TOKYO & CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Mar 23, 2026--
CADDi Inc., a global technology company developing a manufacturing-exclusive AI data platform, today announced the next phase deployment across a global leader in construction’s international operations. Tadano Ltd., a leading manufacturer of lifting equipment (LE) including mobile cranes, is actively launching a strategic initiative to maximize growth synergies from mergers and acquisitions (M&A) by accelerating parts integration and procurement optimization across the entire Tadano Group. Based on CADDi utilization success in domestic sites which included significant reductions in data search workloads and the establishment of a foundation for technology transfer, Tadano is expanding CADDi adoption to major international sites. This initiative marks the start of global deployment within Europe and the Americas.
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A growing challenge—“knowledge silos” behind M&A-driven growth
Tadano historically generated more than 60% of its sales overseas and accelerated global enterprise growth through aggressive M&A.
Their recent merger uncovered “knowledge silos” as a core management challenge, revealing that newly acquired companies had different data management practices which contributed to information integration difficulties. Data was fragmented, making it difficult to create synergies while inconsistency led to duplicate inventory and purchasing cost optimization roadblocks. Across each country and organization, even identical parts had different part numbers or drawing numbers.
To address these key management themes—maximizing growth synergies from M&A, intensifying global competition, and transferring expertise from veteran employees—Tadano started the implementation of CADDi’s AI data platform to resolve knowledge fragmentation.
Implementation results and the path to global deployment
CADDi implementation success across Tadano Japan resulted in significant reductions in data search workloads as well as the establishment of a foundation for knowledge transfer and institutionalization.
Following implementation, Tadano focused on solidifying the foundation for transformation by maximizing the assetization of experience and expertise, along with data accessibility. This significantly improved cross-department information sharing, searchability and task reuse. Previously dependent on individual knowledge, search tasks were reduced from approximately 30 minutes to five minutes.
These outcomes supported the decision to begin global deployment—including Europe and the Americas—as a key driver for creating M&A synergies. Expanding CADDi use is expected to accelerate parts integration and procurement optimization across Tadano Group, effectively maximizing growth synergies from M&A.
Freeing up time for strategic thinking and consolidating global knowledge
During this global implementation, CADDi acts as a transformation partner for Tadano. To solidify growth through M&A, Tadano expects increased profitability from reducing duplicate inventory and consolidated purchasing processes. By redirecting time saved through AI toward higher-value analysis and design work, they will strengthen a culture of continuous improvement and disciplined execution. Over time, CADDi’s manufacturing AI data platform will facilitate unified technical knowledge across languages and regions, serving as a shared communication layer that supports Tadano’s ambition to become No.1 worldwide in the lifting equipment industry.
According to Toshiaki Ujiie, President, CEO, and Representative Director of Tadano Ltd., “Our company has actively pursued M&A to strengthen global competitiveness. During integration, we recognized that engineering knowledge and parts data remained distributed across group companies, including acquired entities. We expect CADDi’s manufacturing AI data platform to support resolution of this challenge by enabling instant comparison and identification of large volumes of data. By doing so, we aim to maximize the operational value of our M&A strategy.”
He emphasized, “We expect CADDi to play a central role in driving this data intelligence project and to serve as the hub that consolidates the collective knowledge of the entire group as we strive to become No.1 worldwide in the lifting equipment industry.”
The CADDi AI data platform enhances production activities and decision-making by analyzing and correlating data across manufacturing engineering and supply chain systems. Leveraging operational experience in parts procurement and proprietary AI technologies, it converts fragmented engineering data into structured, reusable assets that boost competitive advantage.
About CADDi
CADDi is an AI-powered data platform that makes design and supply chain data accessible and actionable for manufacturing teams. Headquartered in Tokyo and Chicago, the company was founded in 2017 by industry veterans Yushiro Kato and Aki Kobashi, formerly of McKinsey, Apple, and Lockheed Martin. Its flagship product, CADDi Drawer, uses advanced AI to centralize and analyze unstructured design and production data, helping manufacturers improve efficiency, reduce redundancies, and unlock innovation. Recognized globally for innovation, CADDi was listed in Fast Company’s Most Innovative Companies and won the SaaS Award for Best Business Intelligence and Engineering Management Software. To learn more, visit us.caddi.com.
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Toshiaki Ujiie, President, CEO, and Representative Director of Tadano Ltd.
Tadano Ltd. Management team’s Corporate Planning Department Sota Araki, Product Strategic Planning Department Manager Takashi Kawano, and Product Strategic Planning Department General Manager Hiroto Ota.
NEW YORK (AP) — Two people were killed and several others badly hurt when an Air Canada regional jet struck a fire truck on a runway while landing at New York’s LaGuardia Airport, officials said.
The pilot and copilot were killed in the late Sunday night collision, which crushed the nose of the aircraft, while around 40 passengers and crew members were taken to area hospitals, some with serious injuries. Most have since been released from treatment, authorities said Monday.
Two Port Authority employees who were traveling in the fire truck also suffered injuries that were not believed to be life-threatening, aid Kathryn Garcia, executive director of the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, which operates the airport.
The airport was shut down and air traffic was diverted, and on Monday morning operations also were halted at Newark Liberty International Airport in neighboring New Jersey. Air traffic controllers evacuated the tower because of a burning smell from an elevator, the Federal Aviation Administration said.
The shutdowns happened during long waits for travelers due to the busy spring break travel season and a shortage of Transportation Security Administration officers because of a lack of routine funding for the Department of Homeland Security.
The pilot and copilot who died were both based out of Canada, Garcia said during a news conference.
The airport will remain closed until at least 2 p.m. Monday to facilitate the investigation, which is being led by the National Transportation Safety Board.
“Two pilots were killed and dozens injured in this tragedy. Our thoughts are with the victims, their families, and everyone affected,” New York Gov. Kathy Hochul posted online.
The fire truck was traveling across the runway to respond to a separate incident aboard a United Airlines flight, whose pilot had reported “an issue with odor,” said Garcia, who deferred additional questions about the sequence of events leading up to the crash to the NTSB.
There were 72 passengers and four crew members aboard the aircraft, a Jazz Aviation flight operating on behalf of Air Canada, according to a statement from the airline. The flight originated at Montreal-Pierre Elliott Trudeau International Airport, the major airport serving Montreal.
Photos and videos from the scene showed severe damage to the front of the aircraft, with cables and debris hanging from a mangled cockpit. Nearby, a damaged emergency vehicle lay on its side.
Stairways used to evacuate passengers from the aircraft were pushed up to the emergency exits on the jet, a Bombardier CRJ. The impact left the jet with its crumpled nose tilted upward.
In the moments before the crash, an air traffic controller could be heard on a radio transmission giving clearance to a vehicle to cross part of the tarmac, then trying to stop it.
“Stop, Truck 1. Stop,” the transmission says. The controller can then be heard frantically diverting an incoming aircraft from landing.
Air traffic controllers are not impacted by the partial government shutdown that has caused long delays at airport security checkpoints in recent days. They have been affected by past shutdowns.
As passengers straggled out of the airport into the dark early Monday, some described having arrived at LaGuardia hours before their flight, hoping to beat the lines.
Arturo Davidson said his Miami-bound flight was on the tarmac Sunday night when fellow passengers saw the collision or its aftermath and reactions rippled through the cabin.
The passengers were soon told there had been an accident. About 20 minutes later, they were informed the airport was closing and they must return to the terminal, he said later Monday, gazing at a departure board filled with cancellations.
“I don’t think we’re going at two,” he sighed, referring to the time Monday afternoon that officials gave as the earliest for reopening LaGuardia.
LaGuardia was 19th busiest in 2024 out of more than 500 U.S. airports, with over 16.7 million passengers boarding there, according to a 2025 FAA database.
The airport, which opened to commercial traffic in 1939, covers 680 acres (275 hectares) and borders Flushing and Bowery bays in Queens. The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey describes it as “one of the nation’s leading domestic gateways for business and leisure travel” in its 2024 Airport Traffic Report.
LaGuardia is one of 35 major airports across the country equipped with an advanced surface surveillance system that uses radar and data from locator systems on planes to alert controllers to potential conflicts on runways, according to the FAA.
There are three different models of Aircraft Rescue and Firefighting trucks, according to a video put out last month about the unit by the Port Authority. One carries 1,500 gallons (5,678 liters) of water and firefighting chemicals. Two others carry 3,000 gallons (11,356 liters) of water. One of those models is also equipped with a turret that can extend 65 feet (20 meters) to penetrate inside an aircraft and discharge firefighting chemicals.
It’s still too early to tell what went wrong, and investigators from the NTSB will now start collecting facts, interviewing people, downloading recordings and reviewing data from flight recorders, aviation safety expert Jeff Guzzetti said.
“It might be easy enough just to say, ‘Oh, the controller made a mistake.’ But there’s got to be deeper questions,” he said.
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle after landing in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
A Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle lays on its side off of runway 4 after colliding with an Air Canada jet after it landed at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle after landing in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
Firetrucks lineup outside LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, in New York, after an Air Canada Jet collided with a Port Authority vehicle on a runway. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority aircraft rescue and firefighting vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
Firetrucks lineup outside LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, in New York, after an Air Canada Jet collided with a Port Authority vehicle on a runway. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
FILE - A control tower is seen at Laguardia International Airport on Saturday, Nov. 8, 2025, in New York. (AP Photo/Olga Fedorova, File)
An Air Canada Jet sits on the runway at LaGuardia Airport, Monday, March 23, 2026, after colliding with a Port Authority vehicle in New York. (AP Photo/Ryan Murphy)
