The acquisition of Allied establishes an enhanced sales, service and support platform for the growing North American customer base. It also enables Sandvik to expand the existing dealer network into new regions and to penetrate new customer segments with a broader product offering.
What will the Sandvik acquisition mean to longtime distributors and end-users of Allied Construction Products' breakers and compactors?
"We are going to continue to do right what Allied has done right for many years," said Jonas Lindqvist, who was named managing director of the company that is being renamed Sandvik.
"That includes striving towards providing impeccable service to our dealers and customers and continuing to examine current and better ways to produce, deliver and support our quality products."
Sandvik already owned 21 percent of Allied, the North American distributor of Sandvik's Rammer hydraulic breakers, before the acquisition was completed Oct. 1, 2020. Soon afterward, Jonas was named to the top management position.
"Allied has always appreciated side-by-side testing of Rammer breakers with new models from other manufacturers, which helps us measure our productivity and reliability," said Jonas. "And we are typically pleased when we continue to be favored as a result of those tests."
"Later this year," he continued, "we will expand our Rammer product lines beyond hydraulic breakers and compactors in North America," said Jonas. "We intend to be a full provider of excellent attachment tools."
He added that Sandvik's decision to acquire Allied was heavily influenced by the competence, experience and service mindset of its employees, evolving over a corporate history that dates back to 1942. Also influencing the decision was Allied's operational footprint and its collection of loyal distributors, some dating back to the 1990s.
Scott Scholz, a district manager in the northeastern United States and eastern Canada added, "Our distributors and rental companies look forward to the future because they know Sandvik is taking all the positive things we do, and they are supporting us and enabling us to grow."
Demetrius Smith, a supervisor and 15-year Allied employee, said he has heard "nothing but positive responses" to new ownership. "Hardly anything has changed … we continue to be proud of our highly efficient shipping and assembly processes, and we look forward to the future with support from Sandvik."
At some point, the company will be relocating from its downtown Cleveland, Ohio, location to a facility in the same region that will provide more space for warehousing, service and manufacturing, according to Jonas.
"We're not planning any changes internally, but as we grow, we will be adding employees to maintain efficiencies in our operations and manufacturing," he said.
Jonas is well-prepared for the challenges. A native of Sweden with a degree in industrial engineering and management, he has global industrial experience in China, Denmark, Singapore, Germany and elsewhere. Since joining Sandvik in 2013, he has had various responsibilities in business development and operations.
"The Cleveland-based operation will support all of North America, including both Allied and Sandvik customers," said Jonas. "We are 100 percent committed to the North American market and believe that investing in a strong local presence within all aspects of the business is key to success."
As part of this journey, Allied will undergo a rebranding during 2021, changing the company name to Sandvik Rock Processing Solutions North America and marketing all products under the Rammer brand name.
"The people will be the same, the products will be the same and the commitment to provide outstanding service will remain the same," said Jonas.
"It's in the Sandvik DNA to be in the forefront of technology development, deliver top quality products and support, and constantly improve on them," he continued. "We are going to invest Sandvik technological expertise and other resources to grow this company and become the leading attachment tools supplier in North America."
This story also appears on Aggregate Equipment Guide.
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