Quality, service and reliability works for MV Kelly

In response to rising demand from the housebuilding sector, MV Kelly is investing more than £8million in 2014 on more than 130 new Hitachi excavators. The purchase includes a wide range of mini and medium Zaxis models – ranging from the ZX29U-3 to the ZX250LC-5 – that will increase the total size of its Hitachi fleet to 250 machines.

Approaching 1,200 Hitachi excavators

Vince and John Kelly founded the civil engineering and building company 19 years ago in Birmingham. Since then, it has purchased almost 1,200 excavators from Hitachi Construction Machinery UK to carry out residential groundworks, roads and sewers, and associated infrastructure work for the UK’s major housebuilders.

Approximately 75% of the new Zaxis machines are direct replacements for the existing fleet that has reached the end of MV Kelly’s strict three-year replenishment cycle. The remaining 25% represent the need to manage the increased workload and will replace rented machines that were temporarily drafted in to meet demand.

MV Kelly currently has an annual turnover of more than £120million and employs over 1,200 site operatives and 70 support staff, who serve 140 different job sites. It has also opened a new £1.2million office in Northamptonshire this year to support its growing regional operations in the south and east of England.

Four reasons for choosing Hitachi

“There are four main reasons for choosing Hitachi construction machinery: ability, reliability, service and residual value,” says MV Kelly Director Brian Kelly. “These attributes make Zaxis excavators the best machines available in today’s market.

“Operating a three-year replacement cycle gives us an optimum level of output and productivity – with virtually no downtime. In addition, this ensures that we achieve excellent resale values. We insist on meeting the required service intervals – using only Hitachi Parts – to help us achieve complete reliability.

“The service that we receive from Hitachi is second to none and meets the same high standards, from the purchasing and administration process, through to the delivery and after-sales support. The no-nonsense approach to our relationship over the years has developed a mutual respect and understanding, which is as strong as ever today.”

Highly trained operators

A loyal team of highly trained operators has also played its part in the company’s expansion and growth. MV Kelly values their skill and expertise to get the most from the latest Hitachi equipment, and leave their customers with a finished product that is unrivalled within the industry.

Michael Currin has been an operator for 20 years and says: “I operate a ZX130LCN-5 for digging trenches for foundations and sewers. It’s a very stable and well balanced excavator, even when it’s at full stretch with a heavy load. Nothing else compares to Hitachi and this is an excellent machine – as good as anything else I’ve used.”

For almost all of his 22-year career Neville Cooper has operated Hitachi excavators and says: “The ZX210LC-5 is an ideal machine for excavating roads into formation and installing sewage systems. The power of the engine and finesse of the hydraulics mean that this new Zaxis-5 excavator is so smooth and easy to operate.”

Giles Bleakney has been employed by MV Kelly for exactly half of his 30 years in the cab and says: “The ZX250LC-5 is an excellent and versatile machine for all of our roads, sewers and earthmoving work. Its overall power, speed and comfort mean that it is easy to operate and I am able to work more productively.”