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FeedsHome: Autumn 2010 › Hire power
Hire power
01/10/2010 | Channel: Gas, Water, Electricity, Manufacture, Equipment
Following a merger in October 2009, Mabey Hire Services is now stronger than ever
Mabey Hire Services is a specialist manufacturer, supplier and contractor, providing a comprehensive range of modular and proprietary temporary works equipment for ground support, formwork, falsework, refurbishment and various other systems.
The company offers the largest range of non-mechanical plant available in the UK and with 18 depots nationwide, Mabey Hire Services is also able to provide the best distribution network of any supplier.
Mark Rooney, chief operating officer of Mabey Hire Services, gave a bit of background on the formation of the company, as it has only existed in its current form for less than a year: “Mabey Hire Services was created last October, from the amalgamation of three previous companies - Mabey Hire Limited, Mabey Support Systems and Murrayplant in Scotland.”
He continued: “As a result of the merger, the extensive depot network and representation of Mabey Hire and Murrayplant have been combined with the substantial engineering and site support backup of Mabey Support Systems, which means we now provide increased levels of service and a wider range of products for the benefit of both current and future customers.”
Mark clarified that the merger was made for strategic reasons: “Those Mabey companies had been around for, in some cases, more than 50 years already and the merger combined their experience and resources in order for us to offer not only a greater product range and geographical coverage but most importantly, a better service. We are now a stronger company and can offer a complete package to most customers in the fields in which we operate.” He added: “Providing a good service to the needs of our customers, whether it be a one man independent, or the largest company in the market, is always a top priority for us.”
These customers can be found in a variety of industries, including construction and utilities, and Mark highlighted what is on offer from Mabey that keeps these customers coming back: “We provide the hire of groundworks, temporary bridges and trench shoring equipment, as well as propping equipment, bridge jacking, road barrier systems and contract services.
“But what really sets us apart is the quality of our engineering service. We have engineers located at nine different sites around the UK, so we are able to provide an engineer who has local knowledge, for local conditions. Our engineers all have a great degree of experience, which they can deliver quickly because they are situated close to the customer.” This specialist engineering department can offer assistance in a variety of areas, including for example, the design and detailing of even the most demanding schemes.
In addition, Mabey Hire Services has a rolling programme of research and development (R&D) for improving existing products and introducing new ones. Mark noted this is one way the company remains innovative: “Our new product development team is basically an amalgamation of various departments within the company, that formally meet on a regular basis to look at what the market requires, examine any new innovations that are out there, and try to keep us at the forefront of the market. We prefer to try and develop products and services in-house, because in this way we feel we can better investigate what the market wants, and provide something that really answers a customer’s specific need, rather than just bring in some proprietary product from someone else.”
One example of a recent innovation from Mabey Hire Services is the new high clearance drag box. Drag boxes provide a safe and rapid means of pipe laying in good, dry, stable ground. “The thinking behind the new high clearance drag box was to offer the most clearance on the market, so we could enable clients to perform their installations more quickly and easily,” explained Mark. “Our product has the highest and largest working envelope on the market, and that’s a major benefit.”
In addition to investing in R&D, Mabey Hire Services also recently purchased a new site in the north east of England, in order to enhance its presence in this area. “This move also means we can stock every product in our range in that location, in order to provide a quicker delivery service,” noted Mark.
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“We also have space on the site where we are looking to set up a training facility, so that we can offer training on our products to our customers.”
He added: “Our services now cover the UK very efficiently, but we are constantly looking at the suitability of our depots, which is what brought us to buy this larger facility in the north east, and open a site in Aberdeen about three months ago. We are constantly monitoring the situation and if we feel that we need to increase the size of any of our depots or if we can provide better coverage by having a more local depot in another part of the country then we’ll do that - we have no problem investing in those areas if we need to.”
In fact, not only being located near customers, but working closely with them is something that Mabey Hire Services prioritises. “This is vitally important to us,” confirmed Mark. “We would much rather build a long-term relationship with customers and interact with them as partners. In this way we can build a mutual understanding of how we both operate, and that means we can support clients in the way that is most useful for their business.”
As well as working closely with customers, Mabey Hire Services works with other companies within the Mabey Group, and Mark explained that this brings additional benefits: “We regularly share ideas with our sister company in the US, which alerts us to any innovations that are coming from their side of the Atlantic.
“We also gain the benefits of the Group’s monetary strength, as the organisation is very financially stable. What’s more, we enjoy cross fertilisation of ideas with sister companies – there is a lot of information exchange, and a sharing of support, ideas and leads, all of which are very beneficial.”
The strength of the Group has also helped Mabey Hire Services weather the recent economic storm, as Mark noted: “The financial crisis hit the industry very hard, but as a business we were very strong prior to the crisis and that has enabled us to remain successful through it.
“Our merger enabled us to provide a better customer service, and I think because of that and as we have been able to offer a wider range of products and services to the customer, we’ve not suffered in the way that a lot of companies have.
“We feel because of what we’ve been through over the last 12 months, we are better able to compete for the contracts that are out there, and that is why we have been able to maintain a good level of business. Furthermore, we believe there will be a number of opportunities over the next few years as the market recovers and I think we’re in a good position to make the most of that.”
Mark concluded: “We believe that by combining an excellent engineering service and the best customer service, we can be the market leader in the field. Through continued training and continued development of our personnel we will maintain our ambition to move the company forward and maintain our position at the forefront of the industry.”
MABEY HIRE SERVICES
Scout Hill, Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury WF13 3EJ
Tel: +44 1924 460 601 • Fax: +44 1924 457 932
Email: action@mabeyhireservices.com
Web address: www.mabeyhireservices.com
The company offers the largest range of non-mechanical plant available in the UK and with 18 depots nationwide, Mabey Hire Services is also able to provide the best distribution network of any supplier.
Mark Rooney, chief operating officer of Mabey Hire Services, gave a bit of background on the formation of the company, as it has only existed in its current form for less than a year: “Mabey Hire Services was created last October, from the amalgamation of three previous companies - Mabey Hire Limited, Mabey Support Systems and Murrayplant in Scotland.”
He continued: “As a result of the merger, the extensive depot network and representation of Mabey Hire and Murrayplant have been combined with the substantial engineering and site support backup of Mabey Support Systems, which means we now provide increased levels of service and a wider range of products for the benefit of both current and future customers.”
Mark clarified that the merger was made for strategic reasons: “Those Mabey companies had been around for, in some cases, more than 50 years already and the merger combined their experience and resources in order for us to offer not only a greater product range and geographical coverage but most importantly, a better service. We are now a stronger company and can offer a complete package to most customers in the fields in which we operate.” He added: “Providing a good service to the needs of our customers, whether it be a one man independent, or the largest company in the market, is always a top priority for us.”
These customers can be found in a variety of industries, including construction and utilities, and Mark highlighted what is on offer from Mabey that keeps these customers coming back: “We provide the hire of groundworks, temporary bridges and trench shoring equipment, as well as propping equipment, bridge jacking, road barrier systems and contract services.
“But what really sets us apart is the quality of our engineering service. We have engineers located at nine different sites around the UK, so we are able to provide an engineer who has local knowledge, for local conditions. Our engineers all have a great degree of experience, which they can deliver quickly because they are situated close to the customer.” This specialist engineering department can offer assistance in a variety of areas, including for example, the design and detailing of even the most demanding schemes.
In addition, Mabey Hire Services has a rolling programme of research and development (R&D) for improving existing products and introducing new ones. Mark noted this is one way the company remains innovative: “Our new product development team is basically an amalgamation of various departments within the company, that formally meet on a regular basis to look at what the market requires, examine any new innovations that are out there, and try to keep us at the forefront of the market. We prefer to try and develop products and services in-house, because in this way we feel we can better investigate what the market wants, and provide something that really answers a customer’s specific need, rather than just bring in some proprietary product from someone else.”
One example of a recent innovation from Mabey Hire Services is the new high clearance drag box. Drag boxes provide a safe and rapid means of pipe laying in good, dry, stable ground. “The thinking behind the new high clearance drag box was to offer the most clearance on the market, so we could enable clients to perform their installations more quickly and easily,” explained Mark. “Our product has the highest and largest working envelope on the market, and that’s a major benefit.”
In addition to investing in R&D, Mabey Hire Services also recently purchased a new site in the north east of England, in order to enhance its presence in this area. “This move also means we can stock every product in our range in that location, in order to provide a quicker delivery service,” noted Mark.
')";>“We also have space on the site where we are looking to set up a training facility, so that we can offer training on our products to our customers.”
He added: “Our services now cover the UK very efficiently, but we are constantly looking at the suitability of our depots, which is what brought us to buy this larger facility in the north east, and open a site in Aberdeen about three months ago. We are constantly monitoring the situation and if we feel that we need to increase the size of any of our depots or if we can provide better coverage by having a more local depot in another part of the country then we’ll do that - we have no problem investing in those areas if we need to.”
In fact, not only being located near customers, but working closely with them is something that Mabey Hire Services prioritises. “This is vitally important to us,” confirmed Mark. “We would much rather build a long-term relationship with customers and interact with them as partners. In this way we can build a mutual understanding of how we both operate, and that means we can support clients in the way that is most useful for their business.”
As well as working closely with customers, Mabey Hire Services works with other companies within the Mabey Group, and Mark explained that this brings additional benefits: “We regularly share ideas with our sister company in the US, which alerts us to any innovations that are coming from their side of the Atlantic.
“We also gain the benefits of the Group’s monetary strength, as the organisation is very financially stable. What’s more, we enjoy cross fertilisation of ideas with sister companies – there is a lot of information exchange, and a sharing of support, ideas and leads, all of which are very beneficial.”
The strength of the Group has also helped Mabey Hire Services weather the recent economic storm, as Mark noted: “The financial crisis hit the industry very hard, but as a business we were very strong prior to the crisis and that has enabled us to remain successful through it.
“Our merger enabled us to provide a better customer service, and I think because of that and as we have been able to offer a wider range of products and services to the customer, we’ve not suffered in the way that a lot of companies have.
“We feel because of what we’ve been through over the last 12 months, we are better able to compete for the contracts that are out there, and that is why we have been able to maintain a good level of business. Furthermore, we believe there will be a number of opportunities over the next few years as the market recovers and I think we’re in a good position to make the most of that.”
Mark concluded: “We believe that by combining an excellent engineering service and the best customer service, we can be the market leader in the field. Through continued training and continued development of our personnel we will maintain our ambition to move the company forward and maintain our position at the forefront of the industry.”
MABEY HIRE SERVICES
Scout Hill, Ravensthorpe, Dewsbury WF13 3EJ
Tel: +44 1924 460 601 • Fax: +44 1924 457 932
Email: action@mabeyhireservices.com
Web address: www.mabeyhireservices.com