Kent-based Cobalt Plant Hire has invested in a fleet of new JCB machines worth £4 million –including 19 X Series excavators. Its JCB fleet has been joined by new 140X and 220X models supplied by dealer Greenshields JCB. The X Series models are also joined by 85Z-2 and 86C-2 midi excavators and six and nine-tonne site dumpers.
Cobalt Plant Hire was established in 2022 by Barry Verrent and Mick Lippard with support from JCB Finance. Offering self-drive plant hire, it employs ten people at its Rochester base and operates a total fleet of 190 machines including tracked excavators, dumpers, telescopic handlers and compaction rollers.
Cobalt’s joint managing director Barry Verrent says the X Series excavators are proving a big hit with hire customers, with former users of competitor machines now becoming big fans of the X Series models.
He said: “We choose JCB as we have an excellent relationship with the team at Greenshields JCB. The service has been really good and we really like the X Series.
It’s a powerful excavator. Operator comfort is a big thing for us and so the comfort levels in the cab stand out. As long as the operator is happy, we’re happy. The customer feedback has been very good. Even those customers who previously used competitor machines are now converts to the X Series.”
