Home Manufacturing & Industry Record breaking deal for North East forklift company

Record breaking deal for North East forklift company

North East forklift truck specialist Permatt has been awarded a record-breaking contract to supply a fleet of new machines to JDR Cable Systems (JDR), the leading supplier of subsea umbilicals and power cables owned by the TFKable Group.

The deal, estimated to be worth six figures, is the largest single contract win in the history of the 37-year-old North Tyneside company, which is the regional dealer for CAT Lift Trucks.

Mark Percy, managing director of Permatt Forklift Trucks, said: “This is fantastic news for us. We have all worked extremely hard to secure this contract. It’s great to see JDR placing business within the local supply chain.

“CAT Lift Trucks produce some of the world’s market-leading trucks and through our relationship, we’re now in a much more flexible position to offer customers the best fork lifts for every materials handling job, inside and outside, combined with outstanding service. The timing couldn’t be better, coming at the start of our new financial year.”


This contract pushes Permatt’s hire fleet up to 500 trucks, and sales of the new CAT Lift Trucks to more than 50 since December 2017.

Ian Mallett, UK operations manufacturing manager at JDR, explained: “We went to the market to replace our fork lift trucks and reviewed a number of options. We were pleased with the quality of the CAT and Kone machines that Permatt offered and very impressed with their professionalism.

“I am confident we have made the right choice and look forward to our partnership moving forward.”

The fleet of new vehicles includes fork lift trucks capable of lifting up to 37 tonnes, the largest ever supplied by Permatt.

Permatt, the largest independent fork lift truck supplier in the North East, became the exclusive dealer for CAT in the area late in 2017. With a workforce of around 24 people, most being mobile field service engineers, Permatt covers the North East and Cumbria with branches on Tyneside, Penrith and Middlesbrough.

Established in 1981, Permatt has longstanding business relationships with a broad range of customers, supplying specialist new and used trucks for purchase or hire, spare parts, maintenance and operator training. More information can be found at www.permatt.com