TDL tie up Europe’s biggest ever SANY deal
Centre Plant place £2 million order with TDL Equipment for 23 new excavators from 13 to 36 tonnes
TDL Equipment, who in 2014 became official UK partners and distributors for SANY – China’s largest excavator manufacturer, have secured Europe’s biggest ever deal for SANY machines.
Fighting off competition from some of the industry’s more established brands, the £2 million deal is made up of 23 machines and is not only the largest ever SANY order from a European dealer, but also the biggest single investment by the machines’ new owners, Glasgow-based Centre Plant.
Set up 26 years ago by Pat McBride and his father Peter, Centre Plant are the sister company to Allma Construction, a leading infrastructure and groundworks firm. The pair boast 80 years’ experience in the construction industry and with an existing fleet of 55 excavators between 13 tonnes and 35 tonnes, both TDL and SANY had to meet high expectations.
Centre Plant already had a long-established relationship with Case, but when TDL’s regional sales manager Grant Maclaine heard Allma were looking to replace 12 machines and possibly supplier, he offered them a 14-tonne and 21-tonne SANY machine for demo.
Impressed by TDL’s presentation, managing director Pat McBride explained how the decision to invest in SANY was made: ‘We put two of our most experienced operators on the two demo machines, guys who we knew would moan and groan if there were any problems, but the feedback was very positive.’
Experienced operator Donald McCall, who put the SANY SY215 demo machine to work, gave a glowing report emphasizing how the ‘digging power at full stretch is very impressive’ combined with ‘impressive strength’. He also explained how ‘a full bucket of wet mud at a couple metres depth is no bother’, stating that the machine is a ‘true all-round performer, even at low revs’.
Following the successful demo period, the order went up from 12 machines to 23, ranging from 13 tonnes to 36 tonnes, including fifteen SY135s, seven SY215s and one SY365. The SANY machines feature a standard spec that includes automatic air-conditioning, two-way auxiliary hydraulics, rotation circuit and the SANY 1-3-5 warranty package, which offers new owners peace of mind with one year/2,000h on the machine itself, three years/6,000h on the powertrain and major components, and five years/10,000h structural warranty on the chassis, boom and arm.
TDL Equipment say Centre Plant, who also specified Hill’s Tefra hydraulic hitches, Strickland buckets, vandal guards, boxing rings and green beacons on their new machines, are among a growing number of SANY customers, including firms such as AB2000, WH Malcom, Garriock Bros and Dow Waste Management, who are beginning to break away from the ‘norm’ and investing in the brand.
