Gitnux/Report 2026

Material Handling Equipment Industry Statistics

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Samuel NorbergWritten by Samuel Norberg·Fact-checked by Maya Johansson
Published
How this report is researched
01Editorial Scope

An editor sets the topic, the inclusion criteria, and the evaluation framework before research starts.

02Source Research

AI search agents locate sources and extract each figure together with the document it came from.

Read our full methodology →

Search agents attach provenance to every extracted figure.

Next review: within 39 days

01 Industry overview

The material handling equipment industry at a glance

The global material handling equipment market was valued at $189.6 billion in 2025 and is forecast to reach $372.6 billion by 2035, supported by warehouse automation, e-commerce fulfillment and industrial investment.

$189.6B[87]
Global market size, 2025
7%[87]
Forecast CAGR, 2026–2035
66,559[88]
U.S. production workers, 2024
53%[89]
EMEA sales share, Q3 2026
Market size
The global material handling equipment market was valued at $189.6 billion in 2025 and is estimated at $202.3 billion in 2026. The estimate covers equipment used to move, store, protect and control materials in manufacturing, warehousing, distribution and disposal operations.[87]
Forecast & CAGR
The market is projected to reach $372.6 billion by 2035, implying a 7% compound annual growth rate from 2026 to 2035. Growth is linked to increasing throughput requirements in e-commerce, third-party logistics and automated warehouses.[87]
Market share & regions
Asia-Pacific was identified as the largest regional market in 2025. In Kalmar’s heavy material handling estimate for 2025, the Americas represented $3.6 billion, EMEA $2.8 billion and APAC $2.5 billion; Kalmar reported sales distributions of 53% for EMEA, 33% for the Americas and 14% for APAC for the last twelve months through Q3 2026.[87][89]
Key players & concentration
Toyota Material Handling was reported as the market leader with more than 7.5% of global material handling equipment revenue in 2025. Other leading companies identified include KION Group, Jungheinrich and Daifuku, indicating a fragmented market with several large multinational suppliers rather than a single dominant producer.[87]
Pricing
No reliable, industry-wide price index or comparable average equipment price was identified. Available market sources report revenue values and growth rates, but do not provide a standardized price series across forklifts, conveyors, storage systems, cranes and automation equipment.[87]
Trends, drivers & challenges
Automation, artificial intelligence, autonomous mobile robots and rising warehouse throughput requirements are major growth drivers. Industry commentary for 2025 described purchasing as cautious and selective, with automation, labor shortages and economic uncertainty shaping investment decisions; Chinese manufacturers were also expanding overseas.[87][26]
Consumer behavior & competition
Demand is concentrated among manufacturing, warehousing, distribution, e-commerce and third-party-logistics operators that prioritize throughput, labor productivity and equipment uptime. Competition is broad, with Toyota Material Handling, KION Group, Jungheinrich, Daifuku and other global suppliers competing across industrial trucks, storage, conveying and automation systems.[87]
M&A
M&A activity in 2026 included Columbus McKinnon’s completion of its acquisition of Kito Crosby on February 4, 2026, and Rite-Hite’s acquisition of Johnson Equipment Company, which had 300 employees across 15 regional offices. Distributor consolidation also continued, with Wolter announcing acquisitions of CSI Materials Handling, Delta Materials Handling and Flatley Dock Systems during 2026.[90][28][91]
Regulation
In the United States, OSHA’s powered industrial truck rule is codified at 29 CFR 1910.178 and covers forklifts, tractors, platform lift trucks, motorized hand trucks and other specialized industrial trucks. Employers must address design, maintenance, inspection, safe operation and operator training requirements; OSHA describes the rule as the most commonly cited standard in material-handling industries.[79]
Latest news
Recent industry developments include Toyota Industries’ planned launch of the Toyota Automated Logistics brand in the United States and Europe from April 2026, integrating Vanderlande, Bastian Solutions and viastore Group. In September 2026, Wolter also announced the acquisition of Flatley Dock Systems, expanding its loading-dock and door-services offering.[26][91]
report visual · Comparison

Revenue of the largest material handling equipment companies

Toyota Industries leads with $29.3B in annual revenue (group level, converted to USD).

Toyota Industries$29.3B
KION Group$12.2B
Jungheinrich$5.9B
Daifuku$4.4B
SSI SCHAEFER$1.8B
source-verifiedtoyota-industries.com · reports.kiongroup.com · jungheinrich.com · daifuku.com · ssi-schaefer.com2026

02 Ranking

Top 10 Companies in the Material Handling Equipment Industry

The leading companies in the material handling equipment industry, ranked on market impact, performance, momentum, innovation and brand popularity.

Updated November 10, 2026 · Next review December 10, 2026

Verdict

Daifuku and Kardex are tied at the top of Gitnux's 2026 material handling equipment ranking with an Overall score of 9.1 each.

Ranked by Overall score · How we score ↓

Editor's top 3 picks

Where to start, by need.

  1. #1 Overall · Leader in warehouse automation systems

    Daifuku

    JP

    Ranked #1 · 9.1 · Warehouse automation systems

    Why we picked it: Its logistics systems and material handling equipment focus aligns with warehouse automation and throughput needs.

    See in ranking ↓Visit daifuku.com ↗

  2. Leader in automated storage systems

    Kardex

    CH

    Ranked #2 · 9.1 · Automated storage systems

    Why we picked it: Automated storage and retrieval directly supports higher warehouse throughput requirements.

    See in ranking ↓Visit kardex.com ↗

  3. Leader in warehouse storage & intralogistics

    SSI SCHAEFER

    DE

    Ranked #3 · 8.9 · Warehouse storage & intralogistics

    Why we picked it: Automated intralogistics and storage systems map to ongoing automation order growth.

    See in ranking ↓Visit ssi-schaefer.com ↗

Pick 1 is the #1 company overall. Picks 2 and 3 are the highest-ranked companies in the top 5 that add a new segment.

Full ranking

Sort by
Top 10 companies in the material handling equipment industry, 2026 – Gitnux ranking
#CompanyOverall ↓Company snapshot
1

Daifuku

Warehouse automation systems · JP

9.1
2

Kardex

Automated storage systems · CH

9.1
3

SSI SCHAEFER

Warehouse storage & intralogistics · DE

8.9
4

Toyota Industries

Industrial trucks & logistics · JP

8.9
5

Mecalux

Automated warehouse solutions · ES

8.9
6

Interroll

Conveyors, rollers and pallet-handling systems · CH

8.8
7

Kalmar

Container-handling and heavy material-handling equipment · FI

8.7
8

Anhui Heli

Forklifts and industrial vehicles, China and global · CN

8.7
9

KION Group

Forklifts and warehouse automation, global · DE

8.6
10

Jungheinrich

Forklifts, warehouse equipment and intralogistics · DE

8.6

How we score

  • Impact (30%): scale and weight in the market (revenue, market share, employees, market position).
  • Performance (20%): recent revenue growth and operating margin; an analyst assessment where a company does not publish them.
  • Momentum (20%): growth trajectory and future potential.
  • Innovation (15%): R&D intensity and how technologically advanced the company is.

Popularity (brand search demand, 15%) counts toward Overall but is not published as a column. Overall leaves out what is not known.

Scale Scores are shown on a 7–10 scale with one decimal; bars start at 7.0.

Cadence Recalculated when new figures are published; next review December 10, 2026.

Independence. Rankings are editorially independent. Scores, ranks, picks and the verdict follow the method above; no company can pay to change them.

Cite this ranking

APA

Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 10). Top 10 companies in the material handling equipment industry. In Material Handling Equipment Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/material-handling-equipment-industry-statistics/#top-companies

04 Statistics

Technology & Innovation

AI adoption is broad: 88% of supply-chain organizations expected to implement AI within five years in 2026. Autonomous systems scale too, with 22,000 autonomous mobile robots operating in Symbotic’s AI-enabled fleet in 2025.

AI in the material handling equipment industry

  • 22,000 autonomous mobile robots operated in Symbotic’s artificial-intelligence-enabled fleet in 2025.[1]
  • 88% of supply-chain organizations expected to implement artificial intelligence within five years in the 2026 MHI survey.[2]
  • 24% of surveyed supply-chain organizations used artificial intelligence to streamline purchasing processes in 2026.[2]
  • 33% of surveyed supply-chain organizations used artificial intelligence for demand forecasting and inventory optimization in 2026.[2]
  • 71% of supply-chain organizations said artificial intelligence was already disrupting supply chains in 2026.[2]
  • 24% of supply-chain professionals rated artificial intelligence as transformational over the next decade in 2026.[2]

Digital Transformation in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 76% of industrial-manufacturing firms across 26 countries reported that their workforce had an appetite to embrace cutting-edge technology in 2024.[3]
  • 24% of companies across the European Industrial Ecosystem had a concrete digital-transformation strategy in 2024.[4]
  • 32% of U.S. industrial-products respondents said their operations-technology investments had delivered expected results in 2024.[5]
  • 34% of industrial-manufacturing organizations across 26 countries had achieved return on investment from multiple AI use cases in 2024.[3]

Technology Adoption in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 30% of industrial-manufacturing organizations were proactive in advancing edge-computing strategies in 2024.[6]
  • 35% of industrial-manufacturing organizations were proactive in advancing data-and-analytics strategies in 2024.[6]
  • 37% of industrial-manufacturing organizations were proactive in advancing AI and automation strategies in 2024.[6]
  • 31% of industrial-manufacturing organizations were proactive in advancing modern-delivery technologies, including low-code and no-code, in 2024.[6]

Cloud Computing in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 54% of EU manufacturing enterprises used paid cloud-computing services in 2025, up from approximately 45% in 2023.[7]
  • 87% of Finnish manufacturing enterprises used cloud computing in 2023.[8]
  • 87% of Australian manufacturing enterprises used cloud computing in 2022.[8]
  • 39% of industrial-manufacturing organizations were proactive in advancing XaaS technologies, including public and multicloud, in 2024.[6]

Big Data in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 44% of manufacturing leaders reported that the amount of data their organizations collected had at least doubled over the previous two years in 2024.[9]
  • 67% of manufacturers surveyed in the United States, Germany and Malaysia could collect and analyze data in near real time in 2024.[10]
  • 57% of manufacturers used some form of artificial intelligence to analyze collected manufacturing data in 2024.[11]
  • 16.2% of businesses in the European Industrial Ecosystem used big-data technologies in 2024.[4]
  • 33% of manufacturers surveyed were performing prescriptive analytics in 2024, according to ABI Research’s survey of 461 manufacturing decision makers.[10]
  • 60% of manufacturers surveyed could collect and normalize data from assets or equipment in 2024, across 461 decision makers in the United States, Germany and Malaysia.[10]

Blockchain in the material handling equipment industry

  • 31% of supply-chain professionals said blockchain could create competitive advantage in the 2024 MHI survey.[12]
  • 8% of supply-chain professionals said blockchain could disrupt the industry in the 2024 MHI survey.[12]

IoT in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 81% of manufacturing leaders surveyed identified data and analytics for process improvement as an important technology use case, while IoT for predictive maintenance ranked among the leading use cases in 2024.[13]
  • 11.1% of businesses in the European Industrial Ecosystem used Internet of Things technologies in 2023.[4]
  • 35% of manufacturing companies in a Productivity Institute sample had adopted Internet of Things technology, with geography not specified by the source.[14]
  • 27.6% of businesses in the European Industrial Ecosystem used Internet of Things technologies in 2024.[4]

05 Statistics

Data & Analytics

Operators focus on equipment management data and monitoring: 35% used remote-monitoring and control technology in 2025. Data quality risk also appears, with 44% of manufacturers reporting AI projects failed due to poor data quality in 2025.

Business intelligence in the material handling equipment industry

  • 42% of equipment operators planned to invest in data analytics and business-intelligence tools over the five years following 2025.[15]
  • 99% of equipment operators had deployed at least one technology to support equipment management in 2025.[15]
  • 31% of equipment operators planned to invest in AEMP data-integration platforms over the five years following 2025.[15]
  • 43% of U.S., U.K., Australian and New Zealand equipment operators had deployed data analytics or business-intelligence tools in 2025.[15]
  • 35% of equipment operators used remote-monitoring and control technology in 2025.[15]
  • 39% of equipment operators planned to invest in GPS asset tracking over the five years following 2025.[15]

Data analytics in the material handling equipment industry

  • 80% of equipment operators rated their current equipment utilization as good or excellent in 2025.[15]
  • 51% of warehouse and distribution-center companies used warehouse-management or related systems to collect data automatically in 2023.[16]
  • 35% of equipment operators reported that more than 25% of their on-road assets were unavailable because their locations were unknown in 2025.[15]
  • 42% of equipment operators planned to expand data analytics capabilities over the five years following 2025.[15]
  • 31% of equipment operators planned to invest in predictive-maintenance systems over the five years following 2025.[15]
  • 43% of equipment operators used data analytics platforms in the United States, United Kingdom, Australia and New Zealand in 2025.[15]

Data Quality in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 30% of manufacturers identified poor data quality as a technical barrier to improving processes in 2025.[17]
  • 51% of manufacturers surveyed said their data was siloed across disparate tools and systems in 2025.[18]
  • 44% of manufacturers surveyed reported that AI projects had failed because of poor data quality in 2025.[18]
  • 41% of manufacturers surveyed distrusted the data used for supply-chain operations in 2025.[18]
  • 61% of manufacturing leaders agreed that poor data quality limited adoption and optimization of emerging technologies in 2025.[17]
  • 54% of manufacturers surveyed had duplicate data in several systems in 2025.[18]

Data Governance in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • 15% of manufacturers surveyed said their data strategy was entirely aligned with their overall business strategy in 2024.[11]
  • 58% of manufacturers surveyed assigned primary data-governance responsibility to a C-suite or senior leader in 2024.[11]
  • 22% of manufacturers surveyed included data collection, management or analysis in executive incentives, KPIs or business imperatives in 2024.[11]
  • 61% of manufacturers surveyed had a corporate-wide governance plan, strategy or formal data-management guidelines in 2024.[11]

06 Statistics

Strategy & Growth

Customer use is widening alongside demand growth assumptions, including $196.1 billion in 2024 demand and a forecast to $248.6 billion by 2029. Service and installed-base cycles also support recurring activity.

Growth in the material handling equipment industry

  • More than 2.0 million KION industrial trucks were in customer use across six continents at the end of 2025.[19]
  • 6.1% is the forecast compound annual growth rate for the global material handling equipment market from 2026 to 2033.[20]
  • €2.789 trillion was Toyota Industries’ Materials Handling Equipment segment revenue for the fiscal year ended March 31, 2025.[21]
  • 4.9% per year is the forecast growth rate for global material handling equipment demand from 2024 to 2029.[22]
  • 13.1% was Konecranes’ comparable EBITDA margin in 2024.[23]
  • $196.1 billion was the global demand for material handling equipment in 2024, with demand forecast to reach $248.6 billion by 2029.[22]

Differentiation in the material handling equipment industry

  • 99%+ order-picking accuracy is targeted by Hai Robotics’ HaiPick systems in Conveyco’s 2025 partnership offering.[24]
  • 60 ecosystem partners participated in Konecranes’ Zero4 research and innovation program in 2024.[23]
  • 13.2% was Hiab’s comparable operating-profit margin in 2024.[25]
  • 28% of Hiab’s 2024 sales came from services, up from 25% in 2023.[25]
  • 75% is the maximum storage-footprint reduction claimed for HaiPick systems in Conveyco’s 2025 partnership announcement.[24]
  • 1,700+ active and pending patents were held by Konecranes in 2024, supporting differentiation through technology and innovation.[23]

Mergers and acquisitions in the material handling equipment industry

  • 3 Toyota-owned automation brands—Vanderlande, Bastian Solutions and viastore Group—were designated to operate under Toyota Automated Logistics from April 2026.[26]
  • 9 material handling transactions were listed in a Q1 2025 market update covering deals announced between August 2024 and March 2025.[27]
  • 300 employees were added to Rite-Hite’s workforce through its 2026 acquisition of Johnson Equipment Company.[28]
  • 2 new materials-handling entities were established or consolidated by Toyota during 2025, according to an industry review.[26]
  • $2.7 billion was the announced value of Columbus McKinnon’s 2025 acquisition of Kito Crosby.[29]
  • $245 million was ASTEC’s announced purchase price for TerraSource Global in July 2025.[30]

Strategic partnerships in the material handling equipment industry

  • 2018 was the year DHL Group and Boston Dynamics began their logistics-automation collaboration.[31]
  • 75% is the maximum storage-footprint reduction claimed for the Conveyco–Hai Robotics partnership solution.[24]
  • 1 strategic distribution partnership was announced by Robotize and NOVA Automation for GoPal autonomous-mobile-robot solutions in 2025.[32]
  • 99%+ order-picking accuracy is targeted by the Conveyco–Hai Robotics partnership announced in 2025.[24]
  • 1 strategic partnership was announced by Movu Robotics and Equipment Depot’s EQSolutions division for plug-and-play warehouse automation in 2024.[33]
  • More than 1,000 additional Stretch robots were covered by DHL Group’s 2025 memorandum of understanding with Boston Dynamics.[31]

07 Statistics

People & Workforce

Remote Work in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across U.S. manufacturing, 36.9% of workers could work at home and 33.3% actually did so during 2024–2025.[34]
  • Across U.S. manufacturing, teleworked hours represented 12.2% of total hours worked in 2025.[34]
  • Across U.S. manufacturing, 35.2% of surveyed workers reported remote work in the Chicago Fed Survey of Economic Conditions from July 2021 through March 2024.[35]
  • Across U.S. manufacturing, 19% of workers worked remotely, including hybrid and fully remote arrangements, during October 2023–September 2024.[36]

Hybrid Work in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across manufacturing companies, 79% operated a hybrid model for non-production employees in 2025.[37]
  • Across manufacturing employers, 80% said their organizations were still struggling to balance hybrid working in 2025.[38]
  • Across manufacturing companies, the average required office attendance reached 2.82 days per week in the second quarter of 2025.[37]
  • Across manufacturing employees, 80% believed office mandates reflected a lack of trust that employees would be productive at home in 2025.[38]
  • Across manufacturing employers, 67% identified productivity as a key factor driving pressure to return to the office in 2025.[38]

Upskilling in the material handling equipment industry

  • 84,000 hours of formal training were completed by Hyster-Yale employees in 2024.[39]
  • ¥222.2 million was spent on employee training by Daifuku in Japan in the latest reported year.[40]
  • 59.4 hours of training per person were recorded for Daifuku employees in Japan in fiscal 2025.[40]
  • 42% of KION’s 2025 employees were located in EMEA, based on 28,247 of 42,175 FTEs, where group development programs are deployed.[41]
  • 100% is Daifuku’s target prospective-successor sufficiency rate for key positions by fiscal 2027.[40]

Employee Engagement in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across manufacturing, distribution and storage organizations, the average employee-engagement score was 72.9% in 2026.[42]
  • Across manufacturing companies, 25% of respondents did not know whether their frontline workforce was engaged in 2023.[5]
  • Across manufacturing companies, 48% of respondents said most frontline workers were engaged in their jobs in 2023.[5]
  • Across manufacturing companies, 41% identified employee recognition as a high priority in 2024.[43]
  • Across manufacturing, distribution and storage organizations, 84.2% of employees said they cared about their organization’s future in 2026.[42]

DEI in the material handling equipment industry

  • 18.9% of KION Group employees were women at December 31, 2025, globally.[41]
  • More than 110 nationalities were represented among KION Group employees at December 31, 2025.[41]
  • 18% of material-handling-equipment suppliers with ownership certifications on the Thomas Network were veteran-owned in 2026.[44]
  • 81% of KION employees had completed diversity, equity and inclusion training by the end of 2025.[19]
  • 18.9% of KION Group employees were women at December 31, 2024, globally.[41]

Change Management in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across organizations worldwide, 24% used a project-based change-management approach in 2024.[45]
  • Across organizations using change-management tactics, 91% reported using those tactics in 2024, while only 7% allocated the recommended 20% of initiative budgets to change management.[45]
  • Across organizations worldwide, 9% reported having no change-management approach in 2024.[45]
  • Across organizations worldwide, 28% used an adaptive or agile change-management approach in 2024.[45]
  • Across organizations worldwide, 39% used change management sporadically in 2024.[45]

08 Statistics

Customer & Sales

Customer experience in the material handling equipment industry

  • 96% of MH&L audience members were managers or above in the July 2024–June 2025 reporting period.[46]
  • 38% of logistics and material-handling managers cited shipment tracking and visibility as a major challenge in 2024.[47]
  • 26.3% of forklift and pallet-handling technology users identified forklifts as their top problem technology in 2026.[48]
  • Throughput ranked as the highest-priority KPI among forklift and pallet-handling technology users in 2026.[48]
  • 46% of logistics and material-handling managers identified meeting customer expectations as their biggest challenge in 2024.[47]

Customer retention in the material handling equipment industry

  • 36 years was the longest recorded customer relationship at Lifting Technologies as of 2025.[49]
  • 547.7 million dollars was Alta Equipment’s product-support revenue in 2025, indicating the scale of its recurring customer-service business.[50]
  • Elevated equipment deliveries in 2022 and 2023 expanded Alta Equipment’s installed base entering mid-life service cycles in 2025.[50]
  • 63 customers had at least two years of all-time purchase activity with Lifting Technologies as of 2025.[49]
  • 32 years was the recorded relationship length for Georgia Power among Lifting Technologies’ longest-standing customers as of 2024.[49]

Customer acquisition in the material handling equipment industry

  • 30% of logistics and material-handling companies sought new suppliers because of supply-chain changes in 2024.[51]
  • 33% of logistics and material-handling companies sought new suppliers after learning about industry innovation in 2024.[51]
  • 48% of logistics and material-handling companies sought new equipment suppliers because of a continuous need for improvement in 2024.[51]
  • 40% of logistics and material-handling companies sought new equipment suppliers because of problems with current suppliers’ services in 2024.[51]
  • 37% of logistics and material-handling companies evaluated new suppliers when they needed a new or different product or solution in 2024.[51]

Customer loyalty in the material handling equipment industry

  • 37% of lift-truck users were extremely or very likely to evaluate unfamiliar manufacturers in 2015.[52]
  • 69% of lift-truck users were somewhat likely or more likely to evaluate unfamiliar manufacturers in 2014.[52]
  • 40% of lift-truck users were extremely or very likely to evaluate unfamiliar manufacturers in 2014.[52]
  • 41% of lift-truck users were extremely or very likely to evaluate manufacturers whose trucks they did not currently use in 2016.[52]
  • 20% of equipment buyers said they would return to their primary brands for future purchases in the 2023 construction-equipment loyalty survey.[53]

Lead generation in the material handling equipment industry

  • 39.09% of MH&L audience respondents purchased fluid-power equipment during the July 2024–June 2025 period.[46]
  • 48.57% of MH&L audience respondents purchased facilities, maintenance or plant-operations equipment during the July 2024–June 2025 period.[46]
  • 35.25% of MH&L audience respondents purchased non-powered material-handling equipment during the July 2024–June 2025 period.[46]
  • 34.84% of MH&L audience respondents purchased equipment-management, maintenance products or services during the July 2024–June 2025 period.[46]
  • 44.67% of MH&L audience respondents purchased automatic identification and data-collection systems during the July 2024–June 2025 period.[46]

09 Statistics

Marketing & Brand

Industry buyer attention is measurable through search behavior, with 5.7% of worldwide searches among 13 tracked forklift brands for Jungheinrich in September 2026. Purchase influence targets include paid search and email usage patterns.

Marketing in the material handling equipment industry

  • 46.43% of the Material Handling & Logistics audience reported purchasing lift trucks, powered vehicles or accessories in the United States audience survey.[46]
  • 10.9% of MHEDA members identified consulting, support services or marketing as their business category in the 2026 economic outlook survey.[54]
  • 44,000-plus active users were generated for Carolina Conveying through inbound marketing from 2017 to 2024.[55]
  • 40.44% of the Material Handling & Logistics audience reported purchasing software, systems or computers in the United States audience survey.[46]
  • 96% of Material Handling & Logistics readers were managers or above in the United States audience measured from July 2024 through June 2025.[46]

Digital marketing in the material handling equipment industry

  • 46% of equipment manufacturers used paid-search advertising in the 2021 digital marketing survey.[56]
  • 6% of equipment manufacturers used mobile marketing in the 2021 digital marketing survey.[56]
  • 82% of equipment manufacturers used email marketing in the 2021 digital marketing survey.[56]
  • 68% of equipment manufacturers used search-engine optimization in the 2021 digital marketing survey.[56]
  • 13% of equipment manufacturers used chatbots in the 2021 digital marketing survey.[56]

Branding in the material handling equipment industry

  • 3.52 out of 5 was the average brand rating for construction and lifting equipment manufacturers in LECTURA’s BrandSurvey.[57]
  • 5.7% of worldwide searches among 13 tracked forklift brands were for Jungheinrich in September 2026.[58]
  • 3.8% of worldwide searches among 13 tracked forklift brands were for Mitsubishi in September 2026.[58]
  • 63.5% of respondents rated Toyota Material Handling Australia as very favourable in the Australian forklift survey.[59]
  • 5.7% of worldwide searches among 13 tracked forklift brands were for Clark in September 2026.[58]

Social media in the material handling equipment industry

  • 17% of equipment manufacturers had uploaded no YouTube videos in the digital state-of-the-industry study.[60]
  • 90,677 followers were shown on Toyota Material Handling’s LinkedIn company page in 2026.[61]
  • 27% of equipment manufacturers posted on Facebook 16 to 30 times per month in the digital state-of-the-industry study.[60]
  • 12% of equipment manufacturers had uploaded 26 to 50 YouTube videos in the digital state-of-the-industry study.[60]
  • 7,350 followers were shown on Toyota Material Handling Systems’ LinkedIn company page in 2026.[61]

Influencer Marketing in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across B2B companies, 28% ranked thought leaders or industry analysts as the most effective influencer type in 2025; global survey scope.[62]
  • Across B2B companies, 43% of marketers planned to increase influencer investment in the following year in 2025; global survey scope.[62]
  • Across B2B companies, 76% of marketing leaders said creator collaboration helps build brand authenticity in 2025; global survey scope.[62]
  • Across B2B companies, 29% of marketers planned to adopt influencer marketing within the following year in 2025; global survey scope.[62]
  • Across B2B companies, 55% of marketers used influencers in 2025, providing a benchmark applicable to industrial manufacturing marketers.[62]

10 Statistics

Operations & Execution

Safety and handling quality show up in execution data, including 88% of product damage attributed to poor or inefficient material-handling practices. U.S. injury signals also appear across reported rates and OSHA disclosures.

Quality management in the material handling equipment industry

  • 91% of Linde Material Handling locations were certified to ISO 45001 or an equivalent standard in 2023.[63]
  • 161 lost-time injuries were reported by Linde Material Handling in 2025.[63]
  • 7.1 was Linde Material Handling’s accident frequency rate per one million hours worked in 2025.[63]
  • 57% of lift-truck users surveyed in 2024 selected safety rating as an important purchase or lease characteristic.[64]
  • 88% of product damage in a material-handling survey was attributed to poor or inefficient material-handling practices.[65]

Supply chain in the material handling equipment industry

  • 67.07% of MHEDA survey respondents identified their businesses as distributors in 2024.[54]
  • 19.51% of MHEDA survey respondents identified their businesses as integrators in 2024.[54]
  • 23.17% of MHEDA survey respondents identified their businesses as manufacturers in 2024.[54]

Outsourcing / Offshoring in the industrial manufacturing sector (sector benchmark)

  • Across global manufacturing, executives expected offshore facilities to decline to 28% within three years of 2025, while onshore facilities rise to 48%.[66]
  • Across global manufacturing, 56% of executives in 2025 said their organization had invested in nearshoring or a combination of reshoring and nearshoring.[66]
  • Across global manufacturing, 73% of executives in 2025 believed friendshoring would represent a significant share of future sourcing and production.[66]
  • Across EU enterprises engaged in international sourcing during 2021–2023, 37% operated in manufacturing, the largest sector share among sourcing enterprises.[7]
  • Across EU enterprises sourcing abroad during 2021–2023, 39% outsourced business functions to external providers, while 72% used affiliated enterprises abroad for insourcing.[7]

11 Statistics

Finance & Pricing

Spending intent stays a planning input, with 36% of companies planning to increase spending on material-handling equipment and solutions in 2025. Recurring aftermarket economics remain evident in reported product-support revenue figures.

Pricing strategy in the material handling equipment industry

  • 36% of companies planned to increase spending on material-handling equipment and solutions in 2025.[67]
  • $2.86 per pound was the highest average pre-deadline material-handling rate among the surveyed U.S. cities in 2022, recorded in Philadelphia.[68]
  • 18% was the increase in U.S. pre-deadline material-handling rates above inflation between 2017 and 2022.[68]
  • $1.02 per pound was the lowest average pre-deadline material-handling rate among the surveyed U.S. cities in 2022, recorded in Atlanta.[68]
  • $1.88 per pound was the average pre-discount material-handling rate across 16 major U.S. exhibition cities in 2022.[68]

Cost reduction in the material handling equipment industry

  • €168.8 million of KION’s efficiency-program expenses were recognized as non-recurring items in 2025.[41]
  • €150 million per year was KION Group’s targeted permanent cost saving from its 2025 efficiency program.[41]
  • 5.0% was the decrease in Alta Equipment’s consolidated operating expenses in 2025, to $451.4 million.[50]
  • 60 basis points was the increase in Alta Equipment’s material-handling gross profit margin in 2025, to 33.0%.[50]
  • 5% was the reduction in Alta Equipment’s material-handling operating expenses in 2025 compared with the prior year, according to its annual filing.[50]

Profitability in the material handling equipment industry

  • 7.7% was KION Group’s return on capital employed in 2025.[41]
  • 11.3% was the median EBIT margin for material-handling-equipment companies in Baird’s 2023 peer-group analysis.[69]
  • 86.6% was median operating-cash-flow conversion for material-handling-equipment companies in Baird’s 2023 peer-group analysis.[69]
  • 59.1% was Alta Equipment’s gross margin on material-handling service revenues in 2025.[50]
  • 7.0% was KION Group’s adjusted EBIT margin in 2025.[41]

Financial planning in the material handling equipment industry

  • 44% of companies planned to keep their 2025 material-handling spending unchanged from 2024.[67]
  • $1.457 million was the average 2025 company spending on material-handling equipment and solutions in the PRG survey.[67]
  • 27% of respondents budgeted less than $100,000 for material-handling equipment and solutions in 2025.[70]
  • $1.673 million was the average 2024 company spending on material-handling equipment and solutions in the PRG survey.[67]
  • 17% of respondents budgeted at least $5 million for material-handling equipment and solutions in 2025.[70]

12 Statistics

Product & Service

Systems and replacement cycles reinforce service demand, including an average 15.3 years age of material-handling systems in a U.S. facilities survey. Parts and product-support revenue scales from Alta Equipment’s reported figures.

Product development in the material handling equipment industry

  • 6 projects were launched in Konecranes’ Zero4 research and innovation program in 2024, involving approximately 60 ecosystem partners globally.[21]
  • 141 Jungheinrich employees were assigned to group-wide basic and product development in 2023, Germany.[71]

Product lifecycle in the material handling equipment industry

  • 42 years was the average replacement age for shiploaders in an Australian bulk-material-handling survey.[72]
  • 15.3 years was the average age of material-handling systems reported in a facilities survey, United States.[73]
  • 29 years was the average replacement age for reclaimers in an Australian bulk-material-handling survey.[72]
  • 35% of surveyed companies had at least one material-handling system aged 20 years or more, United States.[73]

After-sales in the material handling equipment industry

  • $95.1 million was Alta Equipment’s material-handling parts revenue in 2025, United States.[50]
  • $547.7 million was Alta Equipment’s 2025 product-support revenue, including material-handling aftermarket activity, United States.[50]
  • 59.1% was Alta Equipment’s material-handling service gross margin in 2025, United States.[50]
  • $548.2 million was Alta Equipment’s product-support revenue in 2024, including material-handling aftermarket activity, United States.[50]
  • $133.9 million was Alta Equipment’s material-handling service revenue in 2025, United States.[50]

13 Statistics

Sustainability & Ethics

Operational and product emissions tracking is active, including 74% ISO 50001 certification coverage in Toyota Material Handling Europe entities in 2025. Battery and steel emissions impacts are quantified in Toyota’s 2025 analysis figures.

Sustainability in the material handling equipment industry

  • 38 hours was the average annual training time per Jungheinrich employee, including sustainability topics, in 2023.[74]
  • 5.8% was Jungheinrich’s reduction in combined Scope 1, 2 and 3 emissions in 2024.[74]
  • 99% of KION Group locations held ISO 45001 or equivalent occupational-health-and-safety certification in 2024.[41]
  • 74% of Toyota Material Handling Europe entities were certified to ISO 50001 in 2025.[75]
  • 99% of KION Group locations held ISO 14001 environmental certification in 2024.[41]

ESG in the material handling equipment industry

  • 75% of Columbus McKinnon employees said they would feel comfortable reporting a policy or conduct violation in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 147 kilotons of Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse-gas emissions were reported by KION Group in 2024.[41]
  • 42,719 employees worked for KION Group at the end of 2024.[41]
  • 68,620 tonnes of waste were produced by KION Group in 2024.[41]
  • 18.9% of KION Group employees were women in 2024.[41]

Ethics in the material handling equipment industry

  • 97% of Columbus McKinnon employees with internal network access were trained on the business code of conduct in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 78% of Columbus McKinnon employees said they trusted their supervisor or manager in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 0.22 was Columbus McKinnon’s lost-time rate in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 0.71 was Columbus McKinnon’s total recordable injury rate in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 2.17 was Columbus McKinnon’s near-miss frequency rate in fiscal 2024.[76]

CSR in the material handling equipment industry

  • 74% of Columbus McKinnon employees said the company treated employees with dignity and respect in fiscal 2023.[76]
  • 158% was Columbus McKinnon’s hazard-identification completion rate in fiscal 2024.[76]
  • 91% of Columbus McKinnon solid waste was diverted from landfill in fiscal 2023.[76]
  • 85% was Columbus McKinnon’s fiscal-2024 employee-engagement survey score.[76]
  • 0.73 was Columbus McKinnon’s experience-modification rate in fiscal 2024.[76]

Circular economy in the material handling equipment industry

  • 45% or more of Toyota Material Handling Europe’s product-material emissions came from steel in its 2023 analysis.[75]
  • 75% was the reduction in cradle-to-gate CO₂ for SSAB Zero steel compared with iron-ore-based steel in Toyota’s LHM230 hand pallet truck in 2025.[75]
  • 30% of Toyota Material Handling Europe’s product-material emissions came from batteries in its 2023 analysis.[75]
  • 18% was the third-party-verified cradle-to-gate CO₂ reduction for Toyota’s LHM230 hand pallet truck in 2025.[75]
  • 99% is Jungheinrich’s target for material reuse and recycling at its processing plants.[74]

Carbon footprint in the material handling equipment industry

  • 26,155 metric tons of Scope 1 and 2 CO₂ emissions were reported at Toyota Material Handling’s North American plant in fiscal year 2023.[77]
  • 236,716 tonnes of CO₂e came from Toyota Material Handling Europe’s upstream transportation and distribution in 2024.[78]
  • 35,831 tonnes of CO₂e came from Toyota Material Handling Europe’s fuel- and energy-related activities in 2024.[78]
  • 34% was Toyota Material Handling North America’s reduction in plant-operation and production CO₂ emissions from fiscal 2019 to fiscal 2023.[77]
  • 1,957,946 tonnes of CO₂e came from use of sold products in Toyota Material Handling Europe’s 2024 emissions inventory.[78]

15 Statistics

Globalization & Expansion

Regional sales share remains a key model input, with EMEA at 53% of sales share in Q3 2026. Supplier footprint expansion also shows up in service-sales figures, such as €560 million of Kalmar’s 2024 sales coming from services.

Globalization in the material handling equipment industry

  • More than 100 countries were served by KION’s logistics-solutions business in 2025.[41]
  • €560 million of Kalmar’s 2024 sales came from services.[85]
  • 16.6% of Liebherr’s 2024 material handling technology revenue came from non-EU countries.[86]
  • €725 million was Liebherr’s 2023 material handling technology revenue.[86]
  • €697 million was Liebherr’s 2024 revenue from material handling machines worldwide.[86]

Cultural adaptation in the material handling equipment industry

  • More than 110 nationalities were represented among KION Group employees in 2025.[41]
  • 42 countries had Jungheinrich direct sales companies in 2025, supporting local customer engagement.[74]
  • 43,021 people from more than 110 countries worked for KION Group at December 31, 2025.[41]
  • 17.7% of KION’s workforce was located in APAC at the end of 2025.[41]
  • 6,405 KION employees were based in the Americas at the end of 2025.[41]

Supplier management in the material handling equipment industry

  • 14% of Hyster-Yale’s 2024 revenue came from service parts.[50]
  • 560 million euros was Kalmar’s 2024 service sales from maintenance and lifecycle offerings.[85]
  • 5 countries hosted manufacturing of Hyster-Yale Bolzoni attachments, forks and lift tables in 2024.[50]
  • 90% was Hyster-Yale’s ownership stake in Hyster-Yale Maximal Forklift in China in 2024.[50]
  • 1,160 million euros was Kalmar’s 2024 equipment sales supplied to global customers.[85]

Stakeholder management in the material handling equipment industry

  • 421 employees worked in Liebherr’s material handling technology segment in 2024.[86]
  • 1.4% was the 2024 year-on-year increase in Liebherr material handling technology employment.[86]
  • 43,021 people worked for KION Group at December 31, 2025.[41]
  • 6,405 KION employees were located in the Americas at the end of 2025.[41]
  • 42,325 people worked for KION Group at December 31, 2024.[41]

Distribution channels in the material handling equipment industry

  • 51 dual-branded Hyster-Yale dealers operated worldwide at December 31, 2024.[50]
  • 139 Hyster dealers operated worldwide at December 31, 2024.[50]
  • 115 countries contained Hyster-Yale independent dealers at December 31, 2024.[50]
  • 76 Maximal dealers operated worldwide at December 31, 2024.[50]
  • 38% of Hyster-Yale’s Americas dealers were dual-brand in 2019.[50]

Key questions about the material handling equipment industry

What is the current market size for material handling equipment?
The market was valued at $189.6 billion in 2025 and is estimated at $202.3 billion in 2026.
How fast is the market expected to grow after 2026?
The market is projected to reach $372.6 billion by 2035, implying a 7% compound annual growth rate from 2026 to 2035.
Which companies lead the material handling equipment industry?
Daifuku and Kardex are tied at the top of Gitnux's 2026 material handling equipment ranking with an Overall score of 9.1 each.
How is AI changing technology and operations in this industry?
In 2026, 88% of supply-chain organizations expected to implement AI within five years, and 71% said AI was already disrupting supply chains. Data-integration and data quality barriers show up in AEMP data-integration platform plans and AI project failures.
Is the supplier market concentrated around a single dominant producer?
The market is fragmented, with several large multinational suppliers rather than a single dominant producer. Toyota Material Handling was reported with more than 7.5% of global revenue in 2025.
Which connected and compliance pressures are shaping purchasing decisions?
Automation and labor shortages sustain investment, while safety compliance drives connected equipment. In the United States, OSHA’s powered industrial truck rule is codified at 29 CFR 1910.178 and is described as the most commonly cited standard in material-handling industries.
Reference

Cite This Report

This report is designed to be cited. We maintain stable URLs and versioned verification dates. Copy the format appropriate for your publication below.

APA
Samuel Norberg. (2026, November 10). Material Handling Equipment Industry Statistics. Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/material-handling-equipment-industry-statistics
MLA
Samuel Norberg. "Material Handling Equipment Industry Statistics." Gitnux, 10 Nov 2026, https://gitnux.org/material-handling-equipment-industry-statistics.
Chicago
Samuel Norberg. 2026. "Material Handling Equipment Industry Statistics." Gitnux. https://gitnux.org/material-handling-equipment-industry-statistics.

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