Impact Handling is marking 15 years as the UK’s exclusive distributor of Cat® Lift Trucks, celebrating a partnership credited with reshaping the materials handling market through a customer-first, solutions-driven approach.
The company was appointed in 2010 by Mitsubishi Caterpillar Forklift Europe – now Mitsubishi Logisnext Europe B.V. (MLE) – which selected Impact for its national reach and shared values. The relationship has since strengthened year on year, helping to cement Cat Lift Trucks as one of the UK’s most trusted equipment choices and enabling Impact to grow its own footprint across the country.
Both companies say the success of the partnership has stemmed from a willingness to go well beyond traditional equipment supply. Instead, the focus has been on tailoring machinery, support and service packages to customers’ evolving operational demands.
Hans Seijger, Chief Business Development Officer at MLE, described Impact as “a partner in every sense of the word”. He said the business does far more than distribute Cat Lift Trucks products, highlighting its ability to deliver “complete solutions to meet specific customer requirements, rather than what they think they need”. He added that Impact’s skill in providing complementary solutions and bespoke adaptations has been “a game-changer”, at a time when such flexibility was rare across the industry.
Seijger praised the consistency of Impact’s management team and its enduring customer-care culture, saying the “family feel” it brings to the partnership remains central to its strength. Looking to the future, he said the next phase would be evolutionary, with a continued emphasis on digital innovation, sustainability and a shared commitment to customer experience.
Founded in 1985, Impact Handling has grown into one of the UK’s leading materials handling providers, supported by 13 depots nationwide. As the Cat Lift Trucks distributor, it offers a full suite of acquisition and support options — including purchase, hire, lease-purchase, buy-back/re-hire and full-service contracts — and has built a reputation for adapting equipment in-house to meet individual customer needs. This flexibility has allowed users to pair the durability and engineering strength of Cat Lift Trucks with tailored performance enhancements and support.
Impact’s position within Aprolis UK further deepens the relationship. The wider Aprolis Group, which acquired Impact in 2021, has more than 50 years’ experience in materials handling distribution and represents Cat Lift Trucks across France, Italy, Spain and Luxembourg.
Steve Shakespeare, CEO of Aprolis UK, said the long-standing partnership has enabled the business to “consistently provide our customers with greater choice and truly high-quality equipment tailored to their needs”. He added that Impact’s growth — including through the Aprolis acquisition — has been strengthened by “having the weight of the Cat Lift Trucks brand behind us”. Shakespeare said the relationship works because both partners are aligned in understanding the market, anticipating customer needs, and delivering bespoke value rather than “an off-the-shelf offering”.
He emphasised that the companies work closely together even during sector-wide or geopolitical challenges, focusing on practical problem-solving to maintain service continuity: “We are at the coalface, so we can offer feedback on customer needs… Through our partnership with Cat Lift Trucks, we are able to come up with a solution from a product and service perspective that is flexible and bespoke to the end user.”
As the partnership enters its next chapter, both organisations say their shared ethos — built on continuity, technical expertise and customer-led innovation — will remain the driving force behind future growth.