Having secured their crane yard in the middle of Glendenning – Western Sydney’s ‘crane central’ – Two Way Cranes’ Frank and Nichole Zammit have turned their attention to the future by implementing new business processes, receiving ISO 9001 accreditation and welcoming more family members into the business.
“Securing our crane yard long term has been a priority for many years and we finally managed to do that this year. But it’s already full and we are in the process of looking for more space to house our trailers and prime movers and other pieces of equipment,” said Frank.
The ISO 9001 accreditation has been a 12-month project for the business and will help the Two Way Cranes team as it increasingly tenders for Tier One work.
“The process we have been through for the ISO 90001 accreditation provides us an A to Z of systems and processes which are now in place,” said Frank. “As the business grows you don’t always think that is important, but now we are at the size we are, you can see why it is.
“We recently implemented the EQUIPR Software which specialises in plant and mobile crane hire and this has helped streamline the allocations and invoicing in the business. Wherever we can, we are trying to go paperless.”
But he said the exciting development for Two Way Cranes is the number of second generation Zammits now working in the business.
The next generation
Blake Zammit first joined Two Way Cranes almost 10 years ago.
“I worked for a couple of years and left to finish my carpentry apprenticeship. I came back three years ago and there had been a massive amount of change, including lots of new cranes, new faces and a big yard,” he said.
“I spent the first two years out on the cranes, but Frank had been trying to get me to work in the office and I kept knocking him back. Then I was asked to help Andre in the office just for a week or two while Gemma, the other allocator was away, and I never really left.”
Working in allocations is very much a pressure cooker situation and it takes a certain type of personality to cope with the pressure.
“If Andre and I weren’t family, I think we would have murdered each other by now,” Blake laughed. “We can scream at each other all day and then walk out and high five each other, then come back and do it again the next day. The key to dealing with stressful situations is not to over think the problem and usually we find a way to work things out.
“There are times where Andre solves a problem at one or two o’clock in the morning, and we do it. That’s what you do for family. Frank and Nichole have played a big part in making me feel appreciated in the company and I am prepared to go that extra mile as a result.”
Andre Zammit left school just as he was turning 16 and started in the workshop where he stayed for two years. Aged 18 he attained his Dogman ticket and was dogging for three years. After that, Andre felt he had earned his stripes, so took his operators ticket and jumped into of a 40 tonne all terrain and moved up in capacities operating a 260 tonne all terrain for a while.
“Dad then asked me to move into the office and I moved into the Fleet Management team. There wasn’t much for me to do there and so I moved to allocations and immediately loved it,” Andre said. “Allocations is really the hub of the business, we are dealing with cranes, support vehicles and most importantly, our people. We also work closely with our administration staff in terms of compliance and inductions, and they do a wonderful job.
“You have to care about what you do because it is 24/7 job. When something doesn’t go according to plan – someone calls in sick, a crane breaks down and we’ve got to get another one out there, or it might be midnight and a crane blows a tyre and we’ve got to get a mechanic out of bed and to site – somehow, we always manage to get it done, every time.
“You can only ever plan a couple of hours ahead, maybe a day ahead at the most. Anything planned further out than that, simply throw it in the bin because it’s always going to change.”
Andre talks about the advantages and disadvantages of being the son of the business owner and how it took time to be accepted by the team.
“When I first started it was a disadvantage, because no one really wanted to talk to me or trust me. They are not bad guys, they were just wary that I was Frank’s son and that I would be relaying back to him what was being said in the yard,” he said.
“I kept my mouth shut, kept work away from home life and after 18 months I’d earned the trust of the guys, and they took me in. The fact that I had earned their trust and respect made the transition to the office and allocations a lot easier because if I wasn’t respected in here, it would make the job almost impossible.
“Ultimately, and with more experience, I would like to move into a supervisor role and eventually work alongside Dad, Nichole and Jackson and really share the load in terms of running the business.”
Jackson Zammit left school in October of 2025 and he is very excited to be working in the family business.
“I love being an apprentice, it’s exciting and definitely different. Waking up early, all the new people I meet working with different personalities, especially out on site. You run into so many different people it just makes every day different,” he said.
“I was in the workshop for the first six months and this gave me a good understanding about the mechanics of cranes, which is important. But I’m definitely enjoying being a dogman, being out there on site with the crane and the team is challenging but it is awesome.
“I understand it’s a high risk industry and I am that set of eyes working with the operator, and telling him about things he can’t see. I know it’s a big responsibility, but I’m not intimated. The most important lesson I’ve learnt so far is communication. When I get to site with the team, the first thing we discuss with the client is the plan, ask them what they want to see and work with them and not around them.”
Despite all the lift plans, preparation and planning there are occasions when the team gets to site and there are unexpected changes.
Jackson explains how he deals with this situation.
“It is always about communication. You might get to site and there is a utilities pit where you are meant to set up which means we’ve got to set up another 10 metres away. We communicate with the supervisor to see if the engineering and lift plans will still work in that new position,” he said.
“It’s challenging but we are always focused on getting the job done for the customer in the most efficient and safe way.”
Jackson explains how joining the family business has been for him and where he sees his future.
“Of course, the guys know who I am, and I did get a ribbing at the start, in the nicest possible way, but that comes with being an apprentice and learning about the business from the bottom up, and not from being a Zammit. I just blend in and get on with the job in front of me.
“I’m at TAFE studying the Certificate 111 in Cranes which is really interesting and good fun. There are 15 in the class including Harry Borger (of Borger Crane Hire and Rigging), so the next generation is definitely coming through the ranks.
“For now, I’m enjoying dogging and eventually I’d like to be operating the cranes. Dad and Andre reckon I’ll want to come into the office eventually, but I don’t see it. I’m enjoying being out with the teams on site working and with our customers. But both have been here before me and so maybe they know something that I don’t, we’ll see.”