Early adopter looks to a diverse future.

Glenn Cunningham isn’t afraid to be a lone ranger in today’s current climate.

Glenn Cunningham co-owner of Coalroc, which is the parent company of Electric Machinery Sales. Electric Machinery Sales.

With more than 40 years in the mining and Mining Equipment, Technology and Services (METS) sector the Coalroc managing director and co-owner can see where the future is heading when it comes to decarbonisation and diversification, and he won’t be left behind.

Coalroc is the parent company of Electric Machinery Sales. Electric Machinery Sales are the distributor of the world’s first battery-powered skid steer loaders – the Elise 900 and MiniZ from FIRSTGREEN Industries.

The first two demonstration machines were delivered in 2021 and have been tested in the Australian environment with great success.

Glenn is the type of business leader who calls a spade a spade and when it comes to diversification of his business the move to decarbonisation is a bonus extra, but not the main driver.

“Green is a hard word for me to say, it is more about the fact that these machines are a new technology. They are bit more to buy but the operating costs are really low compared to any diesel equipment. To me the advantage is the operating cost of these machines are really low and their payback on investment is fast.

“You can put the green tinge to it, that’s all good.

“It is the efficiency of them, the big machine we have, has bigger capacities than the diesel. Diesel designs have been around forever and not had many changes to them.  There are some design characteristics that have been put into these new ones that make them a little bit easier to use”.

Glenn said the biggest benefit of the skid loaders is the operating costs.

“An equivalent diesel machine will cost $16 hour to operate over their life cycle, whereas the skids are under $2 to operate.”

Glenn has been leading the Electric Machinery Sales part of the business.

“It is a fair learning curve to get out of one industry you are comfortable with and all the little parts that come with it.

“But it is going to be a legal or statutory requirement for all businesses, eventually. I don’t think you will get a job if you don’t run this type of equipment eventually.”

“I am looking to the future I guess and where people are heading. You don’t have to agree with it, but it needs to be part of your business decision,” Glenn said.

 Electric Machinery Sales are the distributor of the world’s first battery-powered skid steer loaders – the Elise 900 and MiniZ from FIRSTGREEN Industries