Best seat in the house
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N IMAGES SUPPLIED WORDS BY RACHEL MIDDLETO
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eemac Trading (NZ) Limited will be celebrating its silver anniversary this year, after 25 years seating truck, bus, and rail drivers around the country in cost-effective, high-end comfort. Director and owner Gordon McKendry and wife Jan started Geemac in 1989, operating out of their garage supplying heaters and demisters to the bus and coach industry. Quickly expanding to cover all body components, from the front of the bus to the back, Gordon and Jan built Geemac to supply the highest quality European products to the market — from electronic information systems (the destination signs on the front of
Geemac owner and director Gordon McKendry’s second office
the bus) right down to the little push-buttons you push to get off the bus. The biggest part of the business these however, is supplying high-end days, howeve Isringhausen (ISRI) seats and parts as the sole New Zealand agent. ISRI is the biggest global supplier of high-end seats, with 80 percent market share in Europe. “The German quality of the Eu seat surpasses all other brands combined, and ISRI is the most specified OEM seat brand in the world,” says Gordon. Geemac’s Geemac warehouse, located in West Auckland, houses all the stock W brought in from Germany.
As with all imported product, spare parts become vitally important and Geemac supplies these as well, taking care of aftermarket service for the OEM. “We can have whatever the customer requires out in a day or two,” says Gordon. “We’ve got $70,000 to $80,000 at cost in spare parts sitting in the warehouse ready to support the ISRI product.” With only three people running this busy and large scale operation (Gordon, Jan, and storeman Robin Tong (RT) in the warehouse), Gordon says the growth has been controlled and steady, with a lot of hard work and chipping away over 25 years — which was exactly what they planned.
“Although, if the company keeps growing the way it has, the warehouse will need to expand upwards,” says Gordon. “It’s always too small when a container comes in.” Geemac sells to OEM reps such as Isuzu, Scania, and Daimler-Chrysler, as well as fleet operators and individual owners. Gordon tells of one major trucking company purchasing 70 vehicles and removing all of the (competitor) seats. The company immediately called Geemac and specified ISRI seats. “That’s the reality of ISRI’s reputation,” says Gordon. He goes on to explain that the number one problem facing the trucking seat industry is the lack of maintenance seen. “The most important thing in your operation is the driver. The second is the seat. Trucks are serviced regularly but seats are most often overlooked,” he says. “These trucks travel hundreds of thousands of kilometres and operators have the oil and brakes changed and serviced like
clockwork. But companies never look at a seat until it’s broken. “No one wants to pay for downtime to repair a seat. A company will have 40 trucks but have no spare seats. It’s a global phenomenon.” The objective of the seat is to keep the driver in mid-ride position and the air suspension seats take the vibration out of the road. Seats are so sophisticated these days, the seat ride can be made hard or soft with the push of a button to suit road conditions. Drivers are seated for 12 hours of the day and the suspension on some trucks is so firm that if the seat isn’t functioning properly, it spells a lot of health problems for the driver. ISRI offers an online program to enable Geemac to increase its rate of customer service and in turn, decrease driver problems. “It’s so simple. We just pick out the truck model, download the specs sheet and prices,
d email it off f to the ff h customer. O and Once they’ve h y’v chosen, that particular information is emailed to the storeman and it’s processed in the warehouse,” says Gordon. “As long as it’s ordered before 2pm, it’s same-day dispatch.” And it’s the truth — during my visit Gordon answers around five sales calls and ends each one with: “We’ll have that out to you today”. Running a successful business celebrating its 25th year, Gordon’s mantra is ‘do it smart’. “We only ever wanted the highest quality share of the market,” he says. “So many new companies swoop in and heavily discount product in an effort to cover the entire market and quality gets confused. “Geemac stock is 99-percent high-end European products. This means we stay in business and also enjoy a huge market share. “We certainly don’t supply the highest volume of seats but we definitely have the best quality of clients.”
Isringhausen leads the way in the application of modern technology to driver’s seating. ISRI has a full range of driver’s seats to suit every application. Note: Seat fabric may vary from what is shown. Armrests and head restraints are optional accessories.
Protect your back and reduce driver fatigue CALL US NOW!
ISRI 6860/875 NTS
ISRI 6800/337 PRO
ISRI 6860/880 NTS
Automatic Self Levelling NTS Air Suspension Seat Integrated Head Restraint Integrated 3-Point Seat Belt
Automatic Self Levelling Air Suspension Seat Integrated 3-Point Seat Belt Head Restraint Included
Automatic Self Levelling NTS Air Suspension Seat, Armrests & Head Restraint Optional Extras
Geemac Trading (NZ) Limited. Phone (09) 630 1856 or Fax (09) 630 1855 email: sales@geemac.co.nz www.geemac.co.nz
TD21864
The World’s Best Driver’s Seat