Business: Yorkshire fleet hire company eyes new Brighouse site following major growth

The Brighouse-based firm, which has been operating from Armytage Road since 2005 when it acquired Northern Municipal Spares Ltd, will build a state-of-the-art facility on the existing site and a neighbouring piece of land, bringing all its operations under one roof.

The 26,000 sq ft site, which will comprise office space, a service and maintenance workshop, and vehicle storage, is set to open in Autumn 2024. The current team has relocated to temporary premises just half a mile away until the construction phase is complete.

Over the past five years, Dawsongroup emc has doubled the size of the business, and plans to do the same again by 2028. Paul Beddows, Sales Director at Dawsongroup emc, said: “Despite the challenges currently facing the fleet industry, we have enjoyed significant growth over the past few years. This is down to our ability to buy the right equipment at the right time in the right quantities.

“Thanks to our planning and foresight, we have been able to identify opportunities that competitors saw as barriers. For example, during the Covid-19 pandemic, when other suppliers were cancelling orders, we bought more assets than ever, in anticipation of the vehicle shortages we saw in late 2020 / early 2021. This meant we had the stock ready and waiting for local authorities and contractors who found themselves let down by other suppliers.”

Looking to the future, Dawsongroup emc has major growth plans, expanding into new sectors, including fleet, utilities and construction. The purpose-built site will enable the firm to boost operational efficiency even further.

Paul adds: “Having grown at pace in recent years, we had outgrown our old site significantly. The new facility will not only support our growing headcount and vehicle fleet, but it will also enable us to grow our first-class service and maintenance offer, which is what sets us apart from our rivals.

“We look forward to welcoming our existing team, and some additional faces, to the new Armytage Road site next year. In the meantime, it’s very much business as usual for our loyal customer base.”