Nottingham-based Norris Plant Hire & Sales has been buying Caterpillar machines from main dealer Finning since 2009. Cats now make up more than half of its hire fleet.
As the business has expanded, it has sought to branch out into new machine sales. It is now investing in new purpose-built premises to display, demonstrate and service a full range of equipment.
The new building, which received planning permission this week, will also have a machine demonstration area for customers to try out machinery.
“The decision to become a regional dealer of Cat compact machines felt like a natural progression for the business and builds on the successful model we’ve developed since working with Finning, to purchase Cat mini-excavators and compact equipment ready to hire out to our contract and self-hire customers,” said Andy Norris, managing director of Norris Plant Hire & Sales.
“Having bought so many Cat machines over the last few years, I have first-hand knowledge of what the customer is looking for from a machine – reliability, high performance and financial security being key.
“One of the main reasons we’ve continued to grow our Cat fleet is because they hold their residual value better than any other manufacturer’s machine here in the UK. That’s a key selling point to our customers, who include small contractor businesses and owner operators with just one or two machines. In many cases, the machine is their livelihood, and they need to be confident and assured that their investment makes sound economic sense.”
Stewart Carter, head of building and construction products at Finning, said: “The continued expansion of the regional network is indicative of the increase in demand for smaller Caterpillar machines across the construction, landscaping, and agricultural industries for machines.”
Norris joins Finning’s subdealer network alongside other regional dealers including Cooks Midlands, Bennie Plant and South Wales Fork Trucks that have all been appointed in recent weeks.
“There’s a lot of collaboration between the regional dealers, who each have extensive experience in their respective areas, both geographically and the type of industries they work in,” Stewart Carter said. “All of our new partners work in collaboration with both Finning and each other, to support and deliver an industry leading level of customer service.”
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