Comprehensive range for mainstream users
October 1st 2004 When Korean industrial group, YoungAn, took over Clark Lift Trucks at the beginning of May this year, few people would have predicted that we would be seeing the first release of an updated model within three months. Indeed, Sir Neville Bowman-Shaw, managing director of Samuk, the UKs Clark importer, has to admit that even he was amazed at the speed with which the company managed to roll out the new truck. However, having been to Korea to meet with the parties concerned, Sir Neville feels that this is indicative of the new approach from Clark.
There are no two ways about it; over the past couple of decades Clark has had more than its fair share of problems, culminating when it went into Chapter 11 in the US around three years ago. Whatever the whys and wherefores that caused this situation, the takeover marks the beginning of a new chapter, which Sir Neville feels will see Clark climbing once again towards the top of the world rankings when it comes to lift trucks.
So how is Clark going to make its mark this time round? With product, says Sir Neville. Clark really does produce good trucks. The new trucks we are seeing now have all been designed in North America or by the Samsung design team that produced winning designs for Clark during the 1990s.
If you view the forklift market as having three tiers, Clark is aiming for the middle and top tier providing quality, reliability and performance. Its true that there can be more competitively priced trucks at the bottom end of the market, but with premium and middle tier trucks you are much more likely to get a good second hand value, says Sir Neville.
The trucks may not be the most sophisticated on the market, but this has its advantages. Servicing and maintenance is more straightforward and there are fewer components that cost an arm and a leg to replace if they go wrong. It also means it is usually economically viable to refurbish the trucks, extending working life and offering better value. They also tend to be more rugged and suitable for tough environments in the first place. If you put complicated things into sand and wet, well that is asking for trouble, says Sir Neville.
Rather than try to satisfy the tiny percentage of the market that requires specialist trucks, Clark produces a comprehensive range of units to satisfy the mainstream needs of the majority of customers. The design philosophy seems to be simplicity combined with quality.
In the recent past, updated trucks from Clark had been few and far between. The problem was not that there were no new designs, but that there was no money with which to put them into production. Now, with the long-term commitment of the YoungAn Group, Clark looks set to begin rolling out a whole raft of new designs that had been on hold. More articles from Samuk Lift Trucks Limited: | 
