It’s not every day you find a business owner or operator that has been with the same machine manufacturer and distributor for 25 years, but that is exactly the situation for Richard Vella from RV Excavations & Landscaping. Richard has been running with Bobcat machines pretty much since he started his business over two decades ago. Richard reports that it has been equal measures of fantastic products from Bobcat Company and great service from the team at Clark Equipment that has kept him coming back time and time again.
It was a cool morning and the fog was just starting to break up as Ipulled up onsite to meet Richard at the foot of the Blue Mountains. Richard already had his boys getting stuck in with the Bobcat S590 and E20 zipping around. The S590 was busily moving pallets from a recent delivery around the site to give clear access. I decided to stay in the car for five minutes to watch and I could see how the Bobcat skid-steer and excavator had saved around an hour or so of heavy lifting thanks to these machines. As Richard reshuffled the pallets of pavers and material, which had been dropped off by the courier that morning, he created a well-arranged worksite that gave clear access to the rest of the trades on site.
The site we were on was residential with both earthmoving and landscaping requirements in place. Richard, through smart use of his chosen machinery, has cleverly created two tiers to his business both through the earthmoving excavation side as well as the landscaping with many clients utilising both of these services.
Richard and I had the opportunity to have a good old chat about his business and all things Bobcat equipment. He shared, “ I’ve been in business on my own for around 25 years and we specialise in bulk excavations, landscaping detailed work and a little bit of demolition. Today, we are on site at North Richmond doing a bit of landscaping on a residential site, including the building of several retaining walls.”
When I prompted Richard about his choice of machinery he was more than happy to discuss how Bobcat has been an important part of his business since the very beginning. “I’ve got six Bobcat machines on the go on any given day, a couple on tracks and a couple on wheels, along with a 5 tonne and a 2 tonne excavator and I’m about to buy a 14 tonner. I’ve been using Bobcat loaders and excavators for the last 25 years and I’ve never looked back. For starters, the power is great, and they are easy on the body to operate. When you’re doing big days, the comfort factor is important,” said Richard.
Richard continued, “I’ve got two T590s and two S590s, which I use for bulk excavation and loading rubbish, dirt and other materials into trucks. In the team at the moment I have around 12 guys running across four or five sites, which keeps us busy, and the feedback from the boys on the Bobcat machines is always really positive.
“Today we will be using the S590 to arrange our materials ready for when the excavation and clearing have been completed by the E20 excavator. The rest of the boys are in the city on a bulk excavation project and a separate landscaping job.”
One of the best comments that Richard shared was the fact that being successful in his and any industry is from being reliable and honest; people expect you to stick to timeframes, delivery dates and pricing. The ability to be able to deliver this comes down to being well organised with the right staff and machinery. When I asked Richard how working with Bobcat equipment helped him achieve this over the years, he answered, “Being able to rely on your team and machinery is what gives you the confidence to take on important jobs even with tight time frames. You can see the customers are happy with the quality of our machines when we start work, which gives them confidence in us as well. When the customers are happy, it’s a great experience for everyone. The other element of my confidence in the machines is my relationship with Clark Equipment and in particular Bob Liso who I have been working with closely for around 22 years. Bob has seen my business grow from one machine to six or seven machines and has been great to deal with every step of the way. Our phone calls are always answered and the service is great. If there is ever any problem (which has only happened on rare occasions), they are sorted out pretty much on the same day if not the next.”
It seems that Richard’s loyalty to the Bobcat brand has been a two-way street with great products and after-sales service that have always been a positive experience for Richard and his team. If you need great quality excavation or landscaping jobs in the Sydney area, don’t hesitate to give Richard a call at RV Excavations & Landscaping.