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 popular for making telescopic work platforms, articulated work platforms, vertical mast-work platforms, scissor lifts and trailer mounted work platforms.
The Haulotte Group acquired Bil-Jax, Inc. on the 24th of July, 2008. Bil-Jax is the biggest scaffold manufacturer in the US. At present, Haulotte Group has one factory in Spain, three factories in France, one factory in Romania, near the City of Pitesti. 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 Pitesti City within Arges County. The plant is called Arges II. There are also two plants in the USA, the former Bill-Jax.
Pinguely
Alexandre Pinguely formed the Pinguely Company during 1881 within Lyon, France. Initially, they constructed steam locomotives. The company evolved into making machinery eventually. In 1892, they supplied a locomotive to the Chemin de Fer de St Victor a Thizy.
Pinguely provided 7 locomotives to the Voiron-Saint-Beron railway. When it comes to numbers produced, Pinguely was not a main locomotive manufacturer. The company provided a steam locomotive to the Chemin de Fer du Haut-Rhone in 1930 and by 1932, Pinguely started making steam shovels. Steam locomotive production was stopped and the company began concentrating instead on mobile cranes and making earthmoving equipment instead.
Haulotte
Arthur Hualotte formed the beginnings of Haulotte in 1924, when it was known as Ateliers de Construction A. Haulotte. This business specialized in the production of derricks, aerial platforms and mobile cranes.
Pinguely-Haulotte
It was decided that the actual manufacturing was to be sub-contracted to Pinguely-Haulotte. They were to be responsible for the engineering and marketing, design, research and development. All products were abandoned by Saubot so that the business can concentrate on self-propelled aerial work platforms.