Tag / machinery

by brandsa2018

WSB’s 80-year partnership with SA agriculture

Anyone who knows farming, viticulture and even motorbikes in South Australia has most likely heard of WSB Distributors.

And it is easy to know why, after 80 years in business in the Clare Valley – and now also in Saddleworth and Jamestown – it is a name that is synonymous with agricultural machinery sales and service.

These days Phil and Rob Stanway head up the business, but it was their grandfather, a then young accountant AJ ‘Johnny’ Walker who started the legacy in 1938 originally as a tax and land agency known as AJ Walker.

AJ Walker was to see many guises over the years – taxation and property, fuel and cars, and a garage for servicing cars set up in 1952 in the very same building the business’s head office operates from today in Clare’s main street.

While the head office’s insides may have been modernised since WSB’s beginning, its attention to customer service remains as strong.

WSB’s long partnership with Massey Ferguson tractors continues today.

Phil and Rob’s late father Brian arrived on the scene after moving to Clare from Millicent in 1959.

He met their mother Raelene – who was working in her father’s business – soon after arriving in town and it was the beginning of a wonderful partnership in both marriage and a business that would eventually become known as WSB Distributors.

WSB’s commitment to service has been ever-strong throughout its history, however the business has honed its focus on agricultural and viticultural machinery sales and service in more recent years and gone from strength to strength.

Brothers Robert, a co-director and WSB’s accountant and economist, and Phil, co-director and sales manager, now head up the leading machinery dealership, although Raelene remains an ever-present guide.

With three branches now operating across the Mid North the business has seen, and survived, massive industry changes, including a rationalisation of farm machinery dealerships and machinery manufacturers.

Phil, Raelene and Rob Stanway cut a birthday cake to mark the milestone 80th year of WSB Distributors.

WSB Distributors now employs 43 full-time staff, three junior and three adult apprentices, and has a fleet of 16 on-farm service vehicles servicing as far as the Eyre Peninsula due to demand for their expertise.

“I’m really proud of the company’s longevity and our staff,” Phil says.

“We have several staff who have notched up 30, 40 and 50 years of service but the effort of all the staff regardless of how long they have worked for the company is what keeps the business going and we couldn’t do it without them.

“I think also part of our success has been our ability to stay ahead of the game and quickly recognise what will work and what won’t.

Massey Ferguson has been a strong foundation for the success for more than 50 years and introducing other brands such as Manitou and Kubota has supported the business well.”

Header image: Rob and Phil Stanway in front of WSB Distributors in Clare, originally started by their grandfather, a then young accountant AJ ‘Johnny’ Walker in 1938. Photo by Gabrielle Hall.

Like this story? Nominate a story from your region.
Click here to nominate >>

These inspiring regional stories are made possible by:

Major Partner[logooos_saved id=”5491″]Program Partners

[logooos_saved id=”29687″]

by brandsa2018

Robway Safety back from the brink

Once-struggling Thebarton crane safety technology company Robway Safety is reaching new heights after returning to South Australian hands a little over a year ago.

New owner and managing director Andrew Powell bought the 41-year-old business back from a US multinational company in March 2017.

He salvaged 15 local jobs and says the business is back on track.

“It’s a phoenix, we’ve come out much better than expected,” says Andrew, who first owned Robway for nine years before it was sold to a Canadian company in 2012, and then the US.

“We don’t owe any money, we have a really good team of people and we have money in the bank, we have stock, we have customers, a wealth of ideas and projects in a world that’s ticking along quite nicely.

“My main goal was to make Robway sustainable, so making sure it’s going to be here in the future and making sure 15 people weren’t going to lose their jobs, as they were going to. We’ve achieved that.”

Robway Safety at Thebarton is back in SA hands.

Andrew entered the world of crane safety when he bought the business off its founder, Robert Way, in 2003.

Robway Safety develops and manufactures safe load indicators and line tension monitoring systems for cranes and heavy lifting equipment.

Established in 1977, the business has gone on to become a leader in its field, working with rated capacity indicators, sensors, and web-enabled data telemetry to improve crane safety.

The load monitoring system monitors the load of a crane to ensure the machine isn’t at risk of tipping over.

Robway Safety is driven mainly by the oil and gas, resources, and construction sectors, with 50% of its sales going to the international market.

Andrew says a major advancement in Robway’s operations includes the use of telematics to enable data to be collected from equipment in the field for analysis.

Many of Robway’s employees are specialised software engineers.

“We’ve had big advances in telematics, we can beam up to someone’s mobile phone (and tell them) that their crane is being overloaded, or if you want to know how hard your crane is working, the data logging will tell you that,” he says.

Andrew says he stepped back into Robway after hearing of its demise “by accident”.

“My wife has an art gallery at the front of the (Robway) building and we were having Christmas drinks,” he says.

“Some of the guys from Robway were there and told me they were going to be out of a job.

“I believed there was life in Robway yet, and there were sacrifices all round, but there was a complete change in company culture.

“Last year we stabilised things and I was prepared to take the risk involved in saving 15 jobs knowing it would be underpinned by the then-State Government’s Job Accelerator Grant.

“We’ve started hiring again and Robway now has a goal of sustainability rather than growth or profits.”

Andrew says the team at Robway comprises specialised software engineers who are the best in their field.

Such is their loyalty to the company that a number of employees have been with Robway for more than ten years, while one staff member is approaching almost three decades.

Robway safety and load monitoring systems are installed on cranes used offshore and onshore.

Robway load monitoring and safety systems are installed on cranes that are currently gracing the skyline not only across Australasia, but also here in Adelaide.

Among its clients is Port Augusta-based Max Cranes, while local construction projects, including the South Road corridor, “have cranes that have Robway systems on them for sure”.

Andrew says Adelaide provides good security for small businesses and that its working relationships are strong.

“Long term relationships are critical and seem to mean more in Adelaide,” he says.

“We need to jealously guard what we’ve got rather than letting it go offshore or wither away.”

Visit I Choose SA for Industry to learn more stories about key industry leaders, why they’ve chosen SA as a base and how the state is enabling them to succeed.

by brandsa2018

Regional business behind whopper of a crane headed for Upper Spencer Gulf

Port Augusta-based business Max Cranes is preparing to welcome the largest telescopic crane in the southern hemisphere to its fleet later this year.

The $10m telescopic mobile crane has a capacity of 1200 tonnes and will allow the Upper Spencer Gulf business to expand its capabilities in construction and maintenance of wind towers across the country.

It’ll also be used for construction and heavy lifting activities throughout markets that require specialist heavy lifting.

Managing director Mark Kuhn co-founded Max Cranes in 2002 and says the business has been looking to secure the German-made Liebherr all terrain crane for a number of years.

He says the specialised piece of equipment is the strongest of its kind on the market and has the longest telescopic boom in the world at 100m.

The 1200 tonne crane is the largest in the southern hemisphere.

“The business has spent a lot of time on the selection of the best type of crane to bring into the country that will be a problem solver to all market sectors,” Mark says.

“It has a number of benefits that will set the business apart from the rest. The crane, albeit huge, is efficient and economical in its ability to mobilise/demobilise to project sites and is very agile and flexible on site.”

The new crane, planned to be in operation in November 2018, will be the latest achievement for the leading Upper Spencer Gulf business that has been helping workers reach the heights of our tallest regional infrastructure projects.

The Federal Government supported the acquisition through its Regional Jobs and Investment Package.

“There has been an upward growth curve in our workforce over the past 12–18 months as the infrastructure, power and energy, mining, oil and gas and other influencing markets have started to recover from the downturn of 2014/15,” Mark says.

“We’re looking to further bolster our position in the Upper Spencer Gulf region with the ever-expanding renewable markets, the commitment of GFG Alliance to the Whyalla Steelworks and the expansion of surrounding mining and infrastructure projects within the region.

“Max Cranes is also focused on strengthening our position within the Adelaide market, specifically looking to find solutions to clients in all market sectors.”

Max Cranes employs more than 110 people across its head office at Port Augusta and additional depots at Whyalla, Port Pirie, Moomba and Adelaide.

Its fleet of 38 all terrain cranes range from 15–500 tonne machines. The business also supplies scissor lifts, knuckle booms, and heavy haulage transport services.

All terrain cranes are able to navigate harsh or uneven roads and have greater onsite mobility in workspaces.

Max Cranes is currently the sole crane provider at the Port Pirie Nyrstar Lead Smelter which has employed hundreds of people over the years and is undergoing redevelopment.

Other Max Cranes clients include Santos, Liberty OneSteel, BHP Billiton, Enerven/SA Power Networks, and constructors to AGL, however, its presence on wind farms is set to grow further with South Australia’s burgeoning renewable energy sector.

Max Cranes’ 400 tonne and 500 tonne cranes are used in the maintenance of wind towers, to lift off the rotor – the three blades and hub – and allowing a changeover of gearboxes and other equipment on the turbine.

A Max Crane lifts the rotor off a wind tower.

Mark says the acquisition of the new 1200 tonne crane will allow for future maintenance of the heavier and taller towers built today.

He established Max Cranes with a business partner in 2002 after noticing a gap in the marketplace for crane, transport and access equipment hire in regional SA.

The business began with a fleet of small cranes run out of a small transportable office off the Augusta Highway.

Now the head office is a state-of-the-art building in the same location, with a large maintenance workshop, wash-down bays, a storage shed and staff facilities.

Mark says the challenges of regional SA include the harsh climate, which can reach temperatures of up to 50C in some places.

“But it can change at a moment’s notice to torrential rain, severe winds and everything in between,” he says.

“Being highly reactive to requirements 24/7 is a large part of why we are recognised as experts for working in these remote locations.

“We are operationally prepared, highly experienced and have the systems in place to ensure our staff and client team are safe at all times.”

Max Cranes also runs a dedicated trainee scheme, supporting young apprentices who often go on to be long-term employees and take on roles such as riggers and crane operators.

Mark says the Upper Spencer Gulf has always been an encouraging place to run a business.

“The regions offer experienced, loyal and dedicated people,” he says.

“This in turn has given us the ability to form solid and lengthy relationships with key customers over time.

“South Australians support South Australian – Max Crane is no different.”

Like this story? Nominate a story from your region.
Click here to nominate >>

Visit I Choose SA for Industry to learn more stories about key industry leaders, why they’ve chosen SA as a base and how the state is enabling them to succeed.

 

 

These inspiring regional stories are made possible by:

Major Partner[logooos_saved id=”5491″]Program Partners[logooos_saved id=”17589″]Major Media Partner[logooos_saved id=”5506″]