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