Ground Control 14 - Luyckx

DealerNasta places a huge emphasis on after-salesSome of the Nasta team outside their impressive head office near Larvikaftermath of the recession. However, Nasta was able to ride the stormby gaining a 25% market share in the same year.In 2011, it sold 400 new machines – an increase of 50 units from theprevious year – to record a turnover of €77million. Around 20% of thisfigure comes from special application machines and the largest everexcavator delivered by Nasta was an EX2500-6 installed on a pontoonin February 2011. Other examples of the dealer’s specially adaptedequipment include a ZX225USLC-3 for railway applications and aZX190W-3 for tunnels.“If a customer needs something special, then we want Nasta to beconsidered as a viable option,” says Sales Manager Henrik Anholt.“We pride ourselves on focusing on customer solutions. Our facilitieshere are second to none with spacious service, special application,The wide range of services provides technicians with invaluable experiencewelding, refurbishment, paint and washing areas. This wide range ofservices makes it more interesting for technicians and presents themwith invaluable experience and fresh challenges. This will also help todevelop their skills.”As well as expanding into a new head office, Nasta has developed itsservice network. There are five other branches – with office, workshop,parts and stockyard facilities – in Lillestrøm (Tuen), Bergen (Espeland),Stjørdal, Kristiansand and Vestnes, and a total of 36 mobile service unitsproviding national coverage.“Nasta places a huge emphasis on after-sales, so that we couldsurvive off the revenue from this sector of the business, even if we don’tsell a single excavator,” adds Henrik. “That’s very important, becausewe don’t know when to expect the next drop in the market. Our aim isto reach a level of 60% of new machines being supplied with a servicecontract in 2012.“Almost half of after-sales revenue comes from Hitachi Parts andthese are of course included within the service contracts. Our proactiveapproach to maintenance enhances the life of the machine, withless downtime. This in turn leads to our goal of complete customersatisfaction.”Nasta divides the country into the different territories for sales andservice. The sales regions are segmented according to the postalsystem, which is based on the main routes for transportation. Thismakes it easier for the salesmen to manage their time and visit eachcustomer on a regular basis.While general construction is the most popular industry sector,there are signs that there will be increased demand from the rentaland quarrying sectors. The Norwegian Government is also making asignificant investment in infrastructure through the National TransportPlan 2010-2019.This initiative includes: 350km of national roads being upgraded;230km of national roads being converted to four lanes; 500km of newfootpaths and cycle paths; and 144km of new railway track, 116km ofwhich will be two-way.“There are many projects in the pipeline or that have already started,”explains Henrik. “So, we are optimistic about continued growth in themarket over the next three years at least and we expect there to be anincrease of 10-15% in 2012.”The demands of the construction industry are also shaped by thecountry’s characteristics. Norway has the lowest population density inEurope after Iceland, so there is a need for versatile equipment thatcan cater for more than one application. In addition, the harsh climaticconditions, poor soil quality and difficult terrain lead to tough workingconditions for machinery and the requirement for them to be durable.Two events dominated Nasta’s activities this year: Vei og Anlegg(Road and Construction Site) 2012, Norway’s largest constructionexhibition, which had an appropriate theme of “tough machines andfuture solutions” to match the Hitachi dealer’s current promotionalrequirements; and a three-way cooperation with the local Scania andVolkswagen distributors, in which each party invited key customers totest an impressive fleet of automotive and commercial vehicles, andconstruction machinery.The exhibition, held every three years in May, was the perfectlaunch pad to promote Nasta’s modern corporate identity, as wellas the innovative new range of Zaxis-5 excavators and ZW wheelloaders. Some customers had the opportunity to test a ZX250LC-5medium excavator in advance of the show, and the reaction wasextremely positive.“We have assessed the feedback of the operators, who havecompleted a questionnaire after trying out the new Zaxis-5 machine,”says Henrik. “This has been hugely positive and we have also used theZX250LC-5 for sales and technical training.”When asked to summarise the future prospects of the Norwegianmarket, Tom concludes: “Nasta has always had a close workingrelationship with Hitachi. We are very happy with the level of support,which has helped us to maintain a leading position for the crawlerexcavators.“Our partnership with HCME means that we are seen as one of themajor players in Norway. The reputation enjoyed by the Hitachi productrange and Nasta’s improved organisational structure mean that we are inan excellent position. We are aiming to capitalise on the positive outlookand increase our market share, especially in other product groups.”To see a movie of the ZX250LC-5 workingon the roads in Norway, please visitwww.youtube.com/user/HitachiConstruction.To receive a digital version of Ground Controlwith new movies, please register online atwww.igroundcontrol.com/subscribe/english32 Hitachi Construction Machinery (Europe) NVGROUND CONTROL 33