Staffordshire, UK digger maker JCB has scooped up a £35 million order for 1,200 of its machines, bought by the UK’s biggest plant hire firm.
The contract from A-Plant – which bought 1,500 JCB machines worth £50 million last year – will mean a busy time for the company’s team at its factory in Rugeley, which makes cabs for most JCB equipment.
The deal is also good news for JCB’s other Staffordshire factories in Uttoxeter, Rocester and Cheadle, which will manufacture 13-tonne tracked excavators, mini excavators, Loadall telescopic handlers and rough terrain fork lift trucks which have been ordered. And the plant at Rugeley will be making cabs for most of the machines.
Around 400 workers are employed at the JCB Cab Systems factory in Rugeley.
The factory is due to relocate to a new site at Beamhurst as part of a wide reorganization outlined in 2013 but construction work has yet to get underway there.
Express and Star reports, the latest order will be particularly welcome as the company has struggled in recent years with a decline in demand from key markets such as Brazil, Russia and China. JCB’s annual figures, revealed in July, showed turnover fell from £2.51 billion in 2014 to £2.34bn last year with total machine sales down from 64,028 to 59,844.
A-Plant is also buying a fleet of JCB site dumpers and 40 generators that could provide enough power to run two hospitals or 1,000 homes. All the machines are being supplied by JCB dealer Greenshields JCB.
JCB UK & Ireland sales director Dan Thompstone said: “JCB has a long-standing relationship with A-Plant and we are delighted to cement that with this huge order. Winning business like this is testament to JCB’s continued introduction of innovative products supported by unrivaled parts and service back-up from the JCB UK dealer network.”
A-Plant marketing director Asif Latief said: “This order is part of our investment program to ensure our customers continue to get the most advanced, reliable, safe and environmentally friendly equipment.
“This year’s investment also includes JCB generators developed by the former Broadcrown business, which is a first for A-Plant and recognizes our commitment to offering quality new products to our customers.
“Our investment program is unrivaled in the industry and coupled with the high levels of customer support we provide, ensures we are firmly positioned to be the obvious choice for rental equipment whether our customers are local builders, events suppliers or national contractors.”
A-Plant, which is part of FTSE-100 company Ashtead Group, is the UK’s largest equipment rental company.
