Jimmy Scott owns Earthmovers Hawke’s Bay, an Earthworks and Civil Construction company based in Hawke’s Bay. His focus is on residential and commercial earthwork and construction projects, and he’s built his business around his reputation for getting the job done when he says he will.
Jimmy’s an Allways Hire customer both in his own business and while working for Russell Roads, a large Hawke’s Bay Civil Engineering company. We asked him to talk to us about how working with Allways Hire has given him the flexibility to grow his business.
“Earthworks Hawke’s Bay does drainage, pavement works, concreting, asphalt driveways, patios and landscaping. We work directly for the client quoting and winning work, and delivering it. We’re experiencing a lot of urgency in the market at the moment and people definitely want their work done yesterday. They’re not able to travel overseas so they have a bit of spare money. They look around the house and want upgrades on their outdoor areas so they can relax and enjoy them - rather than going to Bali for a holiday.”
A growing market makes it more important than ever that Jimmy can move quickly to quote for the next opportunity and access the equipment he needs for the job .That’s where working with Allways Hire has helped. Allways Hire give Jimmy 1:1 support so he can quote and book in his jobs, and rely on accessing the equipment he needs.
“I book work up to 6 weeks in advance so I need complete flexibility in the equipment for the next jobs I take on. I need to be able to count on the rates for the work I’m pricing. I know the gear’s going to be available when I need it because I ring the [Allways Hire] operations guy and have a good discussion with him about what I’m needing. Evan tells me when the gear’s going to be back so I can plan around it. Sure enough when I go in it’s there and waiting for me.”
Being able to draw on the expertise of the Allways Hire team allows Jimmy to be accurate with his quotes and always make sure he’s using the best equipment for the job. The combination of his own extensive experience and the feedback from the Allways Hire team means Jimmy knows he has the right tools for the job on hand.
“I’ve been a civil contractor for 18 Years and have lots of experience dealing with hire companies. Allways Hire have given me a much more personal experience. They are very customer focused and it’s like they focus on the relationship between the medium to small sized businesses just as much as the big businesses.
I speak to them on an operational front about tasks that I”m resourcing, things that I”m going to do, and we work out the best solutions for the job.”
With years of experience in the industry, Jimmy knows that there are times when certain types of equipment can be in high demand. He believes what sets Allways Hire apart is the personal service associated with booking, picking up and dropping off your equipment: where your needs come first and everyone is focused on making it easier.
“There’s periods of the year when you get into the Spring/Summer months when you’re in the construction season where you need to ring ahead and prebook stuff. But if you do that and you’re well organised and you’re communicating with everyone in the team there about your requirements: you can basically plan your job or the resources that you need for the job around the availability. But if anything comes up that will fit your needs earlier they’re straight on the phone to you to say ‘Hey that truck that I said was going to be 2 days well one has just come in. Do you want it?” Usually the gear is there and available when you need it though, that’s not the norm.”
With access to the right equipment for a job, a lack of experienced labour can still make resourcing a challenge. Especially when you need equipment to be operated. Jimmy definitely feels he has benefited from the reliability of the Allways Hire equipment and the ease of delivery, operation and transport. We asked him to tell us a bit more about it.
“Allways Hire basically has all new equipment. The safety features of the new equipment are critical these days. With the talent pool that we’ve got in driving and construction it’s very hard to pick up experienced workers. Having new machinery with all of the safety functions on the machines takes that worry factor out of it for me.
When I’m under the pump and I’ve got a number of different machines on site and I need to off hire things and I can’t free up a truck to return it I use Allways Hire to transport not only my own equipment but their equipment too at times. They’re flexible with me transporting their equipment on my equipment too.
As soon as you tell them you’ve finished with their gear they off hire it straight away and they get there the next day to pick it up. They’re smart operators that understand that we want low cost reliable solutions for our needs.”
Jimmy also hires Master Equipment from Allways Hire. Master is an innovative range of machinery that has been developed to fill a gap in the market. The aim is to do the job better, with smart equipment that’s easier to operate. Jimmy has used both the Master Sweeper and Master Grader and has been really impressed with the design and the results.
“They’ve developed some pretty neat kit in-house and you get that full experience of how smart and resourceful the team are with some of the machinery they’ve resourced and are building - both the Mid-mount Graders and Master Sweepers.
Dust is an environmental pollutant so it’s important to be able to include in the quote that you’ve planned in equipment that’s going to minimise pollution. That’s what the Master Sweeper can do with its dust suppression.
The Master Grader is set out in a way that it’s a natural movement to select the lever or make the right movement on the controls. They’re very well thought out. You can be an entry level operator and pick it up relatively quickly or you can be an experienced operator and see the thought process that’s gone into the development of it and you think to yourself ‘Well that’s smart’.”
The combination of smart machines, a young fleet, and a team that are dedicated to giving Jimmy the support he needs to grow his business is a winning one. Jimmy’s definitely a fan of the reliability and flexibility that he gets from working with Allways Hire. The equipment they provide his business is the perfect compliment to his years of construction experience. It’s no wonder he’s getting such great results for his clients across Hawke’s Bay.