Construction Magazine January 2018 | Page 88

AUSTRALIAN CRANE & MACHINERY

Australian Cranes & Machinery is in a process of exponential growth and investment , using its long-established expertise to meet the changing demands of a strong pipeline of projects

Australian Cranes & Machinery ( ACM ) is a privately-owned business : its current Managing Director Ben Potter is the third generation of his family to lead the business , which was established in Melbourne to sell mainly P & H and Kobelco cranes to the Australian market . ACM has held the agency for Kobelco for at least 12 years , distributing crawler cranes and other products in Australasia , New Zealand and the Pacific islands including Papua New Guinea . Since 2007 , ACM has been undergoing a transformation , establishing a strong market position in elevated work platforms ( EWPs ), otherwise known as aerial platforms or , colloquially , cherry pickers .

In 2016 , ACM purchased a plant hire company serving its current footprint . This is a side of the business that it is expanding : not everyone wants or needs to own its own cranes or EWPs , and other customers may have only short-term need for the equipment . This strategic acquisition gives ACM a steady revenue stream which is less affected by the vagaries of the construction industry . It also provides a useful vehicle for it to field test the new equipment of its own design and manufacture coming out of its Melbourne assembly facility , explains Michael Kobilke , ACM ’ s Director of Production and Engineering . After two decades working for leading German crane manufacturer Liebherr , he was persuaded to join ACM to lead the company ’ s expansion in product development and production .
Since opening an office in Perth , Western Australia , ACM has a branch in every state and a support team in New Zealand too , giving it the ability to distribute , service and maintain its platforms . The EWP market is rather different from the crane market , says
88 January 2018