Oshkosh Corporation News - July 14, 2009

Company Oshkosh Corporation
Date 14.07.2009

OSHKOSH, Wis.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Jul. 14, 2009– Oshkosh Corporation (NYSE:OSK) today announced a major employment buildup to supply MRAP All Terrain Vehicles (M-ATV) to the United States Armed Services. Oshkosh is hiring between 300 and 500 employees for its Defense facilities in Wisconsin and recalling 550 to 650 JLG employees, primarily in Pennsylvania for JLG Industries, Inc., an Oshkosh Corporation company. On June 30, Oshkosh received an initial delivery order from the U.S. Army Tank-automotive and Armaments Command (TACOM) Life Cycle Management Command (LCMC) for 2,244 M-ATVs valued at $1.05 billion, following months of extensive government testing on multiple production-ready vehicles.

“We are using the combined resources of Oshkosh Corporation to ensure that our brave Warfighters will have highly mobile, durable and survivable vehicles waiting for them when they arrive in Afghanistan,“ said Robert G. Bohn, Oshkosh Corporation chairman and chief executive officer. “Adding new employees to our Oshkosh Defense employment base and calling back skilled JLG employees at our underutilized JLG facilities will maximize our manufacturing operations and accelerate our M-ATV delivery schedule.”

The 300 to 500 new hires will work in Oshkosh, Wis., where there are four Defense production facilities. The 550 to 650 JLG employee callbacks will be at JLG facilities primarily in Pennsylvania. Due to the urgent need request from the Department of Defense (DoD), the first shipments of the Oshkosh M-ATV are scheduled for this month.

“Protection and the ability to successfully navigate the treacherous mountain terrain of Afghanistan are critically important for our soldiers and Marines. Oshkosh Corporation employees understand this and are committed to building the best M-ATV possible and to field them quickly,” added Bohn.

In order to achieve the off-road mobility that soldiers and Marines need in Afghanistan, Oshkosh integrated its TAK-4® independent suspension system into its M-ATV offering. As further testament to the government’s confidence in this suspension system, Oshkosh recently received a supply order to equip more than 1,500 legacy MRAPs with the TAK-4 system and continues to work with the Army to evaluate using the system on additional legacy MRAP models. More than 120 employees are being deployed to Kuwait to install the TAK-4 suspensions. These positions are being filled with Oshkosh Defense employees, as well as JLG employees and McNeilus employees currently on layoff. McNeilus Truck & Manufacturing is an Oshkosh Corporation company.

The TAK-4 suspension system is currently used on more than 10,000 Medium Tactical Vehicle Replacements (MTVR) supplied to the Marines and Seabees, as well as on the Marines’ Logistics Vehicle System Replacement (LVSR) and the Army’s next-generation Palletized Load System (PLS).

About Oshkosh Corporation

Oshkosh Corporation is a leading designer, manufacturer and marketer of a broad range of specialty access equipment, commercial, fire & emergency and military vehicles and vehicle bodies. Oshkosh Corp. manufactures, distributes and services products under the brands of Oshkosh®, JLG®, Pierce®, McNeilus®, Medtec®, Jerr-Dan®, BAI®, Oshkosh Specialty Vehicles, Frontline, SMIT, CON-E-CO®, London® and IMT®. Oshkosh products are valued worldwide in businesses where high quality, superior performance, rugged reliability and long-term value are paramount.

For more information, log on to www.oshkoshcorporation.com.

®, ™ All brand names referred to in this news release are trademarks of Oshkosh Corporation or its subsidiary companies.

Forward-looking Statements

This press release contains statements that the Company believes to be “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. All statements other than statements of historical fact, including without limitation, statements regarding the Company’s future financial position, business strategy, targets, projected sales, costs, earnings, capital expenditures, debt levels and cash flows, and plans and objectives of management for future operations, are forward-looking statements. When used in this press release, words such as “may,” “will,” “expect,” “intend,” “estimate,” “anticipate,” “believe,” “should,” “project” or “plan” or the negative thereof or variations thereon or similar terminology are generally intended to identify forward-looking statements. These forward-looking statements are not guarantees of future performance and are subject to risks, uncertainties, assumptions and other factors, some of which are beyond the Company’s control, which could cause actual results to differ materially from those expressed or implied by such forward-looking statements. These factors include the consequences of financial leverage associated with the JLG acquisition, including the level of the Company’s borrowing costs, the increased interest rates the Company would face if it experienced a deterioration or downgrade in credit agency ratings and the Company’s ability to maintain compliance with its financial covenants under its credit agreement; the cyclical nature of the Company’s access equipment, commercial and fire & emergency markets, especially during a global recession and credit crisis; the duration of the global recession and its adverse impact on the Company’s share price, which could lead to additional impairment charges related to many of the Company’s intangible assets; the expected level and timing of U.S. Department of Defense procurement of products and services and funding thereof; risks related to reductions in government expenditures and the uncertainty of government contracts; the potential for commodity costs to rise sharply in a future economic recovery; risks associated with international operations and sales, including foreign currency fluctuations; risks related to the collectability of receivables during a recession, particularly for those businesses with exposure to construction markets; and the potential for increased costs relating to compliance with changes in laws and regulations. Additional information concerning these and other factors is contained in the Company’s filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

 

Source: Oshkosh Corporation

Oshkosh Corporation
Financial:
Patrick Davidson
Vice President, Investor Relations
920.966.5939
or
Media:
Ann Stawski
Vice President, Marketing Communications
920.966.5959

Contact

Oshkosh Corporation
P.O. Box 2566 Oshkosh
WI 54903-2566
United States
  • +1 920-235-9150