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Crane counterfeiting spreads to South Korea

6 Mar 15 Terex has issued a new warning about counterfeit cranes being made in Asia.

A genuine Terex CC 2500-1
A genuine Terex CC 2500-1

Just over a year after warning that copycat crawler cranes were being made in China and having bogus Terex badges put on them, Terex now has evidence that the practice has spread to South Korea.

As in China, the 500-tonne class Terex CC 2500-1 lattice boom crawler crane seems to be the crane model of choice for the pirate manufacturers.

The units are assembled, branded and sold as used Terex cranes at prices well under market value and are either painted white using the Terex brand or red, using the legacy Demag brand (acquired by Terex in 2002).

"This is a serious situation, not only because this infringes on our intellectual property but, more importantly, it poses a serious safety risk for our customers,” said Klaus Meissner, director of product strategy for Terex Cranes. “The use of these inferior, counterfeit cranes can result in deadly consequences."

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While made to look like Terex units, these pirated cranes are often assembled with a blend of older and newer technology and components not designed to work together, Mr Meissner said. The counterfeit cranes frequently have poor weld quality, inferior steel structures and improperly fitted tracks. Additionally, many of the safety components designed into genuine Terex cranes are missing.

"Unfortunately going by serial number alone will not determine with certainty you are buying a genuine Terex crane, as these plates can be fake as well,” Mr Meissner added. "Many of the counterfeit cranes were purchased either without an on-site inspection or through an inspection conducted by an unqualified person.”

The latest warning echoes one issued by Terex in November 2013, when a batch of Chinese-made pirate cranes hit the Asian market. [See our previous report here.]

Terex said that buyers should conduct a thorough inspection of any used crane before purchasing. "If the deal seems too good to be true, it probably is,” Mr Meissner said. “Contact me under Klaus.Meissner@terex.com, and I will be happy to assist you in verifying that it is a genuine Terex crane."

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