CHANGING FACES
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• As 1992 approaches, the changing face of European industry is nowhere more apparent than with the manufacturers of commercial vehicles.
Back in the summer it was rumoured that ERF, Daf and then Iveco were having 'meaningful talks' with Austrian manufacturer Steyr. In the event, it was MAN who struck a deal giving it a much needed increase in manufacturing capacity close to home, but the knock-on effect sounded the death knell for the recentlyformed Steyr UK operation.
Several players also showed great interest in the Spanish ENASA operation and once again, amid the aroma of a Germanic cartel, MAN took the day but this time supported by Daimler-Benz.
Over recent years merger and collaboration deals have been seen as the key to survival, in kind at least if not wholly in name. Magirus, Unic, Ford, Leyland and Dodge are just a few of the names which have moved into obscurity in a commercial vehicle context.
lithe pundits are to be believed, even the most buoyant European market is insufficient to ensure long-term survival for even those which are left.
In the early 80s some of the larger European chassis manufacturers looked further afield and moved into the North American market in search of the benefits that larger volumes and economies of production can bring. While they have been successful where the US manufacturers largely failed, they could soon be under pressure from the Japanese who have expressed a strong interest in that market. While the Japanese seem less interested in Europe's heavy truck market, Navistar from the US is once more looking to Europe.
There is a strong possibility that freeing of the market within the EC will increase resistance to imports, and companies without manufacturing bases in one or other of the member states could find themselves locked out.
So where are the next moves likely to come from? The French government is thought to be keen to privatise RVI which could open the way to a future merger or, if this is not a possibility, a collaboration deal is almost certainly on the cards. But with who? Within the EC its nearest neighbour Daf is the best bet as many believe that, it is neither big enough or small enough to last on its own in the long term.
Scania has yet to establish a manufacturing base within the EC, while Volvo's remote stance belies its interest in a stronger EC base.
The one thing that we may be sure of is that the existing manufacturing base will shrink even more in the future and in view of predicted market trends that may be sooner rather than later.
O by Bill Brock