Bay Civil have recently added to their fleet of Sumitomo excavators with the purchase of a SH210 -6LC and a SH130-6LC from New Zealand distributor, AB Equipment, bringing their total number of Sumitomo’s to eight.
Bay Civil has run Sumitomo excavators for years and continue to be impressed with their performance. Owner Chris Kendrick is mad passionate about them and likes the fact that they are very smooth and easy to drive, a good all round excavator. For him, they tick all the boxes.
“We do a lot of drain laying and dewatering jobs, so it is important to have reliable machinery because a lot of the work is below the water table” explains Chris Kendrick.
Chris is referring to the Golden Sands subdivision at Papamoa that the company has been exclusively involved in for the last 25 years, which ironically, is nearly as long as his relationship between Sumitomo and AB Equipment.
There is still 50 hectares to be developed which will involve more subdivision work, a 22-hectare shopping centre and recreational areas. Bay Civil is also involved with the development of a brand-new Summerset Retirement Village, so it’s no wonder they need a couple more Sumitomo’s to keep up with the workload.
The new Sumitomo SH210-6 and SH130-6 are fitted with rotating hitches. “The Sumitomo’s have a lot of pull on their tracks, are very quick and have a great breakout force,” says Chris. “New features on these machines include a Top Con GPS system which has a 3D capability. The GPS provides us with a sophisticated monitoring system which gives information to help us maintain the equipment efficiently and lets us know what they’re doing and where they’re doing it”
Chris Kendrick and AB Equipment were recently in Japan visiting the Sumitomo plant.
Their familiarisation visit was an opportunity to check out the latest innovations being developed by the company. According to Chris it was interesting to see that they were as passionate about the product as he is. Most recent enhancements featured on the two recently purchased excavators, are the additional fuel savings, which are a result of improved technology, and cameras around the machine, which are now standard.
The developments might not seem all that radical but change for the sake of change is not their style,” says Chris. “From our point of view, it’s good to see because it provides continuity of operation. It’s clear that there’s got to be purpose for change, noticeably around improving the efficiency of the excavator. That makes sense because they are very reliable, and we get very few problems.”
Chris also has lots of praise for AB Equipment. “Recently moving into new premises, the AB Equipment team at Mount Maunganui really look after me, give good service and are more than happy to find out information on gear when requested. Their systems are excellent and the Preventative Maintenance programme insures that downtime, a very critical component of our operation, is kept to a minimum,” says Chris. Particular mention must be made of local AB Equipment rep Andre Muller who has been of great support to Chris and has made sure that the Sumitomo selling experience has been well worth it.
From small beginnings, Bay Civil now have a staff of 30. Chris who is a former mine surveyor, and knows all about soil movements, purchased the contracting company from his father in law who had started the business nearly 40 years earlier. Now firmly established Chris Kendrick is looking to pass the banner to the next generation with Chris Kendrick’s son and future son in law joining the company’s ranks.
For further information on Sumitomo Construction products check out the range of available machines here or give the team a call on 0800 30 30 90.