MEMBER PROFILE – ASSOCIATE
PVE Seeks to Increase
its U.S. Presence
Dutch-based PVE has long been associated with quality piling
products in Europe, and is now looking to increase its presence in
the U.S. marketplace
By Jim Timlick
PVE Equipment has had a significant
presence in Europe for more
than four decades, thanks in large
part to the success of its state-of-the-art
vibratory piling machines, but it hasn’t so
far had the same visibility in the North
American marketplace.
The Dutch-based manufacturer has
some ambitious plans to change that. In
January 2015, it launched PVE Equipment
USA in Jacksonville, Fla. Although the
company has been doing business in the
U.S. and Canada for some time and has
operated PVE Cranes here since 1999, this
is the first time it has had a full-time office
on this side of the ocean.
Arnaud Lamboo, a sales representative
and marketing development officer with
PVE USA, says the decision to open a U.S.
branch was part of an overall strategy to
increase the company’s presence in North
America. As part of its U.S.-based operations,
PVE sells, rents, services and provides
spare parts for its entire PVE product line.
“We knew there were opportunities
in the U.S. market that had arisen and
because of the favourable Euro/dollar rate
at the time,” said Lamboo. “As a company,
you are always searching for growth and the
U.S. market was one we weren’t very active in
yet. We can’t deny this market. It’s so big. Of
course there’s competition here but we are
confident that we can take a piece of the cake.”
While PVE is still relatively new in
North America, its variable moment (VM)
technology has established it as industry
leader overseas when it comes to high-frequency
vibratory hammers.
Vibration-free technology
Unlike conventional, low-frequency
vibratory hammers which can cause negative
vibrations in the boom of a crane and in the
soil during start-up and stopping, PVE’s
high-frequency hammers are virtually
vibration-free. In fact, testing has shown
the company’s HF hammer measured at
a distance of two metres (seven feet) from
driving elements produces the same level
of vibrations produced by a low frequency
hammer at a distance of 16 metres (52 feet).
PVE’s variable moment technology
takes care of the other vibrations. Negative
vibrations associated with starting and stopping
are eliminated when eccenter weights
in the hammer are automatically adjusted
and synchronized to the current eccentric
moment. As a result, the vibratory hammer
doesn’t have to be readjusted every time it is
stopped or restarted.
“It’s different from what most U.S.
manufacturers offer in that…it rules out
the end and beginning vibrations,” said
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