Capital Equipment News April 2019

COVER STORY

Shantui showcase From the earthmoving side of offerings, Shantui will showcase its SD16 dozer, SL50 wheel loader and the 21 t SE210-9 excavator. Poley says these machines are all suited to the agricultural sector. These will be complemented by the SF30 forklift for materials handling functions on a farm. “We will also be showcasing our generator range, which is a market we have made great and perhaps even obvious strides into, in the past year. We feel we have the right solution to help farmers overcome the current Eskom challenges,” says Poley. Shantui to showcase its capabilities to the agricultural sector with the same prowess that has made it a household name in the construction and mining industries. The company has already enjoyed massive success in the past few years. To give an idea, Poley says Shantui has had a good start to 2019, with 25 machines sold in South Africa, during the first quarter of the year. The company has recently concluded another massive deal of 71 machines for a Mozambican project. Poley says the company’s success hinges on its understanding that aftermarket support is a key business driver in South Africa. He reasons that local customers rank parts and service support high up the list of key influencers in terms of their buying decisions. “When we took over the dealership, we already knew that the quality of the product was never an issue, but a lot of work and effort was required from an aftersales perspective,” says Poley. “During the past four years, we have focused greatly on boosting our aftermarket support structures for the brand. For example, one of the first things we did was establish a considerable parts stockholding of some R80-million. We also have five seasoned technicians supporting our customers and our 8-strong dealer network,” says Poley. The interventions have steered the brand to a strong market standing. ESI was last year awarded a Global Bronze Medal for high sales at the global Shantui dealership conference held in China. This was in recognition of the great strides that ESI, as the local distributor, had made in increasing sales as well as customer satisfaction in southern Africa. “We look forward to personally showcasing our products to the farmers, which hopefully includes an opportunity for us to discuss the varied solutions we have on offer that can make their lives that much easier and efficient,” concludes Mynhardt. b Poley is optimistic that this year’s NAMPO is the perfect platform for

Shantui will showcase its 21 t SE210-9 excavator at NAMPO 2019.

Powerstar will exhibit its FT range for the construction/off-road sector.

the FT3, FT5 and FT8 chassis cabs with a variety of dropside and rollback bodies fitted. Traditionally, Powerstar has enjoyed massive success in the construction sector. However, Mynhardt says the company is on a drive to diversify its markets, and agriculture is one of those important target markets. “Since the start of 2018, we have grown significantly in the side tipping industry, with specific reference to the coal sector. The agricultural sector uses pretty much the same solution, so we believe

that our shift to this sector has been made easier,” says Mynhardt. Speaking about some success stories in the sector, Mynhardt says Powerstar has secured key account as well as repeat customers within the agricultural segment and in terms of its reference to the side tipper market, an example is Bogdans Transport which bought 20 units during 2018. “Our growth in dealers and service support all over South and Southern Africa underpins our service commitment to our customers,” says Mynhardt.

CAPITAL EQUIPMENT NEWS APRIL 2019 6