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MARKET REPORT PLUMBING & PIPEWORK


Lord Hire Centres’ fleet includes a broad range of plumbing and pipework products.


In the pipeline


To set the scene for our new Market Report topic, EHN talks to a number of hirers who are successfully serving this business area.


Supplying equipment for plumbing tasks and pipework installation can provide steady business, since demand comes from a broad cross-section of markets and industries. These can range from house building and renovation, fitting sprinkler systems, work on heating and ventilation services and general construction projects, as well as on-going maintenance and repairs. Additionally, equipment can be required for emergency reinstatement work after water losses and other unexpected events.


Given this diversity, some hirers serving this market are dedicated divisions of national groups, whose fleets may include highly specialised products as well as more mainstream equipment. In some instances, they have connections with builders’ and plumbers’ merchants whose customers represent a regular target market. Nevertheless, there are opportunities for more traditional hirers to add certain items alongside their general equipment fleets.


bevel cutters, pipe threaders, vice stands, welders, press fit equipment for copper pipes, and roll groovers, along with items like pipe freezers and pressure testing pumps. Key suppliers include Ridgid, Rothenberger, REMS, Freeze Master and other specialist manufacturers.


“Personnel at each depot are obviously trained in equipment selection and operation, and a large number of them have been working for us for many years, building very strong links with customers who value our stock availability and service.”


Good niche market


Similarly, Premier Tool Hire Ltd of Birmingham, a family-owned independent established in 1988, offers a typically broad fleet and has developed a good niche market serving pipe fitters and fabricators throughout the West Midlands region and beyond. While some local manufacturing industries have declined over recent years, new engineering companies have emerged and demand remains steady.


“From the earliest days of the business, we would visit all the potential customers we could find across our area and we established good contacts, and offering plumbing and pipework equipment remains an important market for us,” said Depot Manager Trevor Gittus. He adds that, as there is demand for a very broad range of products, customers appreciate the company’s diverse fleet. “We deliver as far afield as London and Liverpool, and can serve clients nationwide.


Scope exists in this market for supplying equipment for a variety of tasks.


Indeed, some hirers have strong historical links with customers in this market, such as Lord Hire Centres which has nine depots throughout the north east of England. “There can be seasonal peaks and troughs, but demand overall remains very good,” General Manager Carl Bartlett told EHN. “For example, we have been very busy throughout July and August during the holiday shutdown period when many schools, hospitals and other facilities are able to undertake planned work on hot water systems, heating, sprinklers and other installations.


“We were established in 1971 and we used to get a lot of business from shipbuilders and related services working on Tyneside, but that industry has effectively been replaced by manufacturers and contractors working in industries like petrochemicals and engineering. There is demand for a wide range of equipment, such as pipe saws,


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“We offer a comprehensive line-up that includes items such as pipe benders, Freeze Master pipe freezers and Ridgid roll groovers, as well as related items like transformers, low-level access equipment, reciprocating saws, pipe supports, vice tripods and work benches, alongside more specialist products. Demand has also grown in recent years for press fitting machines, to meet Health & Safety considerations for avoiding the generation of heat on sites in confined work spaces. Many manufacturers of these tools have their own type of fittings and particular sizes, and so you have to be able to supply a broad range.”


Enfield-based TGLynes operates a sizeable hire operation alongside a merchant business that offers materials and plant for mechanical services, heating, plumbing and air movement. With origins dating back more than a century, the company was bought in 2015 by the Grafton Group, which also owns the merchant Buildbase and its Hirebase activity. “Our main customers are sub-contractors and


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