Having an edge

Barely recovered from all the lockdowns due to the corona pandemic, the war in Ukraine has plunged the world into a new crisis. How this will affect our industry is anyone's guess for now. However, we are currently still clearly experiencing the aftermath of that earlier crisis in the form of long(er) delivery times. As Kemp Group we always have a lot of machines in stock, but what is happening now, I have not experienced before in the sixteen years that I have been working here. Fortunately, we anticipated in time by ordering enough machines from the factories, but this has not prevented customers from sometimes having to wait longer for their new machine even with us. Stock has always been a spearhead of policy within our company, which gives Kemp Group an edge over many competitors. You can also see it in our warehouse, where we have a large basic stock to guarantee a quick supply of parts.

Despite the aforementioned turbulent times, Kemp Group is investing heavily in expanding its services. In January, the company merged with Hans van Driel. The two traditionally family-owned companies have united into one company under the Royal Reesink banner. By continuing as one organization, we can further professionalize our services and respond even more adequately to the needs of our clients. The recent addition of two Huur&Stuur branches in Veghel and Steenbergen brings the number of branches in the Netherlands to seven. As a result, service response times are becoming shorter and shorter. The De Meern branch is currently working hard to expand its facilities. An additional workshop of 1,200 m² and a new, partly automated warehouse should further future-proof the technical facilities of the Kemp Group.

THEORY VERSUS PRACTICE

Looking at the current market, we cannot ignore the trend of electrification. This is an important development within our industry, which we wholeheartedly support. Unfortunately, the ideas in theory are often too far apart from their practical feasibility. Subsequent electrification of equipment helps to convince manufacturers to invest in this development (Proof of Concept), but as a concept it is not scalable and therefore not future-proof. We must guard against a handful of converted machines becoming the norm in the procurement process without looking at practical deployment. More than once we see that a 'Zero Emission' machine is asked for in the tender, but its charging is left out of consideration. Precisely that is the biggest challenge for many contractors right now. Of course we must look ahead to the emission-free construction site in 2030, but we must not forget that in the short term there are already many gains to be made by promoting Stage V engines or synthetic diesel such as HVO100.

In our view, this is not a choice; we should pursue both. In practice, we see that sometimes, when awarding contracts, too little attention is paid to the consumption of machines. Newer machines have much lower consumption in addition to a reduction in emissions. Thus, more attention should be paid to the use of hybrid machines. After all, lower consumption gives lower emissions by definition. To give more insight into emissions, Kemp Group supplies all new machines with an emissions certificate. This overview shows exactly what the new model has maximum emissions and what this is less than an older type of a lower environmental class.