IN FOCUS / PRESTON HIRE
SETTING HIGH STANDARDS IN CRANE HIRE With an extensive career in the crane industry, Stephan Becherand recently joined the Preston Hire team in the new position of Head of Cranes. In this interview, he highlights his reasons for joining the business and his aims and expectations for the future. “I HAVE AN EXTENSIVE BACKGROUND in cranes, starting with the worldwide industry leader Liebherr in France back in 2002. During my time with Liebherr, I travelled in North Africa for two years then UK and Europe. I moved to Australia in 2007 as Liebherr’s senior service engineer for South-East Asia and Australia, before establishing and building the training department of Liebherr Australia in 2010. “After nearly 10 years with the company, I moved to Titan Cranes in 2011 and over the next eight years held multiple roles culminating in the role of national operations manager. The past two years has been with WGC as both the branch manager and business development manager roles for the growing NSW crane fleet backed by FREO Group,” said Becherand. “When I moved to Preston Hire, I knew the best place for me to advance my career was with a stable and well-respected company. Preston Hire is nationally and internationally recognised for its products, and my objective is to be part of a company which enables me to expand my skills and knowledge of this industry. “My local and global experience in the crane sector are attributes that will complement the Preston Hire business. Based on its current market position, I felt the business was a perfect fit for my experience and passion for the industry. Preston Hire is a market leader in the mini crawler and the larger hydraulic crawler crane hire sector, and I fully intend to build on this position and to grow the business,” he said. 110 / CAL January 2022
Stephan Becherand, Head of Cranes Preston Hire.
Becherand discusses the challenges involved in maintaining a market leading position and how the business will continue to focus on providing the right solutions for its customers. “The market is evolving rapidly, and we need to keep a few steps ahead of developments to fulfill our clients’ requirements. This involves anticipating
future market demands and investing in the right technology. Frequent interaction with our customers to understand their current and future projects enables Preston Hire to provide the right solution for every application, and by customising our fleet to provide high levels of customer satisfaction and honour our promise – “Count on Us,” www.cranesandlifting.com.au
