EXHIBIT 99

        Cautionary Statements Pursuant to the Securities
                  Litigation Reform Act of 1995

The Company wishes to inform its investors of the following
important factors that in some cases have affected, and in the
future could affect, the Company's results of operations and that
could cause such future results of operations to differ
materially from those expressed in any forward looking statements
made by or on behalf of the Company. Disclosure of these factors
is intended to permit the Company to take advantage of the "safe
harbor" provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform
Act of 1995.  Many of these factors have been discussed in prior
SEC filings by the Company.  Though the Company has attempted to
list comprehensively these important cautionary factors, the
Company wishes to caution investors that other factors may in the
future prove to be important in affecting the Company's results
of operations.

Demand Variability -- Demand for new equipment manufactured by
the Company tends to be cyclical, responding historically to
varying levels of construction and industrial activity,
principally in the United States and, to a lesser extent, in
other industrialized nations.  Other factors affecting demand
include the availability and cost of financing for equipment
purchases, the market availability of used equipment and
alternatives to purchases such as equipment leases directly from
the Company.  Company management regularly monitors these and
other factors that affect demand for the Company's equipment.
However, predicting levels of demand beyond a short term is
necessarily imprecise and demand may at times change
dramatically.

Consolidating Customers Base; Rental Companies -- The principal
customers for the Company's new equipment are independent
equipment rental companies that rent the Company's products and
provide service support to equipment users. In recent years,
growth in sales to equipment rental companies has outpaced growth
in direct sales to end-users, resulting in equipment rental
companies comprising a larger share of total sales.  Many of the
companies are highly leveraged.  At the same time, there has been
substantial consolidation in ownership among rental companies,
resulting in a more limited number of major customers comprising
a substantial portion of total sales.  A change in purchasing
decisions by any of these major customers could materially affect
overall demand for the Company's products and the Company's
financial performance.  More generally, during recessionary
conditions, demand for equipment by equipment rental companies
typically declines more sharply than demand for equipment
purchased by end-users. The inability of rental companies to
continue to obtain sufficient financing for equipment purchases
could substantially affect purchases of the Company's products by
these companies.

Manufacturing Capacity -- Given the cyclical nature of demand,
the Company must periodically expand and contract its
manufacturing facilities. Capital investment to acquire
additional manufacturing facilities involves significant risks.
Excess manufacturing capacity adversely affects profitability
because higher fixed costs are spread over a lower sales volume.
Insufficient capacity adversely affects profitability as long
lead-times required to fill customer orders may impair the
Company's ability to compete for new business and subcontracting
costs incurred to increase capacity affect profitability.

Product Liability -- Use of the Company's products involves risks
of personal injury and property damage and liability exposure for
the Company. The Company insures against this liability through a
combination of a self-insurance retention and catastrophic
insurance coverage in excess of the retention. The Company
monitors all incidents of which it becomes aware involving the
use of its products that result in personal injury or property
damage and establishes accrued liability reserves on its
financial statements based on liability estimates with respect to
claims arising from such incidents. Future or unreported
incidents involving personal injury or property damage or
unanticipated variances between actual liabilities for known
incidents and Company estimates may adversely affect the
Company's financial performance.

Availability of Product Components -- The Company obtains raw
materials and certain manufactured components from third-party
suppliers.  To reduce material costs and inventories, the Company
relies on supplier partnership arrangements with preferred
vendors as a sole source for "just-in-time" delivery of many raw
materials and manufactured components.  Because the Company
maintains limited raw material inventories, even brief
unanticipated delays in delivery by suppliers, including those
due to capacity constraints, labor disputes, Year 2000 readiness,
impaired financial condition of suppliers, weather emergencies or
other natural disasters, may adversely affect the Company's
ability to satisfy its customers on a timely basis and thereby
affect the Company's financial performance.

Foreign Sales; Currency Risks -- A growing component of the
Company's business has been export sales to Europe, Australia,
Latin America and Asia.  Maintenance and continued growth of this
segment of the Company's business may be affected by changes in
trade, monetary and fiscal policies, laws and regulations of the
United States and other trading nations and by foreign currency
exchange rate fluctuations and the ability or inability of the
Company to hedge against exchange rate risks.

Competition; Continued Innovation -- The Company faces
substantial competition in the market for its products.  Product
line expansion by existing competitors and potential entry by new
competitors also may affect the Company's market position.
Throughout its history, the Company has devoted substantial
resources to product development and has generally succeeded in
being a market leader in introducing new high-reach products or
incorporating new features and functions into existing products.
Successful product innovation by competitors that reach the
market prior to comparable innovation by the Company or that are
amenable to patent protection may adversely affect the Company's
financial performance.

Mergers and Acquisitions -- The Company recently announced a
definitive agreement to acquire Gradall Industries and intends to
pursue other strategic acquisitions as a means of increasing
sales and earnings and promoting shareholder value.  Acquisitions
generally may involve a number of risks that may affect the
Company's financial performance including increased leverage and
interest rate market risk, diversion of management resources,
possible shareholder dilution, assumption of liabilities of
acquired businesses,  corporate culture conflicts and
difficulties of integrating separate business organizations and
achieving potential business and operational synergies.  In
addition, specific acquisitions may involve other risks unique to
the acquired business. Finally, there is no assurance that the
Company will be able to conclude satisfactory agreements to
acquire any businesses as a means to increase sales and earnings.

Unanticipated Litigation -- The Company occasionally has faced
unanticipated intellectual property and shareholder litigation
which has involved significant unbudgeted expenditures.  The
costs and other effects of any future, unanticipated legal or
administrative proceedings may be significant.

Dependence Upon Key Personnel -- The Company believes that it has
developed a strong management team, which intends to continue the
Company's growth and profitability.  However, the loss or
unavailability of certain key management personnel, principally
L. David Black, the Company's Chairman of the Board, President
and Chief Executive Officer, could adversely affect the Company's
business and prospects.