Monday.
0645 Start. I'm ready loaded today, Friday's last job was to load this lot dowm at Colchester, I'm working for another plant hire firm today covering for their driver who is on holiday. Off to Billericay where the whole lot is offloaded at an electricity substation.
There's just one of our machines to move today, and I'm able to slot that one in. Back to the yard to load our old Kobelco 60 and off to Takeley to drop it off.
It's only a short detour and I'm soon back on track at Braintree loading a 3t swivel skip dumper, this is joined by a 4.5t Yanmar which is collected a couple of miles away.
With standing room only I make my way back to Colchester to unload at Target Plant, it's right at the top of Colchester and only round the corner from the next collection at Ardleigh. It's down a little lane and a tight reverse into the property.
Once in I've got a 3t dumper and a Yanmar 75 to load, although it takes a little while to round up the buckets and load them with a breaker into the dumper.
I'm still back at Target in just over half an hour and off on my way back to Danbury.
Finished at 1545 after shipping my gear into our other 6 wheeler.
Tuesday.
0645 Start. A slight change of scene today, squashed up in a day cab for the sake of one tin box. On hire to Target again today so it's across to Colchester to load a 3t Volvo. The Volvo is going to Takeley to the same customer and site that I delivered one of ours to yesterday. They look a bit puzzled when I arrive with it but before long it's offloaded and replaced with a 5t Kubota.
I'm now backtracking to Braintree to drop the 5 tonner at a site where we have got an 8 tonner of ours. There really is no logic to this sometimes.
Once I'm clear it's off to Watford hospital to load a container, I pull in the entrance and decide to call my site contact rather than chase around looking for it.
I'm sat like a lemon in the entrance way for at least half an hour getting grief from the parking Hitlers before they come and fetch me, it's a bit of a squeeze to get to but I can at least get alongside. I'm not hopeful about this, it looks like it's about to lash down with rain. Obviously the sun was looking over it's shoulder at me today (as it certainly wasn't shining on me) and I had it hooked up and loaded in less than 10 minutes. It went like clockwork and I strapped it down before making my way out of the back entrance. I ended up following my nose for a route out in the abscence of helpful signs and ended up getting to the M25 via Rickmansworth.
I stop at South Mimms for an uncomfortable 45 and head back, I'm due to take the box to Felixstowe but if I do that I'll be looking at finishing about 6pm or later. A quick phone call confirms it can go tomorrow and I return to the yard and leave for home at 1545.
Wednesday.
0645 Start. Back with the box again, off to Felixstowe to drop it at DHL. I wasn't quite sure what to expect but I wasn't surprised to find myself like a fish out of water in a busy container yard. I thought they might get narky and play the H&S card when I said I'd need to get on the roof to drop the chains off, but they were quite happy for me to do so, which makes a refreshing change.
Before long it's my turn for the mechanical monster, and with that I'm done and off back to the yard to swap back to my motor.
My next job is loading in Pimlico, today was the worst run I've had there as the traffic was heavy an slow going even mid morning. I've got a 3t dumper and an 8t machine to load. It takes some sorting out and a bit of jiggling to get it loaded, this is the biggest 8t machine we've got and the first time I've moved it on my wagon. Eventually I'm done and enjoy a better run out of London.
Back to the yard to get rid of the ZX80 and then off near Maldon to offload the dumper. Back to the yard and switch cabs ready for tomorrow. Finished 1645.
Thursday.
0645 Start. Back with the crane today, first call over at Watford. I'm bang on time at 0800 but there's a pair of tippers to go in and a wag & drag full of blocks. Now to my mind it'd make more sense to let me in to clear some space before offloading the blocks, but the blocks get offloaded alongside the wagon and takes us some of the limited space. Finally at 0900 I've get into the site, as I'm loading a 10' container I've got to try and get past the blocks. It's a bit of a squeeze and I amlost get stuck but a bit of difflock solves all that. There's a 3t Volvo to squeeze on the back and I'm ready to go.
I've a bit of a run now up past Braintree to unload at their yard. First off is the Volvo, with that out of the way I can get the crane out and hook up the box.
And slot it alongside some others.
It just starts to rain as I leave and I make my way back to Chelmsford to collect one of our 5 tonners. It's a bit of an awkward spot to get it out of so I make the most of thing and crane the buckets over a fence so I've just got the machine to worry about. Back to the yard and unload.
I'm told there's a machine going elsewhere in Danbury tomorrow but not until 0800, that'd mean a lot of hanging around so it gets loaded quick and I rattle off down there with it before the school kicks out. Finished 1545. Switch stuff back to my wagon only to be told of a last minute job for the crane tomorrow. Switch back and head for home.
Friday.
0715 Start. First job is in Colchester but not until 0900, I hate starting later as it means overtime starts later and after 1445 is my time. Still I'm ready on site at 0830 and I've got the dubious honour of moving a welfare unit. It's basically a mobile canteen / bog body on an old Cargo. I've never loaded one yet as it's usually a job attached to this motor but I've heard it's a bit of a game. The unit has got a long rear overhang with a genny mounted on the back. It also has a pair of screw jacks which did into the ramps so you have to extend the ramps with timber so the jacks clear the ramps.
Eventually with a little bit of help from the winch we get it loaded and secured.
This unit is going back to their yard near Ingatestone, and whilst I'm here there's a jackleg cabin to pluck out between some other and resite at the other end of the yard. At least at it's new home I can swing the crane around and lift the next one up, it's a caravan type sitehut and I'm off to Grays with it.
The job at Grays is fun, on Hogg Lane with a near impossibly small gateway so I elect to crane it off into the gateway. That's a squeeze too and it's a complex operation of slewing, raising and lowering and rotating to get it through the gap in the trees. If they'd sent the welfare unit it could have been driven straight in.
Next job is in Shenfield, I've got a 3t swivel skip dumper and a 5t Yanmar to load, these are off to Harlow and this job passes without event. Back to the yard, calling to collect the 3t from Danbury on the way. Finished at 1645.
