Company Announcement - Catering to customer demand was the driving force behind Johnson Crane Hire establishing a fully-fledged branch at Deben in the Northern Cape in July 2014. Situated 25 km from Kathu, the branch was established at the beginning of the year. “While we have been active in the Northern Cape for some time, we previously transported cranes from our other branches as the need arose. However, we have established strong relationships with a number or our clients, specifically in the mining sector, so the decision to have a permanent presence in the area was part of our strategic plan to grow our footprint in the area,” says Nigel Levendale, Johnson Crane Hire regional manager for Mpumalanga South, Vanderbijlpark and the Northern Cape.

Levendale, who has 13 years’ experience in the crane hire industry, explains that the company has seen an upsurge in demand for quality lifting services from the construction and mining sectors. Johnson Crane Hire differentiates itself by providing a turnkey project lifting solution, driven by client-specific needs that call for individualised and customised packages. He points out that close partnerships with clients ensures that any associated risks which the client may have identified in their risk assessments are discussed and mitigated against. “Johnson Crane Hire has built a solid reputation based not only on undertaking lifts, but rather in providing clients with a complete turnkey solution.”

This process starts with a site visit and is followed by a complex and customised solution design process that considers environmental and site conditions, as well as the required load bearing capacity. A 2D or 3D CAD rigging study is completed to provide a visual overview of the proposed lift and a method statement and risk assessment is supplied to the client. This attention to finite detail is complemented by a large, well-maintained fleet of the latest-technology cranes, a highly trained and qualified team of crane operators and access to an experienced and knowledgeable rigging crew. “These factors all combine to provide clients with the most comprehensive lifting solution available,” Levendale continues.

The new facilities include offices, a fully equipped workshop and yard. The branch is manned by branch manager Raymond Swanepoel, two salespeople, two fully-qualified service technicians, a safety/Load Monitor Indicator representative and an administrator. “We have a fleet of nine cranes ranging from 25 t to 100 t capacities, based on known customer demands within the area. Should clients required heavier lifting capacity, we are able to quickly access the cranes at our other branches. In order to provide clients with maximised uptime, we have invested in an extensive stockholding of the requisite components required for the current fleet,” says Levendale.

The Northern Cape branch is currently busy with a number of contracts in the area, including a large solar energy project and a number of ongoing projects for the iron ore and manganese mining sectors. In addition, a number of projects have been completed for engineering and steel clients.