Two new safety-led Bulmor Lancer sideloaders with a 6m reach operate at the 12 acre site in Suffolk. Click for larger view

Since humble beginning in a backroom in Cambridge in 1911, Ridgeon's has grown steadily to become one of the UK's largest independent Timber and Builders Merchants with 25 locations across the East of England.

A tangible sign of the company's progress was the opening, in the 80s, of a magnificent new warehouse on a 12 acre site in Suffolk, with capacity for 600 full packs of timber or 2500m² of finished stock which complements the two mills and treatment plants there. A notable feature of the new facility is some 640 linear metres of adjustable cantilever racking which serves as the structural support for the building and gives much better storage at 6m high rather than the usual 5.4m - and this is where Bulmor Lancer's special sideloaders literally fit in. Ridgeon's General Manager Jem Slee sets the scene "We have seen a very satisfactory growth in our business and we needed extra covered space to store both sawn joinery material and finished products .So as to maximise the benefit of the extra height we replaced the two existing sideloaders with two new economic diesel - powered Bulmor Lancer sideloaders with a 6m reach. The new advanced machines are also notably fitted with three built-in cameras positioned to cover the back, the offside area and the fork carriage. We chose Bulmor Lancer because of the superior specification and their willingness to work with us to get the correct specification and the quality of the machines as well as being realistically competitive. Our plan is to eventually change the existing fleet of sideloaders to the high-reach version".

All of which reflects the fact that over the last 100 years the Ridgeons client base has grown to include sectors as diverse as property development, the public sector, farming, exports and DIY. However, the appeal of the service quality remains the same with a commitment to an outstanding width and depth of stock available for collection or delivery. A range extending from the external envelope - including bricks and engineering timber solutions, through to kitchens and bathrooms, plumbing and heating, paints and fixings to meet all project needs across the region. And for the record there are many other generic health & safety features of the Bulmor Lancer range commencing with a unique drive pedal inhibitor and warning buzzer if foot pressure fails; large profile wheels for easier travel on uneven ground with better directional stability compared to other truck types and less stress on the operator and load; wide comfortable cabins with adjustable seats and tinted safety glass; armoured roofs plus protective grills and flexible steering incorporating operating functions and pre-controlled hydraulics with simple joystick steering. The LQ50 model at Ridgeons also offers lifting capacity of 5 tons and platform width of 1200mm.

For more on Bulmor Lancer call +43 7262 583970, Send an email or visit www.bulmor.com.