A hire company is celebrating its 20th anniversary – by investing in one of the first in a new range of JCB X Series models.
Matthew Williams Digger Hire was founded in 1999 offering both operated and self-drive plant hire and some small groundworks services. Founder Matthew Williams started the business with one second-hand JCB 3CX and now runs one of the largest 3CX fleets in Norfolk. It serves a large and varied customer base from private hire and small builders through to some of the biggest blue-chip construction companies in the UK.
Now Norfolk-based Matthew Williams Digger Hire has purchased a 140X – part of JCB’s brand new 13-16 tonne range of X Series crawler excavators. Supplied by Watling JCB, it has been put straight to work on muck shifting and deep drainage applications on a major roadbuilding project for Norfolk County Council.
The JCB 140X, along with its 131X and 150X stablemates, is aimed squarely at ground working specialists and like the existing 20-22-tonne JCB X Series models launched last year – they are more productive, durable, quieter, more comfortable and easier to use than their predecessors.
Matthew Williams Digger Hire Founder, Matthew Williams, said: “We had machines due for renewal and after we saw the 220X was such a great machine we just had to have one of the new smaller X Series models. It’s just a great all-round package. The operators love it and comment on its smoothness. They say it’s a great place to spend a shift because it is very comfortable with a roomy cab, laid out well and easy to use.
“We choose JCB because the service and back up is second to none. The machines are good value and to top it off, we are proud to support a British manufacturer. If you cut me, I bleed yellow. There is a lot of competition out there, particularly in this class of excavator, but nobody can offer the all-round package like JCB.”
The fully-sealed pressurised cab on the 140X comes with a choice of comfortable Grammer seats, with heating and cooling options now available. The operator also benefits from seat mounted servo levers. The controls have been designed to be 100% operator-focused, with a new command pod to the right of the seat that brings together all switches and controls in a single seat-mounted unit. A new 7” monitor with intuitive menus and functionality can be accessed through an automotive-style rotary controller.
