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 known for making telescopic work platforms, articulated work platforms, trailer mounted work platforms, vertical mast-work platforms and scissor lifts.
On July 24th, 2008 the Haulotte Group obtained Bil-Jax, who was the US' biggest scaffold manufacturer. At present, Haulotte Group has one plant in Spain, three factories in France, one plant in Romania, near the City of Pitesti. There is a new factory that opened during the winter of 2008. This plant is 1 km away from the existing factory near Pitesti within the County of Arges. The plant is called Arges II. There are also two plants in the USA, the former Bill-Jax.
Pinguely
The company was established in 1881 in Lyon, France by Alexandre Pinguely. The company initially build steam locomotives. The company evolved into making equipment eventually. In the year 1892, they provided a steam engine 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 major steam engine manufacturer when it comes to numbers produced. The company provided a steam train to the Chemin de Fer du Haut-Rhone during 1930 and by the year 1932, Pinguely started making steam shovels. Production of steam locomotives was stopped and the company began concentrating instead on mobile cranes and manufacturing earthmoving machinery instead.
Haulotte
In the year 1924, Haulotte was formed in L'Horme by Arthur Haulotte. The company was referred to as Ateliers de Construction A. Haulotte. This business specialized in the production of aerial platforms, mobile cranes and derricks.
Pinguely-Haulotte
Manufacturing it was decided to be sub-contracted to Pinguely-Haulotte, who was to be responsible for the engineering and marketing, research, design and development. All products were abandoned by Saubot so that the business could focus on self-propelled aerial work platforms.