Spirit 43 - Volvo Construction Equipment

would have a big effect on cash flow. In Europe, barely five percent of customers choose to do so. So 95 per cent are relyingon some form of financing to make their purchase. We’re theirnumber one choice.”“Across Europe, our penetration rate is 30 per cent -that means that 30 out of every 100 of our machines bought aredone so through Volvo Financial Services.”There are other, equally practical reasons for usingVolvo Financial Services, as Cemex’s Michael Neumann explains.“I’m the procurement cap-ex (capital expenditure)manager for Germany,” says Neumann. “That means I’mresponsible for purchases ranging from a concrete plant orcrusher on the one hand to articulated haulers, wheel loaders andexcavators on the other.”“Why use Volvo Financial Services? Simple. It’s easier.When I make a deal with Volvo, I only have one contact personthat I need to talk to. When we decide to order a Volvo wheelloader, for example, we negotiate over the leasing rate per month,I calculate the total cost of ownership and that’s it.”“When a customer visits adealership the salesman canprovide everything, from themachine to the financing, theservice contracts and insurance.everything comes together.”ONE-STOP SHOPPING“You could call it one-stop shopping,” adds Ksionzek.“When a customer visits a dealership the salesman can provideeverything, from the machine to the financing, the servicecontracts and insurance. Everything comes together.”Neumann, though, makes it clear that it remains ahard-nosed business agreement. The VFS figures must add up andmust business make sense. Volvo CE and Volvo Financial Serviceshas been making business sense together right across the world formore than a decade.Volvo Financial Services’ appeal continues to grow innew markets like Russia, China and Asia. And in Europe’s moremature markets, too, there are opportunities. In Germany, forinstance, 50 per cent of customers use Volvo financing.In Denmark, meanwhile, it’s as high as 60 per cent.The conversation turns back to industry expertise.Take Neumann and Ksionzek themselves. On the face of it, saysKsionzek, “we are just ‘number crunchers’ sitting in an office.”SPEAKING THE SAME LANGUAGEBut Neumann has a background in electricalengineering. “When you get out and visit one of the companyplants to discuss what is needed, it’s a big advantage when youknow the language of your colleagues. It really helps that youknow how a concrete plant works,” he says.Ksionzek agrees. “It’s about understanding thebusinesses of the people we serve, at the most basic level. It’sabout insight. And yes, it’s about speaking the same language.”“At Volvo Financial Services we even get a chanceevery year to take off our suits and get into Volvo ConstructionEquipment’s new machines and do a bit of digging and driving.That doesn’t happen in many finance companies. And it makesa big difference.”Text: Tony LawrenceSPIRIT16