NANAIMO – Nicholson Group, which has owned logging equipment manufacturer Madill since 2011, has been sold to DC Equipment of New Zealand.
Madill, which started on Vancouver Island in 1911, has changed hands several times over the last several decades from competing manufacturing equipment companies to international investment groups.
Nicholson incorporated Madills’ equipment line-up into their current operation, including the manufacturing of their own de-barker equipment range.
“On behalf of Nicholson, we are delighted to announce the sale of the Madill brand of forestry equipment manufacturing rights to DC Equipment,” said John Jennings, Director of Capital Sales for Nicholson Manufacturing. “After a successful and fruitful relationship with our agents and distributors, we would like to express our deepest gratitude for their unwavering support over the past decade.
“We have the utmost confidence that DC Equipment and agents will continue to provide customers with outstanding products and services. We look forward to the future growth and success of the Madill brand under DC Equipment’s stewardship.”
Dale Ewars, owner and founder of DC Equipment, is a New Zealand logger who has had a connection with the Madill brand for four decades.
“It was a childhood dream to own a Madill tower yarder,” says Ewers. “Madill is known for its durability, ability to perform and longevity, which is important in this industry – and those strong equipment features align with our current brand, Falcon.”
Ewars believes the Madill brand and intellectual property under the DC Equipment manufacturing umbrella provides an opportunity to achieve the company’s mission of “creating a safer and more productive steep-slope logging industry throughout the world,” and also opens up additional benefits to other industries.
Madill will always be Madill, he adds.
“There’s history, heritage and a heck of a lot of customer loyalty there that needs to be recognized,” he states. “We don’t plan to reinvent Madill products—we believe there’s tremendous heritage, and the Madill machines work exceptionally well in steep slope ground. However, we do see an opportunity to integrate some of DC Equipment’s current and future technology and innovation.”
Over 3,000 Madill yarders have been produced for over a century and they are used throughout the world, most prominently in North America and New Zealand. Their main manufacturing plant was on Bowen Road near Kenworth Road, which is now home to new Nanaimo Mitsubishi and European Specialty Automotive dealerships.
Business Examiner Staff
