Access manufacturer Niftylift, Stonebridge, England, has promoted Jon Hedlund to vice president of North American operations. Before the promotion, Hedlund had been North American sales manager for five years.
Hedlund began selling Niftylift products in North America as an independent representative in 1998. He joined the company as a direct employee in 2007. “I grew up working in the equipment rental industry in New Mexico, so this has been a really natural career for me,” he says.
In his new position, Hedlund will continue to be based in Niftylift’s Greer, S.C., U.S. headquarters. “We’ve seen real growth in our North American operations in recent years,” says Hedlund. “Our 2011 North American sales grew by 65 percent over the 2010 total. So far in 2012, we’ve already sold 85 percent of what we sold in all of 2011.” If the company’s 2012 sales stay on pace, they will be nearly six times those of 2009.
That kind of performance has enabled Niftylift to add 10 employees in the past five years. “We’re still a small company that believes in controlled, sustainable growth,” says Hedlund. “But we have added three regional representatives in the past two years to complement our 32 independent reps.” The company has also added service technicians to help support the products.
“Niftylift serves the construction and equipment-rental industries, but with a little bit different kind of product than many other aerial lift manufacturers,” says Hedlund. “We’re known for leading innovation and products that combine compactness and low weight with high reach and safety.”
Hedlund cites Niftylift’s patented SiOPS anti-crushing system as one of the company’s leading innovations. Niftylift pioneered the system seven years ago and has been mass producing it for the past three years.
The company’s headquarters for North American operations in Greer, S.C., now does some assembly of Niftylift tow-behind models sold here. One of Hedlund’s goals for the next two to three years is expanding into manufacturing some of the tow-behind models at the location, as well.
New models coming to America by early 2013
Hedlund says that two new models of Niftylift aerial boom lifts will be coming to North America by the spring of next year.
The SP82, just released in Europe as the HR28, will offer 82-foot platform height, nearly 63-foot side reach, and 660-pound three-person capacity while weighing only 32,000 pounds. It will be available in 2x4, 4x4, or all-wheel drive, and be offered with electric, diesel, or diesel/battery hybrid power.
The SP45 will be a lighter version of the current 45-foot model available in North America. It will offer 45-foot platform height, nearly 32-foot side reach, and 500-pound two-person basket capacity while weighing just over 9,900 pounds.
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