All in the details

Based in Tamworth in north-east New South Wales, Dawso’s Engineering was started by Shayne Dawson in 2013. The business manufactures tipper bodies, tray bodies and crane bodies for a variety of customers that include councils and local truck dealers.

The recent order from Tamworth Council is for five 11 cubic metre tipper bodies to be used for road maintenance. They will be equipped with Jost hoists supplied by Truck Hydraulic Solutions, along with electric tarps and scales. 

“Two trucks have already been delivered, with the remainder scheduled for delivery by November. We have had a lot of feedback from the council and they have been very happy with the performance of the first two units,” says Shayne.

“Tamworth Council went right through the trucks to check absolutely everything. They were happy with the product itself and the way it all performs. The council came around with engineers and they were also happy with the quality of our work.”

The tipper bodies are being fitted to Hino FS 2848s, which were purchased from local truck dealer, the Wideland Trucks and Machinery Tamworth.

For all of his hydraulic needs, Shayne says he turns to Truck Hydraulic Solutions, which he has been working with for the past five years. “We buy our tipping cylinders from Truck Hydraulic Solutions and use Jost because it’s such good gear. The quality of the product and the service from Truck Hydraulic Solutions are the main reasons we continue to buy from them. They really do bend over backwards to help you out,” adds Shayne.

Based in Penrith, Truck Hydraulic Solutions was started in 2010, supplying hydraulics components for tippers, waste equipment, cranes and specialised transport equipment.
The business has been a supplier of Jost hydraulic equipment for the past four years and rates the range very highly. “Jost imports and distributes high quality equipment and that’s one of the reasons why we use them,” says Ron Heeps, Director at Truck Hydraulic Solutions.

He adds that the range of tipping cylinders available and the fact that they are manufactured in Europe with all stage chroming are standout features of the Jost hydraulic range. Also fitted to these vehicles are Jost’s quality alloy wheels which provide a weight advantage over conventional wheels and its Rockinger 50mm tow coupling. Unsurprisingly, like other Jost products, its tow couplings are built to handle the often hard Australian conditions.

“They definitely back their product up. And the feedback we get from customers is always positive. I know we’ve won some new customers over because they were so impressed by Jost’s quality, which is always beneficial.

It’s also been a really good process dealing with Dawso’s. It’s good to supply such a high quality product to a company like Dawso’s that builds such high quality equipment.”

Manager at Wideland Trucks and Machinery Tamworth, Jonathan McClelland, adds that Jost is also the most common name for hydraulics for tipping equipment sold at the dealership. “I’ve been in transport for 20 years and Jost remains the most common brand of hydraulics we use, and our customers seem to be quite happy with that too,” he says.

As a truck body builder, Shayne says that it’s important to be able to deliver on what you promise to your customers – and to be able to do it on time. “These are the first trucks we have built for Tamworth Council. Part of their decision to go with us was based on delivery time and our commitment to that. Our customers don’t want to be kept waiting, so you’ve go to do what you say you are going to do if you want the work to keep coming. Our suppliers play a big part in ensuring we stick to that promise. If they keep us waiting, then that keeps our customers waiting too. I don’t want to have to ring a customer and say I’m going to be late because of a supplier,” adds Shayne. “When I called Truck Hydraulic Solutions for the first time and said I wanted something, it was here the next day. I have Ron’s number and know I can call him any time there is a problem, and he responds straight away. The prices are right and the products are great, that’s pretty much all you need. It makes life easier when things run smoothly with suppliers.”