APS Equipment has been operating across New Zealand for the best part of 35 years, offering construction equipment and machinery to the market. Enjoying an exclusive relationship with Italian manufacturer Magni, the national distributor is opening up new markets with alternative lifting solutions driven by a core motive of making a difference.
Operating out of Highbrook, Auckland, APS Equipment holds a rich history in providing construction machinery to its customers.
At the core of the family-owned business is an open minded, creative attitude, a drive to deliver superior customer experiences and solutions, and to embrace a positive team and family spirit. Put simply, Darren Boon says the company is “here to make a difference”.
Darren is the Director and Business Development Manager at New Zealand company APS Equipment and has been in his current role for just under ten years. He holds an extensive history in construction machinery sales, working in his last role in Parts and Sales for AgSpares for over 20 years. With 30 years of experience behind him, Darren’s last ten years at APS Equipment have seen him predominantly focus on the telehandler range that the NZ distributor stocks.
Beginning its operations in January 2014, the Auckland-based company prides itself on listening to problems posed by people engaging its services and working with them to ensure they reach an optimal solution. Within its inventory, APS Equipment offers a range of different access equipment available for short- or long-term hire, but its main feature is the range of Magni Rotating Telehandlers (RTH) that it distributes.
Enjoying an exclusive relationship with the Italian manufacturers, APS is uniquely positioned to optimise jobsite operations, according to Darren. The versatility offered by the RTH is “unrivalled” when it comes to completing mobile operations around construction sites.
“We have a healthy relationship with Magni,” he says. “Magni is very focused on its telehandler range which ties in with our ambitions perfectly, as we want to embrace alternative Lift and Shift solutions tailor-made to our customers’ needs.”
Part of the healthy relationship enjoyed between the New Zealand distributor and Italian manufacturer comes from the commonalities in their respective inceptions. Akin to APS Equipment, Magni was founded as a family business and its existence can be traced back to 1972 in Italian manufacturing company Fargh SpA and its owner Pietro Magni. Fast forward to 2013, and the son of Pietro, Riccardo Magni, launched his own company: Magni Telescopic Handlers.
“We’re proud and honoured to be the exclusive distributor for Magni’s telehandlers in New Zealand,” he says. “At APS Equipment, we’re here to make a difference, and we feel that Magni’s products allow customers to finish their construction and civil projects ahead of schedule by providing a more cost-effective, efficient machine.”
With Magni’s RTH series, Darren says APS can fulfil its driving purpose of making a positive difference to its customers. APS stocks telehandlers from the Italian manufacturer ranging from four-tonne through to 13 tonne capacity models. Furthermore, on top of its varying weight classes, APS’s range of RTHs feature boom lengths from 10m to 51m long, underscoring the versatility the machines offer.
For Darren, the machines present the perfect alternative to a crane when it comes to lifting lighter loads in more compact, tighter lifting environments. With the telehandler able to perform in a range of pick and carry applications around construction sites, Darren says the machines present a “very stable” lifting platform with excellent roadability.
“Essentially, you get a three-in-one deal with the Magni RTH series,” he says. “The machine is capable of performing telescopic handler operations; it excels in off-road crane applications; and it’s more than useful as an aerial work platform.”
Adding to the machine’s flexibility are the variable leg positions the machine can stabilise itself on. The ‘SH’ series stabiliser legs provide a high level of grip across all terrains, and do not require a lot of space to stabilise. The load charts of the RTH will automatically calculate the safe lifting load across the full 360 degrees when in use. This level of control over the load distribution is thanks to Magni’s patented load control system which detects the risks of overload during the machine’s operation and inhibits further movements that threaten to throw machine off balance.
In New Zealand the Magni telehandlers are fitted with intelligent AI cameras which will identify pedestrians and other vehicles in blind spots and alert the operator, bringing an added level of safety to the machines. The full remote-control option allows the operator to control the machine from outside the cab for a better viewpoint, which on some models includes lifting stabilisers and driving the machine to a new position.
It’s this high level of technology and safety that offers a key point of difference, according to Darren.
“There’s a much higher utilisation rate for a Magni RTH machine,” he says. “The ‘SH series’ provides a safe, stable machine that is good for tight access, user-friendly, and a more efficient alternative to crane hire in certain scenarios.”
“There are times when the tower crane can’t reach on end of the building or the loads need to be placed through a window,” he continues. “This is where the telehandler shines.”
By distributing the Magni range of products, APS has been able to tap into a new range of markets. Because of the versatility on show from Magni’s machines, how a job may have once been conducted is now being entirely re-evaluated, thanks to the different approach to lifting and the different levels of access the machines can offer.
Darren is also keen to emphasise the symbiotic relationship telehandlers possess with cranes; as he’s keen to stress, the machines work well together, and the rise of the telehandler market does not mean the replacement of cranes on construction sites.
“They’re a powerful unit to work alongside the crane industry,” he says. “Here in the Southern Hemisphere people are only just starting to wake up to the practicality of these machines.”
“Overseas in Europe, people are all asking for the Magni telehandlers because of their smoothness to operate and their ability to switch between modes so easily,” he says. “It’s a powerful combination for a machine to go from pick and carry mode to crane mode in an instant, because it offers a whole new level of efficiency to projects.”
“They are often the first machine onsite,” he says, “and the last machine to leave.”
READ MORE:
- MCT Equipment to showcase Magni RTHs at CICA conference.
- Raising the expectation with MCT’s Magni telehandler.
- A game-changer on construction sites.
