Product feature: Doherty attachments
A growth in business saw Coastal Digger Services purchase new machinery from AB Equipment for more versatility and efficiency on job sites
When Brendon Coulson started his career in residential building in 2004, he saw no logical connection to Paraparaumu-based Coastal Digger Services—an earthmoving company his father Peter and brother Stevie operated.
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1.7- to 13-tonne Sumitomo excavators feature in the Coastal Digger Services’ fleet
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Nor did he think that in 2012 he would end up being the operations manager for the company. However, with large civil projects in the lower North Island producing a demand for additional housing, that’s exactly what happened.
Comprising 15 team members, a modern fleet of 1.7- to 13-tonne Sumitomo excavators, and more than 30 years’ experience, family-owned and operated Coastal Digger Services has secured a solid reputation with their combined residential building and earthmoving expertise.
Operating from Levin to Wellington, the company’s brand as a reputable operator on residential earthworks site scrapes and piling continues to grow. And Brendon’s residential building background alongside Peter and Stevie’s civil earthmoving experience has without a doubt, created a great team.
"We really pride ourselves in being able to offer all facets of the build, from site clearing through to landscaping," explains Brendon. "My residential building experience not only provides an advantage and greater understanding of what the job is going to require but it also allows our business to ‘talk the talk’ with the builder."
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A new SH145x-6 from AB Equipment was recently added to the fleet
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With limited land available, Brendon says projects such as Transmission Gully and Macays to Peka Peka have created a shift towards infill housing in the Kapiti Coast. He continues to point out that no one house is the same due to flat sandy sites on the Coast and steep hard rock in and around Wellington.
"Not to mention the access and space on-site," he says. "We’re running out of land in the greater Wellington region and we’ve seen a huge swing towards infill housing where they’re subdividing existing sites into multiple sections and building more houses. It’s resulted in a massive growth in projects."
As expected, this growth over the years has required an increase in machines and Coastal Digger Services’ most recent purchase of a new SH145x-6 from AB Equipment came with a new Doherty D-Lock tilt coupler, wide bucket, and ripper pick. With infill housing now being a large proportion of their work, Brendon says the attachments align perfectly.
"This is our first machine with Doherty attachments. We switched to Doherty based on the recommendation that the D-Lock tilt hitch is the most reliable on the market, and their cleaning buckets have a nice shape. This combination gives the operator and client larger versatility and efficiency so we can change the attachment quickly and ensure we’re using the right tool for the job," he says.
"Our operator Teri loves the package as the two proportional controls in the cab and the Doherty tilt hitch work so well together. He wouldn’t change a thing on the machine."
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The latest Sumitomo excavator is the first machine with Doherty attachments
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With safety, quality, and reliability being key requests from customers, Mardi Pritchard, salesman for AB Equipment says he’s rapt to see Coastal Diggers fantastic growth journey since he sold them their first digger, a second-hand Sumitomo SH120-2, in 2012.
"I remember driving Peter to Hamilton and back in one day for a $35,000 digger. He must have appreciated it as he’s purchased two new Sumitomo diggers—a SH130-5 and SH145x-6—and two Bobcat skid steers since then."
Mardi explains it’s important to be able to deliver a complete premium package and be confident that once delivered there’s no issues. As a result, he happily recommended the Doherty attachments to Brendon.
"Contractors like Coastal Digger really are the backbone of our industry. They’re working on some tricky residential earthmoving projects so it’s vital I’m recommending the right gear. When I package a machine with Doherty product, I know I’m confidently delivering the machine with quality attachments that won’t let my customer down and with service and back-up to maintain their productivity."
For more information, call +64 7 574 3000, e-mail sales@dohertydirect.net, or reach Brendon at 027 434 9513 or brendon@coastaldigger.co.nz.
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