Staying strong worldwide: how Manitowoc serves customers across the globe

• Leading figures from Manitowoc and its dealers used a panel discussion to review how the company and its products are ideally structured to support customers around the world.
• The panel highlighted how versatile designs, continuous innovation, and long-term support combine to boost customer productivity and profitability.

A panel of global crane experts came together to discuss the key points of difference in providing products and support that help customers worldwide achieve more. The panel included:

• Brian Wang, SVP of emerging markets, Manitowoc
• Thibaut Le Besnerais, VP brand and product management for tower cranes, Manitowoc
• Andreas Cremer, VP product management mobile cranes, Manitowoc
• Nabil Al Zahlawi, CEO and managing partner, NFT (owner of the largest fleet of Potain cranes in the world)
• Orkun Oztuna, CEO and Managing Partner; KARUN (exclusive Grove distributor for Turkiye).

Below we summarize some of the key highlights from a fascinating discussion:

Q: How does Manitowoc design its cranes to ensure versatility and adaptability for international and emerging markets?

Brian Wang: It all starts with listening to our customers through our ‘Voice of the Customer’ (VOC) process. By truly understanding our customers' needs, we can design and manufacture products that genuinely deliver value. Over the past seven years, we’ve focused on a couple of important areas. First, we’ve started designing products locally in China to better serve the needs of emerging markets, while also reducing costs to stay competitive. And second, we’ve expanded how we view ourselves: being not only a manufacturer but also a service provider, always striving to understand our customers better and deliver value beyond the product itself.

A great example of how our VOC process drives innovation was the development of the MCT 1105 and MCT 1005. These cranes were created in response to customers’ needs for high-capacity, high-performance cranes for large-scale infrastructure projects, so we designed these models with stronger load charts, but making sure we didn’t lose our famed reliability and ease of transport and assembly.

Our VOC-based approach is reinforced in how we build our cranes. Our five-point operational plan at the Potain factory in China ensures we build world-class tower cranes by fostering a strong quality culture, advancing welding craftsmanship, and integrating intelligent technologies. By aligning manufacturing excellence with direct customer feedback, we continue to deliver cranes that perform at the highest level on jobsites worldwide.

Q: How does Potain maintain its global market-leading position in the tower crane industry?

Thibaut Le Besnerais: Potain cranes are famous for their performance, ease of transport, erection, and maintenance, with versatile configurations and reliable mechanisms. In these areas, we focus on continuous improvement. We also have a lot of long-time customers because we have such a wide range of tower cranes, plus innovative technologies like Potain CONNECT™, our intelligent, intuitive cloud-based platform that is transforming tower crane ownership and operation. It provides a range of information and service data to help owners and users get more from their machines and change the way maintenance, troubleshooting, and fleet management are done.

The collaboration between our Potain plants in Europe and China allows for efficient engineering and faster time-to-market in terms of product development, offering cranes tailored to the needs of global markets.

Potain cranes are always evolving to meet the needs of modern construction. Take the recent launch of CONNECT™ Assist 4G, the new assist smartphone app linked to Potain CONNECT™ which allows technicians to access data remotely on their smartphones, reducing the need for onsite visits. Plus, we have our new ProTECHtor™ system to add an extra layer of onsite security by giving technicians full control during maintenance. These updates are all about making cranes smarter, more secure, and more efficient in everyday use.

Q. You own one of the biggest tower crane fleets in the world: why do you continue to invest so heavily in Potain cranes, when there are cheaper alternatives on the market?

Nabil Al Zahlawi: We view the cranes as long-term investments. Although there are more affordable options, they lack the reliability and strong resale value that Potain cranes provide. Our objective is to maintain a fleet of cranes that retain their value and performance for many years. We keep our fleet as young as possible, refreshing our cranes after five to seven years. With a Potain crane we know we can always sell the machine for a good price.

Our strong relationship with Potain reflects our commitment to long-term value, as they consistently listen to their customers. Feedback is instrumental in the development of the best cranes in the industry, and we see this in the Voice of the Customer program. Our company was closely involved in the development of the MCT 1105 and MCT 1005 cranes. And these models have exceeded our expectations in lift capacity and in their seamless integration with other cranes on site.

Looking ahead, we believe the tower crane industry will be shaped by technological advancements and sustainability, areas where Potain is committed to leading the market. We’re confident that the Company’s focus on innovation, automation, and sustainable design will continue to deliver reliable, high-performance cranes that meet the evolving needs of contractors.

Q. What are some of the trademark design features that make Grove cranes so popular with customers around the world?

Andreas Cremer: Customers value the compactness of the smaller models, which are perfect for tight jobsites where space is limited. Further up the range, Grove's taxi cranes allow operators greater flexibility to carry the counterweight they need for the day while keeping transport costs low. Then, at the jobsite they are fast to set-up and tear-down, meaning more jobs in a day. Even for our largest models, Grove cranes are designed for simplicity and ease of use. A great example is the GMK6450-1, a large machine that can be rigged in just 2 hours. Combined with their fast mobility this makes these cranes a popular choice.

Grove continues to push the boundaries of design innovation by adding cranes with entirely new capabilities such as our first Plug-in Hybrid mobile crane, which launched at bauma 2025. This crane combines a fully electrified superstructure with our popular five-axle design, offering enhanced, cleaner performance by reducing emissions and fuel consumption while improving lifting capabilities - ensuring quieter, more sustainable operations. With Grove CONNECT™, customers can view their environmental footprint and remote diagnostics coupled with maintenance schedules tailored to the machine, to ensure high availability and a long lifetime.

Q. How does KARUN ensure that customers get the support they need to maximize productivity and profitability?

Orkun Oztuna: We prioritize service because selling a crane is just the beginning. To guarantee ongoing support, we continuously invest in training our technicians, so they provide professional, high-quality service. We also focus on having a well-stocked inventory of spare parts while also ensuring fast response times to any service or maintenance needs. We have also built strong partnerships with factories to ensure prompt responses to customer inquiries, whether they involve parts, service, or technical issues. This dependable support helps optimize equipment performance, enhancing productivity and profitability, and has been a cornerstone of our leadership in the Turkish mobile crane market over many decades.

CONTACT

Crystal Chi    
Marketing Director, Emerging Markets 
Manitowoc    
T +86 2164 570 006*103
crystal.chi@manitowoc.com