The fastest emergency hose replacement service there is

In the pipelineQuarter 2 2012

Special Scottish supplement

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Contents

Published by Pirtek (UK) Limited35 Acton Park Estate, The Vale, Acton, London W3 7QETel 020 8749 8444 Fax 020 8749 8333 E-mail info@pirtek.co.uk

Sky High 2Filling the GAP 3Flower Power 4One for the Road 4In the Flow 5Sticking Point 5

Chip off the Old Block 6Going Forth 7Go with a Bang 7Demolishing the Myths7No Pressure Then? 8True Grit 8Snow Business 9Faster than a Speeding Bullet 9Bridging the gap 10Earth Works 12Air Craft 12Sands of Time 13Pitching In 14All Steamed Up 15Upwardly Mobile 16Ultimate Test 17Emerald Isle 17Family Affair 18Tight Ship 19BTCC 20

SkyHighHaving plucked up the courageto fling himself out of aperfectly good aircraft at12,000 feet after a friend saidhe was going to take part in asponsored skydive, Craig Smith from the PirtekRacing Team had to wait a fullmonth when his first attemptwas cancelled due to highwinds.He eventually got to do his divefor Pirtek's chosen charity forthe treatment of prostatecancer, however, although heconfesses that he doesn’treally like heights. "It wasreally cold up there but it wasan excellent day out. Totallybrilliant. I'd love to take it upfull time but it would clash withthe new racing season."Talking of BTCC, watch out for'Team Gorgeous' or the crewfrom Pirtek Ellesmere Port,headed up by centre manager'Big Paul' Johnson. The teamhas threatened to turn up at asmany of the BTCC meetings in

This edition has a strongemphasis on Scotland, a Celticcountry with a proud historyand tradition. Ireland andEngland feature too, of course.

The Romans had trouble withthe Scots, so the emperorHadrian built a large wall. AtPirtek, we build bridges so thatthe Pirtek network operatesseamlessly across borders.

Historically, Scotland has beenan outward-looking country;James V1th of Scotlandbecame King of England andWales, Scottish entrepreneursfounded the major tradinghouses Swire and JardineMatheson in Hongkong,international investmentmanagement companiesoperate successfully today

their infamous pink tutus andblack leotards as possible.Johnson says they have newcostumes to help optimise TVcoverage. Not content with raising theRacing Team's profile, Paul andthe team are also planning acharity zip slide across theClyde on March 24th.

from Glasgow and Edinburgh.So whatever the result of thecurrent Scottish debate onIndependence, Pirtek willoperate seamlessly for itscustomers.

We show here examples ofPirtek working with Scottishcompanies, large and small,locally, regionally and UK wide,to provide excellent serviceand support on hydraulic issuesfrom the Pirtek network ofcentres, wherever andwhenever it is needed.

The examples here show thebreadth of economic activity inScotland across multipleindustries; from recyclingthrough construction andtransport to plant hire andairport services. It is good to

see our Pirtek customers showa positive approach as therecession lightens and growthreturns.

The examples from allcountries show a focus onservice. We are all, English,Welsh Scottish and Irish justlyproud of our national traits andtraditions. We are equallyproud of our Pirtek tradition ofexcellence in serving ourcustomers.

Best regards

Kelvin RobertsChairman, Pirtek Europe

Building Bridges

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Quarter 2 2012

Despite its size, Gordon Anderson Plant, or GAP as it is usuallyknown, is still a family run company with joint ManagingDirectors Douglas and Iain Anderson continuing their father’slegacy. However the company has grown somewhat since itsinception in 1969, and now employs 800 people in 60 locationsacross the UK.To give an indication of the scale of operations, at the end of 2011GAP spent £12 million on additional equipment and a further £15million on replacing existing kit. The company is renowned foronly stocking the best equipment available. With such high levels of expectations it is little wonder that GAPhas a national agreement with Pirtek, as Glasgow workshopmanager Stevie Breton explains. “We have a colossal amount ofequipment on hire, usually to the big civil engineering and utilitycompanies such as Clancy Docwra, and we are often the solesupplier. We stock anything from standing lights to excavatorsthat range from 1.5- 8 tonnes, We must have one of the mostcomprehensive dumper fleets in existence that range from 1tonne right up to 10 tonnes, which are quite unusual. We pick andchoose certain brands because of the quality of the product. GAPrecently purchased 60 Ammann rollers because of their superiornoise and vibration levels. We use Kubota and JCB excavators,Sandvik hammers and Terex dumpers because of their quality. Ontop of this we have absolutely masses of small tools for hire.With this scattered all over the country, we need a supplier withthe capability to react nationally,” he says. “All that takes a lot oflooking after and I can't say our equipment always comes back tous in pristine quality after a hire. And, despite our best efforts,there are also failures on site. Which is why we have is Pirtekworking away in the background to make sure everything runssmoothly. What I like about them is their proactive stance. Itwould be very easy for them to charge a call out for every littleitem, but they don't. The Pirtek Glasgow General Manager,

David Gibson, has gone out of his way to help us reduce charges anddowntime. Over the 17 years we have used them, Pirtek hasconstantly looked at ways to improve their service.”Firstly they have negotiated on price, which makes them verycompetitive. I can use Glasgow as a first point of contact foremergency call outs, even if the breakdown isn't in their territory, thatsaves me a lot of time and effort. Their service is excellent and we havenever had a problem with call outs, even at weekends, out of hours or inpoor weather.'Breton explains that one of the keydevelopment initiated by PirtekGlasgow has been the provision ofan on-site store. “Where Pirtekreally scores is the thought they putinto our service. Obviously we gothrough a lot of hoses and fixtures,so David provided GAP with an on-site stores facility to save time andcall outs. In this he has provided 5types of regular use hoses, allmade to size with fittings, whichare very handy for pecker hosereplacements. We have a largestock of oils for the workshop,there are float gauges for the fuel bowsers, oil spill kits, grease andlube kits, quick release fittings and shelves of fittings,” Stevie Bretonconcludes. “There is anything between £500 and £800 worth of partsthat we are can use at our convenience. David simply comesin and charges GAP for what they have used. This isdone purely for the convenience of thecustomer – me.”

Fillingthe GAP

Left Glasgow General Manager David Gibson with a small part of the in house sparesdepartment he has set up for GAP Glasgow.. Above, Pressure hose being tested afterre[lacement! Below, The sort of problem GAP workshop manager Steve Breton has to dealwith when he said that not all his hire equipment comes back in pristine condition!  Little wonderGAP get through so many pecker hoses

Above, Pirtek supply everything from hosesto lubes and oil. Below, A tiny sample of thesmall tool section of GAP Glasgow

Whatever you buy north of the border, it will inevitably be emblazonedwith a St Andrew's saltire or a thistle. You expect this nationalisticidentification on tourist goods but not really on heavy plant equipment.However if you do see an excavator carrying the national flower, it willalmost certainly belong to Lochgelly-based Robert Purvis Plant.Founded in 1980 by current managing director Bob Purvis, the businessstarted in plant hire and has diversified into 9 inter-related companiesthat form the Purvis Group. Services offered now include haulage,building supplies, civil engineering, demolition, groundworks, drainage,surfacing, recycling, tipping, screening and crushing, building, electrical andmechanical services, steel buildings, cladding and steel design, erectionand fabrication. The company remains the largest independent plant company in Scotlandand is one of the territory’s largest purchasers of JCB equipment, with

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Flower Power

excavators ranging from 1/2 - 33 tonnes. Purvis centralised their company at Lochgelly in 1982 to keep everythingon one site, which helps reduce land requirements and having workshopsand equipment at different locations. This centralisation has lead to aninteresting relationship with Pirtek Kinross.“We've used Pirtek for over 20 years, in fact it's that long nobody canactually remember when we first started using them. Although PirtekKinross gets the bulk of our work, we use all the Pirtek Centres foremergency call outs,” says workshop manager Cameron Bell. “It's rare tofind a supplier that has remained working for the company for that long.However there are three good reasons for this - price, quality and service,and Pirtek come out top in all of these. Although there is a fair chance wewill see them every day, Pirtek Kinross has installed a crimping machine inour workshops to reduce the call out times. We will make two or threehoses every day and Pirtek restocks the hoses and fixtures everyfortnight. We've always had an excellent working relationship with Pirtekand this installation shows the level of personal care and thought theyhave put into customer service.”Bell says that the flexibility of the Pirtek service also suits his company’srequirements. “We have a multi-tasking work force and expect the Pirtekengineers to be every bit as adaptable. We have 22 maintenanceengineers and mechanics, including welders, fabricators and a mobileelectrician, who provide our regular and preventative maintenance work,but we still depend on Pirtek to supply our hydraulic expertise. We couldhave a company car, truck, excavator or a compactor with a hydraulicproblem and their engineers will happily work on any piece of kit we pointthem at,” Bell concludes. “We have a traditional approach to work. Whenyou phone in, you don't get electronic options, you get a person who willtalk to you. And if you want to talk to the MD, you can! Everything is doneon a personal basis, and that's what we like about Pirtek, it's the servicethat matters.”

One for the Road Based at Bonnybridge, near Falkirk, Ian Craig Haulage Ltd. (ICH) isrecognised as one of the leading road transport providers in Scotland.But the company has come a long way since starting in Cumbernauld in1972 by Ian Craig with one second-hand lorry.The company's success can be attributed to reacting to customer needs; iteven moved depots to provide a better service and expand its on-sitebrick storage facilities for customer Hanson Thermalite. For many years Ian Craig Haulage has provided transport requirements tothe construction industry with bespoke, crane equipped brick carriers.ICH also operate a diverse range of 44 vehicles and 85 trailers,curtainsiders, platforms and tippers and is known for providing a tailoredtransport solution for customers. The company has been rewarded withthe ‘Scottish Haulage Company of the Year’ award in 2004, and in 2007 for‘Scotland’s Top Trailer Fleet.’Today Ian Craig still runs the on-site workshops, while sons Kevin, Alan andColin look after the general business management. The family pridesitself on delivering a truly personal service with face-to-facecommunication and attention to detail. This reputation has led to anumber of valued long established working partnerships with customersacross the country.“We like the personal touch which is why we get on so well with PirtekFalkirk,” says workshop foreman David Orr. “We must like what they do orwe wouldn't have used them for the past 16 years. Although we have ourown maintenance crew, we still need to bring in Pirtek a couple of times aweek for hydraulic work. We make up a lot of our own hoses but Pirteksupply the parts and fittings. What we find so useful is the fact they cansource so many parts. We've used them on everything from steam cleaningkits, steel bunded trays, blocks, diverters, return valves as well as all theusual hydraulic requirements.”

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Quarter 2 2012

Having a good working relationship with original equipmentmanufacturers (OEM) is good business for both parties, asconstruction equipment giant Liebherr has discovered.Having supplied a new 317 excavator to a Taylor Wimpey site inFerry Road in Edinburgh, the machine was subsequently requiredto be fitted with a Rhino breaker to remove some undergroundfoundations. This required a flow meter to be fitted for the safeoperation of the hammer. Rather than have a test hose made upat the Bathgate factory. Liebherr called in Pirtek Edinburgh toprovide the hose to calibrate the hammer. Liebherr prides itselfon only fitting OEM products on their own machines, so was thispolicy being called into doubt with a Pirtek hose openly beingfitted rather than an Liebherr one? It all turned out to be a matterof speed. Pirtek would get the customer operational in minutes,whilst a new OEM hose was being sourced for delivery later in theday. But the Pirtek hose wasn’t wasted. “We'll take this back toBathgate and use it in the hammer test rig,” said the Liebherrengineer. “We wouldn't think of throwing a Pirtek hose away.”

In the Flow

About to celebrate its 50th birthday, Edinburgh-based RD AndersonHaulage owe its success to one simple adage: Stick to what you know anddo it well.“That's a very good rule of thumb. The company started off as a family-runhaulage company, and apart from a few specialist vehicles, that's what wehave stuck to. We have built up our name and reputation on good serviceand having the right vehicles for the job,” says transport manager RobertYoung. “We have survived in tough economic times because we have theequipment that customers want. We have a big fleet of lorry-mountedcranes that are capable of lifting a 12 tonne load. These are hugelypopular because they are so flexible, especially when customer realise youcan unload something as big as a Portacabin or a broken down excavtorwith one of these. Running alongside is our fleet of 4,6 and 8 wheeledtippers. But we have a conveniently sized 7.5 tonne tipper for the littlejobs that crop up. We can supply 4 and 6 wheel platform lorries, and againa smaller 7.5 tonne vehicle for the smaller work. We also have Brimecloaders for shifting plant and the larger loads. Perhaps interesting loadsmight be a better description as we've moved polar bears, fire engines andgiant sculptures.”With 60 staff and 50 vehicles to keep employed, RD Anderson Haulagemaintains a close watch on its overheads. “It makes economic sense tobuy in certain services rather than keep a lot of spares and stock. That’swhy we use Pirtek Edinburgh for our hydraulic repairs,” Robert Youngconcludes. “If price were the only issue, I'm sure we could buy cheaperbut we certainly wouldn't get the service that goes with it. We have anexcellent working relationship with Pirtek. Their response to a call out isalways prompt and no matter where the repair takes place we know thejob will get done.”

Sticking Point

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Carnoustie based D.J. Laing is one of those intriguing companiesthat seem to succeed even when a recession is in full swing. From plant hire and general contracting roots, the company hasdiversified into waste management, house building and civilengineering.Established in May 1975, the Laing Group has pursued aprogramme of planned and diverse expansion, and now employsaround 110 full time staff and additional experiencedsubcontractors. The diverse nature of the company means thatmany of the products the company handles can be recycled intouseful products within the group, keeping costs down andmaximising profits.D.J. Laing’s skip hire service went on the road with just one heavygoods vehicle in 1990, and has grown into a fleet of seven artics,four tippers, three ro-ro’s, five chain lifts and two rel lorries,servicing 300 chain skips, 100 ro-ro containers, 200 eurobins, 200wheelie bins and a weekly bag collection of 100 bags. Wastecollected either goes to the Petterden Recycling Centre where allwood and inert material is recycled, or to Wester GourdieRecycling and Transfer Centre in Dundee, opened in June 2010,which sorts commercial, industrial, household and civic amenitywastes.Laing recycle about 80 percent of the material brought into bothsites, with that figure constantly improving as new technologiescome on stream. At the Petterden site wood is recycled intowoodchip for the panel board industry, sawdust for animal andchicken bedding, arena bedding, and third grade wood is

Chip off the oldblock

processed for the ever growing biomass market. This material isprocessed through a Doppstadt DZ750 Shredder and passesunder and over various magnets removing all ferrous and non-ferrous metals. Inert material from C&D waste is also processedthrough crushers and screeners, producing 2 grades of topsoil, a75mm crusher run, type 1 hardcore, and 14x5mm gravel, which areall re-used within the group. Laing also recover and process IBAash for aggregates, top capping material and the recovery ofmetals. Through these various processes we produce a wide rangeof environmentally friendly products that are totally recycledfrom waste. We have already won awards for Energy Developmentof the Year and were finalists in the Best Partnership Award in the2011 Wood Recycling Awards, which demonstrates the company’seffectiveness and commitment to the Recycling Industry andEnvironment.“However these processes are not without there challenges, everypiece of equipment is expected to run at 100 percent efficiency,there is no overlap of machines, with each machine purchased fora specific operation,” said Site Team Leader, David Dewars .“Recycling has to be lean and mean to remain profitable, so if onemachine goes down it needs to be back in operation extremelyquickly. Pirtek Dundee looks after all the equipment hydraulicneeds, and have done so for at least 20 years. We use them, andwill continue to use them for the quality of service they provide uswith. They are usually on site within 10 minutes from contactingthem, 30 at the absolute outside. They have helped the companyproduce really excellent products on time, and within budget. Wecan work the machines to their maximum efficiency knowing thatPirtek and our regular MSST Bryan Drummond are on hand to backus up in a breakdown.”

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Quarter 2 2012

Demolishingthe MythsPirtek Falkirk seems to be on something of a mission byservicing all the demolition companies in its locality. There are three large National Federation of Demolition Contractorsmembers in Falkirk - Central Demolition, David Morton Demolition, andMasterton Ltd - an unusually dense concentration in such a small area. But Pirtek's success at capturing all their business is no real secretaccording to John McArthur, Contracts Manager at David MortonDemolition. “Demolition is now highly automated. In order to keep menout of harm’s way, virtually all the work is done by excavators, which arethe lynchpins of any modern demolition project. The downside is that anyunscheduled equipment failure will simply bring a project to a halt. Andthis, according to Morton, is why he and other demolition experts now relyupon the service offered by Pirtek. “Prompt back up and repairs by Pirtekare now an integral part of our operations. We always look after our

equipment, but parts fail and hoses still getdamaged, and they need to be put right ASAP.Pirtek's reaction times are excellent and they do asterling job on site,” John concludes. “They arevery reliable and come equipped for any type ofrepair on site, which is why they retain our work.”

Current (and two-time) WorldDemolition Contractor of theYear Safedem has explosivelyremoved many an eyesore in itsnative Scotland and furtherafield. As a company, they liketo make things go with a bang,but with one notable exception;the hydraulics on theirequipment. Based in Dundee, Safedem has anenviable reputation as not justone of the most professionaldemolition contractors in thecountry, but also as one of themost considerate. The companyis renowned for the thought thatgoes into their projects, and for the community liaison before,during and after a major demolition project.“We even received Christmas and thank you cards from members ofthe public who have been affected by our demolition works,” saysSafedem finance director Peggie Smith. “I'm delighted. It meanswe have done a job properly and everyone is pleased with theresult.”This is a view shared by Peggie’s son, William, managing director ofthe company and vice president of the National Federation ofDemolition Contractors. “Obviously safety is of paramountimportance with any of our work. Everything has to work perfectlyand there is no room for error. It is a work ethos that haspermeated through the company on every level, and we expect thesame level of care from our suppliers,” William Sinclair says. “PirtekDundee has been our hydraulic service supplier for as long as I canremember, and for one simple reason; they are good. Theirresponse times are excellent, the products are high quality and theyunderstand the workings of the company whether in the workshopor on site. They are a company we can trust.”

Go with a Bang

Edinburgh demolition specialist Forth Demolition prides itselfon tackling all the awkward jobs no-one else likes doing. Theysay they have a natural affinity with Pirtek for the same reason.“We can have projects on the go all over Scotland, that will justabout use every piece of kit we own. We run a tight ship to givegood value to our customers, so it is imperative that every thingworks to its maximum efficiency. The company has beensuccessful, even during the recent lean years and as aconsequence we own all our own equipment outright. However nomatter how well we look after and maintain it, things will fail, andyou can guarantee it will be on the key machine on a project.Usually on a horrible site, miles from anywhere, in the rain or in ablizzard,” says managing director Stephen McCann. “So we arelucky to have Pirtek Edinburgh close by for hydraulic repairs.They always give us good service and use quality parts and hoses.We only have to phone up and they are on site, usually well insidethe advertised time. They always come out and do the repair inthe most atrocious conditions, and without complaint. But what Ireally like about them is that all their work and products areguaranteed. That says a lot about their service.”

Going Forth

One Scottish company that will never be short of work in the winter mustbe Paisley-based Beyard Services Limited (BSL), regarded as one of thecountry’s leading winter gritting providers.Established in 1984 as a specialist plant hire company, BSL soondiversified into specialist markets such as ground maintenance, siteclearance, road sweeping, gully cleaning, graffiti removal, pressurewashing, office and industrial unit removals, weed control, grass cutting,litter picking, fly tipping removal and of course, gritting.BSL adapted to seasonal work by converting existing vehicles to cope withsnow clearance and gritting. By simply exchanging the bodies on theirtippers to gritting spreaders and fitting ploughs to the front, BSLconquered another niche market.

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Today, the company covers120 sites in Scotland, providinga prompt and reliable service ata competitive price, traits itexpects its suppliers toreplicate. Although BSL has its own fleetmaintenance department, thecompany often calls upon theservices of Pirtek Paisley tomake sure everything works,even in the snow. “When the gritters go intoaction, there are often hydraulichiccups because the bodieshaven't been used since theprevious year. The majority aresimple to rectify but with saltbeing so corrosive, there arebound to be hose and fitting replacements,” says BSL transportmanager Jamie Crawford. “All the machines are readied long beforewinter, which gives me a chance to see if any improvements can bemade to the equipment, to either save money or make them morereliable.”Crawford reports that one such improvement has been a switch fromsteel to rubber hoses. “On the gritters, it was obvious that theexpensive rigid steel hoses were failing, so Pirtek is replacing them withmore flexible rubber hoses that are not only cheaper, easier tomaintain, but more resistant to corrosion,” he concludes. “Thanks toPirtek Paisley, we now have more reliable machines and can offer agreater service to the public as a consequence. We built our reputationon good service, and that's the same attitude that Pirtek employs.”

True Grit

Founded in 1964, Blackwood Plant Hire has grown into one ofScotland's premier plant hire companies, but it still remains afamily business with Tom Blackwood junior at the helm of thecompany his father Tom Senior created.Based at Stewarton just outside Kilmarnock, Blackwood nowsupplies virtually every major Scottish contracting company,including Land Engineering Ltd, Raynesway, Carillion CivilEngineering, Scottish Water and Network Rail. “We've expanded into a nationwide service with 100+ excavatorsfrom 1-30 tonnes, and 80 operational employees plus the officestaff. We have worked for the traditional constructionbusinesses since the company started but by diversifying into newfields, we have work in new sectors and projects as far south asDerby now. Our projects are as diverse as piling, powerlineconstruction and rail infrastructure. We were also heavilyinvolved in the Meadowhead water project. When the 2014Commonwealth Games were recently awarded to Glasgow, wesuccessfully tendered for part of the work, and will be starting onthe new Velodrome soon,” says operations manager Allan Wilson.“We've retained the original family values in the company and ithas paid dividends with a very loyal client base that appreciates agreat traditional service, but one that's innovative as well. Weconstantly look at customer requirements to see if we can givebetter equipment provision or provide something out of theordinary. This is why we invested in 11 excavators with Engcon

No Pressure Then? tilt rotators to make handling easier for operators, and 10 newlow ground pressure excavators that range from 6-18 tonnes.This gives the company an advantage on environmental projectsor sensitive sites. However as the company has expanded, sohave the maintenance requirements. That's where Pirtek fits in.We are specialists in low ground pressure machines, they areexperts in hydraulics. We can't fault Pirtek Kilmarnock, they arealways there when we need them. They give an excellentresponse to any problem, plus they provide the national coveragewe need. With work being undertaken throughout the UK, it'sgood to know we get the same excellent service wherever we areworking.”

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Quarter 2 2012

When Pirtek Kilmarnock opened a new dedicated sales andservice Centre at Dumfries at the end of October 2010, it wasimmediately christened with a good fall of snow. A year on, theCentre is thriving but it still has to contend with the Scottishweather.“The weather played a big part in the creation of the new Centre.Dumfries is nearly an hour south of Kilmarnock and now serves thebusiness community down to the border and across to the westand the port at Stranraer. There is a big industrial customer basein Dumfries with national plant companies such as Quattro Rail,Hewden, Select and A-Plant close by, but that gets progressivelymore agricultural with a big emphasis on forestry to the south.Needless to say that means customers are often in remotelocations, and bad weather will dramatically reduce the chances ofkeeping the 1 hour ETA promise,” says Pirtek Dumfries CentreManager Dave Cranston. “We now have the flexibility of twoCentres serving our customers and the response times havedefinitely improved, and the customer reaction has beenexcellent, so much so, that we now have a new service van atDumfries, and have brought Mark Brennan in from Kilmarnock tohelp with customer requirements. We also have the trade counteropen from 7.30 am to help customers prepare for the working day.This has proved immensely popular. Pirtek has listened to itscustomers and given them what they need. Being closer to ourcustomers also means that the snow - so much a part of theScottish way of life - is a lot easier to cope with.”

Snow Business

Based at Invergordon, Pirtek Aberdeen MSST Paul Burton is along way from his native Maidstone almost 600 kilometres to thesouth. But after visiting the area, he fell in love with theHighlands. Just as well. With a territory that encompassesInverness, Wick and Thurso as well as the Highlands and Islands,it is not unusual for Burton to clock up a regular 300 kilometresper day on customer service calls.

In fact, based upon his workload, it is tempting tocheck if he’s wearing a T-shirt emblazoned with alarge S beneath his Pirtek uniform. But he takesit all in his stride. “I’ve been doing this job forclose on four years and I love it. I could be in FortWilliam, Skye and Wick on the same day and I’vedone work in Orkney as well. It’s hugelyinteresting work with a very diverse client base,oil rigs, agricultural, plant, North Sea supply ships,a 500 tonne dock crane, wind farms and even acustoms boat the other day,” he says. “This is partof the Aberdeen territory, but with the populationspread so thinly over such a big area, we realisedthat customers could be better served by a seriesof mobile workshops rather than a single tradecounter. This has been vindicated by customerreaction, which has been very positive. Becausewe understand our customers’ industry sectors sowell, we can keep the service vans well stockedwith regular use components. Anything reallyunusual we can get from central stores the nextday. That means that when we arrive on site thereis a pretty good chance we can sort the problemon the spot.”

Faster Than aSpeeding Bullet

6 January is traditionally known for the visit of the three wise men toBethlehem. However, on 6 January 2012, three wise demolitionengineers from Armac Group were tasked with dismantling themonumental structure known as Catthorpe Viaduct: the main overbridgeof the M6/M1/A14 interchange, and one of the busiest intersections ofthe UK Motorway network.The junction handles 100,000 vehicles a day but has a poor road safetyrecord according to the Highways Agency (HA) and had become anotorious bottleneck for those travelling south on the M1.The Agency began consultations in 2005 with Skanska for a public enquiryin 2008. Finally in 2011, the Government agreed to proceed with the £150million road improvements.

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Bridging the Gap

Break OutA new viaduct was built at J19 to take the increased traffic. Thereplacement viaduct had been designed and constructed as part of thewider remodelling of the M1/M6/A14 interchange. As a result, the newstructure had to be constructed just six metres from the old structure totie in with the new junction alignment. The close proximity of thisstructure provided one of the greatest challenges to the Armac designteam. Detailed CAD modelling of the structures demonstrated that therewas enough working space, but even so it meant that the demolitionbetween the structures required detailed control on the night from thedemolition engineers supervising the break out.In addition, the length of the closure was a tough point of negotiation.

Armac had originally proposed a single 48 hour closure from Fridaymidnight to Sunday midnight. However, the HA was reluctant to close thisbusy section of motorway for such a long time and preferred a stagedclosure over three weekends with the central suspended spans andcentral leaf pier being removed under a full 18 hour closure and then theoutside spans under separate 12 hour closures.

Financial PenaltiesAt £ 18,000 per hour penalties, the large time reduction certainly focusedour mind,” says Armac’s Rail & Civils director Noel McLean. “But a detailedhour-by-hour programme and finite analysis of the critical path gave us theconfidence that we could meet such a difficult timeline.’With some 4,000 tonnes of concrete, 500 tonnes of reinforcement steeland a three kilometre run to the tip area, a major logistical operation wasplanned by the Armac team. With all plant and equipment being deliveredand removed from the project on a ‘just in time’ basis the project hadassembled what is believed to be the largest ever assembly of demolitionfire power for a bridge demolition comprising 14 hydraulic excavators

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Quarter 2 2012

ranging from 70 to 50 tonnes; two 7 tonne hydraulic breakers; four 6 tonnebreakers; six 4 tonne beakers; four 6 tonne pulverisers; four 4 tonnehydraulic processors; two 7 tonne shears; and a fleet of 12 x 40 tonnepayload dumptrucks.However as Matt explained, there is a lot of forward planning to be donebefore work started. "I knew we would have a lot of machinery on site, andit all had to work all the time we were operating. And one of the mostobvious causes of non-scheduled downtime is a hydraulic failure ordamage to a hydraulic part,” explains Armac’s operations manager MattRight. “So I arranged for Pirtek Birmingham to provide cover for the entiretime we were operating at Catthorpe. They provided two vans withMSSTs working 12 hour shifts from 8pm Friday evening, during the set upperiod, right through to Sunday morning when we were clearing up.”

Time-SavingHaving called upon Pirtek Birmingham’s support on previous bridgedemolition projects, Right says he knew what to expect. But

even he admits to having been genuinely impressed by the level ofcommitment shown on the Catthorpe contract. “Pirtek is very conversantwith our fleet and have helped us standardise the hydraulic hoses andfittings on our excavators in the past. This meant that any repairs wouldbe quick and efficient. There was a lot of forward planning and the Pirtekengineers were all briefed and inducted on site so everything ran likeclockwork. They became part of our team and were very proactive, evenhelping to change excavator attachments to help us save time,” Rightconcludes. “I can honestly say hats off to Pirtek, they did a veryprofessional job, and Skanska and the Highways Agency are chuffed tobits that it all went to schedule.”A time-lapse video of the demolition in progress can beviewed at: http://tinyurl.com/7hmj3lj

When brothers Ian and Hardie Brown started their plant businessin 1964 it was the first step from their farming background to amulti-million pound enterprise with over 200 employees.The company’s history has been one of diversification. I&H Brownhad evolved into a civil engineering main contractor by the mid70s, colliery reclamation in the 80s, surface mining in 1985, andmore recently a renewable energy provider. They still haveinterests in farming with almost 3,000 hectares of land in Perth,Lothian and Inverness, and 8,000 hectares of land managementprojects mostly in Glengarry.To date the company has completed over 500 civil engineeringprojects, with infrastructure work and bulk earthmoving, mostnoticeably on the M80, being supplemented by wind farmconstruction, remediation, landfill and residential developmentunder the name of Tighmór.“We work all over the UK,” says plant director Robert Brown. “Wehave to be very diverse in the services we offer to our customers.As a result the company has evolved and diversified into lots ofassociated and allied industries over the years, which has greatlyhelped in times of economic uncertainty. One division wouldbolster another, and the value of the land would always underwriteany investment. This has helped secure work from wind farms inthe Orkneys, to recent projects in London, Liverpool and Ireland.”Such diversification and evolution has resulted in the companyamassing an impressive if disparate equipment fleet. “We have tohave a lot of specialised equipment. We are big purchasers ofCaterpillar and Volvo equipment and have recently invested a£1/4m in new Volvo articulated dumptrucks. We also have a fleetof excavators that range from 1.5 to 70 tonnes. That all takes alot of looking after,” Brown continues. “We keep plant for nolonger than five years and continually upgrade our fleet with thelatest, most efficient models. To make sure it all works tomaximum efficiency, we have used Pirtek Perth for more than 17years, but we now have a national service to deal with emergencycall outs in the rest of the UK. Pirtek deals with all our hydraulicneeds and we are very happy with their service. Our engineersalso use the trade counter, but Pirtek have very good responsetimes if we do need them on site. An excellent job, with our regularMSST Ian Gray providing a sterling service.”

www.pirtek-europe.com

Earth Works

Keeping all the ground support maintenance vehicles at an airportworking is no mean feat, and a single missing item such as a de-icing vehicle could seriously delay flights. So to find that theservice vehicles at Aberdeen Airport at Dyce and its three millionpassengers per year depend on just one company (and a little helpfrom Pirtek) makes the service even more remarkable.The original airfield was built in the 30s to improve links to London.It was greatly expanded during WWII, and again during the NorthSea oil boom years of the 70s when three helicopter terminals werebuilt.But Aberdeen Airport has recently undergone something of arenaissance with a new £10 million, 124 metre extension to themain runway that will enable much larger aircraft to use thefacilities. It is thought that the anticipated quarter of a millionadditional passengers will bring in another £6 million to the localeconomy. Byron Buckett, the maintenance manager and owner of GroundFleet Support (GFS) provides the support for Servisair, BAA and theAberdeen Aircraft Cleaning Company at Aberdeen airport. Hestarted GFS nearly five years ago after negotiating the contractwith Servisair, which found that relinquishing the maintenancecontract to GFS made more financial sense than employing theirown maintenance team.“We certainly have a busy schedule, usually in excess of 40 hours ofpure maintenance work a week. We keep the de-icers, ramp units,luggage loaders, tractor units and the high loaders for containerloading in good working order. The airport vehicles have a hard life,and wear and tear has to be kept under constant control, as well asundertaking the regular scheduled maintenance work. Thehydraulics on these vehicles are in continuous use, and replacementhoses are one of the most common repairs I have to undertake,”Byron Buckett says. “At first I just used Pirtek simply as a matter ofconvenience. I could remove a damaged hose, take it over to thePirtek trade counter round the corner, and it would be made on thespot while I enjoyed a cup of tea. But as I’ve got to know them I’verealised they could provide a big chunk of my other regularmaintenance parts. They now provide all my hydraulic hoses, thestainless steel hoses, motors, valves and all sorts of fittings. Theyprovide an excellent service and are always there for the oddemergency call out as well. I can cope with the demands of theairport because I know if I have Pirtek backing me up when I needhelp.”

Air Craft

In the pipeline 13

Quarter 2 2012

Sands of Time

Operations at the Elford quarry owned by JPE Holdings, nearTamworth, are nearing completion as the site is coming to theend of its economic life and is about to be restored and turnedinto a holiday home leisure centre."We’ll be sad not to be dealing with Pirtek Burton as JPE hasenjoyed a really good relationship with them over the years," saysquarry manager Dave Rogers. “We have been using them as longas I've been on the site, and they have repaired practically everypiece of kit we own in that time.”The Elford site has a long and productive history having beenpreviously owned by Blue Circle and Hanson before being sold toJPE. JPE is one of the Midlands leading suppliers of primary,secondary and in particular, recycled aggregates, clays and soils,with Elford supplying topsoil, gravel and sand. Originally a 55hectare sand and gravel pit, the site was converted into aconstruction and demolition waste recycling plant when the virginresources were exhausted. A wash plant was added allowingwaste aggregate from the TV4 project to be recycled on the site,closely followed by waste material from the M6 toll motorway."We crush and wash on site which allows JPE to produce really highquality recycled aggregates from 10-40mm,” Rogers says. “Wethen produce clean sand that is separated from soil using acyclone washer, and we have a log washer as well that producesquality top soil. At the moment we are winding the site down.Only 2-3,000 tonnes of material a week is coming onto the sitenow, which will eventually cease altogether. We have just sevencrew on the site at present and we were hoping to process thematerial from the HS2 project, but that will be another eight yearsaway. Now it is a simple matter of economics, if we

produce a 6F2 product,it simply isn't viable toship it into Birminghamdue to transport costs,the site is in the wronglocation. So JPEdecided to move thisoperation to Sandhills,where the Pirtek workwill come under thePirtek Wolverhamptonfranchise.”Although he is assuredthat the Pirtek serviceis consistent across itsnational network,Rogers believes thatthe service at PirtekBurton will be a toughact to follow. "I canhonestly say we haven'thad one problem withPirtek Burton. Thathave always beentotally reliable, provide

an excellent service and we even get good prices on top,” heconcludes. “I've even had their engineers come to our site ontheir days off to ensure we are working. Our MSST SteveEdwards even delayed going on holiday once tohelp me with a problem. Now that isdedication."

JPE quarry manager Dave Rogers with Pirtek Burton’s Steve Edwards

Dave Rogers showing off the quality of the products

Steve with one of the many diversemachines used at the Elford Quarry

Readers of a certain vintage will recall a time when even top flightfootball pitches looked like ploughed fields throughout the wintermonths. And yet today they appear to always be in such pristinecondition, even in the most testing of weather conditions. Whenyou hear that the all weather course or pitch will be fit for use whensurrounding venues are frozen solid, it is likely that a MansfieldSand product is behind it.Although it's not the sand that Mansfield Sand produces thatmakes it famous, it is what they do with it afterwards that hasbrought this company fame. The sand can be mixed with compost,plastic fibres (Fibresand) and even elastic (Fibrelastic) to providethe base for some of the most iconic grounds in the world. TheAviva Stadium, the Millennium Stadium, Old Trafford, StamfordBridge, Twickenham, Ibrox, Newcastle and Brighton & Hove FC usetheir products. It is also used on the all weather surface atSouthwold race track, countless horse and manège traininggrounds (Carpet Ride) as well as a number of top golf courses inanything from a topsoil to top dressing. The Divot mix product isused to restore greens and tees as well as racetracks and theproducts are widely used in landscaping (Sherwood topsoils) andtree sand/Fibresand landscape (Helicom). The silica sand isquarried, washed by the on-site hydrofiltration plant that removesthe clay before it is screened, processed, sterilised and dried. It isused for top block paving by Marshalls, bagged for local use, mixedwith compost, as a topsoil with plastic fibres for a rooting mediumfor pitches or with elastic for training pitches, also used in mainstadia as well. The additives are not bonded but specifically mixedto suit the requirements of the sporting venue. Chatsworth Househas even used the Fibresand and landscape products in overflowcar parking areas to withstand heavy traffic areas.

www.pirtek-europe.com

When Mansfield Sand says it pioneered the development and productionof high quality sand-based products for over 100 years, it doesn't evenbegin to describe the plethora of innovative products the companyproduces to keep a myriad of top sports venues open all year round.

The current quarry has been extracting sand for 50 years underthe Mansfield Sand name. Although the sand was originallyquarried at the 60 hectare Berry Hill site to supply the needs ofthe local foundries, as these began to close, the directors ofMansfield Sand looked at alternative markets and found theunique sporting niche they are famous for today. But today thesite is nearing the end of its productive life. The entrance hasalready been restored, landscaped and now forms part of abusiness park and NHS facility. However the company is in theprocess for developing a new site close by, where operations willbe moved to in the near future. The company also own one of themost modern brick works two miles away from the current quarry. In the quarry, the five metre benches are now down to a depth of30 metres thanks to intensive quarrying by a Caterpillar 615Celevated scraper - the key machine in the quarry. Director andQuarry Manager Richard Abraham says he cannot stress just howimportant this single machine is. "We use the Cat for primarysand removal, if it goes down, the plant stops. It produces 2,000tonnes a day and although we have spare scrapers, we find it isquicker to call Pirtek out than put one of these into action. Thechances are, Pirtek is on site in 10 minutes. They know we are ona very tight time span and do their best to keep us on track,”Richard says. “Although the scraper is vital, we get the same fastresponse for other machine failures. Pirtek has worked on ourpower screens, dozer, wheel loaders, the static plant, the pressurewashers and forklifts and has even sorted fixtures and fittings forthe gas oil and fuel tanks. I can't fault the service, that's why wehave been such a long-standing customer."

Pitching In

QuarryManager

RichardAbraham with

site supervisorJohn Pearson

Top, John with the Fibresandproduct and immediately above,

with the Fibrelastic soil. Right, the quarry is now down to90’ . When resources have been

exhausted, the whole area will berestored for recreational use

In the pipeline 15

Quarter 2 2012

Some vehicles and machines seem to have a personality of their own; andtrains in particular have long been attributed with almost humancharacteristics. If this is the case, then 'Big Jim' an American an S160-2-8-0 loco currently being restored at the Haworth workshops of theKeighley and Worth Valley Railway (KWVR), already has a CV better thanmost characters in modern fiction.‘Big Jim’ was built to take part intransporting material for the troopsstraight after the D-Day landings in1944. The loco was shipped from theUS to Wales, where it was stored in aquarry before being taken to Franceand put to work across Europe by theUS Transport Corps, until the end ofthe war. KWVR knows it was thenused in Greece, Hungary and Poland,where it was eventually discovered ina field by two KWVR members. Yearsof negotiation followed, and ‘Big Jim’was finally purchased and shipped toEngland where it was promptlyimpounded at Hull, when it wasdiscovered the ship's crew hadpacked it with smuggled cigarettes.Eventually it was released and takento Haworth where it is currentlyundergoing seven years ofrestoration and a complete rebuild.The 128 tonne loco is minus its boilerat the moment, but the tender hasalready been completely rebuilt andthe wheels and driving gear arecurrently being reassembled for thecompletion scheduled for October2013. Although a not-for-profitorganisation, KWVR runs a farepaying service along an eightkilometre stretch from Keighley toOxenhope that has appeared in many

TV and film productions including Yanks, Sherlock Holmes, Last of theSummer Wine, Treasure Hunt, Sons and Lovers, Some Mothers Do 'Ave'Em, Poirot, Born and Bred, The Royal, Where The Heart Is, A Touch OfFrost, Songs Of Praise, and Pink Floyd's The Wall. It is this fare payingroute that provides the funding for the volunteers to restore the locos.KWVR has five or six engines in full working order at any one time; threemore on a rolling programme of maintenance; and eight others invarious stages of restoration. As it usually takes 2-3 years to rebuild aloco every 10 years, the input from the volunteers is hugely valued byKWVR. “Big Jim is a good example. The volunteers have stripped theengine down to its frames and them proceeded to rebuild the entireengine. We have remanufactured all the pistons and valves in-house.We try and do all the machining on site to save money and it's wonderfulto find we still have eight engineers available to the charity with suchskills,” says fitter Andy Tarran. “However there are things we can't make,so we called Pirtek in to take a look at some of the pipework and oddfittings on the loco. As a result, our regular MSST Danny Casement hasmanaged to source all sorts of weird components. We've involved himin the lube changes and the design of new pipe fittings which willprolong the life of the loco. A lot of this particular loco was fairlycrudely made and frankly dangerous, so we have had to upgrade andstandardise all the pipes and fittings to BSP, and Pirtek provided all ofthese. At least we know they will all be safe and operational parts now.”Above Andy Tarran, KWVR fitter and

below some of the numerous projectsalways on the go. Opposite some of thenew Pirtek fittings on ‘Big Jim’

The boiler from ‘Big Jim’ All Steamed Up

www.pirtek-europe.com

Upwardly Mobile “It seems it doesn’t matter how manyproduct catalogues we give out. One ofthe most common customer commentsis still ‘I didn’t know Pirtek did that’. So Idecided to be more proactive, taking theproducts to the customer and explainingall the services Pirtek can offer," Steveexplains. "So we purchased a MercedesVito and kitted it out as a mobile salesshowroom, which I take out on the road.”The van (and Steve) are shared betweenPirtek Burton and Pirtek Coventry withthree days per week spent in each area.

“It’s gone down a storm,” Steve asserts. “We’ve had a really good reactionfrom existing customers and plenty of enquiries from new prospects. Iget a lot of new work from existing customers when they discover we canprovide, amongst other things, pneumatic services and ram repairs. Thepersonal approach works really well once you start to explain what Pirtekcan provide, and how Pirtek are prepared to go the extra mile on service.” Steve believes that customers appreciate the personal touch this newapproach affords. "We had one really good result with American truckmanufacturer Liberty Electric who couldn't source parts for a 7.5 tonnelorry,” he concludes. “Pirtek Burton did, and as a direct result of thatmeeting we made 21 sets of fittings and shipped them to the USA.Personal touch? - works every time"

After 16 years spent on the service vans, an injury drastically alteredSteve Edwards' career path with Pirtek. But in a fine example of the apositive philosophy, Steve has now taken on the role as Technical SalesManager, with a little help of a customised sales vehicle.

Pirtek Burton Centre Manager JamesGuest (left) with Technical Sales Manager

Steve Edwards

Monaghan inEpynt rally return

See us atScotplant 2012

Royal Highland Centre, InglistonEdinburgh EH28 8NBFriday 27th/28th AprilAvenue D Stand No. 4

Rally driver Kev Monaghan started his 2012 season on 11th Marchwhen he contested round one of the MSA Asphalt Rally Championship,the Tour of Epynt. Monaghan will use his usual Vauxhall Corsa Kit Carbacked by Pirtek Tyne & Wear, F & R Belbin Engineering and GBLubricants, a car in which he and co-driver Chris Purvis almost won theclass championship in 2011. The car has had a full engine rebuild by BillFalconer over the winter and it has also had a paddle shift gear changefitted thanks to Playskool Motorsport which should ensure thatMonaghan has the speed to do well again this year."We had a very disappointing end to the 2011 championship when afractured oil cooler forced us to retire on the final round," saidMonaghan. "That cost us the class championship as well as the honourof finishing as first two wheel drive car. The car is all set for theopening round and we’re looking to build on the three class wins we gotlast year, I am confident that we will perform well again."Round one of the championship takes place on the notoriously toughtarmac of the Epynt military ranges near Llandovery in Wales. It will beMonaghan’s second visit to the venue."I made my Epynt debut last year and it is fair to say that I was totally inawe of the place. The roads there are so fast with lots of places to havea big accident if you get it slightly wrong. The awful conditions on theday didn’t help me get much confidence so hopefully they will be betternext weekend. "The aim for round one is to beon the pace of the leading crews in the classand to get a good finish with a decent haul ofchampionship points."The rally start from the Castle Hotel inLlandovery with the crews contesting sevenstages over the ranges totalling 80 miles.

In the pipeline 17

Quarter 2 2012

Emerald IsleThe distinctive green and purplelivery of Greenstar seems to beeverywhere in Ireland today. Aftertaking over the operations of Veolia,this Irish company has taken therecycling industry by the scruff of theneck and employed some innovativeconcepts many UK companies wouldbe delighted to emulate. Greenstar is Ireland’s leading providerof environmental, waste management,skip hire and recycling solutions.Employing more than 670 peopleacross 40 sites nationwide, thecompany offers services in education,research, composting, recycling andthe development of facilities for thesafe disposal of waste that cannot bereused, recycled or recovered.Greenstar provides waste management solutions to industry, businessand domestic customers, recycling or recovering over 60 percent of thewaste handled.The company also provides household waste and recycling services toover 70,000 household customers and 25,000 business customersnationwide. In addition, Greenstar operates materials recovery facilitiesin Wicklow, Sligo, Cork and Dublin including Millennium Park, the country’slargest and most sophisticated automated recycling facility, which candivert between 70-85 percent of waste from landfill.The company has invested over €320M since it was founded in 1999 todevelop essential integrated waste management infrastructure and ismaking further investment in its Dublin operations to produce fossil fuelsubstitutes (SRF) from landfill. In 2011, Greenstar will generate enoughenergy from recycled waste to power 35,000 homes.The waste stream segregation process is incredibly thorough, as recyclingmanager Carl Hogan explains. “Take our clear plastic wrap recoverysection. Here two guys will split open recovered plastic and sort it by handat night, when the baler isn't being used, removing as much of the colouredmaterial as possible. We then produce a bale of cleaner material called98.2, which has a much higher retail price than unsorted plastic. A littleeffort brings greater rewards and a much more useable product. Thecoloured plastic is simply reused in a different process. They will sortthrough 14 bales a night, that's approximately a 120 tonnes a shift,” hesays. "We will recycle as much as possible. Glass is processed by acompany in Northern Ireland, segregated paper waste goes to Kent, andfood waste goes for separate composting. Wood is put through a shredderfor mulching rather than biomass. One of our specialities is our granulator,which deals with our polyurethane waste. We sort it carefully beforegranulating so the products are of superb quality with varying grades ofproduct depending on the raw material."All of these processes place a great demand upon Greenways mobile andstatic equipment fleet. "We run a tight ship with just 10 people on theground and 18 drivers. Where we get a hydraulic hose problem, Pirtekcomes over straight away, often within 10 minutes,” Hoganconcludes. “They do all the dirty jobs. They are always ontime and work with no hassle. They get the jobdone right, first time.”

Ultimate TestHose testing and certification isbecoming more and more common,especially among hi-tech companies.Pirtek Galway has the perfectsolution; a full test rig and calibrationunit. Originally purchased for aspecific job in the petroleum industry,the test rig has proved it’s worth oncountless occasions. "We were facedwith a big customer moving thegoalposts and insisting that in futureall hoses not only had to be pressuretested, but they had to come with acalibration certificate as well, "recalls Pirtek Galway's Managing

Director, Seán Howard. "When you’re making 700 hoses a year for aclient, you comply. And once we had the rig installed, we realised thatit was actually to our advantage because we now had a facility we couldoffer to the oil and marine companies using deep water hoses, thatneed to be certificated every six months. But it was only when westarted to get enquiries from the pharmaceutical sector that we knewwe had a piece of equipment that meant we could investigate all sortsof new industries. This was very much a case of providing what thecustomer needs rather than presuming you know what’s required. Wehave had no trouble getting the hydraulics message across, and as aresult we have a long list of long standing and very loyal customers whohave stuck with us, because we have provided the best servicepossible, by being as flexible as possible to cater for their needs. As aresult we have found we are in an excellent position to offer ourcustomers even more as the economy grows again."

So you think youknow Pirtek?Pirtek. The name conjures images of hydraulic hoses, right? Butthere’s more to the Fluid Transfer Solutions provider than just hoses.Did you know, for example, that the company is also adept at hydraulicram repairs? Take Pirtek Dublin for example. According to LicenseeKen Robertson, customer demand dictated that ram repairs featuredamongst the services offered by his Centre. "There is a huge demandfor ram repairs in this area," he enthuses. "We set up our engineeringworkshop which included welding andbrazing facilities, a very large lathe to turnthe ram steel rods, and a lot of ancillaryequipment. We don't sub any of the repairsout, everything is manufactured on thepremises by our ram specialist Peter Roita.We are resealing plenty of rams andremanufacturing between 10 and12 permonth at the moment. We offer a fullremoval and refit service, together with avariety of engineering solutions. PeterRoita is currently manufacturing a series ofblocks for Aer Lingus that are part of theirrecharging system for oxygen bottles."

Ram specialist Peter Roita

Seán Howard

www.pirtek-europe.com

To say that S.E. Davis & Son is a family owned and operated business thathas been located at Astwood Bank, Worcestershire for the last 70 yearsdoesn't really begin to describe the company. The 6.5 hectare site isactually home to five generations of the family and a personal collectionof 500 period pieces of construction equipment.The company has a huge fleet of excavators, shovels, ADTs and graders forhire, but it also provides a recycling facility where utility companies canbring waste material for processing. Even this doesn't go to waste, as thesalvaged material is used in a variety of products including Kwik-Bloks, adry wall system, as well as top soil, aggregates, drainage material andsand. The on-site recycling facilities lead to another innovation from thecompany; a mobile washing plant that can be taken on site to process andrecover waste material in situ. The process is quick and does away withsettlement lagoons and vehicle movements. The process also recyclesthe water in the process.What looks like an artic trailer actually contains a mobile de-wateringcentrifuge which processes 50tonnes of sludge an hour, removing thewater with a 6.25 tonne centrifuge operating at 2,100 revs or 3,000G. Thecentrifuge is powered by 90 and 45 kW electric motors and is totally self-contained. It can also be linked to a log washer which splits silt from sandat 65 microns and will process 2,500 litres per minute. Great grandson of the founder, director Paul Davis, admitted that theproject had a very mundane beginning. “My dad Andrew and I are easilybored. We're both famers at heart and have an agricultural background, sowe tend to look at things in a slightly unconventional way. The wasterecycling lead to the installation of our own recycling plant, which worksvery efficiently and provides a wide range of products we can reuse. Theonly thing we could think of was taking the recycling plant to the customersite to save on vehicle movements,” Davis says. “And it was a great ideabecause we can pack it into just three trailers and then interlink the kit inloads of configurations to provide all sorts of solutions." But that great idea isn’t without its challenges, as Paul Davis explains. “It'sall very well designing something like our mobile recycling plant but it has acouple of hundred hoses in its construction, so I'm very pleased we havePirtek Redditch to fall back on. We've used them for over 20 years and westill remember when Andy Connell - now owner of Pirtek Birmingham –was our local MSST,” he says. “The service from Pirtek has always beenexcellent and the MSSTs are very practical people. I know they undergo alot of safety training for site work. I trust them implicitly, especially ourregular MSST Mark Sayers, who we have a very high regard for. ”But like a true farmer, Davis says he still likes to keep an eye on hisexpenditure. “As good as they are, Pirtek doesn’t have carte blanche andwe constantly check on prices,” he concludes. But we do get the mostsuperb service from them, which is priceless.”

Keep on TruckingPirtek is renowned for sourcing weird and wonderful fixtures for unusualapplications. To prove the point, Pirtek Peterborough came up trumpswhen faced with a 1944 ex US truck to repair.

“Operating in an agricultural area we often get asked for parts for oldtractors but a Second World War truck, you have to admit, is a littleunusual,” says Pirtek Peterborough licensee John Hector. “But when IanGarbutt, Secretary of the Huntingdon & District Area Military VehicleTrust, turned up with the remains of an oil pipe from a 1944 GMC CCKW352 truck our staff didn't even pause for breath. We simply manufactureda new hose incorporating the rescued connection pieces from the old oilpipe and handed the completed item back to a very pleased customer.”Pleased indeed. Just a few days later, Hector received a letter that stated:“Your staff showed considerable expertise in being able to reuse theconnection pieces when making up a new pipe. At all times your staff werehelpful and courteous and a credit to your firm. Should the opportunityarise I will have no hesitation in recommending your company…”"We always do our best to help any customer in need, that's the way to dobusiness,” John Hector concludes. “What's so nice about this is that thecustomer took the time and trouble to say thanks. That is muchappreciated by myself and my team.”

Family Affair

With a decreasing budget, increasing workload and a growing fleet ofvehicles that should have been replaced, Belfast City Council has joinedthe ranks of local authorities that have to give ever greater levels ofvalue for money. Assistant Fleet Manager, Ciaran O’Callaghan had the thankless task ofrationalising services and preparing the tendering documents for variousaspects of external maintenance work. "When it came to the hydraulicservices I made a particularly tight document to ensure that only the bestequipped and dedicated companies could compete for the tender. In theend just three companies were able to supply the services we wanted andof those Pirtek stood out as the clear winner." he says.

"We have 380 vehicles ranging from ride-on mowers to 32 tonne skiploaders, road sweepers to RCVs (dustbin lorries) to look after with aworkshop maintenance crew of just 12. We do all our own preventativemaintenance work, servicing and damage repairs. What we can't do isexternal on-site repairs, so if a refuse truck breaks down miles from thedepot, we need to get an engineer to repair it fast - that's Pirtek's job." Ciaran reports that Pirtek’s task will be made more difficult by the ageingfleet with which they will have to contend. "We have 50 vehicles thatshould have been replaced this year but we don't have the budget toreplace them, especially when a single RCV will cost in excess of£130,000. So we are keeping them in the fleet for an extra 2-3 yearswhich means there is more maintenance work to keep them on the road.We also have the problem that we are committed to give better value formoney without jeopardising any service or reducing any safety aspect.We can't take vehicles out of service but we are constantly looking at howto get more out of them and how to make services more efficient.”The council has been extremely pro-active in its cost-cutting, investing indriver training and slowly switching to automatic vehicles to reduce fueland operating costs. The company also calls upon Pirtek to carry outregular inspections of its vehicle and equipment fleet to minimiseunplanned downtime. “Pirtek Belfast is in every Saturday and Sunday to make sure everything isworking for Monday morning. Every vehicle is inspected every 10-12weeks. When that involved working in -25 degrees last winter that showsreal dedication,” Ciaran asserts. “Our regular MSSTs have established areally good relationship with our fitters and it’s not unusual to call them infor one repair and find them still here working on two or three others onthe same visit. They give a brilliant service, otherwise they wouldn't still behere."

Left Assistant Fleet Manager CiaranO’Callaghan with a RCV in for servicingwith a burst hydraulic hose . Right MSST Alan Craig checks forleaks after a repairBelow Some of the 380 vehicles in theBCC fleet

Tight ShipIn the pipeline 19

Quarter 2012

Shutting the GatePolice in Ballymoney are holding a unique ‘CESAR It’ day at John McElderryMotors and Tractors Ltd., Market Street on Tuesday 3 April. This is the firstof a number of PSNI fitment days throughout Northern Ireland.The CESAR registration scheme protects your equipment by state of theart technology and visual deterrents. CESAR has the added benefits ofhaving no annual fees and will reduce insurance costs. The system isapproved and recommended by the Police Service of Northern Ireland andthe Association of Chief Police Officers. Inspector David Anderson said:"This scheme is just one of a range of events and projects being held by H District to help prevent agricultural crime and raise awareness of crimeprevention measures." Cathy Doyle of Pirtek Belfast said, "As an additionalincentive to farmers Pirtek Belfast will refund one lucky farmer the cost oftheir CESAR Kit! This coupled with the discounts on insurance available forhaving CESAR fitted makes this offer too good to miss."

In the pipeline

Pirtek Racingunveils 2012BTCC livery

20

www.pirtek-europe.com

Competition

BTCC 2012 ProgrammeBrands Hatch 01/Apr/2012Donington Park 15/Apr/2012Thruxton 29/Apr/2012Oulton Park 10/Jun/2012Croft 24/Jun/2012Snetterton 12/Aug/2012Knockhill 26/Aug/2012Rockingham 23/Sep/2012Silverstone 07/Oct/2012Brands Hatch GP 21/Oct/2012

With the British Touring Car Championship just about to start,In the Pipeline is offering one lucky reader a chance to win 2Pirtek Racing Experience tickets to a BTCC event at a circuit oftheir choice. To be in with a chance, just answer the followingquestion: Where will Pirtek be exhibiting in April 2012? Please email your answer to info@pirtek.co.uk. The winner willbe drawn from the correct entries on 30.04.2012. Good luck.And congratulations to Rachel McCrath from Surrey whocorrectly answered the competition in the previous edition ofIn the Pipeline and won a Pirtek Racing Hoodie and cap.

Pirtek Racing has unveiled the liveries for the pair of NGTC Honda Civicsthat Andrew Jordan and Jeff Smith will campaign in the 2012 DunlopMSA British Touring Car Championship. The sensational livery will keep Pirtek Racing firmly in the spotlight as theBTCC once again enjoys a superb TV package, with extensive live coverageon ITV4 as well as highlights programmes on ITV1. “The new livery is goingto be familiar to fans of Pirtek Racing, but even brighter than before,” saidAndrew Jordan. “People expect the Pirtek cars to stand out!” Jeff’s car will again run under the Pirtek Racing banner and will be finishedin Pirtek blue, but with the branding of his Industrial Control Distributorscompany.The two new Pirtek cars are currently nearing completion withTeam Dynamics and the initial reaction to the first NGTC Civic car built forMatt Neal has been very positive indeed. Now, the development of thePirtek Racing Hondas is nearing completion. “We hope to have our cars bythe end of this week and then we’ll be out testing next week,” said Andrew.“I’ve been at the Dynamics tests and that’s been a useful chance to learnabout the new car. The potential in the new car is clear and we should beable to hit the ground running.”“I’m very excited,” continued Andrew. “We’ve straight away put ourselves inthe best car on the grid. I think we’ll work very well with Team Dynamicsand they are being very open with us. I think it will be the best car on thegrid and I’d like to think we’ll be consistently near the front of the BTCCaction.” The first public showing for the new Pirtek Racing livery will be atthe BTCC pre-season media day at Silverstone on Monday 19 March.