During 2005, the business Pinguely-Haulotte was renamed Haulotte Group. This change in name brought the end of the Pinguely name after 124 years! The Haulotte Group is popular for manufacturing telescopic work platforms, articulated work platforms, trailer mounted work platforms, vertical mast-work platforms and scissor lifts.
On the 24th of July, 2008 the Haulotte Group obtained Bil-Jax, who was the US' biggest scaffold manufacturer. Now, Haulotte Group has three factories in France, one plant in Spain, one in Romania, near the City of Pitesti. There is a new factory which opened during the winter of the year 2008. This factory is only 1 km away from the existing plant near Pitesti City within the County of Arges. The plant is referred to as Arges II. There are also two plants within the United States, the former Bill-Jax.
Pinguely
The company was formed during the year 1881 in Lyon, France by Alexandre Pinguely. The company first constructed steam locomotives. The business eventually evolved into making equipment. In the year 1892, they provided a locomotive to the Chemin de Fer de St Victor a Thizy.
Pinguely provided 7 trains to the Voiron-Saint-Beron railway. When it comes to numbers produced, Pinguely was not a major locomotive manufacturer. The company supplied a steam train to the Chemin de Fer du Haut-Rhone in the year 1930 and by 1932, Pinguely began manufacturing steam shovels. Steam locomotive production was stopped and the company started focusing instead on mobile cranes and manufacturing earthmoving equipment instead.
Haulotte
Arthur Hualotte established the beginnings of Haulotte during the year 1924, when it was referred to as Ateliers de Construction A. Haulotte. This business specialized in the production of derricks, aerial platforms and mobile cranes.
Pinguely-Haulotte
It was decided that the actual manufacturing was to be sub-contracted to Pinguely-Haulotte. They were to be responsible for the marketing and engineering, research, design and development. All products were abandoned by Saubot so that the business can focus on self-propelled aerial work platforms.