In 2005, the company Pinguely-Haulotte was renamed Haulotte Group. This change in name brought the end of the Pinguely name after 124 years! The Haulotte Group is known for making articulated work platforms, telescopic work platforms, scissor lifts, trailer mounted work platforms and vertical mast-work platforms.
On July 24th, the year 2008 the Haulotte Group obtained Bil-Jax, who was the US' biggest scaffold manufacturer. Now, Haulotte Group has three plants 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 2008. This factory is 1 km away from the existing plant near Pitesti within Arges County. The plant is referred to as Arges II. There are also two plants within the USA, the former Bill-Jax.
Pinguely
The company was established in 1881 in Lyon, France by Alexandre Pinguely. The company first constructed steam engines. The business evolved into making machines eventually. In the year 1892, they supplied a steam engine to the Chemin de Fer de St Victor a Thizy.
Pinguely provided 7 locomotives to the Voiron-Saint-Beron railway. In terms of numbers produced, Pinguely was not a main steam engine manufacturer. The company supplied a steam train to the Chemin de Fer du Haut-Rhone in 1930 and by 1932, Pinguely started manufacturing steam shovels. Production of steam locomotives was stopped and the company started concentrating instead on mobile cranes and manufacturing earthmoving machinery instead.
Haulotte
In 1924, Haulotte was formed in L'Horme by Arthur Haulotte. The company was called Ateliers de Construction A. Haulotte. This business specialized in manufacturing derricks, aerial platforms and mobile cranes.
Pinguely-Haulotte
Manufacturing it was decided to be sub-contracted to Pinguely-Haulotte, who was to be responsible for the engineering and marketing, design, research and development. All products were abandoned by Saubot so that the company could concentrate on self-propelled aerial work platforms.