Prep School
The UK surface preparation market is still robust despite facing some economic headwinds, reports Dan Jenkins.
E
conomic uncertainty is not helping the hire market. However, surface
preparation equipment is a relatively resilient market segment and remains fairly robust.
Kris Whitehead is head of sales – contractor direct – for Husqvarna Construction, UK and ROI. “Overall, the market is OK, it is in reasonable shape,” he says. “We are getting a lot of enquiries for scarifying, planing and steel blasting products, while small surface preparation equipment is also very buoyant. Small grinders and diamond tooling to go with them, and small scarifiers are all doing very well. From our perspective we are doing well on surface preparation in its entirety.
“There is a bit of trepidation from big contractors about major projects taking off, but that is common across construction and not just affecting our sector. Companies are cautious and are waiting to see what happens with the economy.”
Expanding range The Hire Supply Company (HSC) is expanding its range of surface preparation equipment after first showcasing its floor scarifiers at the Executive Hire Show in 2022. The company introduced the Vonarx FR 200 Genius, with both electric and petrol versions, and is currently evaluating the potential of the recently launched lithium battery version.
John McGhee, group marketing manager for HSC, says, “It is a competitive market here in the UK, but we absolutely believe there is room for a new supplier in that space.
“Sometimes it takes a while for a product to gather momentum, but the Vonarx products have been pretty quick off the mark for us. They sell themselves due to their features
and benefits, and the European build quality. It is not a volume product, most depots or hire shops only need a few, so you have to have a quality product to win their business.
“We are currently evaluating the lithium version and putting it out there to gauge interest. However, we are looking to further expand that range in terms of the battery powered offering, as we think there is a big opportunity.”
Combined products Dust is a hot topic with HSE right now and this is driving interest in dust extraction equipment to use in tandem with surface preparation.
“Vonarx has recently also launched a range of dust extractors designed to work hand in hand with its floor scarifiers, so we are potentially looking at that as well. We’ve never had floor scarifiers before but for a period had been in the dust extraction market and know it well, while we’re also well known for the US range of Bon concrete finishing products.”
Husqvarna is also seeing an uptick in demand for dust extraction equipment. It recently launched a new range specifically for the rental sector.
“HSE has really upped its game with regards to silicosis and clamping down on dust in construction sites,” says Whitehead. “They are doing spot site visits to see that dust control is managed effectively. Contractors are therefore moving away from dust extraction and vacuums that were not fit for
“More contractors are starting to understand that they need dust extraction with surface preparation – we are getting there, for sure. There is an educational piece that needs to happen, not just for contractors but for the rental companies as well. We have a dedicated individual whose task is to educate rental companies and contractors so that they can give the right advice to their customers.
“If you are calling up to hire a grinder there are some companies that are not giving the right advice because their people don’t necessarily have the knowledge. We are working hard to contact all the nationals and the big independents to give them the resources to train their employees. When their customers call up, they can be confident their people are can giving them the right advice to protect them and ensure the project that they are doing is compliant.” n
The UK market for surface preparation equipment is in reasonable shape, says Husqvarna.
purpose in the construction arena.”
LEVEL UP Professional flooring contractors have their very own trade association – find out more at
https://cfa.org.uk
18 Executive Hire News - July/August 2023
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