Italthai Industrial Co Ltd, a maker of heavy machinery, has set up a joint venture with Tadano, a Japanese crane manufacturer, to produce more industrial machines and cranes to serve a rising demand in Thailand and throughout Asean.
Italtai Industrial chief executive Adis Peukpattanaruks said the partnership is called Tadano Italthai Co Ltd and will provide cranes and heavy machinery for industrial and construction needs as demand in the two sectors picks up over the next few years.
The joint venture has registered capital of 50 million baht and is 49% owned by Tadano. Italthai owns 48% and MHCB Consulting Thailand Co Ltd the remaining 3%.
Mr Adis said Italthai was interested in teaming up with Tadano because it is the world's leading crane maker and has a strong distribution channel within Asean, with regional offices in Singapore and Thailand.
Hidetoshi Iga, chief executive of Tadano Italthai, said partnering with Italthai would help strengthen the company's position and increase its competitive edge to expand business in Thailand and in the Asean region where demand for heavy machines for construction is expected to grow substantially with several government megaprojects due to start.
Construction of infrastructure in Asean, particularly in the CLMV group of Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Vietnam, is growing fast, in line with those economies, he added.
In addition, China's "One Belt, One Road" policy and its planned rail system throughout Asean should be a boon for business, Mr Iga said.
He said about 80% of total crane sales is in the construction sector, while the remaining 20% is in the industrial sector, particularly the automotive industry.
Tadano has a crane factory in an industrial estate in Rayong's Eastern Seaboard area with a total production capacity of 1,000 units a year.
The plant's current capacity runs at about 200 units a year and is expected to rise to 500 units a year within the next five years, Mr Iga said.
"The joint venture is expected to help expand business and meet rising demand in cranes and heavy industrial machines," the Tadano Italthai chief executive said.
"We also plan to expand our production capacity to be up to 2,000 units in the near future," he added.