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