Wasn't sure if SSL was the best place to discuss this, but it's as appropriate as I could find. A few months ago, Volvo acquired IR's Road Technologies division (Blaw-Knox pavers and compactors, namely). A bit before that, there was a scare that Bobcat would be manufacturing its machines in China and cutting jobs in its ND facilities. Now, there is this: http://www.shareholder.com/ir/news/20070515-243240.cfm?ReleaseID=243240 What're your thoughts on what happens next?
eh... that makes no sense to me, they must be thinking that in the future china and the such will be outproducing them with a cheaper product on things like that. :beatsme thats a really shiatty PR, all it does is inform the stock owners theyll get more money. Hence there stock price has been jumping this year. They are consolidating apparently, maybe they cant keep the lead in the market anymore after a few of the patents they had ran out? Atliest that is the only thing i can think of.
There was a lot of talk about this at bauma. In the Volvo press conference, Pres Tony Helsham was asked if Volvo was a potential buyer. He said they had quite a bit of work to do integrating the IR Road Development group http://www.volvo.com/constructionequipment/europe/en-gb/newsmedia/pressreleases/NewsItemPage.htm?channelId=2390&ItemID=21627&sl=en-gb and the Chinese wheel-loader manufacturer, Lingong http://www.volvo.com/constructionequipment/europe/en-gb/newsmedia/pressreleases/NewsItemPage.htm?channelId=2390&ItemID=17099&sl=en-gb . But he did not say that they were not a potential buyer . . .
Interesting. That market is one of the few that doesn't have a lot of manufacturers building everyone else's product (Hitachi-Deere excavators, Case-Link Belt excavators; Deere-Bell wheel loaders, New Holland-Case wheel loaders; JLG-Cat telehandlers; Komatsu-Ditch Witch mini-exs; etc), so it'll be a fun rompfest to see what turns up.