MAJOR Queensland aftermarket and accessories manufacturing business Tuff Group Australia has acquired another local manufacturer, 54-year-old East Coast Bullbars (ECB).

The acquisition places three of Australia’s bullbar and accessories manufacturers – Tuff, ECB, and Ultimate – under the ownership of the Griffiths family and brings their collective annual revenue to about $60 million.

Tuff Group Australia CEO and managing director Anton Griffiths said the purchase of ECB created significant synergies, although the three businesses were not direct rivals.

Tuff Group Australia CEO and managing director Anton Griffiths

“We believe there’s enough opportunity for the three brands to continue on their individual journeys,” he said.

“While there may be some crossover between Ultimate and ECB in the light-truck sector, there’s definitely an opportunity for each to further expand and grow.”

The three businesses differ in their product focus.

Tuff makes bespoke products including truck and ute bullbars, canopies and trays; Ultimate makes custom and off-the-shelf truck bullbars; and ECB primarily manufactures alloy bullbars and frontal protection products for utes and 4WDs.

Their sales and marketing models also differ.

ECB operates predominantly under a business-to-business model, while Tuff sells directly to customers and through a distribution network. It also operates a retail outlet alongside its Toowoomba factory.

Ultimate follows a bespoke model and sells directly to customers.Mr Griffiths said Tuff had a business in the United States that primarily sold frontal protection bars for large utes and trucks, providing an important entry point into the potentially significant North American market.

“We’ve also recently partnered with Papua New Guinea business owners, so we’re preparing to enter that market in the fleet business, mainly with utes and light trucks for the mining industry,” he added.

ECB also brings to Tuff Group an important contract as an original equipment supplier to Hino.

“That is obviously an attractive part of the acquisition,” said Tuff Group sales and marketing manager Gaven Paterson.

“We have only just renewed that contract. The good thing about the truck space is that they’re usually 10- to 12-year platforms.

“Unlike a Toyota HiLux or Ford Ranger, which might be updated every two to three years with a facelift, truck models remain in production for 10 years or more.

“We’ve just spent the past six months working on the new Hino 300 Series. The 500 Series will then start at the back end of this year, and those programs will take us forward for the next 10 years.“ECB has been working with Hino for about 15 years, so it’s an important contract for the business going forward.

“The Hino contract covers frontal protection for the truck models, although it could potentially be expanded to include other products – such as tray packs – from within the Tuff Group.”

The group’s largest product category remains bullbars, with the three businesses collectively manufacturing about 90 units a day. Ute and truck trays and service bodies represent the group’s second-largest area of output.

Tuff Group Australia Gaven Paterson, Group Sales & Marketing Manager

“On a revenue basis, these truck and ute trays and bodies could be as significant as bullbars, but in unit terms bullbars dominate our market offering,” said Mr Paterson.

Mr Griffiths said Tuff Group was continuing to investigate export opportunities for its full product range.“We can do more in that space,” he said.

“We have the PNG market ahead of us and a strong foothold in New Zealand. But clearly New Zealand doesn’t have a kangaroo problem, so we don’t export many bullbars there.

“America is always in our crosshairs. We are looking at global-platform vehicles that do not undergo frequent model changes.

“A Subaru, for example, is built on a global platform. We can safely fit one of our products to a Subaru in any country because the vehicle doesn’t change significantly. So we are looking for those opportunities.”

Mr Griffiths said he was proud of what the company’s employees produced.

“It’s not easy, but we’re making a pretty good go of it. We employ 200 people in a manufacturing environment in Australia, making Australian-made products for Australians,” he said.“But I don’t think people like us – and other manufacturers making Australian goods – receive enough support from the government, particularly when it comes to procurement.

“There are government agencies – local, state, and federal – fitting imported products to their vehicles.

“Meanwhile, we pay payroll tax in every state in which we operate, we lease and rent buildings, pay council rates, and all the other associated costs, and then a local council will fit a bullbar imported from Thailand to its fleet vehicles.

“It’s bad enough that the vehicle itself is not made here. Why don’t we at least try to fit some Australian-made equipment to it? We can still manufacture those products here.”