Allan J Hargreaves Plant Engineers

Allan J Hargreaves Plant Engineers (AJH Plant) are one of GKD’s longest serving and most-trusted partners. Over the past twelve years, GKD have worked closely with the team at AJH Plant to deliver safety innovation to the UK rail industry.

About AJH Plant

AJH Plant are a family-run business with over 30 years experience in supporting the construction plant and equipment industry. The company was founded back in 1983 by Allan Hargreaves, with a focus on repairing and maintaining excavators.

In the early 2000s the company started to support rail customers, converting excavators into road rail vehicles (RRVs). This move was a springboard for the company to expand – today over 60 members of staff operate on a large two acre site in north-west England.

Whilst designing, maintaining and converting road rail vehicles forms a large part of the AJH Plant proposition, they still work with customers in the civil and infrastructure sector, as well as refurbishing older machines to ensure they meet current safety standards.

The partnership

When an excavator (or other piece of plant) undergoes an upgrade or refurbishment, AJH Plant can also install a GKD safety system to the machine. This capacity and ability to do so makes them an invaluable partner in our efforts to get as many safety systems out onsite as possible, helping to keep more operators and workers safe.

The partnership goes beyond that though – AJH Plant’s experience was a key factor throughout the successful collaboration to develop the proportional SpaceGuard product. Their in-depth knowledge also means that they are well-placed to assist us with any software changes needed to meet the different demands of machines and customers.

Earlier this year at the Rail Live exhibition, we also announced that AJH Plant have been appointed to supply, install, maintain and provide aftermarket service support for our range of rail safety control solutions.

When asked about the partnership with GKD, Paul Hargreaves (Operations Director at AJH Plant), said:

It’s been great to work with GKD Technologies for over 12 years, as we share the same goal of improving safety standards for workers onsite. We look forward to continue working together on improving and pushing the boundaries with existing safety systems, as we have successfully done in the past.

David Perez, CEO at GKD Technologies, also commented:

Allan J Hargreaves Plant Engineers have been one of GKD’s trusted partners for many years and are a first-class installer of our rail safety systems. We greatly value the relationship between our two companies, so I’m delighted that they’ve agreed to become an aftermarket and services partner for us. This increased cooperation will further improve the service levels and response times for our end customers.