32 COMPANY FOCUS
GROUND HANDLING INTERNATIONAL JUNE 2013
seven factories in all. We start our story, then, at Montlouis-sur-Loire. According to Jacques Roux, who was about to take retirement following four decades in the GSE business, 2006 marked something of a watershed for the company. That year saw a peak in sales for TLD although the market was down in general; but as Jacques stresses, it’s important to break down the GSE sector into segments, since otherwise a misleading picture is the result. For example, the low cost airline sector has driven demand in addition to the traditional airlines.
In terms of sales of GSE, according to 2010/2011 figures, the France- headquartered company reports having increased its customer base by almost 10% compared to 2008-2009, clearly showing that its range has found new interest. Much more impressive in terms of statistics is the company’s Ranger market share. Ranger, as some readers will know, is the name given to certain products that are built to the same formula in TLD’s different factories around the world (Regional Assembly Network, Global Engineering Resources): a sort of mechanical Starbucks, if you will. As TLD is the clear market leader in these segments, it would seem that the company’s multi- country approach to building is a sound one. More important still is the fact that TLD’s sales have kept abreast of the industry average.
A decommissioned tractor provides a suitable testbed for future development Home and abroad
New products and a new factory are behind this in-depth feature on one of the world’s biggest GSE manufacturers. Alwyn Brice went to France and China to learn more.
nowing where to start a story that involves a company that has a plant presence in three continents is a difficult one. The news late last year, which crystallised in demonstrations of the company’s new approach to environmentally-friendly GSE in the shape of the TaxiBot, may not have been universally acclaimed – but nonetheless it is difficult to deny the
investment, the years of development and the team behind this venture. Of course, the TaxiBot isn’t the answer for everyone but the fact that it is (just about) available says an awful lot for the research and development that TLD has put into the manufacturing sector. Before we talk about this innovation’s
progress, a word about the status quo at this multi-national, which today boasts
Whenever I am confronted by
presentations of GSE sales, I always ask the same key question: is price king when it comes to the ultimate choice? Jacques, who is present with Marko Schottler, the company’s recently-appointed Sales and Service Director, smiles at the question. “TLD isn’t the most expensive, neither is it the cheapest,” he says. “There’s no need to have the most costly GSE – what’s important is that quality and value for money satisfy what’s required.” Marko agrees with this assertion. “Service and customer support are TLD’s main objectives. There’s a requirement to have support available quickly and efficiently when it’s wanted: buying cheap isn’t necessarily the answer to the problem.”
This is all well and good, so I take another tack, that of safety on the ramp. TLD, alongside certain other GSE suppliers, is able to offer a range of ancillaries, such as sensors and buffers, which are designed to make a vehicle safer to operate. The company was present at this magazine’s ground damage stakeholder meeting in Toulouse last year, and was able to explain to the audience just what is available in this context.
TaxiBot build in full swing Modest TMX-150 a good seller
Jacques, for once, lives up to his surname, and his face is rueful: there have been only
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