Materials handling: Top 20 Systems Suppliers

Modern's 12th-annual survey of top worldwide materials handling systems suppliers shows that 2008 was a year of stability for the top players.

By Lorie King Rogers, Associate Editor -- Modern Materials Handling, 4/1/2009

The more things change, the more they stay the same. At least that’s true with this year’s Top 20 systems suppliers list, since 19 of this year’s top suppliers were also on last year’s list. The rankings are slightly different, but the names remain almost the same.

The combined revenue of all the Top 20 systems suppliers was more than $15.3 billion. Companies had to report at least $219 million in revenue to make the cut this year.

Once again, Schaefer Systems International holds the No. 1 position on the list, with $2.51 billion in revenue, up from $2.41 billion in 2007. Schaefer attributes its growth in large part to currency fluctuations. Daifuku Co. Ltd. came in at No. 2 with $2.41 billion. The most important news from the leaders was the October acquisition by Schaefer of systems integrator and software provider Salomon Automation.

Schaefer and Daifuku were not the only companies to experience growth in 2008. In fact, 17 of the Top 20 companies reported revenue increases for fiscal year 2008.

New to the list

Legris Industries bursts onto the Top 20 list in the No. 3 position this year, with an impressive $1.09 billion in sales revenue in 2008.

Because the bulk of Legris’ business is located outside North America, they have not been included on past lists. But its U.S. business units include Savoye Inc. in Lawrenceville, N.J.; Keyria Inc. in Littleton, Colo.; and Clextral Inc. in Tampa, Fla.

Welcome back

Dematic returns in the No. 4 position holding steady with $1 billion in sales. The biggest gains were reported by Vanderlande Industries (No. 5) up 24%; TGW Transportgerate, now known as TGW Logistics Group, (No. 13) also up 24%; Murata Machinery (No. 8) up 16%; Kardex AG (No. 10) up 10%; and FlexLink Systems (No. 20) also up 10%.

Vanderlande Industries, which moves up one notch in the ranking, attributes its steady growth to a geographical spread of activities including its fairly new organization in China that is starting to pay off across the Far East.

Swisslog (No. 9) credits its 9% increase in revenue in part to the acquisition of Dutch company Ergotrans. The move expands Swisslog’s core product line of pneumatic tube systems for the healthcare market and is in line with its strategy to expand its presence in European markets through selected acquisitions.

In the No. 10 position, Kardex AG saw a 10% increase in revenue. In 2008, Kardex AG, parent company of Kardex Remstar International, acquired the assets of U.S. competitor Kardex Systems Inc., which posted sales of about $21 million in 2007. The acquisition accelerates the company’s pace of growth and expands its position in the market for automated storage and retrieval systems.

Columbus McKinnon (No. 11) saw an increase of 6%, undoubtedly as a result of some give and take—divesting Univeyor in Denmark and acquiring Pfaff-Silberblau, European supplier of lifting, materials handling and actuator products.

Holding at No. 18 for the second-consecutive year, HK Systems experienced a strong 2008, thanks in part to a number of large projects and the robust business of HK Production Logistics, which provides integrated warehousing and order fulfillment management.

Based in Sweden, FlexLink is No. 20 this year, with a sales increase of $20 million. The growth can be attributed partly to expansion into new markets like electronics and solar and the opening of three new U.S. offices, which brings the company closer to its customer, says Michael Hilsey, director of marketing and indirect sales.

Rounding out the list at No. 7 is FKI reporting $784 million for 2008 sales.

Making the list

To be eligible for Modern’s Top 20, companies must have a presence in North America to be considered worldwide suppliers and must be suppliers of materials handling systems, not just equipment providers. Companies must manufacture at least two major handling system components. These equipment types include transportation devices, storage and staging equipment, picking units, sortation systems, data capture technologies, software and controls.

In addition, companies must also employ full-time staff that design, install, integrate and implement materials handling systems.

2009 outlook

Looking ahead to next year, there are some companies that may be vying for a spot on the list. Keep an eye on Eisenmann GmbH. Its 2008 revenue was $200 million. Another one to watch: Wynright. Last December Warehouse Equipment Inc. (WEI) consolidated with six affiliated companies and changed its name to Wynright. Its combined revenue in 2008 was $182 million—not enough to make this list, but enough to make it a viable contender for next year’s list.

In March of this year, Mecalux completed its $30 million purchase of the UFI/Interlake assets, which includes plants in Pontiac, Ill., Sumter, S.C., Mexicali and Matamoros, Mexico. The company, which has changed its American division name to Interlake Mecalux Inc., says this is a market opportunity that means growing its presence in North America further enhancing their global expansion plan.

Last year’s revenue was up, mostly as a result of projects already in the works. Many questions are yet to be answered about 2009, not the least of which is the impact of a challenging economy. Leading economic indicators for materials handling equipment manufacturing (MHEM) point to continued contraction. Here are a few MHEM predictions for 2009:

• New orders will decline about 19%

• Shipments will contract about 15%

• Domestic demand will contract about 15%, exports will decline as demand in the economy contracts.

But once we get through this year, we expect some bright spots to appear in late 2009.

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