German crane giant Wolffkran confirms it bought HTC earlier this month

South Bank Tower

German crane giant Wolffkran has confirmed it has bought PC Harrington Group’s £40m-turnover HTC crane division for an undisclosed sum.

The acquisition sees Wolffkran take over HTC’s fleet of 200 tower cranes, as well as a staff of 370, and forms part of a strategic business plan by the German firm to build up its operations in the UK.

In a statement the company said no changes are planned to current business operations at HTC and that “customers in the UK will benefit from the strategic fit and the long term investment.” The transaction was completed on 14 May.

Dr. Peter Schiefer, chief executive and owner of Wolffkran: “The acquisition is totally in line with our global strategy of manufacturing, selling, renting and providing related crane services.

“With HTC we are taking an experienced and highly motivated management team and an extremely skilled workforce on board. And the solid UK construction market was just another driver for our decision.”

Dave Holder, managing director of HTC, said: “Wolffkran has been the tower crane manufacturer of our choice for decades. Its reliable and state of the art cranes are the ideal fit for our ‘be the best’ culture. Becoming a fully integrated part of the Wolff family fills us with pride and confidence.”

With the integration of HTC’s crane fleet, Wolffkran’s global fleet now stands at 750 tower cranes, making it one of the largest crane rental companies in the world of its kind. The name of the new UK company will be called HTC Wolffkran Limited.

PC Harrington Group’s separate specialist concrete construction arm - PC Harrington Contractors - entered administration on 5 May, while other companies within the PC Harrington Group continue to trade as normal.