Linde Material Handling North America Corporation announced on Friday, November 14 that it will change its corporate name to KION North America Corporation, effective on or about Jan. 1, 2015. This change will allow the company to better align itself with its European parent company, The KION Group and serve as a platform for the company’s KION 2020 North American growth strategy.
“We will even further strengthen our Linde Brand with additional product offerings while at the same time grow the STILL Brand through future developments.” said Brian Butler, President & CEO. “As we align ourselves with the global development and manufacturing strategy of the KION Group, KION North America will become a significant contributor to the development and manufacturing of products specifically for the North American market.”
The company hosted a commemorative ribbon cutting ceremony on Friday, November 14, 2014 at its North American headquarters located in Summerville. The ribbon cutting gave the company an opportunity to pause and reflect on its history and to mark a new beginning for KION North America. Guests included members of the Linde, STILL and KION boards along with several representatives from The KION Group.
Also participating in the ribbon cutting event were Mayor Bill Collins of the Town of Summerville, Sen. Paul Campbell of South Carolina and Amy Thomson from the South Carolina Department of Commerce representing Gov. Nikki Haley’s office. In addition, many other state and local dignitaries were in attendance.
The KION Group has a global presence with material handling products and solutions provided by its six brand companies. They are the European market leader and the world’s second largest manufacturer of forklifts and warehouse technology. The North American headquarters is currently expanding operations and aligning its development and manufacturing strategy with the KION Group.
“The continued development and growth of our organization in North America is extremely important for the KION Group. It is one of the key elements of our Strategy 2020, which we are pursuing with the aim of significantly extending our global reach,” says Gordon Riske, CEO of the KION Group. “We want to move away from being a niche provider and become a significant market player in North America under the KION name.”
