Capital Equipment News February 2017

Isuzu Truck South Africa claimed a strong 14,6% market share of the South African commercial vehicle market in 2016 with a total of 3 952 units sold.

TOUGH TERRAIN TREADING

Despite a challenging 2016, Isuzu Truck South Africa crowned a successful decade of doing business in South Africa with a strong share of the commercial vehicle market, retaining its top Japanese OEM accolade in the process, writes Munesu Shoko.

I n a market where sales figures tumbled for the second year running in 2016, with a -11,3% decline in total truck sales, representing one of the worst performances in recent years, Isuzu Truck South Africa (ITSA) defied the odds with a strong 14,6% total market share for the year, recording a total of 3 952 units of the 27 011 sold in the country. Although its own 2016 figures were in the red compared with 2015 (4 550), Craig Uren, Director and COO of ITSA, says the achievement was enough to seal the truck maker’s position as the top selling Japanese original equipment manufacturer (OEM) in South Africa. Barring Vans and Buses – segments which ITSA doesn’t actively participate in – the truck maker’s share of the South African commercial vehicle was 16,7% in 2016. With 1 971 units sold across the 19 N-Series

model derivatives, totalling 50% of total ITSA volume for 2016, the Japanese OEM claimed 23,3% of the total Medium Commercial Vehicle (MCV) market (8 451 units including AMH). With a total of 5 460 trucks sold in the Heavy Commercial Vehicle (HCV) market,

1 545 were Isuzu units, representing a 28,3% share of that segment. In the Extra Heavy Commercial Vehicle market (EHCV), a segment that contributed the bulk of the total truck sales volumes – 11 860 of the total 27 047 – ITSA achieved a 3,5% share, while its share in the Bus segment was 1,8%.

“Value added products are playing a big role in our quest for further growth. The addition of other business divisions to our portfolio – Isuzu Trucks Drivetrain, Isuzu Trucks Mobility, Isuzu Trucks Genuine Parts and Kanu Commercial Body Construction – gives us the edge to be a one-stop shop for our customers’ needs, while being able to customise our solutions in the process.”

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS FEBRUARY 2017 10