Specialist Hire Group

Source: Supply Chain Digital

Date :12/06/2008 17:28:18

The Specialist Hire Group is a leading hirer of industrial forklift trucks and mobile cranes. Exec reports on their expanding operations

Written by Jane Fisher and Produced by Kiron Chavda

Within the past six years, the Specialist Hire Group has grown from a standing start, achieving an annual turnover of more than £30 million. Launched by current chairman and CEO Peter Cosgrove, a former divisional manager of the RAC, and John Chappell, the operation is expanding at a steady rate and was listed in the Sunday Times Fast Track 100 in November 2007 and the Fast Track Buyout 100 in February 2008. “We are still growing and have plans for further development,” says Cosgrove.

“Our aim now is to move into more niche markets where there are different opportunities, but also to continue to serve a very broad base of customers.”

The Specialist Hire Group was established in 2002 and today employs some 270 people. It began trading when the businesses of Rushlift Mechanical Handling Ltd and Rushlift Ltd. (forklifts) were bought, followed by the acquisition of A. Jardine and Sons Ltd (crane hire) in November of the same year.

Marsden Crane Hire Ltd was purchased in October 2003, followed by Lex Komatsu South Ltd (forklifts) in 2004. After a year of consolidation, SMH Ltd (forklifts) was purchased in February 2006, followed by Peter Turner Forklifts Ltd in November the same year. All the forklift businesses are now consolidated into one company, Rushlift Ltd, with the exception of Sleabond Ltd, a heavy forklift specialist company bought in October 2007.

“We basically operate in two main divisions now,” explains Cosgrove. “One focuses on the hire of mobile cranes and the other on forklift trucks. Our customers in both divisions are UK-based and cover a wide range of industries.”

“We operate from nine bases – we have just bought two new companies, one in Telford and the other in South Wales. They are relatively small but together will increase our turnover by approximately ten percent.”

Lifting and carrying

The group has a fleet of over 40 modern all-terrain and truck-mounted cranes, with lifting capacities of eight to 100 tonnes. They provide lifting services throughout the North West, stretching from the Borders to the Midlands, from four strategically located depots.

The companies cover a wide customer base in a number of industries. Major customers include United Utilities, British Waterways, British Energy, Blackpool Pleasure Beach, Barratt Homes, Persimmon Homes, and many more. In addition the company operates a fleet of lorry mounted cranes (Hiabs) on flatbed and articulated units, with capacities up to 56 tonne metre, and low-loaders with STGO Cat 2 rating.

The Specialist Hire Group has recently made a £1 million investment in a new Demag AC200 crane, for delivery in August. “This is a large mobile crane, which has all sorts of applications and will lift huge weights,” says Cosgrove. “It will enable us to move into an area of much more complex heavy lifting and will bring us a range of new opportunities.”

Rushlift is a national hirer of forklifts and provider of mechanical services to a wide cross section of British industry, including well-known names such as British Airways, Comet, Magnet, Proctor and Gamble, Thyssen Krupp, JD Sports and Johnson and Johnson. Services include long and short-term hire, the servicing of customer owned trucks, and the sale of new and used equipment through a wide range of financing options. Rushlift also specialises in the short-term hire of heavy trucks up to 25 tonne capacity, including a range of compact equipment for machinery moving. The acquisition of Sleabond extended the range of forklifts available, as it is the sole importer of SVE Truck heavy forklifts with lifting capacities up to 52 tonnes.

Unlike most hirers of forklifts who have allegiance to one brand of truck, Rushlift has partnership arrangements with many leading brands (including Komatsu, Doosan, Still, Mitsubishi, Atlet and OMG) to enable the company to provide the customer with the equipment most suited to their business.

In addition, Rushlift will perform an applications survey on the customer’s operation, including usage and suitability analysis to ensure the provision of the right type and the right amount of equipment to maximise efficiency and minimise cost within the operation.

Making a difference

Unique to Rushlift is its web-based Fleet Management System (FMS), which gives customer access to the extensive information on the status of maintenance of their fleet and accounts information, allowing for breakdowns to be logged and tracked online.

“All our customers have access to online information about the equipment,” explains Cosgrove. “They can download service records and report breakdowns to us, which enables us to make repairs in the shortest time possible. This service is extremely popular with our customers.”

Another new development at the group has been Rushlift’s new “Safe Hands” service. This provides for the regular inspection and repair of work equipment such as racking, ladders, roller shutter doors, conveyor belts and dock levelers, ensuring the customer meets its obligations under PUWER. It is an ideal service for multi-site companies, where there is no resident mechanical repair capability.

The aim now at The Specialist Hire Group is to look for more potential acquisitions, particularly in specialist markets. “There are niche markets out there, where there are particular opportunities,” says Cosgrove. “We want to be able to offer our customers more complex services and expertise in a range of different areas.”

Click here to open the corporate brochure for Specialist Hire Group