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“Fore some time, Pace Cranes has been examining the possibilities of opening a branch in Brisbane. When I joined the team a couple of years ago, the requirement for a dedicated facility became a priority and, as with all things, it has taken us longer than expected to find the right premises that fits our requirements for now and into the future,” said Chalky.
The new facility is ideally situated on Boundary Road in Wacol, one of the original industrial areas in the West Brisbane corridor. Chalky explains why Pace Cranes chose this location.
“We looked at quite a number of places, most were in this general area and this one ticked all the boxes for us as a ‘startup’ branch. The fact that it happened to be situated close to my home was a value- added bonus,” he said.
Chalky goes on to discuss the features of the new facility.
“The building provides excellent floor space with a readymade showroom area, and we also have good exposure due the very high traffic area.
“The workshop certainly has service opportunities once we decide the time is right to increase our capabilities in Brisbane. In all likelihood, our short-term plan will be to start with a service van providing more on-site, mobile servicing for the growing population of cranes across greater Brisbane and the surrounds,” said Chalky.
The new branch premises is currently considered a sales office and showroom, whilst also carrying stock of certain popular machines, says Chalky.
Chalky discusses his interesting role in sales, being charged with increasing sales across Australia and also New Zealand.
“I receive amazing support from Michael Cawston and Anthony Heeks out of Sydney. We will continue to rely on Sydney to support the Brisbane office for the time being. In terms of administration, we are very well supported by our Sydney Head Office.
“As I have mentioned, it is our intention to introduce mobile service capabilities in the Brisbane branch and this will come as we grow the Brisbane business. We are blessed to be working with recognised brands which are manufacturing extremely reliable machines and very rarely breakdown.
“As the business grows, we will begin focusing more on the servicing side of machines. We will fill the missing local service support ‘hole’ as soon as is economically viable, and we are telling customers to watch this space,” said Chalky.
“I’ve been in the crane industry a long time and the opening of the Brisbane branch of Pace Cranes is an exciting highlight for me. It has been a long time coming but the timing is right. In my opinion, Brisbane is about to embark on a massive construction program in preparation for the 2032 Brisbane Olympics.
“We are experiencing rapid change in the way builders are approaching projects in terms of reducing carbon footprints, by reducing emissions and contributing to more sustainable construction processes. They continue to focus on safer work practices and look at products that eliminate manual handling, and this is why our Tracked Carrier range is gathering significant momentum,” said Chalky.
“Increasingly we are seeing the brands we represent working in applications we would not have considered a few years ago. We are now seeing Maedas working on tunnelling projects, for example, and Sennebogens continue to be recognised for their ability to thrive in extremely rugged conditions,” he said.
CICA Presentations
At the Annual Branch Meeting, Daniel Radaich from NMT Shipping presented a 2024 Shipping Update to CICA’s local members in both Queensland and New South Wales.
The presentation drew upon global issues such as the surge of retail demand during COVID-19, Australian terminal congestion created due to delivery of record levels of new cars and how the 2023 draught in Panama that reduced the number of crossings through the Panama Canal caused significant delays to delivery times.
Issues such as these demonstrate how global issues have a visible and real impact on the cost and flow of cargo such as cranes and other mobile machinery to and from Australia.
Jarrod Wilson and Vincent Wong from the NHVR provided an update on compliance and enforcement activities across Queensland following the transition earlier in 2024.
Attendees were given some insights into the priorities of the NHVR and its focus on safe on road heavy vehicle operations across the country. NSW, Victoria, Tasmania and South Australia had already transitioned to the NHVR, with Queensland being the last addition to the program.
Members were presented with some data analysis on the compliance and safety performance of the crane industry compared to others, with a focus on pre- approved road access either via notice or under permit. As part of the discussion, it was revealed that SPVs are currently high on the radar of the NHVR as part of a national heavy vehicle road safety blitz.
Members are reminded to ensure that their use of the TMR road network is in line with the requirements of relevant notices / permits and that vehicles are properly maintained. Members also heard that many existing TMR staff have made the change to the NHVR, which should result in a smooth transition when it comes to roadside enforcement. That said, members were told not to hesitate to contact CICA directly if they experienced any issues related to NHVR compliance and enforcement activities.
As part of CICA’s ongoing road access updates Mandy Haldane and Matt Elischer from TMR provided a presentation and “live” system demonstration of the new Heavy Vehicle Access Management System (HVAMS) which is planned for rollout for the Queensland crane industry in July 2025. The new system shifts the reliance from permits to access under notice and aims to create improved access across both state and local roads in Queensland.
Building upon the success of the Tasmanian system, HVAMS offers a significant improvement in the road access application process, providing owners with greater flexibility when it comes to the on-road configuration of cranes.
TMR also outlined the transition away from IAP to TMA which offers benefits to industry including lower costs, while providing state and local road managers with anonymised usage information of road assets including bridges. CICA will continue to support TMR in the rollout of HVAMS in Queensland and will facilitate the formation of the soon-to-be established working group to be made up of representatives of the industry from across the state.
Keep your eyes out for further information and attend upcoming meetings for the latest updates on the HVAMS rollout.
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