All-time record net sales for Tadano

Tadano eGR-1000XLL-1 EVolt electric rough terrain crane. Image: Tadano

Crane and aerial work platform manufacturer Tadano posted record net sales of JPY 291,500 million (US$ 1.95 billion) for 2024, up 4 per cent on the previous year’s JPY 280,266 million ($1.87 billion).

By far the largest proportion of the Japan-headquartered company’s business is from sales of mobile cranes, primarily all terrains and rough terrains. Net sales remained flat, however, at JPY 199,308 million ($1.33 billion) in 2024.

Aerial work platform sales, at JPY 24,283 million ($162 million), showed the biggest increase both in money – JPY 8,052 million ($54 million) – and in percentage terms, up by an impressive 49.6 %.

Net sales in the third largest segment, truck mounted loader cranes, were up by 8 %, to JPY 19,433 million ($130 million).

For the group, total operating income, at JPY 23,778 million ($159 million), was up 29.6 % on the JPY 18,349 million ($122 million) of 2023.

Around the world

Geographically new equipment sales were up in Japan, by 1.7 %, to JPY 50,048 million ($334 million) but down overall elsewhere by JPY 754 million ($5 million) or 0.5 %. Looking more closely, sales in Latin America were up 16.5 % and in North America by 10.6 % for a combined total increase of JPY 10,247 million ($68 million).

Two areas of decline were the Middle East, down by 32.6 % to JPY 15,292 million ($102 million) and Europe, down nearly 10 % to JPY 28,503 million ($190 million).

Tadano gave its total global market share for the mobile crane market (AT, RT and truck cranes) as 13 %, down from 15 % in 2023.

Growth by acquisition

To fund acquisitions the company’s interest-bearing debt increased by JPY 31,157 million ($208 million) to JPY 122.473 million ($818 million). Acquisitions announced in 2024 were of USA-based boom truck, loader and industrial crane manufacturing group Manitex and the crane manufacturing subsidiary elements of Japan’s IHI Corporation.

Restructuring costs to reorganise the company’s European operations were shown as an extraordinary loss of JPY 5,331 million ($36 million), down from an extraordinary income of JPY 1,920 million ($13 million) in 2023.

Looking ahead Tadano forecasts a 16.6 % increase in total net sales to JPY 340,000 million ($2.271 billion) for 2025. It expects mobile crane sales to be up 2.4 %, loader crane sales up by 131.6 % (due to the addition of the PM part of the Manitex acquisition) and aerial work platform net sales to be up by 31.8 %.

Note: The conversion from JPY to USD was the xe.com rate on 24 February of US$1 = JPY149.794.