Material Handling Equipment Distribution Industry Profile

The US material handling equipment distribution industry includes about 5,000 establishments (single-location companies or units of multi-location companies) with combined annual revenue of about $18 billion. No major companies dominate the industry, which is fragmented: the 50 largest companies generate about 35 percent of revenue.

COMPETITIVE LANDSCAPE

Demand depends on the quantity of goods moving through the US economy. The profitability of individual distributors depends on good marketing. Small distributors can compete by specializing in a specific industry or type of equipment, or by offering excellent service programs. Large distributors can negotiate favorable agreements with manufacturers.

PRODUCTS, OPERATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

Major products include lift trucks (about 40 percent of sales) and inventory handling systems such as conveying equipment (25 percent) and hoists and cranes (15 percent). Used equipment of various types accounts for about 15 percent of sales.

Distributors usually operate in either the lift truck segment or in the inventory systems segment.

Most distributors have only one or two outlets. Distributors are usually independent, but are often affiliated with a particular manufacturer. Well-known lift truck brands are Hyster, Yale, Crown, Clark, Caterpillar, Komatsu, Toyota, Nissan, and Raymond. A typical manufacturer sells products through a network of many distributors. For example, Clark Material Handling has over 200 dealers. Some manufacturers own their own dealerships.

In addition to selling new and used equipment, some distributors lease and rent equipment either long- or short-term. Lift truck dealers operate much like traditional ...