Hiab

Hiab is the premier brand in the global load handling industry. It keeps everyday life moving by unlocking the full potential of load handling in its customers’ businesses.

Hiab sees load handling as a major contributor to industrial productivity. Hiab’s vision is to be the number one partner and solution provider in global on-road load handling with intelligent services and smart & connected solution. The success of the company is based on the values of reliable, caring and pioneering. With customers in over 100 countries, Hiab has a truly global perspective.

During its history Hiab has grown into the leading provider of a full range of on-road load handling equipment and intelligent services. Hiab's class-leading load handling equipment includes HIAB, EFFER and ARGOS loader cranes, LOGLIFT and JONSERED forestry and recycling cranes, MOFFETT and PRINCETON truck mounted forklifts, MULTILIFT skiploaders and hooklifts, and tail lifts under the ZEPRO, DEL, and WALTCO brands. Hiab ProCare™ service, the award-winning HiVision™ crane operating system, or the HiConnect™ platform demonstrate Hiab’s constant drive to provide intelligent services and smart solutions that add value to its customers. 

In March 2022, Cargotec announced its re-focused strategy. The focus is on sustainability and growth in the core businesses Kalmar and Hiab.

In April 2023, Cargotec announced that the Board of Directors of Cargotec has decided to investigate and initiate a process to potentially separate Cargotec's core businesses Kalmar and Hiab into two standalone companies. Cargotec’s intention would be to separate Kalmar as a new listed company by means of a partial demerger from Cargotec. More information about the demerger is available here.

Hiab’s history

The roots of Hiab global load handling business are deep in the Swedish engineering industry of the 1940s. Eric Sundin, a Swedish ski manufacturer and inventor, discovered how to use a truck engine to power loader cranes with the help of hydraulics. In 1944, he established the Hydrauliska Industri AB (Hiab).

At Cargotec, the foundations of Hiab business area were laid in 1977 when Partek Corporation bought Multilift Group. The acquisition marked the beginning of a series of investments within the engineering industry.

Eight years later, in 1985, Partek acquired Hydrauliska Industrier Ltd (Hiab) and Jonsered forestry cranes. At the time, Swedish Hiab was one of the leading producers of loader cranes in the world. A couple of years later Partek strengthened its forestry crane expertise by acquiring that particular business line from Fiskars.

The next major moves within the load handling business took place during the next millennium when the company bought tail lift operations from Waltco and Zepro. The truck-mounted forklift producers Moffett, Kooi, Princeton and a producer of container spreaders, Bromma, were also acquired in 2000. Two years later, Bromma was transferred from the load handling to container handling business.

In 2002, KONE Corporation acquired Partek and KONE Cargotec was established, and three years later a demerger resulted in a new listed company, Cargotec. Since 2004, Hiab has been the name for the whole load handling business in Cargotec. In 2008, the DEL UK tail lift business became part of the Hiab product range.

In 2017, Hiab acquired the loader crane business of Argos Guindastes Indústria e Comércio Ltda, one of Brazil’s leading loader crane manufacturers. With the acquisition, Hiab made a strong entrance to the Brazilian market and established a solid foundation for its business in the whole region.

In 2018, Hiab acquired Italy-based Effer S.p.A. Effer is a renowned premium knuckle-boom crane manufacturer. Effer's product range includes truck loader cranes, special application truck cranes, and marine cranes, with particular recognition for heavy cranes >100 tm capacity. Distribution is managed through a network of more than 100 dealers covering around 60 countries globally.

In 2021, Hiab acquired the US demountables manufacturer Galfab, which makes roll-off hoists and related equipment for the domestic waste industry. At the time of the acquisition, Galfab employed around 100 people. The acquisition broadens Hiab’s demountable portfolio as Galfab’s equipment is included in Hiab’s nationwide US sales and service network. The acquisition was completed in September 2021.

In 2022, Hiab entered into an agreement to acquire the family-owned Swedish industrial group Olsbergs. Olsbergs is the technological leader in the design and manufacture of hydraulic valves and remote control systems. Its solutions are used to manoeuvre Hiab’s truck mounted  loader cranes and forestry cranes. The closing of the transaction took place on 1 January 2023.

In March 2022, Cargotec announced its re-focused strategy. The focus is on sustainability and growth in the core businesses Kalmar and Hiab. In November 2022, Cargotec’s Board of Directors decided that MacGregor would no longer be part of Cargotec’s portfolio.

In April 2023, Cargotec announced that the Board of Directors of Cargotec has decided to investigate and initiate a process to potentially separate Cargotec's core businesses Kalmar and Hiab into two standalone companies. Cargotec’s intention would be to separate Kalmar as a new listed company by means of a partial demerger from Cargotec. More information about the demerger is available here.