Oliver Halligan, Flinning's territory sales manager, (left) toasts the fleet deal with Fergusson Group's operations director, John Shute
Fergusson Group (FG), the Scottish-based solid fuel import, export and distribution business, has assembled the largest Cat 966K wheeled loader fleet in the UK.
The company’s six 966K machines are part of a €2.53million plus supply deal withLaunched in 2012, the 966K wheeled loaders combine the Cat C9.3 ACERT Stage IIIB compliant engine with new performance series buckets. Finning claim the use of the 966K machines will deliver FG significant operating efficiencies.
All six purchased Cat 966K wheeled loaders are now in operation at FG’s main hub at Hunterston Terminal, from where the business moves around two million tonnes of coal a year.
FG operations director John Shute said: “We have experienced significant growth in recent years and this level of investment in plant infrastructure will allow us to meet the supply demands of our customers as well as providing the back-up capacity to realise new growth markets.
“As we continue to grow volume through our main hub at Hunterston, it’s vital that our plant equipment delivers reliability and provides efficiency in performance.
“The agreement with Finning meets this demand through the delivery of robust Caterpillar machinery, with a responsive back-up and support function which is critical to our operational effectiveness.”
In addition to the purchase of the Cat 966K units and other Cat machines, FG has also invested in a full service and maintenance contract with Finning, providing round the clock service for the new fleet.
Speaking about the FG deal Oliver Halligan, Finning territory sales manager, said: “By working closely with the FG team on site we were able to build a trust between the two businesses. Key to this was the shared understanding of the new investment in plant and equipment on the site from an early stage. Having this knowledge allowed us to support the business with the specification process, matching mobile and fixed plant, to achieve the best possible results.
“We were also able to build up an equipment solution package to support the business at the right level, with engineers and field service staff from our local Glasgow branch, combining with our head office expertise.”
