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CONSTRUCTION WORLD
APRIL
2015
EQUIPMENT
Operating against a global and
local
backdrop
characterised
by conflict on many fronts –
economic, political and religious
– Uren stressed the importance of business
being nimble enough to embrace uncer-
tainty and managing many variables to
remain competitive. The tough economic
conditions that saw the overall truck market
record a nominal annual growth of 2% at the
end of December 2014, are set to continue in
2015. The medium commercial vehicle (MCV)
segment dropped by 4,9%, while the heavy
commercial vehicle (HCV) segment recorded
a decline of 2,1% and the extra heavy
commercial (XHCV) segment grew by 8,7%.
Isuzu Trucks South Africa had a solid
performance at the end of 2014, exceeding
the 4 000 units’ sales mark for the second
year in a row. Isuzu Truck remains the
leader in the cab-over-chassis and medium
commercial vehicle (MCV) segment of the
industry, with a current market share of
12,8% of the total truck market.
N –Series products accounted for 21% of
the MCV market, giving Isuzu market leader-
ship of this segment and F-Series achieved
23,4% of the HCV market. Since the recent
introduction of the FX Series this range has
grown and achieved 3,3% of the EHCV.
The Japanese manufacturer’s success in
the South African market can be attributed
to their product differentiation, innovation
and customer-centred approach to finding
solutions that will increase customers’ prof-
itability and productivity.
Productivity at Isuzu Truck’s Port Eliz-
abeth-based plant was extremely healthy
in 2014, considering the wide labour unrest
experienced by many automotive manufac-
turers that have an operational footprint in
South Africa.
outlook for 2015
A REALISTIC
Having come out of an extremely tough 2014, Isuzu Trucks South
Africa is geared up to face what is seemingly a more turbulent
2015. This was the overriding sentiment at the annual state
of the business update that was addressed by chief operating
officer, Craig Uren, who provided a holistic review of the state of
play for the industry and a realistic outlook for the year ahead.
In comparison to similar territories, South
Africa is pretty much on par with its Isuzu
Truck counterparts in successful emerging
markets. “The fundamental driver of our
solid performance is the AMT Technology,
which Isuzu brought to the MCV and HCV
market in SA and uses extensively across
our product range. In some cases one will
find that AMT-enhanced models account for
up to 70% of total sales in a specific range
– that in itself is testimony of the market’s
confidence in the Isuzu specific technology,”
Uren added.
Painting a picture of what success would
look like for the business in 2015, Uren put
a stake in the ground and said that his team
would work towards achieving further good
growth on the 4 046 units sold last year,
continue to drive product innovation and
constantly seek opportunity in adversity.
On the environmental responsibility
front, the company will continue conducting
trials on products that run on green fuel
sources and test hybridmodels with selected
customers in the local market.
The company plans to make signifi-
cant investment into local business in 2015
and 2016 to enhance the Isuzu Truck SA
business model and this includes developing
local communities and promoting entrepre-
neurship on the social responsibility front,
but will only reveal details of its plans in
due course.
Craig Uren, Isuzu Trucks South Africa’s CEO.
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