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Executive Report: Total service EHN reports on an independent hirer based in Oxfordshire which now has two depots and an expanding equipment sales business. Formed originally as a modest complement to a small building company, TVE Hire & Sales has become a flourishing business with two dedicated outlets in Oxfordshire. “The hire operation began in 1989 when a small construction business based in Kingston Bagpuize decided to hire out equipment it did not immediately require,” says Operations Manager Matthew Jones. “Initially, the basic fleet comprised just three mini excavators and a trailer. However, the equipment range steadily expanded and when I joined in 1999 we decided to open a shop in Abingdon, five miles away, offering products for hire and sale.” In 2002 a second branch was opened in Challow, situated roughly half way between Oxford and Swindon, and incorporating a dedicated sales showroom. A similar facility was added to the Abingdon depot in November 2007, and in order to make room for it, a purpose-built, 11,000m2 workshop has been established at Challow to service and store the larger equipment and compact plant in the company’s hire fleet. In all, the family-owned business has 15 staff from various professional backgrounds, including building, fabrication, power tools and mechanical industries, and principally serves small and medium sized contractors, tradesmen and members of the public throughout Oxfordshire, Berkshire, Buckinghamshire and Wiltshire. Annual turnover is approximately £1.2m. “We offer a very wide range, including Bosch, DeWalt, Hitachi and Makita power tools, Stihl equipment and garden machinery, Trend woodworking tools, Volvo and Kubota mini excavators from 0.75-3 tonne, Thwaites and Lifton dumpers, Bomag rollers and Timberwolf wood chippers, as well as generators, pumps, dehumidifiers, carpet cleaners, aluminium towers, personal protective equipment and consumables. We focus on quality brands for the hire fleet, and we can service everything we sell, which is where we score over many power tool suppliers,” states Matthew Jones. “Both our locations also benefit from being situated very close to builders merchants, which generates additional hire business. “We aim to offer a total service, supplying everything from a drill bit upwards. We never want to turn away any request, which is something our customers appreciate. We have links with an outside training consultancy that can provide courses on Health & Safety issues, and we will try to source any product that we do not have in our regular hire fleet, such as portable toilets and larger powered access equipment. Customers see us as a genuine one-stop shop, and if we do not have a particular item in the fleet, we will make several phone calls on their behalf to get what they need. “Currently, hire represents approximately 75% of turnover at Abingdon, although the new showroom should increase our sales business there. At Challow, which is in a more rural location, the split is probably 50/50. We have also just increased the showroom area at Challow to add a larger display of Stihl, Bosch and Paslode equipment.” Hire and sales transactions are processed using the Syrinx program from Higher Concept Software. The company plans to expand its hire fleet shortly, buying larger plant and machinery to meet customer demand. “We have had many requests in recent months for scissor lifts and aerial platforms, which we have had to crosshire,” says Matthew Jones. “We will be adding a six-wheel lorry to our delivery vehicle fleet, alongside our existing 7.5-tonne trucks, which will enable us to transport this kind of machinery, along with larger 5-tonne mini excavators. Ultimately, everything we do is driven by the customer, and if you do not move forward, then you are standing still.” • T
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878 Executive Hire News › Archives › May 2008 › Executive Report › Total service
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