dealers and Perkins distributors, and with other OEMs to integrate Cat engines into their machinery. “Caterpillar has a wide engine product line that ranges from smaller 10 horsepower engines to 1200 horsepower, so there’s a variety of equipment manufacturers we deal with.”

Carefully balancing the two brands he represents – Cat and Perkins – he deftly navigates the two separate but related channels. Perkins, a subsidiary of Caterpillar Inc. based in Peterborough, England, is primarily a diesel engine manufacturer for agricultural, construction, material handling, power generation and industrial markets, focusing on engine sizes of 7 liters or below, while Cat spans 9 liters and up.

In addition to working with dealers and OEMs, Hillmann often gets involved with new projects with other manufacturers interested in using Cat engines.

He sometimes also acts as a conduit to Cat’s engineering teams developing the next generation of products. To be effective in these conversations, he needs to know

and understand the technical requirements. “It’s interesting to see how everyone does things and see what the machines can do,” he says.

Only time and experience can make an expert, he continues, but education enables him to grasp relevant concepts. “Whether you’re trying to understand why a machine has functional limitations or whether you’re having to explain why preventative maintenance is so important, having a technical background is always applicable.”

With plans to continue using that background, Hillmann plans to stay in the heavy equipment industry, although he doesn’t have a particular role in mind.

“I H O PE I ’ L L ALWAY S B E I N A ROLE TH AT PR O VI D ES A CH A LLE N G E W O RTH SO LVI N G , AL L OW S M E T O W O R K W I TH O TH ER PEOP LE A N D G I V ES ME TH E O PPO RT U N I T Y T O STAY CL O SE TO TH E I RON . ” A U.S. citizen since 2008, Hillmann is likely to go far in a career that uses the tech training he worked hard to complete, no matter where his sales territory takes him.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 43

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AED

IN CANADA B Y: K Y L E L A R K I N

INFRASTRUCTURE INVESTMENTS ARE CRUCIAL T O C A N A D A’ S E C O N O M I C R E C O V E R Y

T

here is no debate that the COVID-19 pandemic impacted every Canadian industry one way or another. However, recent data has shown that while the construction sector has been able to rebound from the provincial lockdowns quickly, other industries, such as hospitality and tourism, haven’t. With the border between Canada and the United States still closed, and many planes still grounded, it will be months before the tourism industry is able to recover. The same goes for the hospitality industry, which can only improve when Canadians are once again comfortable visiting restaurants and bars.

The reality of which industry is faring better than others was highlighted in the federal government’s Economic and Fiscal Snapshot, which was tabled in early July by Minister of Finance Bill Morneau.

The document clearly showed that the construction sector was nearing 100% pre-pandemic employment levels, while hospitality and tourism were still well below 50%. This reality has spurred conversations within the government about how the stimulus package will be constructed, including the possibility of taking away investments from infrastructure to support other industries.

As we know, though, investing in infrastructure is one of the best ways to stimulate the economy and support all Canadians and industries. In the short term, investing in infrastructure creates immediate economic activity and employment in the construction sector. Research shows that the return on investment of every dollar spent on public infrastructure is between $2.46 and $3.83.

Over the long term, it supports every Canadian who benefits from the infrastructure. According to the 2019 Canada Infrastructure Report Card, nearly 150,000 kilometers of roads are in poor

44 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

or deplorable conditions, and more than 30% of public transit tracks will require investment in the next decade. Investments in roads, bridges, public transit, community centers, schools, trade corridors and more will spur economic activity and ensure economic growth over the long term. A new subway station will help a commuter get to work, a new school will support a child’s education, and a new bridge over the Canada-U.S. border will make trade more efficient.

In light of the discussions happening within government, Associated Equipment Distributors has begun speaking with other construction sector associations in Canada about forming a coalition.

AED understands that the industry isn’t looking for a handout, but rather is looking to partner with federal and provincial governments to rebuild Canada’s economy. This coalition will allow the sector to have one voice to encourage federal and provincial governments to invest in infrastructure continuously. AED can only be as effective as its membership. We hope we can count on your support in making sure your local elected officials know that investing in infrastructure is one of the best ways to stimulate the economy.

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S TNRAULC R T IEOP N RCEOGNI O ORT

AED

DOUBLES DOWN ON EDUCATION DURING CHALLENGING TIMES

D

espite the challenges posed by COVID-19, your association has doubled down on its commitment to providing top-notch education and resources to members and our accredited and affiliate college and high school programs. Here is a brief update on where we are with Canadian schools:

A C C RE DIT ED

Grande Prairie Regional College – Fairview, Alberta Program: CAT ThinkBIG Service Technology Program General Program on track for accreditation

A F F IL IAT E D

Conestoga College - Guelph, Ontario Programs: Heavy Equipment Techniques; Motive Power Technician - Heavy Duty Equipment The AED Foundation (AEDF) full accreditation in process Centennial College - Toronto, Ontario Program: Heavy Diesel-Equipment Program AEDF full accreditation on track Medicine Hat College - Medicine Hat, Alberta Program: Heavy Equipment Technician Program AEDF full accreditation on track Northern Lights College - Dawson Creek, British Columbia Program: Heavy Duty Equipment Technician Apprenticeship Program AEDF full accreditation on track

HIGH SC HOOLS

Banting Memorial High School - Ontario Anticipating the launch of a technician program in early 2021 Bear Creek Heavy Equipment Co-Op - Ontario AEDF continues to support the school 46 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

MI KE D EXTER md e x t e r @a e d n e t . o rg

Additionally, the top new Canadian school prospects for 2021 are the British Columbia Institute of Technology and Northern Alberta Institute of Technology.

To demonstrate our commitment to a robust Canadian school program, AED is dedicating an additional hour during the Technical Training Committee meeting at Summit 2021 to discuss Canadian technical standards.

The same conversation is planned with specific Canadian schools at the 2021 Instructors Conference.

As you may know, The AED Foundation is committed to accrediting 100 college programs by 2024. This is but one component of the Foundation’s Vision 2024 goal, aiming to reduce the workforce shortage by building a strong pipeline of qualified technicians. Meeting this goal creates a conduit for the Foundation to directly affect the number of skilled technicians entering the equipment industry workforce. Accrediting additional college programs throughout North America will draw students’ attention to gain a quality education to prepare for their careers in the industry.

TR NR T R CE O GN I OS N AU L CRTEI O PO

AEDF is also pleased to begin offering younger students a new way to gain knowledge and skills relevant to the equipment distribution industry: stackable credentials. Stackable credentialing is geared toward high school students and consists of offering courses that build upon each other, with a focus on AEDF’s core competencies. Stackable credentials provide students with a way to progress and learn about the industry outside of the classroom. Completing the Foundation’s stackable credentials program allows students to showcase their dedication to becoming competent and successful in the equipment industry.

As AEDF continues to address the industry’s skills gap through Vision 2024, the launch of the Construction Career Aptitude Test will help address the workforce shortage starting at the high school level. The test is designed for students age 13-17 with interest in the equipment industry. AEDF saw the need for an aptitude test that would allow students to see where they stand before committing to an industry program. Students can make an informed decision on their career path through the industry by identifying their strengths and weaknesses. The Foundation believes this free test will offer valuable information to inspire students to enter a field they are passionate about within the equipment industry.

The 50-question test focuses on key topics and skills that are used in the industry. It is designed to help students and instructors recognize their level of comprehension before any teaching or training. Some of these topics include measurement, mechanical reasoning, general mathematics and basic electrical concepts.

Finally, while COVID-19 has forced many activities and events to be put on hold, AED has persevered in the journey toward meeting its Vision 2024 goals.

Throughout the pandemic, AEDF has adapted to meet

the needs of students and schools, to help students graduate from its recognized high school programs.

The Foundation has implemented an online proctoring system to maintain the technician test’s integrity while offering worry-free convenience to students and schools by making test-taking available 24/7. Part of Vision 2024 focuses on recognizing 50 high school programs within the next four years.

With Vision 2024 in mind, the Foundation anticipates more students graduating from these programs in the coming years.

Thank you for your continued dedication to AED and The AED Foundation. Please do not hesitate to contact me if you need anything.

Remember, we are in this together.

September 2020 | Construction Equipment Distribution | www.cedmag.com | 47

CON AD S T IRNUDCETXI O N

Allied Construction Products, LLC

45

alliedcp.com

HKX, Inc. 13

www.hkx.com

ASV Holdings, Inc. 25

Hydrema US Inc. 27

www.asvi.com/AED

www.hydrema.us

CDK Global, LLC 2

KATO/Compact Excavator Sales LLC

cdkglobal.com/construction

e-Emphasys Technologies Inc.

1

www.e-emphasys.com

www.katoces.com

LBX Company LLC 31

www.lbxco.com/Become-a-Dealer.asp

FAE USA, Inc. 40-41

LDJ Manufacturing

dba Thunder Creek Equipment

GO.THUNDERCREEK.COM/AED920

faeusa.com

Glynn General Corporation

19

29

Belly Band

Machinery Trader 5

www.glynngeneral.com

HBS Systems Inside Front Cover

TVH Parts Company 26

hbssystems.com

telematics.plus

www.tvh.com

S TAY U P T O D AT E O N

DEALER PROTECTION LEGISLATION 2020

AED STATE EQUIPMENT

DEALER LAW BOOK

12th Edition

PUR CH ASE TH E STATE EQUI PM E N T D EAL ER L AW B O O K N O W! https://aednet.org/industry-insight-news/ benchmarking-reports/state-equipmentdealer-law-book

AS S OCI AT ED EQ UI PMENT D I S T R I B UT OR S 650 E. Algonquin Road | Suite 305| Schaumburg, IL 60173 630-574-0650 | www.aednet.org Copyright © 2020 Associated Equipment Distributors. All rights reserved.

48 | www.cedmag.com | Construction Equipment Distribution | September 2020

N O W AVA I L A B L E F O R P U R C H A S E

2020 AD COST OF DOING BUSINESS REPORT The report includes a

compilation and analysis of

financial and operations data segmented by sales volume,

line of business, regions (based on climate), rental emphasis, and high-profit distributors.

SCAN QR CODE TO VIEW EXCERPT

PURCHASE YOUR REPORT TODAY

https://aednet.org/industry-insight-news/benchmarking-reports/ cost-of-doing-business-reports

N O W AVA I L A B L E F O R P U R C H A S E

2020 RENTAL AD REPORT ​ ED’s Rental Companion Report is A a supplement to the Cost of Doing Business Report, presenting a detailed analysis of rental practices from the equipment distribution industry.

Based on confidential surveys completed by AED distributors, this report includes a compilation and analysis of rental financial and operations data segmented by sales volume by type, line of business, regions (based on climate), and a special grouping of “High Profit” dealers. This year’s Rental Report provides a specialized focus on common rental practices within the industry.

SCAN QR CODE TO VIEW EXCERPT

PURCHASE YOUR REPORT TODAY

https://aednet.org/industry-insight-news/benchmarking-reports/rental-report