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Firefighting Equipment Exports to Ghana

Project Development International - Dunedin, Florida
Pierce Manufacturing Inc. & Oshkosh Corporation - Wisconsin

As a result of financing provided by the Ex-Im Bank, Florida-based small business Project Development International (PDI) recently completed a $41 million export transaction and will provide procurement services that will supply the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) with much needed fire fighting vehicles and equipment.  PDI is a small business with no manufacturing capabilities, but was hired by Ghana for their expertise in procurement and project management.  In its role as project coordinator, PDI contracted with several U.S. OshKosh Corporation subsidiaries, primarily Wisconsin’s Pierce Manufacturing Inc. which was responsible for manufacturing100 firefighting vehicles. 

This sale comes at a critical time for OshKosh which reported that new orders for fire and emergency vehicles had declined 30% over the last year.  To date, Oshkosh has been able to avoid force reductions through voluntary leave and other creative measures but this transaction comes at a critical time for OshKosh.  The Ghana order represents more than 120,000 labor hours and will support jobs that require a high level of skill and experience. 

Holland L.P.

Project Development International - Dunedin, Florida
Crete, Illinois

Small business manufacturer Holland L.P. has been a pioneer and leader in the railway-supply industry for electric "flash butt" welding systems, car components and track testing using efficient road rail vehicles since 1935.  The company has approximately 250 employees at its facility in Crete, Illinois and was interested in doing more in the export market.  As a result of Ex-Im Bank’s insurance policy on a $1.7 million loan, Holland was able to complete an export transaction and will sell two complete in-track welding systems to Brazil’s Concrenor Indústria e Comércio Ltda.  The exports will be used in a project to refurbish a 177-kilometer stretch track of the Ferrovia Norte-Sul rail line in the state of Tocantins in central Brazil.

Holland’s CEO Frank J. Francis stated "Without Ex-Im Bank, this transaction would not have come to life. The Bank provided us and our international customer with the opportunity to close a mutually beneficial contract that meets our short- and long-term plans and fits into the strategic and economic goals of both of our countries."

Morrison Textile Machinery Co.

Fort Lawn, South Carolinan

With the assistance of $7 million in financing from the Export-Import Bank, Morrison Textile Machinery (Morrison) made a larger-than-usual sale of textile manufacturing equipment to an Egyptian company that’s opening a denim production facility.  This sale was unusually large for Morrison, and Ex-Im’s financing helped the customer handle the scale of the project and provide Morrison with much needed revenue.  Before the sale to Egypt, Morrison, which now has about 95 employees, had to lay off about 10 percent of its workforce last year to stabilize the company in the face of declining export sales which once accounted for 90% of its business but last year declined to 40%.  As a result of this transaction, Morrison’s President is optimistic that they will double their exports this year and maintain or increase the size of its workforce.

Guntert & Zimmerman Const. Div., Inc.

Project Development International - Dunedin, Florida
Ripon, California

Backed by an insurance policy from the Ex-Im Bank, small business Guntert & Zimmerman Construction Inc. (G&Z) recently exported $1.58 million in concrete paving equipment to a Czech Republic company that will use the equipment to expand its fleet of road construction machinery. G&Z was initially started in 1942 by current President & CEO’s Ronald Guntert Jr.’s father as an engineering and construction company to fulfill World War II contracts.  Today the company has 150 employees and exports to a wide range of global markets including the Netherlands, Indonesia, India, the Czech Republic and Canada.

Mr. Guntert remarked “Ex-Im’s support were instrumental in our being able to secure this deal… This Ex-Im Bank backed credit facility helped push the purchase in our favor." Mr. Guntert says the transaction "will be a big contribution to total revenues for the year. It will help keep our people busy. Right now our backlog is exports.  If the backlog continues to grow, we will bring on more people. Currently we're looking for another engineer and some machinists."

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