When Time Equals Money
"Time is so critical in the crane industry. When one is down it's a pretty big loss," explained Master Mechanic Mark Kaestner of Seattle, Washington's Ness Cranes, Inc. This scenario became reality last summer, when the packing of a 300 ton Ness Cranes' cylinder had worn down into the rod, rendering the crane useless. Due to its 42 foot cylinder, Kaestner struggled to find a company to rebuild and re-chrome the cylinder, identifying only four companies domestically able to re-chrome at that length.
All four companies could repair, rebuild and re-chrome, however only one could guarantee delivery within three weeks: Garrod Hydraulics.
"This particular piece of equipment typically clocks 60-80 hours of work a week and represents weekly revenues of $20,000, so we couldn't afford any unnecessary downtime. Garrod met our delivery dates while the other companies couldn't," explained Kaestner. After further research on Garrod, he was confident Garrod would not only deliver on-time, they would also provide quality work and craftsmanship.
A three week turnaround isn't out of the ordinary for Garrod. "We knew when the Ness project was coming in and had prepared for it in the scheduling of our shop," explained Brian Hollerbush, Sales Representative for Garrod Hydraulics. "We (Garrod) are very sensitive to the costs associated with taking a crane of this size out of operation, and strive to deliver a timely turnaround that produces the least amount of impact on our customer's bottom line."
Kaestner received his cylinder within the allotted timeframe and was very pleased with the service. "Garrod worked with us every step of the way, even on the trucking and transportation. They are professional, good to their word, and represent high quality craftsmanship. When you're spending between $20,000-$40,000 on anything, you have a high level of expectation that Garrod not only met but exceeded."
Since this initial experience Ness Cranes has been back to Garrod with another project early this year and a third job is for later in 2008.
Ness Cranes, Inc. is located in Seattle, Washington and operates a rental fleet of 30 plus cranes with capacities of 15 tons to 550 tons. Within this weight range, Ness Cranes can lift items ranging from a homeowner's hot tub to a 450,000-pound locomotive. They supply cranes for projects across the Northwest, from the Canadian border to California to Idaho.
Garrod Hydraulics, Inc. specializes in repair and remanufacturing of hydraulic cylinders and industrial hard chrome plating. Established in 1978 by Eugene Garrod, this family-owned company is one of the largest industrial hard chrome plating shops on the East Coast. Garrod focuses on customer satisfaction by finding timely, cost-effective and rock-solid solutions to even the most difficult problems.
Garrod Hydraulics services include: telescoping cylinders, large bore cylinders, multi-stage cylinders, mobile crane cylinders, rod straightening, grinding, industrial hard chrome plating, polishing, welding, bore welding, gun drilling, CNC machining. The company also partners with Manitowoc Crane CARE and Manitowoc's EnCORE program.
