“Everyone’s waiting for the next shoe to drop. Right now, there’s so much discussion around the economy: ‘Is there going to be a soft landing? Or are we going to see a recession? How insulated is our industry?’ Nobody really knows…
“But what I do know is that we’ve been doing this a long time, and we check in with our customers all the time, and our customers are very sophisticated – they aren’t fly-by-night.”
These are thoughts Tim Morris, JLG’s chief commercial officer, recently shared in an exclusive interview with Access Lift & Handlers (ALH). In this quick read, Morris offers customers insights into the 2024 market, manufacturing by region, serving customers and plans for the company to add its portfolio.
Here is a recap of his comments on the access market and what’s to come…
The 2024 Market
Final numbers for 2023 pointed to an exceptionally strong and healthy market for access equipment, with JLG recognizing an impressive $2.46 billion in sales, an increase of 26.3 percent from 2022’s $1.9 billion. On the material handling side, JLG saw its telehandler sales rise 25.9 percent for the full year to $1.48 billion from $1.17 billion.
With a handful of (large) market tailwinds expected to keep the industry busy for years to come, Morris says in the interview with ALH that: “Things are moderating, and this year, everything you buy is going to be everything you put in. I think you’re going to see regulation. People are going to start making much more conscious decisions about what they purchase and who they partner with this year. We work with all of our customers – big, small, we love ‘em all – because without them, we don’t exist. It’ll be an interesting year, but we’re looking forward to it.”
Manufacturing by Region
JLG’s foundational philosophy – as it relates to manufacturing – has long been to produce equipment regionally to meet local demand. This, Morris notes in the ALH interview, also strips all non-value costs – freight, shipping, etc. – away for the customer.
To support its customers, Oshkosh used the last year to heavily invest in additional production capacity, including Jefferson City, TN, for increased telehandler capacity. Morris explains that because JLG is a part of Oshkosh, the company can leverage physical locations and assets.
“We just don’t take a dart and throw it on the map,” he said. “What we decided to do was take our defense group and transition it over to the access group, and it’s been great.”
JLG expects Jefferson City to be online and producing telehandlers this year, and the company will increase build rates and add additional production lines as needed.
Serving Customers
In December 2023, JLG opened a 30,000-sq ft service center in Las Vegas to assist equipment rental fleets and owned machines in the Western U.S.
“We want to provide the full suite of services,” Morris said. “We want to be intertwined with the industry and our customers; It’s a part of our DNA.”
One way JLG does that is through offering its new ClearSky Smart Fleet, a breakthrough IoT platform, as standard across most of its new equipment. Packed with more than 25 unique features, including analyzers, telematics and productivity applications, it’s a single connectivity beacon allows for seamless back-and-forth interaction between machines and the system.
“We’ve experimented with this technology a lot,” Morris adds. “And it’s really going to attack some of the labor issues we’re having.”
Portfolio Additions
JLG is also keen on branching out to different end markets, such as agriculture and masonry. The company is also showcasing a range of non-access-equipment products, including a tracked mini dumper and a tracked pallet jack, in addition to its core lines, says Morris when speaking with ALH. The products are a result of the company’s acquisition of Italian access OEM Hinowa last year.
Morris says JLG is evaluating where new products from the acquisition would fare best – both regionally and within specific applications.
Read the ALH’s Interview: JLG’s Tim Morris on the access market and what’s to come - Access Briefing.
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