The Mheda Journal

Last year at this time, MHEDA distributors were in much the same boat as they are now. They wanted to be optimistic about where business would be next year, but they were hesitant. That’s much the same this year. In our annual Industry Forecast that will be mailed out in print on January 15, 68% of MHEDA member distributors interviewed anticipate a sales increase in 2010. Reasons ranged from product diversity to increased marketing to “It can’t get much worse.”

That’s slightly more than double last year’s rate, when MHEDA members were bracing for the downturn and only 32% were anticipating increases.

For more information on the 2010 forecast, read The MHEDA Journal Online on January 15.

A press release from The Raymond Corporation says that Raymond lift trucks will be featured in episodes of a new Discovery Channel series, “Motor City Motors.” The show features two brothers in Detroit who custom-engineer vehicles, and the forklifts are used to help maneuver parts and components for assembly.

MHEDA member distributor Andersen & Associates (Wixom, MI) provided the show with five trucks, including one walkie reach truck, two walkie pallet trucks and two hand pallet trucks. “We are pleased that our lift trucks can play a part in a series designed to spotlight manufacturing ingenuity,” Andersen & Associates Principal Thomas Campau Jr. says in the release.

“Motor City Motors” is scheduled to premiere on December 28, 2009, on the Discovery Channel.

Last Thursday, I had the privilege to sit in on a conversation between incoming MHEDA President Greg Morrison, vice president of Morrison Industrial Equipment Company (Grand Rapids, MI), and 1965 MHEDA President Howard Bernstein, chairman of The Atlas Companies (Schiller Park, IL).

The two industry veterans discussed the longtime relationship between their companies (Greg’s grandfather approached Howard in the 1950s for help acquiring some used forklifts), growing up in a family business (Greg is part of the third generation at Morrison Industrial) and what to expect from MHEDA in 2010 (be ready for a focus on membership and networking).

It was a really interesting conversation, and I’ll be running some excerpts in the January 2010 issue of The MHEDA Journal. I can’t wait to put it together. I’ll keep posting it as it comes together!

I guess the headline would indicate a rebuttal to my post from yesterday, but it’s really not.

I received an e-mail this morning from MHEDA Past President Ken MacDonald, president of M & G Materials Handling Company in East Providence, RI. Evidently, Ken’s brother Dan was driving an employee, Andrew Sunderland, to work when the two came across a bicyclist injured in a crash with an automobile. Sunderland recognized the cyclist as Andy Blanchard, Sunderland’s counterpart at local forklift dealer competitor Crellin Handling Equipment. Blanchard had collided with a vehicle and lay unconscious in the street. Luckily, MacDonald and Sunderland came by when they did. Sunderland was able to perform CPR until paramedics arrived. According to a co-worker quoted in the Providence Journal article, “Blanchard was conscious and alert early Friday evening.”

If we needed more evidence that material handling is a people business, there you have it. Blanchard and Sunderland had previously worked together and the two had been known to “go out for beers together” in the past. Relationships, relationships, relationships. That’s what material handling is all about.

They’re called guilty pleasures…those things that you know you shouldn’t be enjoying but you secretly can’t enough of. One of those things for me is photos and, even better, videos of people doing stupid things. Now, I don’t claim to never have done anything stupid, after all I’ve already broken 3 pairs of sunglasses this summer. But that would fall into the non-life-threatening category, unlike the unfortunate chaps in the photos below or the fellow in the video at this link. Or the one at this link.

Now, I’m not totally up-to-date on my OSHA and PITOT regulations, but I’m guessing those are not recommended practices. Don’t try that at home (or on the job, or anywhere)!!!

In talking to MHEDA member Fred Oram, president of Oram Material Handling Systems, he made an interesting point about rental equipment. He was telling me about a long-term rental deal he made that included a full maintenance provision. “Remember, we still own the equipment,” he says. “It’s in our best interest to make sure it still runs right.”

That hit me like a ton of bricks. I’m sure this is an obvious fact to most distributors out there, but it was something I never considered. Why wouldn’t the maintenance be included? If the asset is still yours, and you’re in the position to make sure it stays running in peak condition, obviously you’d want to so. That’s not only great for the customer, who will have a top-performing machine throughout the duration of the lease, but great for the renter as well, who will have a top-performing machine at the end of the rental period to either re-rent or sell as used equipment.

I’m sure there’s lots more about renting, leasing and used equipment that I don’t know, which is why talking to Fred reminded me about the upcoming “Making Money in Rental & Used Equipment” conference MHEDA is sponsoring in a few weeks. I’m sure it will be informative and helpful to anyone in the industrial truck market.

Today ProMat opened without the pomp and circumstance of yesterday’s ribbon cutting, but with noticeably more attendees. Chris and I spent today walking around the show and everyone seemed to be thrilled with the day’s turnout.

As for the show itself, for a newbie like myself, there was quite a bit to take in. I sat in on an ID Systems seminar and developed a pretty good understanding of what fleet management strategies are available. Also, I found the engineered systems section of the show to be particularly interesting. It’s amazing how fast and efficient these different sorters and order pickers can be. Like Chris mentioned, the voice technology was also quite impressive.  

I  have to take the time to tip my hat to the association’s distributors and suppliers who took the time out of running their booths to answer my questions and help me learn about the industry. The same can be said for the companies who hosted hospitality events this week. Aside from the industry knowledge, the biggest thing i will take from this week is how much MHEDA members care about their association and their industry. It’s something I’m proud to be becoming a small part of.

Dan Vest, MHEDA Edge Editor

While we’re at ProMat, first-time attendee Dan Vest, editor of MHEDA Edge, will be posting his thoughts too. Here’s what Dan had to say after Day 1:

Attending a show like ProMat for the first time has been quite the experience. The sheer size of the show was the first thing that struck me. It was amazing, especially in times like these, how many exhibitors and attendees were there. The show itself was fascinating. I saw everything from the latest AGV technology to the world’s first hybrid-electric forklift. For me, perhaps the most helpful thing at the show has been the 45-minute education sessions. I attended most of the same ones Chris mentioned in his entry, and also one on fast-charge and opportunity-charge batteries. As someone who is still relatively new to the industry I learned quite a bit from these sessions.

The other thing ProMat has done for me is offer me the chance to meet MHEDA members face-to-face for the first time. I’d like to say I was surprised by how friendly and accessible everyone has been, but from my phone contact with members, I knew that was how it would be. I was, however, pleasantly surprised by how many young people were at MHEDA’s reception Monday night. It was great to get to talk to the guys who are the future of our association.

Day 1 at ProMat was quite the experience. I can’t wait to see what day 2 has in store.

We’re here in Chicago for ProMat and the first day was a whirlwind. We flew in yesterday and had a little time to rest up and prepare our agenda for touring the show today. We’re staying at the Hilton Chicago, which is about a ten-minute shuttle bus ride from McCormick Place.

So once we got to the exhibit hall, we watched the ribbon-cutting ceremony and started walking around the hall. There are so many displays of racking and conveyor systems set up and it is really neat to see some of the products we write about in action. MHEDA has booth #3677, so if you’re in town, stop by and get to know the association a little more. (There’s also a masseuse at the MHEDA booth….). 

Much of today I spent attending six of the over 100 educational seminars that will be going on this week. I learned a lot, particularly about fleet management and all the different options of narrow aisle and very narrow aisle trucks. I listened to a seminar on fuel cell power development by The Raymond Corporation, how to choose the right warehouse truck by Jungheinrich Lift Truck Corporation, R-mark certification by the Rack Manufacturers Institute, fleet management strategies by Yale Materials Handling Corporation, selecting the right lift truck by Hyster Company and how to configure a distibution network by MHEDA distributor Peach State Integrated Technologies.

At the end of the day, I attended the MHEDA-sponsored reception. It was a great turnout; I’m guessing there were 100 people there, most of whom stayed for the entire 90 minutes. It was a great opportunity to network with MHEDA President Duncan Murphy and see MHEDA Past Presidents like John Cosgrove, John Maybury, Loren Swakow and other MHEDA Member distributor and suppliers.  

Tomorrow won’t be as seminar-heavy so I’ll have more time to see a lot of the exhibitors and their booths.  I’m looking forward to seeing more of the new technologies and meeting more MHEDA Members!