manitou telehandler
Manitou’s MLT New Ag range of telehandlers has earned the Étoile du Design/Made In France prize.

The “predatory” appearance of the Manitou MLT New Ag range of telehandlers has earned the Étoile du Design/Made In France prize.

Organized by the Agency for the Promotion of Industrial Creation, the award recognizes the work by the design and R&D teams in terms of style, ergonomics and function of the new telehandlers. The prize was announced at the Étoiles du Design ceremony held at the Pompidou Centre in Paris. More than 160 projects were entered into the competition for the industrial sector.

Supported by an R&D team of more than 240 engineers and technicians, the Manitou group aimed to combine performance and aesthetics in the creation of the MLT New Ag telehandlers

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“With very little presence in the handling sector before the 2000s, we have sought to make design a pillar of our models. The NewAg range has been designed to improve the lives of users, with clear visibility for enhanced safety, easy cab access thanks to the EasyStep and optimized ergonomics in the driver’s cab with a joystick that reduces musculoskeletal disorders,” said Thierry Lehmann, the original designer of the NewAg range’s lines. “We made the decision to have a very dynamic, keen line, conveying efficiency, sturdiness and power to give the range a modern appearance that turns the codes of handling on their head.”

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The jury, made up of around 30 people in the industrial design sector, liked the “predatory” appearance of the Manitou equipment range as well as its “tight, keen curves giving these telehandlers a certain power and aggressiveness.”

The MLT NewAg range includes 12 models with heights ranging from 6 to 9 metres for a loading capacity of between 3 and 4 tonnes. Developing the telehandlers generated 800 production documents, 15,000 prototype parts, 100,000 hours of work and 120,000 hours of in-house and external testing.