New Wave Concreting’s Isuzu tipper turns plenty of heads as the team turns out to help local residents realise their concreting dreams
The distinctive blue and white branding of the New Wave Concreting trucks are easy to spot on Phillip Island when the local team turn ups to help their neighbours brighten up their environment with decorative concreting from feature walls to patios and driveways.
The look of the company’s latest truck, an Isuzu Ready-to-Work FRR 107-210 Tipper, so impressed judges in the recent Truck of the Year competition that it won the F category title last year.
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New Wave Concreting owner Luke Hinrichs behind the wheel of his new tipper
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With nearly 25 years working on the Island the New Wave Concreting business and its staff are well and truly embedded in the community they serve.
Owner Luke Hinrichs says the business thrives on the back of a great team of dedicated staff.
“Concreting is something a bit different to most trades because it’s not something that you can get qualified people for, there’s no apprenticeship,” Luke says.
“It’s really hard to find professional employees, so I’ve been very lucky to get such a top-level crew.
“We have a fantastic group of five guys who are skilled and know exactly what they’re about.
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New Wave Concreting’s team with their billboards, mobile and otherwise
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“They’re just extremely friendly, local guys with homes in the area, young families, kids at school and it definitely helps. It keeps the clients happy, and it makes my life a lot easier.
“The guys can run New Wave Concreting without much assistance from me.”
After running an Isuzu Ready-to-Work Tradepack for eight years without finding fault, it made sense to Luke to stick with a proven formula when the time came to evolve the New Wave fleet with a bit of help from Matt Evans at Patterson Cheney Isuzu.
A head-turning wrap from Steve Price at CC Signs and Designs made their new tipper into a mobile advertisement for the company.
“People have responded really well to the truck, quite a few clients have said they’ve gotten my number directly off it… I even get stopped by holiday makers if I’m driving it around on the weekend,” Luke says.
The Isuzu FRR Tipper is a turn-key transport solution that can be driven straight from the showroom to the job site.
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There’s no mistaking whose truck is in the driveway
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With a GVM of 11,000 kg and GCM of 16,000 kg the truck has helped New Wave to increase their productivity, getting more done in one run than ever before. The quick tipper raise times and a tray designed for rough and tumble are perfect for the job at hand.
“Each job used to need a few runs to the tip or back to our premises, but now it can all get done in one go. Our guys are all on site for the day, so the job is taking less time which means happier customers,” Luke says.
“We’ve been using a much smaller tipper for years, so have definitely noticed the difference the Isuzu has made in making the job much easier and our dig-out quicker,” he says.
“With all the extra payload we can get more weight on the back, saving us at least two or three trips a day around the island.”
Luke notes that one of the greatest joys of owning a business is when it becomes part and parcel of everyday life in the community. It’s as good as it gets when you are recognised as a local fixture.
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The F series Isuzu Tipper getting the job done
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“We’re pretty well known around town.
“We did all the concreting in the Koala Park and a lot of the major tourist attractions down this way, so we’ve been able to get involved, which has been great.
“It’s a really good community down here, so we help out wherever we can—we do the concreting work for the golf clubs, and we’re involved with the sporting clubs, football, netball… we sponsor the lawn bowls clubs, both the golf clubs as well.
“In a place as small as this, it’s important do right by your customers or you won’t last five minutes.”
Winning Truck of the Year brought a little more recognition for the business too after a feature in Isuzu’s Truckpower magazine.
“I’m pleasantly surprised by the local feedback just from being featured in the magazine,” Luke says.
“But it’s great having a really strong, solid business with a fantastic clientele. We’re very consistently booked ahead four to six months a year…our next big project is the Cowes Cultural Centre.”