A Korean equipment manufacturer has had to realign its operation to accommodate growth, according its president Neil Woodfin.
“Now we are a full-line provider,” the president said to a reporter at the Intermat trade show.
The company is also looking to reinforce its distribution in certain markets such as the Middle East and Russia.
Overall, there is a strong network for both the Bobcat and Doosan brands, mainly through independent distributors, although the company does operate wholly-owned centres in some major European countries.
The integration process is well in-hand and a merging of the Doosan and Bobcat network is being carried out where appropriate and where there is some sort of overlap.
However, Woodfin said the requirements of the customer base for the larger Doosan units and smaller Bobcat machines are so different that a complete merger of the networks is not desirable.
“The compact equipment customer need is different from the heavy line,” he said. “We need to retain a strong focus for compact equipment on Bobcat.”
Product development is another focus for the future, both with the Doosan heavy range and the Bobcat machines.
Woodfin said the entire Bobcat line-up of skidsteer loaders, tracked loaders and mini excavators will be updated in the next three years, with new models such as the latest E08 and E0, E32 and E35, pointing the way.
The group plans to retain its worldwide market leadership in the skid steer loader sector with Bobcat and boost its position in the mini excavator segment. Woodfin said: “We want to be number two in mini excavators in the next five years in Europe and the Middle East.”
The Norwegian Moxy ADT acquisition was also a key deal for the group. Woodfin said: “It had good technology but lacked a strong channel to market. Doosan can leverage demand and this was a good acquisition and it makes sense.”
Investment continues in the Moxy range and work continues on the MT51 truck, which is in its final stages of development