27
JANUARY 2015
ACT
INTERVIEW
TEREXHAS EVOLVEDORGANIZATIONALLY
OVER THE PAST FEW YEARS. IS THE CURRENT
COMPANYSTRUCTUREWHERE YOUWANT IT
TOBE?
I thinkorganizations always evolve.
Continuous improvement isoneof our
values. I seeusworking reallyhard to
becustomeroriented to listenandbe
themost responsivecompany in the
industry.That isour goal. I thinkour crane
leadership ismoreglobal than theyhave
everbeen, andourproductmanagement is
closer to themarketplace than they’veever
been. But I also seeahighly competitive
industryand forus to stayupwith
competitionweneed tocontinue todo
better.
I thinkwehavegreat products asdefined
byour engineers, and I thinkwehavegreat
products asdefinedbyour customers. But
there’snot always awillingness topay for
everythingweput onourproducts,which
is theultimate test of product success.We
need tocontinue tobuildproductsour
customerswantwithout adding thecosts
they seeasunnecessary.Our customers
trulywant better returnsoncapital. The
simplestway toachieve that is a lowentry
priceandahighexit price.Weneed topay
attention to residual values andonlyput on
acranewhat our customers trulyneed to
do the job. I thinkyou’ll find that happens
moreoftenonTerexcranes thanever.
IS THEREA TENDENCY TODO THIS, TOPUT
MOREONACRANE THAN ISNEEDED?
Inour industry, from the timeGod
created constructionequipment, engineers
thought theyhad theanswer. But truly,
customerswant things that aredifferent
thanwhat anengineermaywant todesign.
Tobe successful youneed to listen first and
implementwhat customerswant versus
what you think theywant. I loveengineers,
butmy job is to lovecustomersmore.And
Iwant all our engineers todesignwhat
customersneed, notwhat theycancreate.
It’s abig transformation, but it ishowour
customerswillmakemoremoney.
Also important is togiveour customer
choices. Becausewithchoice theycan
determine theultimateability tocharge for
theextravalue.
HOWDO YOUPERCEIVE THE STATEOF
THEGLOBAL EQUIPMENTMARKETAND
PROSPECTS FOR THENEXT YEARORSO?
Overall, expect a fairly flatmarket.Not a
lot of growth, butwith somepocketsof
strength in theU.K. andNorthAmerica,
andmaybe India.Therewill be substantial
pocketsofweakness inLatinAmerica,
Russia, partsofEuropeandmixed results
inChina.Net, it’snot abadmarket, butnot
thegrowth-orientedmarketwe’dall like to
seeat this stage.
THE FIRST TEREXSUPERLIFT CC3800 ISNOW
WORKING IN THEU.S.WHATHASBEEN THE
RECEPTION TO THISMACHINE?
We think theSuperliftCC3800
accomplishes virtuallywhat our
competition isworking to finish their
designson.Thismachine is years ahead
witha lot less fanfare.Weareprettyexcited
about theproduct. I spokewithacustomer
yesterdayand theycouldnot bemore
satisfiedwith theSuperlift 3800.When
customers tell younice things about your
product itmakes you feel good.
YOUHAVEBEENAT TEREX FOR22 YEARS.
WHAT IS IT YOU LIKEABOUT YOUR JOB?
I like thepeople. I like the industry.To
me, enthusiasmcomes from seeingpeople
succeed. I’vehadagreat opportunity
over22years atTerex to seepeople
make somethingout of nothingand for
it to impact their lives inapositiveway.
It is rewarding to seehowpeoplecan
accomplishcareer goals andaspirations
through theproductswe sell and
customerswe serve.When I started,
”
‘‘
I’m hopeful the
current price of oil will
act as a tax cut and a
stimulus for the economy.
RON DEFEO
Chairman/CEO
Terex Corp.
wehadnomoney, no futureandmany
customers thought ourproductswere
dead.Wedidnot havea retirement plan,
wehadnomedical plan.Wewerea
company thatnoonewouldwant togo to
work for.Whilewearenot thebest of the
best today,weareclearlyacompany that
a lot of peoplehavemadeagood lifewith
and futurewithover thepast 22years. I
like that aboutmy joband feel positive
about that. It’s engaging tobewithpeople
whoareproudandpassionateabout
servingour customers.
WHAT’S YOUR FAVORITE CRANE IN THE
TEREX LINEUP?
Idohavea favoritecrane. It’sour twin
boomCC8800. It has3,200metric tons
of liftingcapacity.We sell oneor two
ayear. Theyare typicallypurchased to
buildnuclearpowerplants. But it’s a
phenomenal product.There’shardlya
crane in theworld like it. It reflects a
combinationof bigboyswithbig toys, and
thedifference technologycanmake in
impactingpeoples’ lives.
Ioften tell our team thatwedon’tmake
equipment;wehelp improvepeople’s lives,
and it’s aconnectionoftenhard tomake,
but very real inmyview.Weproduce
equipment, but that equipment canbuild
anuclearpowerplant that allowspeople
topower theirhomes.Wearebuilding
something thatmakes adifference, that
impactspeople’s lives. TheCC8800 is the
personificationof that.
WHATDO YOUDOWHEN YOUAREN’T
WORKING?
Like lotsof gals andguys in this industry,
I like toplaygolf. I like to travel, but
business travel getsold. I readquiteabit,
and I’mabit of apolitical junkie. Ihavea
fewbothRepublicanandDemocrat friends
inCongress, and I like tobend their earon
infrastructureneeds. I’mnot sure I’vebeen
successful but I certainlyamanadvocate. I
expect tocontinue tobeanadvocate.
■
DeFeo stands beside a
model of what he calls his
favorite crane, the Terex
CC 8800-1 Twin.
