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Comprehensive Rental Options Provide Recess During Peak Times

Martin Dieck Assad - Grupo MADISA
General Director

STORY INLINE POST

By MBN Staff | MBN staff - Tue, 01/26/2021 - 16:03

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Q: What sets MADISA apart from other equipment and machinery rental and sales companies?

A: The machinery and vehicles we sell and rent are critical to the operations of a mine because the vast majority of mine operators are involved in moving and processing large quantities of heavy materials. Clients want excellence in support services from us. MADISA has 74 years of experience attending to Mexico’s mining industry and understands its role. We offer products and services for both open pit and underground mining. 

The core products we offer are Caterpillar machines but we also have a large selection of equipment from other brands that complement our Caterpillar selection and allow us to be flexible in providing integrated solutions. Sales are supported by our certified technicians. MADISA has three technical schools in Mexico with courses that are certified by Caterpillar, where we train technicians and keep our personnel up-to-date with the latest developments in machinery. The schools are in Monterrey, Mexico City and Chihuahua.

The equipment we offer are highly productive, can reduce lost time and deliver the lowest cost-per-ton of material moved in the industry. MADISA’s machinery and equipment also contain the latest tech, including remote operation and monitoring capabilities, as well as Mine Star Solutions, a Caterpillar-built technology for remote operations. Autonomous equipment is particularly important in underground mines.

Q: What new trends were introduced to the industry due to the pandemic?

A: Mining companies place a great emphasis on their personnel and the communities that surround the mines. Both our company and the mining operators put protocols in place that allowed us to pick up again once the government declared mining to be an essential activity. However, the months that we could not work undoubtedly hit the industry hard.

We have seen technology pushed to the fore since the pandemic. MADISA decided to offer remote training courses. Our expectation was for a weak response but the response was huge, especially among miners. Through video conferencing, we also provided courses by our technicians from our technical schools, which were targeted at helping technicians in the field with common problems.

Q: Has there been a change in the popularity of rental versus purchase of equipment since the pandemic?

A: Cash flow is a general problem that affects all companies. Indeed, the rental side of the company is so large that we are among the global Top 100 rental companies. We have seen that pre-pandemic rate of purchase for the core machinery pieces that miners require has remained steady. We have been able to help this with CAT Financial programs including custom made financial schemes to adapt payments to customer needs.

That said, we have seen demand for rentals of supporting machinery climb during peak moments of operations. Our large inventory has been vital during these peaks. This is particularly true for jobs that previously were done by the mine operators themselves but are now contracted out.

 Q: How is MADISA’s product inventory evolving to reflect the changing needs of mining companies and the growth of technology within mining?

A: Our core products remain Caterpillar machinery. Within Caterpillar, there is a constant drive to offer products with the latest technologies. Aside from this, we provide machinery that is 100 percent powered by electric batteries that can be rented by mining companies working in underground mines. Aside from Caterpillar, there are a number of brands, like Carmix, that offer concrete solutions for underground mines.

We also provide other services that we introduced to optimize mine operations. Among them was our research with other companies into the optimum size of machinery needed for the best cost-per-ton produced ratios, added to remote control of equipment.

Some mines do not have access to power from CFE. For those mines, we have developed solutions using solar panels or hybrid solutions of gas and solar power. This helps achieve the lowest costs for energy in these mines.

Q: What are MADISA's expectations for 2021 and what are the actions you are taking to make them a reality?

A: 2021 is going to be challenging since the outlook is for continued impact of the pandemic situation, but on the other hand, prices for commodities are good and this will promote investment and development for mining operations, and this is our main focus: we will be close to our customers to help them meet their goals with our integrated solutions providing the options with the latest technology while making sure we continue our strong focus on safety.

Grupo MADISA (Maquinas Diesel S.A de C.V) is Mexico’s largest distributor of machinery and equipment, offering products for a wide range of industries. It offers both sales and rental options.

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