Awesome Earthmovers travelled to Scotland to see this new addition working alongside a variety of other SANY machines on a major construction project to deliver 202 homes on the site of the former maternity unit at Ayrshire Central Hospital in Irvine.
Clyde Coast Contracts are working as a civil engineering sub contractor on the £50 million project which was awarded to Ashleigh Construction (Scotland) Limited; it is North Ayrshire Council's largest-ever housing development scheduled for completion by the end of 2027 and will include a variety of general needs housing, amenity bungalows, and homes suitable for wheelchair users.
It is one of the latest projects undertaken by Clyde Coast Contracts who have completed hundreds of engineering jobs, spanning groundworks, earthworks, sewer works, landscaping and utilities in the industrial, education, retail, housing and health sectors. The company has also completed various housing projects as a main contractor.
“EVERY SINGLE OPERATOR THINKS THEY ARE
ABSOLUTELY
GREAT MACHINES.”
Most of their work comes from repeat clients and referrals, which speaks volumes of the high regard in which the company is held in the industry.
Established by Owen and Sean McLaughlin in 1979, today this family-run company is headed up by directors Owen Jnr, and Michael and Anthony McLaughlin, with a number of other family members also working in the business.
Of the 19 machines in the company’s excavator fleet, the vast majority are SANYs, many of which were working on the housing development at Irvine when we called to see how the project was progressing.
Built to do the job
Commented Clyde Coast Contracts Plant Manager Matthew Sneddon: “We like the SANY brand because they are reliable and clearly built to do the job. Every single operator thinks they are absolutely great machines. They deliver plenty of power and the cabs are well designed and spacious, offering our operators essentially a working environment that represents a home from home – and they keep them clean and well maintained, such is their pride in the machines.”
The company’s SANY fleet includes a broad mix of machines ranging from 1.8 tonnes up to 13 tonnes. During our visit we focused on the SY135C which was taking everything in its stride. Its high performance and impressive stability was proving to be a perfect combination to tackle the tasks in hand, which included loading material on to dump trucks, creating roadways, building sewers and laying concrete floor slabs.
Maximising fuel economy
Powered by a Stage V ISUZU engine and with efficient, load sensing hydraulics to maximise on fuel economy, a key feature of the SY135C is the comprehensive comfort for its operators. Excellent insulation around the cab provides reliable protection from noise and vibrations, as well as from high and low temperatures.
The air-suspension operator’s seat, which comes as standard, offers the best possible comfort and protection from fatigue with its high seat backrest and various adjustment options, while joystick controls enables all functions of the excavator to be operated intuitively.
The hydraulics valve control responds to commands immediately and together with the automatic speed setting, this enables work to be carried out precisely and safely with higher efficiency and lower fuel consumption for the same operation – and let’s not forget the large user-friendly 10“ touch display, which is easy to read and navigate, and displays all the important information, including clear views from the machine’s 4 protected cameras to supply 360 degree vision.
Other features of the spacious and comfortable cab include LED work lights for maximum visibility in low light conditions, a 12 V jack, adjustable ventilation, heating, automatic climate control system, integrated cooling box and a large amount of storage space for the operator’s bits and pieces.
Bringing Benefits to the customer
During our time on the housing development site, we also got to speak with Nathan Donnelly, Regional Sales Manager for SANY Scotland.
“I joined SANY three and a half years ago and over that period Clyde Coast Contracts have continued to develop their relationship with the brand. We are always focused on product developments that will bring benefits to the customer,” says Nathan.
He adds: “Our machines come with a market-leading five year warranty for complete peace of mind, and telematics, for example, are also included, enabling customers to access every piece of information for every machine when they need it.”
SANY machines are also easy to service, with safe access to all maintenance points and longer service intervals.
“Moving forward we hope to continue building our relationship with Clyde Coast Contracts with a view to them having a 100% SANY fleet,” says Nathan.
Importance of Service & Support
Those sentiments were also expressed by Clyde Coast Contracts Plant Manager Matthew Sneddon. “What’s very important to us is the aftersales service and support we get from SANY. If any issues arise, their engineers can be here on site within the hour to sort us out.
“If that is not possible, they will take the machine back to their workshops and leave us with a replacement until it is repaired. You can’t fault that level of support. Looking to the future, it is our goal to have a full fleet of SANY machines.”