Drummond & Etheridge (D&E) are proud to be appointed as the John Deere Construction and Forestry dealer for the South Island.
This recent appointment extends D&E’s product offering for existing agricultural, commercial and consumer customers, and opens up opportunities for the construction and forestry industries thanks to the introduction of several machines previously not available in the New Zealand marketplace.
“We’re excited to partner with the range of businesses and consumers that make up the construction and forestry network,” says Mark Etheridge, CEO. “I’m confident the unique technology and support solutions we have available will not only maximise their uptime but also minimise operating costs.”
Drummond & Etheridge have a strong business history, built on a long-standing commitment to after-sale customer support. This, combined with an extensive dealer network throughout the South Island, puts them in the position to support the specialist needs of the construction and forestry industries.
“We recognise that to meet the daily demands faced by those working in construction and forestry, downtime and disruptions must be kept to a minimum, so we’re committed to providing solutions to best fit the individual needs of each operation,” says Etheridge.
“We have a skilled team of over 200 employees, including industry experts in management, customer support and technical roles,” says Etheridge. “And our in-house training facility allows us to quickly capitalise on new introductions or advancements in products and technology offered by John Deere and other product partners.”
A centralised parts warehouse supports D&E’s extensively stocked dealerships, allowing for the overnight replenishment of local parts inventories and greater access to unique or infrequently required parts. This empowers local dealerships to rapidly rectify machine down situations and minimise operational interference for customers. Another initiative, Parts OnSite, sees in-branch specialists create a customised program of bulk parts, consumables and lubricants based on operational needs, that is then stored securely, and re-stocked regularly, on the operators’ premises.
The group service department consists of more than 80 factory-trained technicians and benefits from in-house mechanical and technical support experts. Innovative tools such as mobile service trailers ensure technicians are fully equipped to perform a variety of field-based service and repair work without the need for return trips or machine transport, yielding uptime efficiency and cost benefits for customers.
“We also have a significant team of integrated solutions and technology specialists on hand to manage and optimise customer data and machine telemetry,” says Etheridge. “John Deere solutions for fleet management, machine health and fleet optimisation are not fully utilised in the New Zealand construction and forestry market, so the introduction of systems such as SmartGrade, TimberManager and ForestSight are ways we can add instant value and support to operators.”
The commencement of D&E’s distribution agreement for John Deere Construction and Forestry equipment is currently scheduled for July 1, 2020.
