The 2012 Scotplant show took place in the last week of April, at its usual location in Ingliston, adjacent toEdinburghairport. As in the past, Hill had a large display area, featuring the Hill exhibition unit, resplendent in its new colours and with the Hill logo prominently displayed. Ian was supported byLee Palmer, Donal Cunningham and new Regional Manager Mike Roby. The display area featured a number of examples of both Tefra coupler and Titan bucket models.

Especially prominent were examples of the new cast steel 3 ton and 5 ton Tefra models and the special Tefra version designed to fit the JCB 3CX backhoe. This coupler has been made specifically to pick up JCB 3CX buckets and offers the user a low profile and light weight alternative to other couplers. And the Hill team haven’t stopped there; a completely new installation kit has been developed, to minimise installation times by reducing the number of components needed. In the process, a way was also found to eliminate the long and vulnerable hydraulic lines that used to be required in this application.

Although the weather was somewhat inclement over the 2 days of the show, this did not deter customers fromScotlandand further afield from attending and the sales team were kept busy with a brisk stream of visitors. The stand location was excellent and well laid out, with plenty of space for customers to view the products. Without doubt, Tefra continues to attract much interest and comment from both existing and potential customers, who are quick to recognise the unique advantages that it offers.

With the successful introduction of the smaller units, the Tefra range can now accommodate the needs of users of excavators from 3 tons up to 120 tons. With this unique capability, Hill now has a double locking, ISO compliant coupler range that no competitor can match. Tefra, with its combination of ultimate safety, ultra simplicity and versatility, is increasingly the coupler of choice in today’s market.

Ian Hill,Lee Palmer and Donal Cunningham all attended the Intermat show held inParisin April. This is a well-respected event that draws visitors from all over the world and was the first major opportunity in 2012 for us to show examples of the Tefra coupler range to a selection of international customers. We based ourselves at the stand of One-TP, our French dealer, where our display included a 120 ton size class Tefra. Whilst not expected to sell in great volumes, this model demonstrates the breadth of capability at Hill and complements the range which now extends from 3 ton size class all the way up to this “big boy”!

Intermat was a 5 day event and although for some of the time the weather did not co-operate, the team all thought that their location was busy and a number of valuable leads were generated and will be followed up in the next few weeks. Ian was determined to attend the show, both to gain exposure for Hill products but importantly also to demonstrate support for the Hill dealer and the increasingly important French market.

Hill Engineering will once again be exhibiting at Scot Plant. Come and visit our stand at Avenue D Stand 18. There will be the opportunity to view both our Tefra hitch and our Titan buckets. Our representatives will be very pleased to assist with any enquiries.

Hill appoints new dealer for North America

We are pleased to announce that Hill Engineering and Rockland Manufacturing have partnered to bring the revolutionary Hill coupler to North America.
Rockland is a well-respected manufacturer of attachments for all brands of construction equipment. For over 60 years Rockland has earned a reputation for both quality and superb customer service.
The Hill Coupler, manufactured in Newry, NI will be distributed under the Rockland brand throughout North America.
A new website: www.safestcoupler.com is being created. The new site will provide Rockland dealers and their customer’s full information on the Hill coupler.

The dangers of failing to follow procedures……

Recently, one of the Hill technical engineers was called out to inspect a machine and quick coupler which had been involved in an incident where a worker was injured when he was struck by a bucket which separated from the coupler. No fault was found during the inspection which could have caused the separation, with both the machine and the coupler working correctly.

Unusually however there was CCTV footage of the incident and this appears to show the driver moving the bucket from within the appointed attachment changing area without following the full locking procedure and testing the security of the attachment to the coupler with the ‘shake, rattle and roll’ method. For most contractors the testing procedure following the attachment change is compulsory. Most sites insist on a protected enclosed area where attachments are stored and changed to protect other operatives. Even if only moving an attachment a few metres operators should ensure that attachments are correctly connected before moving from the appointed attachment changing area.

The Health and Safety Manager for the company involved made the following comment “Thanks to Hill’s quick response we were able to eliminate a mechanical or hydraulic problem with the machine or hitch as a problem. Viewing the CCTV footage of the incident, it does appear that the hitch was being used without a bucket being fully locked in place and that the correct attachment procedure was not completed before the bucket was moved outside of the changing area. However our investigation continues.”

If is determined that the failure to complete the full attachment procedure is the cause of the incident, this accident will become another statistic where the injury caused could have been avoided had all the correct procedures been followed.

DESPITE the current economic climate, family-run Hather Plant Hire is investing £400,000 in Hill Engineering’s innovative Tefra quick couplers for its fleet of new excavators as it continues to develop the 31year-old business.

The Rotherham-based business operates across Yorkshire, working closely with the construction industry, utility companies and major earthwork developments.

Over the next 12 months Hather will replace the existing couplers across its fleet and will also specify Tefra for the 25 new JCB and Komatsu 6tonne to 45tonne machines it will be purchasing this year.

Gary Hather, managing director of Hather Plant Hire said: “We have had a good relationship with Hill Engineering for the last 20 years and they have always been at the forefront of developing innovative engineering solutions.

“I believe that the Tefra is the best coupler on the currently on the market and that for safety this is the way forward. It is regarded as the single most significant progression in coupler safety over the last ten years.

“It is important for Hather to continue to invest in the equipment we operate and we want to be able to have machines with innovative technology that puts us ahead of our competitors.”

Developed by County Down-based Hill Engineering, the Tefra is a fully automatic, twin locking pin grabber coupler, with a patented and unique secondary locking system, the Hill APS. Together, the unique primary and secondary locking systems act continually to ensure that the attachment cannot be released accidentally. A further unique feature, the Hill Smart Valve, ensures that the coupler must always be in a safe and visible position before the operating process can be commenced.

Ian Hill, managing director of Hill Engineering said: “Hather is a plant hire company that continues to go from strength-to-strength, despite the economic downturn and we’re delighted to be working with them to bring their fleet up to the high standards clients expect in the construction industry.”

With an uncompromising commitment to safety, Hill is a recognised forerunner in industry compliance, and has worked closely with Hather to ensure each machine operative is fully trained to use the Tefra hitch.

Gary adds: “Hill Engineering have been a pleasure to work with and it gives peace of mind to know that we’re investing in machinery that will meet all safety standards and legislation being introduced in the coming years.”

We are pleased to announce that our Environmental management system is now accredited to the International standard ISO14001. Our Quality, Safety and Environmental team, headed up by Pearl Campbell, have worked with our advisors not only to ensure that our system can be accredited but also that it is capable of further development in future. This is in line with our approach to continous improvement, our customers expectations and our impact on the local enviroment in which we operate. It is also consistent with our aim to remain leaders in attachment safety, not only in terms of our products but also in our behaviour as a supplier.