BOELIE TRADING · PRACTICAL GUIDES
Planning plant hire: a site enquiry checklist
A useful plant-hire enquiry explains the job before it names a machine. An excavator loading loose material, digging a trench or cleaning around an existing structure can need a different configuration even on the same site. Use this checklist to give Boelie Trading a scope that can be assessed and priced.
1. Describe the material and the work
State what must be excavated, loaded, moved or levelled. Include whether the material is loose, compacted, wet or mixed with oversized pieces. Give the approximate quantity and say how it was measured: cubic metres, tonnes, area or a drawing. Do not substitute tonnes for cubic metres without an agreed material density.
For loading work, identify the receiving vehicle and loading area. For transport, describe both the loading point and tipping point. Photos and a marked-up site plan help explain constraints that a machine category alone cannot capture.
2. Match the equipment to the task
- Excavator: discuss digging depth, reach, working space and the material to be loaded.
- Articulated dump truck: discuss the haul route, gradients, ground conditions and the loading machine.
- Front-end loader: identify stockpile conditions, loading height and the distance between loading and discharge points.
- TLB: explain the combination of trenching, loading and smaller site tasks required.
- Grader: provide the road length, width, surface condition and required finish.
- Water truck: identify the water source, refill distance and work area.
- Lowbed: provide machine dimensions, mass, collection point and delivery access for transport planning.
These are enquiry prompts, not confirmation that a particular machine is suitable. Final selection depends on the actual site assessment and equipment specifications.
3. Separate shift length from productive hours
A twelve-hour shift does not necessarily produce twelve machine hours. Access delays, refuelling, inspections, meal breaks and waiting for loading or tipping space affect the working window. State the shift arrangement, expected operating hours and whether weekend work is needed. Confirm who supplies the operator, fuel and site supervision.
4. Compare the full quotation
Compare quotations on the same basis. Record the hourly rate, minimum hours, mobilisation and demobilisation, fuel arrangement, operator provision, VAT treatment, overtime and the treatment of standing time. An apparently cheaper hourly rate may exclude a cost included in another offer.
Illustrative calculation: 180 billable hours at an assumed R650 per hour equals R117,000 before any additional charges or tax. This is an arithmetic example, not a current Boelie quotation. Ask for a written, site-specific offer.
5. Prepare for arrival
Confirm delivery access, an unloading location, induction arrangements, the responsible site contact and any documentation needed before mobilisation. Identify parking, refuelling and overnight security arrangements. Agree on how hours will be recorded and who may sign the daily sheet. Equipment should only start work once applicable site authorisations and checks are complete.
Copy this enquiry checklist
Site and location; task and material; estimated quantity; machine category if known; access constraints; haul distance; start date and duration; shift pattern; expected hours; fuel and operator arrangement; documentation requirements; on-site contact.
Send the scope to info@boelietrading.co.za or use the quotation link on our homepage. Availability and final terms are confirmed by quotation.