25 Years as a Knowledgeable Resource for Utility Construction and Tree Care Contractors

Global Machinery
Written by Jen Hocken

Global Machinery is a full-service equipment dealer that provides sales, rentals, parts, and service for the specialized equipment used in constructing and maintaining utilities. It specializes in providing equipment for the power and electric, telecommunications, water and sewer, gas, and tree care industries. Its tree care offerings include equipment for maintaining trees, land clearing, and land processing.
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Company founder Dale Brown had years of experience in the construction industry with a large manufacturer and saw a potential to own his own rental business and dealership. He began selling used construction equipment internationally in 1992 and went on to establish Global Machinery in 1994. In 1996, he expanded into the rental business by acquiring a company that rented equipment to the utility construction industry. The company has experienced steady growth and continues to add new lines representing different manufacturers and products.

Global Machinery has facilities in Denver, Colorado and Sacramento, California. The majority of its business is throughout the West with its heaviest activity coming from Colorado and Northern California, though it sells equipment throughout the United States and internationally. It is the U.S. distributor for three manufacturers from Europe, and also exports mostly to Southeast Asia, South America, Central America and Europe.

Twenty-five people are employed by Global Machinery, the majority working out of Denver where all the accounting procedures are performed. “We have an amazing staff that is very knowledgeable, dedicated, and committed to the company and providing the best service possible to our customers,” says Global Machinery President Jeff Brown, who joined the company in 2001. Jeff is the son of the founder and can attest to the fact that this is truly a family business. The employees are a close group, are dedicated, and know how to have fun while working hard.

Global Machinery has experienced significant growth since the 2008 financial crisis, and in the last five years has averaged sixteen percent revenue growth year over year. It recently finished constructing an expansion to its facility in Denver that took the building from 8,000 square feet to 17,000 square feet, and celebrated with a Grand Re-Opening event in April. Although no firm plans have been made yet, there are discussions about opening another location in the Western U.S.

All companies in the construction industry are facing the challenge of finding new quality talent, and Global Machinery is no exception, particularly on the technician side of the business. Times are changing, yet there is still a need for more people to enter the equipment services field. “It’s not being advertised as a very exciting career, and there is a big movement within our industry to educate middle school and high school kids to understand that it is a rewarding and profitable career and that they should be considering it,” says Jeff. Global Machinery appreciates its talented, quality employees, and is focused on retaining those employees by prioritizing taking good care of its people.

Global Machinery also takes good care of its customers. “We know that in today’s world it’s hard to find good customer service, so we really focus on providing the best possible experience for our customers,” says Jeff. The company achieves this through effective communication and responsiveness to provide customers with the required information promptly.

The company also works diligently to be the most knowledgeable resource and has developed a reputation for providing solutions as well as equipment. It is an expert in the infrastructure niche of the construction market, and its attention to utility construction and tree care equipment has enabled it to give personalized expert advice.

Many of its customers contact the company for recommendations about the best way to approach a project, and Global Machinery has the expertise to assist them in determining which product will suit the project best and which process will be the most effective to help complete the project as quickly and efficiently as possible. “Our knowledge of the industries we serve and the products that we provide is another resource for our customers. They can count on us to give them advice or help them through a tough situation when struggling with a solution,” says Jeff.

To provide everything from trenchers and directional drills to underground pullers, vacuum excavators, mini excavators, mulchers, chippers, stump grinders, pipe-bursting equipment, cable plows and vacuum trucks, Global Machinery partners with approximately ten major suppliers and six smaller suppliers. It is the U.S. distributor for Thaler, a manufacturer of high-quality, well-priced, and well-performing underground pulling equipment used to install innerduct and underground power lines. Thaler will soon be delivering their 100th unit manufactured for Global Machinery. Another unique line of products distributed by the company is Prime Tech’s mulching equipment for land clearing, and it was recognized as the 2017 Prime Tech dealer of the year for its achievements.

When Toro entered the horizontal directional drilling and trenching segments, Global Machinery was appointed to distribute its quality underground equipment. It also distributes well-known Takeuchi excavators and compact track loaders, Vac-Tron vacuum excavators, Bron utility cable plows, Bandit chippers and stump grinders, Lane utility trailers, and Terra specialized trenchless equipment. “We work closely with a large group of manufacturers in order for us to have a complete line of equipment to offer to our customers,” says Jeff.

Global Machinery carries multiple lines of equipment and several lines of tools and accessories. It is always open to new products that fit within its business model, and recently, has been considering an expansion of its tools and accessories offering. When a contractor rents or buys a reel trailer and a fiber optic cable blower to install fiber, they also need an assortment of accessories such as lubrication, seals, pulling eyes and swivels. “We’re not only expanding our equipment offering, but also tools and accessories. There are some very unique European-made products that we’re looking into providing for our customers, and we are currently in negotiations to be assigned as the distributor of those products in the U.S.,” says Jeff.

The company has a full service department in both locations with field service capabilities to provide maintenance for all the equipment it rents and sells. As a large part of the business is the rental of equipment, the shop is continuously performing inspections of the equipment between rentals, but customers are encouraged to bring in their equipment for any needed repairs. Since customer satisfaction is the main priority, the technicians are dedicated to repairing equipment properly and on time. They also have the knowledge required to repair brands of equipment that the company does not represent.

Global Machinery is excited about the future and plans to continue to be a knowledgeable resource, offer quality equipment, and provide superior customer service to the utility and tree care segments of the construction industry for many years to come.

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