Investment in Cat NextGen Excavators has led to a 90 percent reduction in downtime and 30 percent reduced fuel usage for Alltracks Plant Hire.
Switching to Cat equipment and the update to the latest NextGen solutions have been the biggest contributors to business success for NSW-based Alltracks Plant Hire.
That’s according to Managing Director Fazil Nazim, who says working with WesTrac and replacing 95 per cent of the company’s fleet with “yellow equipment” has led to one of the biggest boost in business opportunities since the company commenced operations in 2016. Fazil said:
“WesTrac were fantastic during the quoting and purchasing process. Cat Financial also gave us the backing we needed when there were plenty of others who were not so forthcoming to support us.”
Fazil was in discussions with the WesTrac team at the time the Cat Next Gen Excavator range was launched and decided it was a good opportunity to upgrade his fleet from alternative brands and position itself as one of the best plant hire solutions provider in Australia.
According to Fazil, that goal has been made possible for Alltracks Plant Hire thanks to the extensive research and development that went into Caterpillar’s Next Generation excavators. He said:
“There is a reason we keep going back to Caterpillar and WesTrac, and that is because we see results – increased productivity, great feedback from our customers and overall enjoyment. Our customers genuinely enjoy using Next Gen excavators because they’re comfortable to operate with responsive and programmable electronic controls.
Next-Gen equipment drives success
“We now have over a dozen Cat Next Gen Excavators which has resulted in significant savings for us in terms of fuel consumption and servicing costs. The results speak for themselves!”
Since upgrading the fleet, the plant hire business has reported a 90 per cent reduction in machine downtime and more than 30 per cent reduced fuel usage.
The big saving on fuel comes as no surprise to Fazil, who was guaranteed fuel efficiency when he purchased the machine thanks to the Cat Fuel Edge Program. Fazil said:
“It doesn’t matter what business you manage. Productivity and reliability are always key indicators for a successful business, which is why we have turned to WesTrac time and time again.”
That reliability is essential for Alltracks, which offers service 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The company focuses on providing 100 per cent equipment compliance and reliability, which means technology and innovation are essential to maintaining the quality fleet and equipment.
Customer satisfaction
The advanced technology and innovation have resulted in Alltracks being able to say yes more often. With additional safety features and a new level of convenience and comfort, the Next Gen excavators are quickly becoming its machinery of choice. Fazil said:
“Our customers are absolutely amazed at the sophisticated yet easy-to-use technology that is available at your fingertips with each machine.”
“Some of our customers did a sample run and were completely blown away with the level of tech.”
“They were calling it the Tesla of excavators – they didn’t know such machinery existed.”
The equipment management solution
Fazil says maintenance is vital to ensure equipment longevity and consistency. Its why NextGen equipment comes installed with easily accessible external ports that allow you to quickly perform oil testing and part changes. With a FitFleet customer service agreement from WesTrac, which covers you for genuine oil and filter changes, the quality of services and repairs are never compromised. Fazil said:
“For me, the most impressive aspect when it comes to machine maintenance, is WesTrac’s fluid sampling services. It’s as simple as entering a sample’s details into My.Cat.Com, hitting print and sending it away for analysis; it’s such a time saver.”
“My.Cat.Com makes it very easy to keep up-to-date with machinery servicing, all in one spot, and the accompanying Cat App is just as useful with real-time information, sent via a simultaneous phone notification to alert us if there is a problem with a machine.”
Fazil said the convenience of having his equipment on a WesTrac FitFleet Plus agreement has allowed Alltracks Plant Hire to manage cash flow and ensure required parts are on hand when technicians go out to the site, eliminating downtime. FitFleet also provides opportune time-frames to plan for scheduled services, as well as having parts sent to the closest Alltracks branch to the machine. Fazil said:
“We get a call around 50 hours out from any scheduled service period, which makes it easier to arrange alternative machines and factor the services in around our customers’ demands.”
Cat app adds value
According to Fazil, Alltracks Plant Hire has also seen a significant drop in alert messages from the Cat App since upgrading to the Cat Next Gen Excavators. He said the three most important features visible on the Cat App for Alltracks included:
- Error notifications, such as operators turning off machinery too quickly;
- the number of machine-hours & utilization;
- location of excavators using GPS.
The company also found it was a useful tool to educate and make operators self-aware of managing the machines themselves. Fazil said:
“Anyone within the company who has access to the Cat App is encouraged to use it.”
“I would strongly encourage other companies who aren’t already using the Cat App to do so because it ensures we never miss an opportunity to potentially raise an issue and chat to the operators instantly.”
“Real-time data from the machinery is also able to dictate whether the earth is worth excavating, sometimes without having to wait for a land surveyor to visit site.”
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