TRT and Kobelco progressing nicely

KOBELCO CRAWLERS - TAKING ANOTHER LEAP FORWARD

Over the past 18 months, both TRT and Kobelco have made significant investments in the Australian and New Zealand markets. Despite the challenges of the global pandemic, it appears this investment is beginning to pay dividends.

FOLLOWING AN UPDATE EARLIER IN THE

year with TRT Crane specialists Dean McIlroy, Cranes Sales for TRT in New Zealand, and Troy Hand (Cranes Sales Australia and the Pacific Islands, TRT confirms the progress it has been making with the Kobelco range of crawler cranes.

McIlroy discusses the New Zealand market and how customers have been responding to the Kobelco brand.

“As I’ve said previously, the Kobelco product has a really good name in New Zealand and over the last year or so, we’ve been receiving positive feedback from the market. That’s from both a sales and service perspective.

“Kobelco is a great product and customers like the brand and a key reason for this is the reliability of the machines. Earlier in the year, we supplied Dave Carr Plant Hire Ltd and Fulton Hogan in New Zealand with telescopic crawlers, and both have been performing exceptionally well. Our customers have been impressed with the extra features and additions to the new models in the G Series which includes the foundation model - the TK750GFS. These extra safety features include the slew brake, hand-rails, extra galvanising and they’ve been impressed with the all-round performance of the crane,” he said.

“We sold another model, a Kobelco CKE1100G lattice boom crawler, to Calder Stewart. They were so impressed with machine they’ve already ordered an identical model. Notably, the CKE models have a European emissions standard, that not only reduces CO2 emissions, but it also reduces fuel consumption by up to 10%. This new crane is leaving the factory in November and arrives in the first quarter, 2022.

“There is a high level of interest in the Kobelco Crawlers as well. At the moment there are a number of significant projects under review in New Zealand. This year the focus of new projects has focused on fixing up the water industry, including reticulation, sewerage. There are a number of larger construction projects on hold, with this change of focus. So, I am sure we will see a lot more Kobelco crawlers out working as these projects come back online.

“I can see the construction sector ramping back up next year. This will be as a result of Government spending on various infrastructure projects, and this is a great opportunity for our customers and for Kobelco product,” said McIlroy.

Despite the challenges of managing a global supply chain in a pandemic, Kobelco has remained responsive to the market’s needs in Australia and New Zealand with very open communication channels says McIlroy.

“Kobelco is a great partner, and their team is a pleasure to deal with. The factory provides excellent technical support and deliveries are only four months ex-factory - and that’s fully painted. This means we can be responsive to demand. When you look at the equipment market generally, and the impact of the pandemic is having, people are having difficulty getting their hands on product. The manufacturing

innovations and efficiencies within the Kobelco factory are certainly helping with deliveries - so we’ve been fortunate,” he said.

McIlroy discusses existing Kobelco customers and how they have been responded to the support and service from TRT.

“The market has responded well to our service and support. Initially, there was a fair amount of work to be done to understand what product was out in the market. But this year, the service business has been very busy. We’ve added a new technician to the team which makes four technicians covering the country. The only issue we have is that because the Kobelco crawlers are so reliable, the support work mainly involves servicing.

The larger construction companies have secured major works including road upgrades says McIlroy.

“There is a large by-pass under construction in the lower North Island and there’s plenty of preparation for that project at this time, and the contractor has identified that this is ideal work for the Kobelco crawlers. The foundation crane is popular including the BMS1000 and the TK750GFS. We are also getting a lot of interest in the CKE1100. That’s because it can be transported with its tracks on, which saves a lot of set up time when it gets to site,” he said.

With a maximum rated capacity of 110t at 3.6m, and a 15.2–70.1m main lattice boom, the new CKE1100 fits between the existing CKE900 and CKE1350 models.

“All things considered we think next year will be a good year for Kobelco in New Zealand,” said McIlroy.

“The support from Kobelco has been outstanding really, they are a great supplier to deal with. They are very professional, responsive and understanding to our needs. They’ve been working with our technicians via Zoom and the in-depth training sessions have been excellent.

“The training has covered a number of the models and they’ve been working with our technicians in both Australia and New Zealand. Kobelco work in with our schedules this has helped make the training efficient. There is nothing better than having a pro-active OEM, like Kobelco, who understands that ultimately our success is going to be their success,” he said.

Troy Hand, TRT’s Cranes Sales and Pacific Island Manager has been receiving similar feedback from the Australian market.

“Enquiries have really started to increase over the last few months, probably ten-fold. That’s due to a major pipeline of projects and customers that are starting to get their costings together

The Kobelco cab is designed to be operator friendly. Calder Stewart were so impressed with a Kobelco CKE1100G lattice boom crawler they’ve ordered an identical model.

Dave Carr Plant Hire enjoyed the extra features and additions to the new models in the G Series which includes the foundation model - the TK750GFS.

for tenders. This has been positive for us. Over the last few months, I’ve sold a CKS 1100 which has a lifting capacity of 110 t × 3.6 m and a maximum boom length of 70.1 m. This is going to a local business in Brisbane.

“I’ve also sold a CKE1350G which is a slightly larger machine with 150t × 4.4m and a maximum boom length of 76.2m which is on its way to Perth. Generally speaking, the enquiry levels have been excellent. They’ve been coming mainly from crane companies and foundation piling specialists. The interest has mainly been in the TK750 range which is a 75t capacity crane at 3m and a maximum boom length of just over 30m,” he said.

“I’m dealing with crane companies tendering on large projects for Tier One contractors. With their robust nature, Kobelco Cranes are well suited to civil construction, where the smaller machines do a superb job. As such, they have an excellent reputation from the 80t capacity right up to the 300t. Because of this quality reputation we are also seeing renewed interest in larger capacity models, specifically the SL4500 and the SL6000,” said Hand.

Typically, the enquiries are coming from Kobelco users who have already experienced the quality and reliability of the Kobelco product says Hand.

“The reputation of Kobelco is built on these values. Ease of use and the simple controls has proved important for our customers. Joystick control has been an important feature for a couple of customers as they see the benefit of moving away from short levers and into the joystick controls,” he said.

There are two TK750 being delivered to Wagstaff Piling at the end of August. The new model in the TK Series features a durable structure and high lifting capability that are ideal for handling the tough jobs of any general construction site. The model features the conventional performance of the series and adds merits of “improved transportability” and “conforming with 2014 emission gas regulations”.

Hand talks about his approach to existing Kobelco customers and how they are responding.

“Existing customers have been providing us with excellent feedback about TRT’s support for the Kobelcos out in the market. I’m speaking to a lot of customers, and they are delighted to have a number to ring and to find someone on the other end of the phone ready to help with product support or parts support. This has been a major focus for us, as we strive to improve, and be the best distributor we can be,” he said.

“It’s taken a bit of time to get the message out to the market that TRT is the Kobelco dealer. We’ve been working hard to update our database and we now have a clear understanding of the models’ customers are operating.

“Kobelco has been on the market for many years, so we have been working from the serial numbers from the cranes to support existing Kobelco customers. When we receive parts enquiries, we track the serial number to find the machines and who owns them.

“We are also marketing our back up, support and spare parts services to these customers. I have worked with Kobelco product for many years, so a number of the customers know who I am which has been an advantage. It wasn’t hard to reconnect with a number of existing customers,” he said.

According to Hand, one issue customers have been impressed with is the pricing Kobelco offers and how well the brand is priced comparatively in the market.

“The pricing has remained constant over the past 18 months. This is as a result of the investment Kobelco has been making in innovative manufacturing processes over many years. Given the volatility of materials markets, I think it is important customers’ can be confident the price I quote today will be the price of the crane when it lands. This combined with the excellent lead times for products, at around four months to five months, (inclusive of shipping) has helped Kobelco become a real standout” he said.