Hire and Rental News - February 2019

EARTHMOVING & MINI EQUIPMENT Trench box saves apprentice’s life A Shore Hire trenching box system installed on a factory demolition site in Lansvale in Sydney prevented workers from being crushed in the trench. S hore Hire Managing Director Luke Geelan said the plumbing contractor believed the site looked ok when assessing and making the 3m deep cut on the demolition site. “But being surrounded by heavy concrete, once the cut was made our client noted the conditions were difficult and one side of the cut wasn’t as compacted as it should have been, needing additional trenching support,” Luke said. Shore Hire was on site within hours to assess the situation, later returning with two aluminium Shore Trench boxes for installation and certification, ‘leap frogging’ the boxes at around 4–5m. “The contractor made the right call but it could have been catastrophic without it,” Luke said. “While their apprentice was working in the trench on site, he noticed gravel falling down and quickly jumped out of the trench; the trench shifted and they lost a section about 3m wide. If it wasn’t for the trenching system in place the hole would have certainly collapsed. By all accounts our client is certain the trench box saved his young apprentice’s life,” Luke said. According to Luke the client said it was a real eye-opening experience for its team. The client said: “As managers we always try to get across how critical safety is, but this experience really hit home for our younger apprentices and was a valuable learning experience for all on trench safety. Always use all of the proper gear, and if you don’t feel safe, don’t get in it. The low cost of hiring the Shore trench boxes was certainly more than just money well spent. Our apprentice went home safely to his family that night.” “Our Shore Hire trenching system was installed and saved a life. After all safety is critical and means everything to us. The message here is it is not just about having shoring in place, it’s about having the right shoring for the right project to create a safe working environment,” Luke said. n Contact: 1300 Shore Hire or visit: www.shorehire.com.au BHP secures rental of five new Liebherr Ultra-Class Trucks Five of the world’s second largest mining trucks, new Liebherr T 282 C Ultra-Class Trucks, were rented to BHP for the Peak Downs Mine by the National Group with the last machine the final T 282 C to come to Australia and now Liebherr is producing a slightly different model in the T 284. R epresentatives from National Group, Liebherr and BHP visited Peak Downs Mine for the hand over and to see the Ultra-Class Trucks in action. Managing Director of the National Group, Mark Ackroyd, said: “I’m very proud of the process and the journey we have had with these trucks. I know BHP run a large fleet of 282’s at Peak Downs and they have been a success story so we are pleased to add another five to their fleet.” “The Liebherr T 282 C mining truck continues to be the lightest (lowest empty vehicle weight) and most capable (highest payload) ultra-class mining truck. With its versatility to consistently haul 400-ton payloads of coal or overburden and its high fuel efficiency, the T 282 C has proven its productivity while maintaining a low cost per ton,” Mark said. Liebherr Australia Executive General Manager – Marketing & Sales, Tom Juric said: “The Liebherr T 282 C is the largest Ultra-Class Haul truck in Australia today and it’s actually quite poetic the last of these T 282 C’s will go to the same company (BHP) that bought the first from us many years ago. “As for National Group, the journey with them from the first time they set foot in our office to the units sitting behind me has been very quick. We knew straight away they were a serious operator and their relationship focus was second to none, and so the journey from first encounter to delivery to BHP was smooth. They are our ideal customer, we enjoy doing business with the National Group and we see a very long and healthy future with them,” Tom said. With a fleet of over 250 now, most of which are classed as ‘Ultra- Class’ large heavy earthmoving equipment (HME), National Group is continuing to gain momentum by adding one piece of HME each week. When asked about the momentum building, Mark Ackroyd said: “We are just really excited for the future.” n Visit: www.national-group.co Perth construction worker dies after falling into trench And the trenching deaths continued to stack up late last year, dragging the overall death by trenching numbers higher for the year. Mid October, a construction worker on a Perth worksite became stuck after falling into a 4m trench, which was filled with water and then collapsed on a building side at Mosman Park. It took crews up to eight hours to retrieve his body, using specialised equipment. WorkSafe is investigating. n Trench safety is crucial New Liebherr T 282 C Ultra-Class Trucks were rented to BHP P48 HIRE AND RENTAL NEWS FEBRUARY 2019