AL-KO Vehicle Technology plans to open a customer centre in the UK in 2022. The site is expected to be in Lancashire. The company is thus expanding its European network of customer centres to a total of seven sites.
“The new customer centre allows us to expand our service offering for the whole of the UK,” says Guido Kovermann, Senior Vice President After Sales and Customer Centre at the AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group. “We are also delighted to have highly qualified managers and employees already in place for the new site: While the centre is being opened, we have also increased our stake in E&P Hydraulics UK, which is based in Blackburn/Lancashire, to 100% (which completed on 3 December 2021). The current owner Oliver Drinkwater will retain his key role and bring his team of five with him.”
Harald Hiller, President and CEO of AL-KO Vehicle Technology Group, explains: “I am particularly pleased that the E&P team will remain in its existing form and will support us with its knowledge and expertise in the future. This is perfectly in line with our ambitious plans to expand our aftermarket business across Europe for even more customer proximity. AL-KO Vehicle Technology already has customer centres in Italy, France and Benelux as well as at three sites in Germany.”
“My team and I are looking forward to becoming part of the group. For us, the positive experience of working with AL-KO over the last few years has made it clear that they are a strong, reliable partner we can grow with,” says Oliver Drinkwater: “At the same time, thanks to the close collaboration with the Southam site, we can benefit from that synergy and reduce our own administrative expenses. This gives us more time to give our customers even more in-depth support and to expand our range of services.”
