General Navigation and Commerce Company (Genavco), which represents 17 international industrial and construction equipment manufacturers including Crown in the UAE, has reported sales successes which it credits both to the quality of the products and its own marketing skills.

The company says its material handling equipment has particularly been moving fast in the Jebel Ai Free Zone. Our equipment is appropriate for the warehouses in Jebel Ali, where there is a demand for quality products and service backup," says Genavco sales manager for the equipment division Asif Sayeed Khan.

"About construction equipment that is most popular in Genavco operations in the last few years, I would mention Wirtgen group products i.e. Vogele road pavers, Hamm road rollers & compactors and the Wirtgen road milling machine," said Khan.

"We acquired the agency of Wirtgen from Wirtgen's own operations in the Jebel Ali Free Zone only last November, whereas Hamm has been with us for the past 25 years and Vogele was introduced to the market in 2001. We have been very successful with Hamm and Vogele products in recent years. We captured about 60 percent of the market last year and sales are growing."

For Crown, the world's largest privately owned electric lift truck company, the UAE market is a promising one with the country in the process of great industrial development.

"The UAE is a tough market for materials handling with some 12 players," says Khan. "If you are able to maintain or increase your market share it is a big achievement and that is what we have accomplished."

The official believes that while Crown products are of the highest quality, the exertions of Genavco will matter a great deal in the UAE.

"The saying that 'a product is only as good as the company which sells and supports it' has never been more valid.

"If this statement is true then no matter how good a product might be in design and manufacturing excellence, it will fail to reach its full potential unless the quality of the company selling and supporting it during its operating life is equal to or better than that of the manufacturer. A good piece of equipment can have its life dramatically shortened without the right quality of after-sales support."

Khan stressed the importance of after-sales service. "No matter how good the product, proper service and support can double its working life," he observed.

"Proper service and support can encompass many elements - the reputation and coverage of the dealer representing the product, parts availability, competitive parts pricing, service contracts, properly trained and experienced engineers, quick response times, and comprehensive customer training."

Khan took due note of Crown's stature.

"It may not be the largest lift truck company in the world but it can proudly say it is the largest privately owned electric lift truck company in the world. It has grown to world dominance without a single takeover or acquisition of a competitor. Many of its competitors consist of large groups of different lift truck manufacturers built up after years of acquisitions. Further, whereas Crown is totally focussed on electric lift trucks, its competitors main business volume is often diesel forklifts, and this means a different type of customer base."

Khan noted that Crown was a family-owned business that had grown entirely from within. That had given it a number of advantages not available to many of its competitors'.

"For example all 70-plus models are designed by Crown and this gives it the opportunity to minimise components across the model range and reduce the total range of parts required to be held by Crown dealers. This in turn improves availability and lowers prices since individual parts volumes are higher," he said.

"As I've stated earlier, many of Crown's competitors have grown through acquisitions of other lift truck companies. This in turn introduces many different parts and component assemblies that are not necessarily common. The result is much higher parts inventories, and greater availability challenges to meet."

Khan observed that Crown also had a strict policy of manufacture where possible rather than 'buy-in and assemble.' Crown manufactured 80 per cent of all its components, allowing it to set its own standards regarding heavy-duty components and strictly control the quality of manufacture.

"The results are shown in the many awards for design and manufacturing excellence which have been won by Crown over the years," he said.

"If the dealer does not continue policies in terms of support quality he gives after the machine has been sold and delivered to the customer, then the life of the truck will be dramatically shortened.

"Quality will always show and it is the wise person who, having evaluated both product quality and the dealer support available, would not hesitate to pay a slightly higher purchase price - because in his considered evaluation, the combination of a quality product and a quality dealer will give him more years of life for his investment and save him much more money over the life of the equipment."