Established by Les, Johnny and Ivy Gemmell in 1982, plant equipment solutions provider L & J Gemmell Plant Services spent its first 20 years renting trucks, graders, rollers, tankers and tractors, with operators on a subcontract basis, to road construction and property development contractors.
Today, the 32-year-old company mostly operates as a mining equipment hire company for opencast mines in South Africa, having broadened its service offering to include excavators, articulated dump trucks and associated mining equipment.
L & J services a niche market that requires specialised equipment and experienced operators with the appropriate technical skills. The company’s Johannesburg-based headquarters comprise 1 350 m2 of fully equipped workshops and offices on a site area of 25 000 m2. Backed by fully equipped mobile service vehicles, L & J provides an “all-in” hassle-free service with minimum stoppages.
The family-owned company, which prides itself on its quality workmanship, only hires qualified machine and equipment operators. With a staff complement of about 50 employees, L & J’s current capital equipment comprises 30- to 100-ton excavators and 40-ton articulated dump trucks. The Gemmells have considerable experience in managing employees and, with their personal knowledge of the machinery, have the respect of their staff, which assists in job efficiency.
L & J’s customers include Johannesburg-based mining services provider Trollope Mining Services, local coal miner Vunene Mining, earthmoving equipment provider Plantcor Mining & Plant Hire and clay plaster brick manufacturer Clyde Brickfields.