My

My name is Sölvi Jónsson and I am one of the owners of Verktakar Magni ehf. We work to tight deadlines and competition for contracts is high, so projects must be completed on time and to a high standard.

We achieve this by rotating our construction machinery every three years. This has been our policy since the company started ten years ago with just six employees. It has now grown almost ten-fold with operators working up to 12 hours a day, six days a week.

HITACHI

The ZX670LCH-3 is our first Hitachi. It has been fitted with a mechanism to easily switch between the bucket and a breaker.

The FDR attachment penetrates large volumes of thick lava rock when laying new roads and preparing the ground for housing. In comparing the Hitachi against competing brands, we felt that the ZX670LCH-3 offered the best package in terms of productivity and reliability.

Experience

There have been no problems with the ZX670LCH-3 to date. We think that the Hitachi is better than its rivals in terms of performance and the operator is extremely happy.

Cold at the top

As the Zaxis ZX670LCH-3 was being unveiled at the Intermat exhibition in Paris of the new generation of large Hitachi excavators was already making an impact elsewhere in the world. Ground Control visited Iceland – home to the first European delivery of the ZX670LCH-3 – to witness the machine at work in rather unusual surroundings.

Leaving Keflavik International Airport to travel towards Reykjavik, the amount of
construction work on the island is immediately evident across an ever-changing landscape. Iceland is growing rapidly and it needs new housing and roads to keep up with the pace of development.

“Time is everything,” explains Sölvi Jónsson, one of the owners of Verktakar Magni ehf, a local construction company. “We must work to tight deadlines and the schedules for projects are always being shortened. However, competition for contracts is extremely high, so we must be able to complete the job within the specified time frame and to a high standard.”

Verktakar Magni’s guarantee to achieve these objectives is the frequent rotation of construction machinery. Each model is only used for a maximum of three years, before being sold or traded in for a new machine.

This has been Verktakar Magni’s policy since the company started ten years ago with just six employees. It has since grown almost ten-fold and during this period, Verktakar Magni was loyal to two Hitachi competitors. However, the introduction of the new Zaxis ZX670LCH-3 has changed this policy.

Sölvi compared the benefits and specification of the new excavator against the competition. He felt that Hitachi offered the most competitive package in terms of productivity and reliability. Within weeks, another customer – who had also been loyal to a rival manufacturer – ordered a second ZX670LCH-3.

It is already proving popular on its first job site. In fact, the operator is so at ease with the new machine that he was working inside the cab in his socks – with no shoes or boots!

“The Zaxis is working on a job that is usually undertaken by a smaller machine,” explains Sölvi. “The operator has found the ZX670LCH-3 to be so precise that it is capable of carrying out work that requires a high degree of accuracy. This is as a result of the greater control that is possible through the innovative new
hydraulic system.

“The controls on the Zaxis make the operation of the machine extremely smooth. The tracks are relatively stable on the uneven surface of the lava rock on the job site. The machine’s larger capacity and enhanced performance also enable the work to be completed much more quickly than before.”

Verktakar Magni is one of four contractors working on projects within this area. It is at the halfway stage of the four-month project and it looks as if it will be the only company to complete its contract on time.

The job involves laying new roads and preparing the ground for housing close to a new aluminium factory – the third of its kind on an island with a population of only 300,000 people. Iceland’s exclusive use of pure energy is attracting industry and boosting the economy.

Only geo-thermal and hydro-electricity are used on the island, which means that energy is cost-effective and in plentiful supply. In addition to this, a growing tourism trade more than doubles Iceland’s population on an annual basis.

All of this means that the construction industry is booming. Sölvi verifies this fact when he states that the company already has work guaranteed for the next three years.

Iceland’s sole distributor for Hitachi Construction Machinery, Íshlutir ehf, is finding it difficult to keep up with its customers’ demands. 2005 was a record year for the dealer, when Hitachi was established as the market leader for mid-range excavators on the island.

However, Íshlutir has almost reached last year’s total in the first five months of 2006. There also seems to be an increased demand for larger excavators.

“It’s cold at the top,” jokes Íshlutir’s Managing Director Gunnar Björnsson – and he’s not referring to Iceland’s sub-zero temperatures. “We will not be popular with dealers who sell other construction machinery on the island. However, this is a competitive industry, so we must try to secure as many customers as possible.

“The only reason that we are not further increasing the market share for Hitachi is that we cannot import them fast enough. This is despite the fact that we have a fresh delivery every week from Amsterdam.”

The company’s premises are situated close to Reykjavik. This location is cost effective and allows easy access for the arrival of new machines. A shipment from Hitachi was due to arrive on the day of Ground Control’s visit. It was evident from the lack of stock at the dealer’s premises that it would be welcomed.

This is no surprise. Hitachi is in demand on the island because the Zaxis range is becoming renowned for performing better and more efficiently than its rivals on a wide range of job sites.

The other important factor is the effective service that Íshlutir provides to its customers. This is what sealed the deal with Sölvi for its first Hitachi excavator and persuaded him to invest in a second Zaxis machine within weeks.

Verktakar Magni operators are working 12 hours a day, six days a week on-site, particularly at this time of year when the island enjoys almost 24-hour daylight. So, excellent service is vital, even though it has not been necessary yet.

The ZX670LCH-3 started work on the site six weeks ago and – despite high
usage – there have been no problems with the machine to date. Sölvi already thinks that the Hitachi is better than its rivals in terms of performance and the operator is extremely satisfied with the new machine.

Íshlutir has fitted the ZX670LCH-3 with an FRD quick hitch system, which allows the operator to switch easily between the bucket and an hydraulic breaker. The quick hitch fitted by the dealer is the largest that can be used by a machine of this capacity. It is necessary for penetrating the large volumes of thick lava rock on-site.

The operator seems to cut through the ground effortlessly. However, the machine is also adaptable enough for effective use on another site with a completely different landscape.

It is this versatility that is already helping to increase profitability for Verktakar Magni. Sölvi is not yet sure how the Hitachi performs in terms of running costs compared with its rivals. However, as a result of the work being completed faster, the profit margins for each job have automatically increased.

That alone is enough to ensure that Sölvi is happy with his purchase and the ZX670LCH-3 has proved that it is more than capable of keeping up with the pace of Iceland’s rapid development programme.