Kobelco Details Merger of Cranes, Excavator Companies in North America

December 6, 2016 - On April 1, 2016, Kobe Steel announced it would be merging its global excavator and crane businesses. The combined Kobelco Construction Machinery Co. Ltd. represents a $3 billion per-year company. Yesterday, Kobelco's North American organizations, Kobelco Cranes North America and Kobelco Construction Machinery USA, announced their merger, which will officially take place Jan. 1, 2017.

Because this is a merger and not an asset purchase, the surviving entity will assume all financial and contractual obligations. 

Kobelco Crane North America will be merged into Kobelco Construction Machinery USA (KCMU), which will be the surviving entity, and the company will be headquartered in Katy, Texas. Structural changes will be made to KCMU to manage the added businesses and responsibilities. 

KCMU will now be led by President and CEO Naoto Suzuki, who will have three independent divisions report to him -- Excavator, Crane, and Plant. Although the divisions will share accounting and warehouse operations, the majority of the business will remain separate and focused on their products. Sales, service, parts, distribution, and management will have their own personnel, contracts and management.

The excavator division will be led by Katsuhiko "Pete" Morita, vice president, and Jack Fendrick, vice president, will head up the crane division. Hiroshi "Rocky" Morita will lead the excavator plant in Spartanburg, S.C. Excavator dealers and crane dealers will remain separate. Business decisions will be made by the leaders of the respective divisions. 

The crane business will move from Houston to Katy in the second quarter of 2017, following the merger.

In a statement issued to dealers by Pete Morita and Fendrick, the two division heads said the combination of the two companies is the logical step of putting the Kobelco brand back together after the global alliance with CNH caused it to separate.

 

 

“The synergies this merger creates will be seen throughout our organization,” the statement read. “Our abilities to share engineering, manufacturing, and logistics will enhance our positions in both industries, while we have intentionally taken steps to design the new company in a fashion that keeps our respective industry focus intact.”