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WORLD OF INDUSTRIES 07/2018

WORLD OF INDUSTRIES 07/2018

Growth and

Growth and sustainability united under one roof LOGISTICS Combilift, the Irish industrial truck manufacturer not only celebrated its 20th anniversary this year, but also inaugurated its new headquarters in Monaghan. On this occasion, the editorial staff of WORLD OF INDUSTRIES was on site and has produced an interesting video for you about the opening ceremony and the forklift production facility. 20 years ago, the starting point for the company, Combilift, was the development of the world’s first multi-directional all-wheel-drive forklift powered by internal combustion engine. Although it existed at the beginning only on paper, the engineers Robert Moffett and Martin McVicar already sold the first device – without even having produced one. The courageous customer placed immense trust in the team and did not disappoint, because the truck is working even today. At the time of its foundation, the company consisted of only 3 persons. Over the period of time it has evolved into a globally active manufacturer with 550 employees, which exports 98 % of its production to 85 countries through its network of 250 international distributors. The company is privately owned, debt-free and a major employer in the Ireland’s Monaghan region. These impressive figures prove the success story of Combilift over the past 2 decades. Production in batch size 1 There are hardly any identical devices, because every truck is custom-built to customer specifications. Engineers take into account the size of the warehouse, the aisle widths, the size and type of cargo, ground and climatic conditions, and even the size of the driver. In this way, individual solutions with load capacities between 500 kg and 100 tons are created in Monaghan, such as multidirectional forklift trucks, articulated trucks, hand-operated pedestrian stackers and straddle carriers for containers. The focus is on multidirectional forklift trucks and equipment for handling long loads – all with the aim of saving as much space as possible. Since it’s inception the company has produced 40,000 Combilifts. New modern headquarters In the age of robust demand for automation products in the logistics sector from developed as well as emerging markets, the com- 16 WORLD OF INDUSTRIES 7/2018

VIDEO Join us on a virtual tour of the new Combilift headquarters in Monaghan world-of-industries.com/ combilift (pallets, etc.) produces up to 1 MW. This system heats the spray booths and the assembly area. Up to 110,000 liters of rainwater can be stored for use in the factory. As part of the international press event in March 2018, the editorial team of WORLD OF INDUSTRIES shot an extensive and interesting video, which you can reach via the link in the info box. It shows not only – partly amusing – excerpts from the opening ceremony but also interesting insights into the complete forklift production as well as many examples from the extensive portfolio. Take a look, it’s worth it! Holger Seybold Photographs: Combilift www.combilift.com pany is poised for growth. In April this year, Combilift inaugurated its new production facility with 46,500 m² of working area on a 40 ha site. This new headquarters is one of the largest single production facilities under one roof in the Irish Republic. From its own steel construction to painting lines and assembly lines, the industrial truck manufacturer has a high depth of production. Welding robots have been deliberately dispensed with, as this makes it possible to react individually to the specific customer requirements described above. One unit is produced every 15 minutes on four assembly lines with a length of 90 meters each. Over the next 3 years, the company plans to increase it’s workforce by 200 – hiring mainly specialists from the areas of supply chain, production, logistics and mechatronics. This is in line with achieving the ambitious growth target of doubling the production capacity. 01 Both the founders of company, Robert Moffett (left) and Martin McVicar in front of the first combilift truck from 1998, which is still working Sustainable production Having invested closed to 50 million Euros in the new building, the prime focus was on sustainability: this is evident from the fact that 23 % of the roof area consists of skylights to make efficient use of daylight. The artificial lighting is provided by 1,100 economical LED luminaires with individual PIR sensors. Solar panels provide 185 KW of energy while a biomass plant powered by recycled wood 02 There are hardly any identical devices, because every truck is a custom-built solution with load capacities between 500 kg and 100 tons WORLD OF INDUSTRIES 7/2018 17

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