Genie booms and lifts help with warehouse project in South Africa

South African-based Goscor Access Solutions relied on Genie to match the right equipment for the job during construction of a new DSV Warehouse in Plumbago.

When a new DSV Warehouse in Plumbago needed help with a new warehouse project, they turned to Genie authorized distributor Goscor Access Solutions in Midrand, South Africa, to get the right machines for the job. Around 50 machines were onsite at any given time, including Genie GS scissor lifts, Z articulating boom lifts and S telescopic boom lifts.

Construction kicked off in 2019 and, as with any project, maintaining a schedule was important to the overall success of the DSV Warehouse project. However, that schedule was challenged by the COVID-19 pandemic. “DSV Warehouse used a combination of diesel and electric scissor lifts during the construction of the warehouse over a period of one year from 2020-21. However, the main contactor still managed to complete the project within the deadline time,” says Shirley Smit, a senior sales executive at Goscor Access Solutions, adding that Goscor still has units on site to help with extra work added on to the project by the DSV Group. To help keep the timeline, Goscor — which works in rental, sales and after sales support for a broad range of markets in South Africa, including construction, retail, light and heavy industrial events and entertainment industry, movie shoots and mining — worked to make sure that the right equipment was on the jobsite at the right time to help with jobsite needs, which ranged from rugged 4x4 capabilities required as construction kicked off to the heavy-lifting needs of steel erection, as well as indoor finish work. 

The DSV Warehouse project kicked off with a range of diesel equipment, including Genie GS-3369 RT and Genie GS-5390 RT scissor lifts, which were used by the cladding, electrical and fire sprinkler installation companies. The tough, construction-oriented four-wheel-drive GS-5390 RT is ideal for increased productivity in demanding outdoor worksites. The lifting capacity of 680 kg (1,500 lb) helped greatly with the install main line pipes, rows of side cladding and electrical cabling, Smit says. “The impressive GS-5390 RT rough terrain machine also has up to a 50% gradeability and can be driven at heights up to 9.14 m (30 ft) on level ground. The rough terrain model with four-wheel drive and foam-filled tires also has a great weight capacity. Another advantage is the outriggers, which are used to keep the machine more stable on rough terrain areas/sites,” she added. 

As the project progressed, and once the site was equipped with electricity and concrete floor slabs were cured, Goscor also supplied electric Genie units for the site. “The reason for the change over from the diesel to electric was due to the availability of electricity supply on site and also the need for the non-marking tires,” Smit says, adding that the additional equipment included Genie Z-34/22 DC and Genie Z-60 DC electric boom lifts, as well as Genie GS-1930 and GS-4047 electric scissor lifts. “A client’s specific requirements can be met with a whole range of indoor units, rough-terrain 4×4 units, light-weight options, narrow machines, self-propelled vs. push-around units, and more,” says Smit. “With Genie, we can help our customers match the right machine to the project.”