18.08.2023

New location and scissors for Plantool

UK regional rental company Plantool Hire Centres has opened a new, larger depot in Warwick, in order to accommodate larger equipment, and a wider range of equipment including larger slab scissor lifts.

The first new models to arrive at the depot are the 45ft LGMG AS1413E slab electric models - supplied by UK dealer APS - which offer a maximum working height of 15.8 metres, and a 320kg maximum platform capacity with a two person rating. The maximum working height when used outside is reduced to 10 metres and the rating to a single person. The model has AC electric direct wheel motor drive.
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An LGMG AS1413E

Plantool Hire Centres is based in Daventry, Northamptonshire and operates from six locations across the Central and East Midlands including Stratford on Avon, Kettering, Lutterworth and Nuneaton in addition to Daventry and Warwick. The new machines include two other LGMG scissor types - the 19ft AS0607E and 39ft AS1212E. Other aerial lifts in the fleet include Niftylift self-propelled booms, trailer lifts and SD models, Genie and Skyjack slab electric scissors, Manitou mast booms, Hinowa spider lifts and a Dingli 60ft narrow scissor lift.
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Ben Jones of Plantool at the new Warwick depot with two of the new LGMG AS1413E

Managing director Ben Jones said: "It's exciting to now have the capacity to scale up our powered access offering with the purchase of bigger LGMG scissor lifts. Our LGMG platforms are very popular with customers and are designed to be easy for rental specialists like us to maintain, so I'm very glad to take them. APS is also very good to do business with. They've always been very fair with us on ways to structure finance and support packages that make it easier for us to invest."

APS key accounts director Linda Betts added: "It's great to hear Ben's customers have been impressed with his new LGMG scissor lifts. They're designed from the bottom up to be simple to use. LGMG also has a brilliant, intuitive onboard diagnostics system, so customers can quickly find and fix faults or respond to sensor alerts. This is important, as it eliminates frustrating delays to completing jobs and the need for hire company intervention."

Plantool Hire came into being in May 2013 through the management buyout of The Hire Supply Company by operations director Ben Jones, on the retirement of founder Rodger Webb. Jones had joined the company as Warwick depot manager in 2003, but began his career at a young age, ‘helping out’ on Saturday mornings at family company Handi Hire. He then became a trainee mechanic in 1996, graduating to running one of the depot workshops before leaving for Australia in 1999. Once down under he found work with Kennards Hire spending the next three years working at a variety of depots, gaining rental experience long the way. In 2002 he made his way back to the UK and joined The Hire Supply Company - initially on a temporary basis. The rest as they say is history.