Industry Beat
Industry Beat September 2009 Construction Equipment Distribution www.cedmag.com 15 CNH Reorganizes Construction Group Jim McCullough heads the new organization, and Jim Hassler is responsible for North American region. CNH Global N.V. has reorganized its construction equipment management structure. In the new structure, CNH will maintain its construction brands, Case CE, New Holland Construction and Kobelco, while consolidating its internal construction equipment management structures. The restruc-turing will have no impact on the dealer organization or our customers, said Tom McLaughlin, communica-tions manager for CNH Global. The brands' sales forces and distribu-tion networks will remain separate, enabling them to focus their efforts on brand-specific sales and service. The new construction equipment organization will be headed by Jim McCullough, who is currently the CEO of Case Construction Equip-ment. McCullough will report directly to Harold Boyanovsky, president and CEO of CNH. The objective of the reorganization is to streamline internal operations and reinforce product architectures while significantly reducing the costs of managing brand networks and building brand value. In North America, Europe and Latin America, the new organization will be led by regional managers reporting directly to McCullough. Jim Hassler, vice president of CNH Construction, will head up the North American region. Sales administration, marketing and back-office functions for the brands will be centralized within the regions and overseen by McCullough and a small staff. CNH's International Region organi-zation, headed by Franco Fusignani, will now include the construction equipment businesses alongside CNH's agriculture equipment businesses. Consumers Get a Taste of Training at Birch Equipment Homeowners and contractors alike can now learn to use a variety of lawn and garden and construction equipment at Birch Equipment stores. The company has just launched a program that enables consumers to learn alongside employees during weekly training sessions that are free of charge. The Bellingham, Wash.- based rental dealer is just beginning to market the program to consumers. Employees lead the sessions, which typically last about 30 to 45 minutes, said Cara Buckingham, information director. Whether the consumer is renting a rototiller or a pressure washer, the goal of the training session is to make people feel more comfortable with the machine they are renting. Instructors focus on both safety and performance tips to help the consumer have a more successful project. The decision to open the weekly training seminars to consumers is a natural extension to the company's focus on training. Birch employees spend more than 5,000 hours in paid training hours each year. Extending the training to consumers is a way to expand customer service and improve the rental experience. The training sessions are in addition to written instructions that accompany all outgoing rental equipment and the orientation provided by employees. As a leading dealer and distributor of Genie and Gehl products, Birch has also been a leader in offering Train-the-Trainer classes for contractors. Taught by certi-fied Birch staff and factory reps, the classes combine classroom instruction with extensive hands on equip-ment training. Participants obtain certification, which allows them to train and qualify their own employees as Genie scissor lift and boom lift operators, and Gehl reach forklift operators. Birch serves a diverse customer base of contrac-tors, homeowners, manufacturers and heavy industrial clients. Its new consumer training program makes good use of resources by utilizing existing training sessions to further enhance the experience of homeowners. Birch Equipment is ranked among the top 100 rental companies in the nation and is the leading, indepen-dently owned construction equipment and sales company in the Pacific Northwest and Southeast Alaska. Customers get hands on training with tile cutters at the Bellingham Birch Equipment location.