Over the past year or so, at least three big names in plant hire have pivoted away from traditional earthmoving machinery to more specialised niches.
Nixon Hire, Buckingham Plant Hire and Ardent Hire Solutions have all moved away from heavy machinery and earthmoving after reviewing their operations and rethinking their market position.
Nixon Hire, founded in Newcastle in 1967, has gone through a series of transformations over the past five years or more, gradually parting from its roots in traditional plant hire and moving into static plant 鈥� site accommodation, welfare facilities, lighting towers and generators 鈥� with the emphasis on renewable energy and solar power.
Nixon entered the site accommodation market way back in 1987 but always remained committed to heavy plant. In 2019 it took over the plant and equipment of Mechplant, the hire division of Durham-based Esh Construction. Under the terms of that deal, Nixon Hire became sole supplier to Esh of all large plant for at least four years.
However the direction of travel at Nixon has been evident for some time. In recent years it has become significantly more vocal about its state-of-the-art Snooze Pods and solar hybrid generators than its diggers and dumpers.
Post-Covid, a new strategy emerged.聽 In October 2023 the company announced that it would now operate large plant only from its Newcastle and Stockton depots. Its five Scottish depots and seven depots across the rest of England sold their mobile machinery and moved to cross-hire to meet customers鈥� needs.聽
The business was still financially healthy 鈥� turning over 拢100m in 2023 with pre-tax profits of 拢3.8m (although that had been 拢7.3m in 2022) 鈥� but clearly some parts of the business were performing better than others.
Chief financial officer John Hudson said at the time: 鈥�2023 has underlined which of our products are most valued by our customers and where we should direct our future support.聽 For example, our accommodation and welfare cabins have received great feedback, especially when paired with power options, such as solar pods or battery storage units, providing both financial and carbon emission savings.
This article was first published in the May 2025 issue of 猛料视频 Magazine. Sign up online.
鈥淭his was no accident 鈥� we heavily invested in these products in 2023 and plan to invest even more to meet our customers鈥� needs and further support plans towards achieving net carbon zero sites.鈥�
Chief executive Graham Nixon added: 鈥淲e remain an ever evolving and growing company and we have taken the opportunity to refocus our resources and commit to a robust programme of investment into developing and delivering the products and services our customers require. Large plant is popular and in demand in the northeast and that is where we will serve those customers and we will continue to do it well.鈥�
Despite the clear change of focus by the business, he was keen to stress at the time that Nixon was not quitting earthmoving and mobile machinery.
"We will continue to offer an exceptional service and invest in large plant for those depots,鈥� he said in 2023. 鈥淭his is by no means our exit from large plant. We certainly don鈥檛 want customers to think that we are winding down our service and fleet in the northeast now or in the future 鈥� this is simply not the case.鈥�
But within months this began to unravel. By July 2024 Nixon鈥檚 remaining large plant fleet in the northeast had been sold and the whole depot network was relying on cross-hire.
In October 2024 Nixon went public on the new-look Nixon Hire, no longer offering traditional plant but now a specialist focused solely on site services 鈥� mobile offices, toilets, lighting and power.
Graham Nixon said: 鈥淔or the best part of six decades, our success has been driven by a relentless focus on putting customers first and consistently surpassing their expectations. A common thread throughout our journey has been a willingness to be bold and ambitious, evolving with the times.
鈥淭his new strategic direction is consistent with that approach, concentrating on what sets us apart, focusing on the sustainable site equipment our customers have told us they value the most, and investing in our technical expertise and capacity for innovation. The planned changes we have made have paved the way for our long-term national growth aspirations, and we are excited about the future.鈥�
Buckingham Plant Hire has been around even longer than Nixon Hire, being established in 1955. However, it perhaps should not have been too much of a surprise when in January 2025 its owners revealed that times were a-changing 鈥� the heavy plant operations were closing.
This article was first published in the May 2025 issue of 猛料视频 Magazine. Sign up online.
The decision followed the demise of Buckingham Group Contracting, the plant hire company鈥檚 biggest customer. Buckingham Group Contracting was incorporated in 1987 by Buckingham Plant Hire鈥檚 owners Paul and Patricia Wheeler.
The Wheelers saw their contracting business grow to 拢7m turnover after 10 years of trading and then to 拢665m in 2021, the year in which they sold it to an employee ownership trust.
Buckingham Group Contracting remained Buckingham Plant Hire鈥檚 biggest customer, generating around 拢2m a year.
However, the wheels came off the contracting business and in September 2023 it went into administration.
Buckingham Plant Hire survived 鈥� making a pre-tax profit of 拢1.1m in 2023 on turnover of 拢22.4m 鈥� but business became tougher and it was left with more than 拢1.8m of unpaid invoices by the collapse of its former sister company.
Paul Wheeler wrote in Buckingham Plant鈥檚 2023 annual report: 鈥淭he impact of the financial implications of the collapse of our primary customer for heavy plant services presented a whole range of existential issues which the directors had to confront and deal with as a matter of urgency. Not least of which was the inevitable downsizing of the heavy plant business.鈥�
In February this year the final step was taken for Buckingham Plant Hire: its entire fleet of 72 Volvo and Caterpillar heavy machines were sent to auction.
But that is not the end of the story.
Buckingham Plant Hire has a subsidiary operation, Ace Plant, established in 1973 and acquired by the Wheelers in 2016. Operating as a regional light plant specialist Ace Plant became part of Buckingham鈥檚 Consolidated Plant Group in 2017 and moved into purpose-built facilities in Buckingham鈥檚 Silverstone Road premises in 2021.
Ace Plant focuses on smaller machinery, including mini excavators and lithium battery powered lighting towers, and the famous Bundie Bowsers. Ace Plant now becomes the focus of the family鈥檚 plant operations (and was the subject of our SME Profile feature in March 2025 鈥� ed.)
Paul Wheeler, who turned 70 last year, has been managing director since 1975 when he was just 21 years old, taking over from his father. He and Patricia are taking the opportunity of the repositioning of the business to take a step back.
George Wheeler leads the third generation鈥檚 involvement in the business as operations director of ACE Plant.
Reflecting on his career in plant, Paul Wheeler said: 鈥淥ur concept was the delivery of a fully inclusive service to our customers, backed up with a rigorous regime of diligent maintenance, devised to keep our equipment in first-class condition. I鈥檓 proud of everything we achieved over the years and immensely grateful for the commitment and dedication we鈥檝e had from so many colleagues who have supported the company and its ethos since those early beginnings.
鈥淪tepping away from our traditional roots in heavy plant has been a difficult decision, as it truly represents the end of an era. However, realistically, the UK heavy plant sector is going through a period of radical transition, and it鈥檚 time to hand over to the next generation. The decision to retire the heavy fleet is part of a longer-term business strategy designed to embrace a sustainable future.鈥�
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George Wheeler said: 鈥淭he shift towards sustainable plant operations is not just necessary鈥攊t鈥檚 inevitable. Our investment strategy demonstrates our commitment to change, ensuring that we operate responsibly while helping to shape the industry鈥檚 future. As the utilisation of diesel-powered equipment declines, we鈥檙e looking forward to being at the forefront of this vital transformation.鈥�
While Graham Nixon and the Wheelers cite the sustainability agenda as a driving force for their strategy shifts, Ardent is more open about the fact that, quite simply, there is not enough money in diggers.
Compared to Nixon and Buckingham, Ardent Hire Solution is still a new name in the construction industry. It was created in 2015 through the merger of telehandler specialist Fork Rent and general plant hirer One Call Hire under private equity ownership.
At the time of the merger, Ardent had around 5,000 machines, of which 2,510 were telehandlers, plus 760 excavators, 440 rollers/compactors and 560 site dumpers.
But in January 2024 it began to unpack the merger, effectively shedding the One Call Hire side of the business and reverting to the telehandlers-only model adopted by Fork Rent.
By the end of 2024 it had shed its 2,000 earthmoving machines and access platforms, while retaining its 2,400 telehandlers.
While consolidating the fleet mix, it continued to invest to keep the fleet profile young. During the year to 31st March 2024, Ardent invested 拢58m in new and replacement assets in addition to 拢7m on a new HGV delivery fleet 鈥� a 16% increase year-on-year in capital expenditure.
Ardent explained that it gave up on the excavator rental market because of 鈥渆ver-decreasing returns鈥�.
Ardent chief financial officers Julian O鈥橬eill explained: 鈥淎rdent鈥檚 transition to a specialist equipment supplier is the result of ongoing and detailed industry analysis. Ardent are allocating investment capital to their best performing assets in a bold move away from the ever-decreasing returns of the earthmoving sector.鈥�
He added: 鈥淐apital equipment costs have been rising rapidly in recent years, coinciding with a decline in rental rates. This trend is partly driven by an oversupply of equipment due to the economic slowdown, as well as by new market entrants who are aggressively pricing to capture market share.
"Additionally, the global drop in residual values for used equipment has further eroded returns.鈥�
More than 750 new telehandlers will join the Ardent fleet in 2025. This includes a substantial order of telehandlers from JCB and more than 100 telehandlers and rotating telehandlers from Manitou, putting Ardent well on the way to a fleet of 200 roto telehandlers.
鈥淭he transition secures the future for both Ardent and for our customers,鈥� O鈥橬eill concluded. 鈥淲ith a laser focus on this specific sector, backed by a multi-million pound investment, Ardent will be able to provide equipment and service that are second to none, setting new standards for material handling and lifting hire.鈥�
Neither Nixon nor Buckingham have admitted to facing difficulties with their excavator fleets and what Argent calls their 鈥渆ver-decreasing returns鈥�. Instead, they prefer to focus on the sustainability credentials of their new strategies.
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However it is more than likely that they faced exactly the same market pressures as Ardent. Furthermore, as family business under second and third generation ownership, it is easy to imagine that sentiment might have made deciding on a new direction rather harder than it was for Ardent鈥檚 private equity owners.
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