Anaconda's Investment in U.S. Results in Strong Growth

Thu February 01, 2024
Eric Olson - CEG CONTRIBUTING EDITOR

Over the span of just 15 years, Anaconda Equipment has grown to become a respected manufacturer of material handling products in the industry.

With its headquarters and global manufacturing facility based in Northern Ireland, the mecca of material equipment, Anaconda has been in the American marketplace since 2009. Three years later, the maker established its sister company, Anaconda USA Inc., in Bellingham, Mass., to better serve the U.S. dealer base with technical support and spares.

The cultivation of strong partnerships with exclusive dealers throughout the country has been instrumental in the placement of close to 1,000 units into America over the past decade.

Photo courtesy of Anaconda USA Inc.

As Anaconda continues to expand its product offering into full-line crushing equipment, it is actively seeking to grow its presence in the market with additional partnerships in several states.

Michael-Paul McCann, Anaconda USA's marketing and business development manager, spoke recently on a range of topics, including the company's products, growth and future plans while visiting Sound Heavy Equipment in Wilmington, N.C., one of the manufacturer's dealerships.

"When we started out, we were making compact containerized equipment that could inexpensively be shipped to market," he said. "We now offer the full range of crushing, screening, mobile conveying and washing products for processing aggregate materials. In terms of screening, we have finishing screens, scalping screens and trommel screens, totaling 11 different models. We also offer a mobile tracked jaw crusher, impact crusher, and the soon-to-be-released C12 cone crusher."

In addition, Anaconda's product lineup includes three models each of its mobile feeding, tracked and wheeled conveyors.

And the equipment maker is not content to sit back and admire its current stable of machinery as plans are under way to unveil the new Anaconda cone crusher model in the next several months, McCann said.

"Our new C12/C12R cone crusher is one that is able to recirculate materials back into the feeder again," he said. "We are working with our engineering team on trying to get a big product launch for it set up in the first half of 2024."

Anaconda Offers Resourceful Machines, Expert Support

McCann noted that customers also are drawn to Anaconda equipment once they learn the manufacturer considers itself as a complete and attentive product, service and support company.

"We understand that when you use our equipment at a quarry, for instance, or any application where tons of rock and dirt are thrown at the machine for several hours each day, that maintenance will be required to keep the machine operating and eliminate the chance of downtime," he said. "But the thing to remember is that Anaconda and our dealer network will always back you up with expert service, parts and technical support.

Photo courtesy of Anaconda USA Inc.

"To me, that would be the main reason to choose Anaconda equipment," he added.

In 2019, Anaconda received a major boost when it was acquired by the McLanahan Corp., based in Hollidaysburg, Pa., just outside Pittsburgh. The almost 200-year-old multi-industry manufacturer did so just as Anaconda was launching its crushing lines, McCann said, but as the larger company had decades working in the aggregates industry, it brought Anaconda needed experience to that product segment.

In fact, the chambers — or boxes — found in Anaconda's jaw and impact crushers, he said, are sourced through McLanahan.

"Those chambers are tried and trusted stationary units throughout the industry," according to McCann. "I think there are 7,000 jaws and 1,500 impactors working in North America in static applications. What we did was take that concept and put it into a tracked solution."

He noted that McLanahan focuses much of its time manufacturing major static and washing plants, but beyond aggregates, it also makes an extensive list of other equipment, including those that handle coal, recycle C&D and produce concrete.

Manufacturer Working to Expand United States' Dealership Base

As a business development professional for Anaconda, a big part of McCann's job is to create long-standing relationships with distributors like Sound Heavy Machinery, located near the southeast North Carolina coast.

"They were working with Anaconda before I came aboard with the company — I would say seven or eight years at least," he said. "Sound Heavy does a fantastic job in providing outstanding support to customers who use Anaconda products by keeping our parts on its shelves. The dealership also has talented people to commission our equipment to make sure they properly run for customers and there is little to no downtime. If something does go wrong, they see to it that our machine is up and running in a day, which is essential to the customer."

One of Anaconda's key goals over the next few years, he said, will be to continue expanding its dealer base in America because there are many states where the manufacturer does not currently have coverage.

Most of its dealers are found in the eastern half of the country, "but we want to drive into areas where we don't have any representation, specifically in the western U.S.," McCann said.

For more information, visit www.anacondaequipment.com. CEG