NMHG Appoints Alta as Hyster Dealer for Western Michigan, Chicago Markets

Alta Represents the Hyster Brand for Western Michigan and Chicago

GREENVILLE, N.C., Jan. 11, 2010 – NACCO Materials Handling Group, Inc. (NMHG) has appointed Alta Equipment Company (Alta) as the Hyster dealer in the Western Michigan and Chicago markets, effective January 1, 2010, with the acquisitions of Mid-State Industrial Services, Inc. in Michigan and the Aurora Lift business in Illinois.

On December 30, 2009, Alta completed the stock purchase of the Hyster dealer, Mid-State Industrial Services, Inc., based in Eaton Rapids, Mich. Mid-State, a Hyster dealer since 2005, covered 12 counties in Indiana and 37 counties in Western Michigan. Mark Drummond, the dealer principal of Mid-State will remain with the business and will be part of the leadership team at Alta.

Alta also acquired the Aurora Lift business in Montgomery, Ill., as its first Chicago-area location, with several more locations expected to follow. Alta will not represent competitive brands previously represented by Aurora. Alta has been the Yale dealer in Michigan since 1984 and has been recognized eight times as a Yale Dealer of Excellence.

“We are delighted to expand our forklift footprint to represent the Hyster® brand in Western Michigan and Chicago,” said Steve Greenawalt, owner and dealer principal of Alta. “The acquisition of Mid-State Industrial brings a committed workforce and a customer service culture consistent with what we provide at Alta. The acquisition of Mid-State provides us with a contiguous corridor into Chicago. We are excited about the opportunity from Hyster® to become the exclusive dealer for the Chicago market and aim to bring our unique approach to customer satisfaction to that market as well.”

“We are very pleased to see the merger of Alta and Mid-State to create a strong dealer representing both Hyster® and Yale® brands in Western Michigan,” said Colin Wilson, chief operating officer and president, Americas for NACCO Materials Handling Group, Inc. “We are equally pleased to have Alta move into Chicago as the Hyster brand representative and feel that the dealership will do a great job serving the needs of current and future Hyster customers in that market. Yale will continue to be represented in the Chicago market place by YES LIFTS, LLC, Voss Equipment Inc. and Fitzgerald Equipment Company, Inc.”