UK based telehandler specialist Fork Rent has ordered 600 JCB telehandlers as part of a fleet and depot network expansion programme.

The order follows the announcement by Fork Rent of plans to construct a new purpose-built national headquarters in Ipswich in addition to a brand new depot in Hullavington, us off the M4 in Wiltshire, to serve the South West, South London and the Midlands. The company is also looking for a new location in Northern England.

The latest order adds to more than 1,000 JCB telehandlers that it has purchased over the past two years. The company, owned by Guy and Trudi Nicholls, has ordered the machines, which range from 515-40 through to the 515-170, from dealer Watling JCB. They include the latest HiViz models and they all have air conditioning, Sway control for chassis levelling, turbo engines and hydraulic side shift forks as standard.

Fork Rent has also specified the latest JCB LiveLink telematics and keypad immobilisers on all of the new machines on which it is available.

Guy Nicholls said: “In the last two years alone, we have invested over £40 million in new machinery and purchased 1,000 telehandlers through a strong global partnership with JCB.”

“The latest investment means that by April 2012 all machines in Fork Rent’s fleet will be less than 24 months old, providing customers with reliability and peace of mind. We have the best fleet of telehandlers in Europe in terms of specification and age but are also proud to offer the very highest level of back-up service for customers for breakdown response times, service planning, communication, management information and invoicing.”

“While the UK market remains highly competitive, it is really important that we concentrate our efforts on offering all our customers the best value for money machines in the market and that they can rely on us in terms of our back up services. Our target is to win customers and keep them happy for many years, not just one term. This takes effort, but we are prepared and will continue to put that effort in to keep our customers happy.”