The Kane Group: From humble beginnings to the present day and number one for service.

Interview with Andy Kane, MD of The Kane Group.

The Kane Group started back in 1983 by Andy Kane, and from humble beginnings became established in providing a loose muck away service and began to merchant all types of aggregate. Fast forward to today and we find Andy Kane still at the head of this successful business.

The Kane Group Journey

Over the years the business steadily grown, moving into contracting, initially bulk earthworks and later demolition and recycling.

As the reputation of the Kane Group grew, so too did the operation with several strategic acquisitions of business’s now operating under the umbrella title of Kane Group including:

• Kane Haulage Ltd
• GCG Environmental Ltd
• Kane Plant Ltd
• GJ Gaywood Ltd
• Arkoss Demolition Ltd

Now established for over 40 years in St Albans, The Kane Group has built up an enviable reputation for providing a comprehensive package of services to national developers and major construction companies. Able to provide demolition, asbestos survey and notifiable removal, remediation of contaminated land, bulk earthwork, heavy plant hire and aggregate supply.

This is supported by a strict 3 year replacement cycle for all major plant to enable them to consistently deliver on complex projects with a high degree of reliability and customer satisfaction.

Long standing relationships with leading suppliers such as Liebherr, Bell, Caterpillar, MAN and Nordberg, combined with extensive staff training ensure their clients benefit from the latest technology and skilled operators.

By continually investing and evolving under the guidance and watchful eye of Andy, the business is well positioned for any future opportunities that come its way.

Do we need fire suppression; pre-event?

Most business people will tell you they need to consider the pros and cons before making an investment decision with Andy asking himself these questions;

1/ Does my plant operate in a high-risk environment?

2/ What’s the benefit to me investing in fire suppression?

3/ What else could I do with that money?

For many years the answers to these questions meant fire suppression wasn’t required.

What changed to put fire suppression on the agenda?

The Kane Groups Liebherr 964 fitted with a bespoke Kocurek 38m high reach arm, at a combined cost of circa £1m had been operating on a demolition site for several weeks with no issues. On this particular day and after a full morning’s work, the operator was going about his job with the control system full operational when he noticed flames coming from the back of the machine. He didn’t panic and with quick thinking turned off the equipment and quickly exited to a place of safety.

The Fire Brigade were based on the same industrial estate as the demolition site and were there in minutes. The fire was out in 15 mins but Andy was still left with a burnt out 964!

The fire was due to the failure of a small hydraulic hose causing hydraulic fluid to be sprayed onto the hot turbo charger and catch fire. With around 800L of hydraulic fluid on board, this fire could have raged much longer than it did, and it was only down to the quick thinking of the operator switching the plant off which also stops the pumps fuelling the fire. 

The battle of wills begins!

The Kane Group have just lost a business-critical asset that would take many months to replace. Without delay Andy gets onto it, looking at the cost benefit of repair versus replacement, new engine cost versus refurbished engine, lead times, etc. His view was, I’m insured, the machine has a full service and maintenance record and was operating in the environment it was designed for. Andy realised quickly that the repair was by far the best path for both his business and the insurers commercially, so started the process, knowing the admin of the claim would catch up. It did catch up but the insurers said the Kane Group were in breach of one of the Ts & Cs in their policy.

A result!

After nearly 2 years and Andy’s determination, the insurance company accepted liability and settled in full, with the repaired Liebherr 964 now back in the fleet.

Do we need fire suppression; post-event?

Fire suppression is now not only on the agenda but is also being fitted to some of the higher value plant. For all new plant the consideration are;

1/ Value of his asset

2/ How bespoke is the asset

3/ Lead time to replace

4/ Amount of oil in the machine

5/ The environment in which it operates 

Why Fireward fire suppression?

The Kane Group knew about fire suppression but didn’t have first-hand experience of adding it their plant. Andy’s first call was to Fireward MD Lee Palmer, someone he had dealt with for many years at Liebherr and trusted.

Fireward still had to prove to Andy that he was making the right choice to protect his valuable assets, especially after his recent experience. After considering all the facts including approvals, performance, cost, etc. Andy put his trust in Fireward.

Watch our system in action  

Approved fire suppression from Fireward

Now fitted to this 964 is an approved Dual Agent System with an In-Cab monitor and Machine Shutdown, which are the 2 items most required for the operator in this environment. 

Fireward install both Single and Dual Agent systems that offer an outstanding fire suppression method. Dry Powder single agent will provide rapid-fire knockdown and excellent coverage to put out the fire. If there is a risk of reignition from heat sources such as turbo chargers, diesel particulant filters, etc. the cooling properties from combining Wet Chemical Agent ensures the fire does not reignite.

In the event the system needs to perform as required, you can be confident it will. Our systems have been independently tested and accredited by 3rd parties to SPCR 183, SPCR 199 and ActivFire 5062:2016, for your peace of mind.

All this is backed up by our nationwide team of field engineers. Strategically located around the country, they are able to provide timely installation and maintenance as required and respond to unplanned events quickly to get your plant back up and running quickly.

Thank you to The Kane Group and Andy Kane for agreeing to take part in this case study.