October 2014Media Release
HYDRAULINK ACQUIRES AGENCY FOR HIGH-PERFORMANCE OIL SUPPLIER, DIVERSIFIES INDUSTRIAL HOSE OFFERING, EXPANDS IN
AUSTRALASIA
The leading hydraulic and hose services provider Hydraulink is marking 70 years of operation with an aggressive growth
plan that most recently has seen it acquire the New Zealand agency for top-end motorcycle and automotive supplier Motul.
Under Hydraulink’s ownership, Motul (a French brand well-known in the high-performance arena) will operate as a
subsidiary named High Performance Lubricants.
It’s a low-key Kiwi success story, as the company remains the only locally owned brand in its sector. The acquisition
comes on the heels of a long period of steady growth in the business, which has 400 service points in New Zealand,
Australia and other parts of the region and operates mobile service units that are on call 24/7 and complete 60,000 jobs
each year in NZ alone.
The scale of the company’s reach and staffing allows it to supply all hydraulic and hose products and provide service,
installation and repair to customers wherever they are located.
Hydraulink is on track to double its turnover by 2015 (from the 2010 figure) and double again between 2015 and 2020.
Revenue for the month of June 2014 was 19% ahead of June 2013. The Motul acquisition was finalized on 1 August and added
10-15% to total revenue.
Simultaneously, the company is expanding to incorporate a range of industrial hose that adds to the existing lubrication
and fire suppression systems to make Hydraulink a one-stop shop for all requirements – no small development given New
Zealand’s booming construction industry. The industrial hosing product has already been bought and is being distributed
through the dealer network.
Hydraulink CEO Robin Simpson was appointed to the role in June this year after first joining as a sales rep in 1990,
later leading the Australian operation and spending the past nine years as general manager. Of the Motul acquisition and
rebrand, he says, “Motul has an excellent reputation as a supplier to Toyota, Subaru and Honda Motorcycles, having been
operated by its founder, a former motorcycle dealer, for the past 28 years. The two companies share a strong service and
relationship ethic and we will be bringing that through in the transition phase.
“In terms of opportunity for Hydraulink, it allows us to expand our service into high-performance oil and
commodity-based oils such as hydraulic and heavy diesel. However, there is an important distinction between the various
distribution points and we will be preserving this in order to support and protect the existing service and supply base
that is at the root of both brands’ success.”
Meanwhile, Hydraulink is strengthening its hold in the Australian market, taking on a Sydney-based franchise model and
adding two new franchises to date in 2014. It has also doubled its warehousing capacity in Christchurch – and is looking
at more space – and purpose-built its head office and warehousing premises in Auckland to expand its space by 300%.
Fact Sheet
• Hydraulink is a 70-year-old New Zealand company that has had the same ownership and directorship since 1989. It
is the only locally owned company in its sector;
• It has 400 service points in New Zealand, Australia and the rest of Asia Pacific;
• There are 120 mobile vans operating around New Zealand 24/7, completing 60,000 jobs annually (it is the top
local mobile operator);
• Staff in New Zealand have grown from 60 to more than 100 in the past three years, and there is a full-time
trainer of mobile service people;
• Hydraulink is #3 in the mobile operator in Australia, with 160 vans;
• Hydraulink has developed a franchise model in Australia and added two new franchises to date in 2014, having
entered the market in an exploratory capacity several years ago. The company has been operating in the Pacific Islands
for 20 years;
• The warehousing space has been doubled in Christchurch and Sydney, and tripled in Auckland;
• The Motul agency in New Zealand was purchased from Makay Imports, a New Zealand company that had the agency for
28 years;
• Hydraulink serves all industries with a need for fast, effective and reliable hose and hydraulic services,
including the mining, agriculture, transport, forestry and marine sectors.
About Hydraulink
Hydraulink lives up to its motto ‘Best under pressure’ by working from over 400 service points throughout New Zealand,
Australia and the Asia Pacific region to help its customers get back on track in a very short time. The company culture
focuses on top service ethics and an uncompromising ability to make things happen.
Operating from distribution centres with counter service and supported by mobile service units, Hydraulink is on call 24
hours a day, seven days a week. Hydraulink serves all industries with a need for fast, effective and reliable hose and
hydraulic services, including the mining, agriculture, transport, forestry and marine sectors.
For any application where optimum performance from hydraulic systems and hoses is critical, Hydraulink is there,
manufacturing and distributing hydraulic hoses, fittings, couplers, tube assemblies, adaptors and accessories.
Hydraulink has more than 70 years of industry experience and has been owned and directed by Noel Davies and Lee Short
since 1989. Hydraulink proudly remains only fully New Zealand-owned and -operated hydraulic hose and fittings supply and
service business.
ENDS