Novelquip Forestry, a South African designer and manufacturer of soil preparation and planting equipment, has over the years trusted the Volvo EC55D excavator (and previous models) as the base machine of choice for its MPAT pitting equipment, forging a decade-long relationship with Babcock in the process.
Volvo EC55D fits the bill for Novelquip
Novelquip CEO Stephanus (Fanie) Viljoen says the MPAT – which is used for soil preparation at most major South African forestry companies – has become the ‘gold standard’ for spot cultivation in the local forestry industry.
“We have been working closely with Babcock since 2012. Our carrier of choice for the MPAT pitting equipment is the Volvo EC55D excavator (and its previous models), and more than 50 of these machines have been purchased by our customers over the years,” says Fanie.
When choosing a base machine, the two most important aspects are reliability and after sales support, explains Jacques van der Watt, customer support manager at Novelquip.
“Volvo has a reputation for excellent quality, and coupled with Babcock’s support network across South Africa, it is a winning formula. The EC55D is an excellent machine which punches way above its weight. It has proven that it can withstand the harsh forestry environment, is cost-effective to run (uses less than 3 litres of diesel per hour in pitting operations), comes at a low capital cost, all while not compromising on operator comfort and safety,” he says.
After sales support is key to procurement decisions in this industry, says Helgaard Steenkamp, technical director at Novelquip. Forestry conditions are notoriously tough; even the best machines take a beating and when they break, it is of utmost importance that they are repaired quickly and cost-effectively.
“Most of our customers are contractors executing soil preparation contracts for large forestry companies such and Mondi and Sappi, and these contractors are paid per hectare of operations. If they cannot operate due to breakdowns, they lose income. Machine uptime is therefore absolutely critical to our and our customer’s mutual success,” he says.
Therefore, adds Fanie, it is important to be assured that if problems do arise, a service technician will be readily available nearby and that there are adequate parts available to resolve the issue quickly and effectively.
“In addition, we have machines running across the country in all forestry areas, so a good support network is essential. With Babcock, we know from our own experience and our customers’ feedback, that they can not only meet these requirements, but even exceed them. This gives us the confidence to recommend Volvo to our customers,” concludes Fanie.
