Supplying the iconic Ponsse forestry machines to contractors all over Ireland – from Donegal to Cork – Ponsse Machines Ireland continues to go from strength to strength. As the County Laois based operation reaches its fifth anniversary, we touched base with Eamonn Scanlan to get an update on recent developments.
Opened in Emo, County Laois in January, 2017, Ponsse Machines Ireland Ltd. has experienced steady growth since its inception, offering Irish forestry contractors access to the full suite of services (sales, service, parts and repairs) for an internationally-renowned, industry-leading range of forestry machines.
Ponsse is firmly established as one of the world’s leading forest machine manufacturers and its customer-oriented operations are guided by the wishes and needs of loggers. From a central location, Ponsse Machines Ireland serves the needs of an ever-expanding list of customers nationwide.
Despite the obvious difficulties posed to the economy over the past two years, the business is moving forward, due to both the exceptional service levels provided and the constant improvement of the machines themselves as the Finnish manufacturer invests heavily in innovation and R&D.
“We are growing at a steady pace every year and we now have a team of eight,” confirms sales manager Eamonn Scanlan. “Like many others, we have had a difficult couple of years with Covid but we stayed busy thankfully and the work kept coming.”
Ponsse manufactures an exceptional, robust range of forestry vehicles and machinery, its market-leading harvesters and forwarders extremely popular on all continents across the globe. Since the establishment of Ponsse Machines Ireland, the brand has taken off here, with the Scorpion and ScorpionKing harvesters proving extremely popular, alongside the Wisent forwarder. Other options include the Ponsse Fox harvester and Buffalo and Gazelle forwarders.
A raft of improvements across the board – resulting from extensive R&D at the company’s Finnish HQ – means there has never been a better time to buy Ponsse:
“The Scorpion now comes with a redesigned cabin,” Eamonn reveals. “It’s a lot more driver-friendly and the windows have been changed to give the driver a better view. The lighting system has also been updated to ensure better visibility at any time. Visibility is hugely important and is an area that Ponsse is always looking at improving. They’ve also put in an enhanced air-conditioning system so overall comfort in the cab is much better now. There are a few more changes on the way in 2022 as well, so these are exciting times for the Ponsse range of machines.”
Ponsse – which has been recognised as Finland’s most reputable company for the fourth year in succession – places a keen emphasis on computerisation and embraces modern technology. To this end, they have developed the Ponsse Manager app – an operations management system which takes owners to the next level in terms of digitalised forestry machines, providing real-time information on fleet activity, productivity and profitability. An updated version of Ponsse Manager is imminent.
Every machine in the Ponsse fleet is already incredibly efficient but the manufacturer is determined to make them even better. “There’s a lot of research going into energy saving and carbon credits, etc. Ponsse are working very hard to make the machines even more efficient. They are constantly investing in R&D, safety and energy efficiency to improve the machines that are already so well established on the market. Every machine comes with a huge amount of standard features and they can be individually spec’d after that with a big choice of additional options.”
Ponsse Machines Ireland is developing hand in hand with the parent company. “For our perspective, we have also grown,” Eamonn confirms. “We took over a larger workshop next door and we plan to update that again very soon. The team has grown and there are eight of us here now. We have a great team. Gary Glendinning is the MD for Ireland and the UK, while Brian McDermott is our full-time parts manager. Louise Jones looks after marketing and accounts; Andy Seymour is service and workshop manager. We also have three large service vans on the road, each with a full-time fitter, while Andy uses a smaller company van for technical call-outs. We’ve taken on an apprentice, too.”
For sales, Ponsse Machines Ireland covers the 26 counties, while they offer service and repairs to the whole island of Ireland at present. “We have machines in nearly every county in Ireland at this stage,” Eamonn notes. “Ponsse UK handles the sales in Northern Ireland but we’ve taken over the servicing side of it since Covid led to travel restrictions.”
Ponsse harvesters handle both energy wood and larger-diameter trunks fast and efficiently. Because Ponsse machinery is so versatile, it ensures maximum productivity in all types of harvesting conditions, with top level user comfort irrespective of the terrain. Meanwhile, agility, power, ergonomics, weight distribution and economic efficiency are the features that set Ponsse forwarders apart, with six modern designs available, suitable for soft soil and steep slopes alike. Power and user comfort are a given across the model range.
Ponsse Machines Ireland offers a fantastic choice of new and second-hand machines, all of which are backed up by an outstanding aftersales service. “These are quality machines backed by a quick and professional service. If we are called out, we will always get there as fast as we can. We have a large stock of parts here and always sort customers out very quickly. It was difficult during the height of the Covid times when couriers worldwide were impacted and parts were harder to get, but we got through that and have access to all the parts directly from Ponsse’s factory in Finland. We’ve had a very busy two years, despite the difficulty with parts, and Ponsse adapted well to the pandemic, with product launches and training etc. taking place remotely.
“When Covid came, we ran an emergency service only for the first few days but forestry remained open throughout so we were able to keep working. Timber never stopped. We had to organise our staff to ensure they were complying with all the regulations but we got through it and kept going.”
Generally, Eamonn is pleased to report that the forestry sector in Ireland is moving in the right direction: “Forestry is still growing and there are great opportunities in the private sector. There’s plenty of work in forestry. Demand for timber is very strong and prices have gone through the roof, although everything seems to have gone up bar the actual rates for cutting timber. There has been an issue with felling licences in the last couple of years and that is ongoing, but slowly starting to resolve itself.
“All in all, the industry is going strong, although the shortage of drivers is another issue. Machinery drivers in the forestry industry are scarce and there aren’t really any younger people getting involved. There’s no proper training infrastructure and it’s being left up to individuals to train drivers at their own expense. The age profile of drivers keeps rising and there are machines parked up because there aren’t enough drivers and that is having a knock-on effect.”
With full support from Finland, Ponsse Machines Ireland has enjoyed a progressive first five years and the future looks particularly bright. Employing 1,780 people and with 42 dealers in 40 countries, plus twelve subsidiaries, Ponsse is a celebrated global brand that sets the standards when it comes to forestry machinery. And Ponsse Machines Ireland is part of that exceptional global network, bringing high quality products and service levels to forestry contractors here.
Ponsse Machines Ireland Ltd.,
Unit 3,
Capakeel,
Emo,
Portlaoise,
County Laois.
Tel: 057 8633762
Email: [email protected]
Web: www.ponsse.com
Facebook: www.facebook.com/PonsseIreland
First published in Irish Tractor & Agri magazine Vol 10 No 2, March/April 2022
