The hiring and servicing of portable toilets might be an unglamorous topic, but Serious Pty Ltd takes pride in providing for life’s necessities – adding a touch of flair to the mundane.
Thinking outside the cubicle is the Serious Pty Ltd business model. Service, service, service is their mantra, and no Australian liquid waste company does it better.
Damon Gibson, Operations Manager at Serious, said he and founder Floyd Hastie have taken the business from strength to strength.
“When Floyd started this business the waste industry was nothing more than a pump-out service. Now we clean all toilets on site from top to bottom, with service being the focus.
“It’s about working hard, but I’m proud to be part of it. We are serious about service, and always will be.
“We specialise in bulk liquid waste transportation and the hiring and servicing of portable toilets from the home renovator to the construction industry. Not forgetting that a big part of our business is event waste management.
“We design luxury toilet trailers to service the film and television industry, we have to provide a 6-star service to those guys, and believe that the construction and events industries should have the same level of service.
Serious Waste has over 30 years of experience in the industry, employs around 20 staff and provides an important – and well appreciated – service to its customers.
The landmark Australian comedy film, Kenny, may have poked fun at the portable toilet industry, but public sanitation is no laughing matter.
A large event that’s lacking public toilets can quickly become a disaster, so reliability was a key consideration when Serious chose Isuzus for their fleet of toilet and waste transport vehicles.
Damon said the company’s newest addition, an Isuzu FRR 107-210 medium wheelbase model, is its most exciting yet.
“We’re really excited about our new Isuzu,” Damon said.
“We’ve always bought Isuzus because its car licence models are fantastic, but the FRR is a step up for capacity.
“Its ability to carry bigger loads will save us money, and provide a better service to our customers.
“The Isuzus are more capable of handling weight than the other truck brands we own, and they’re far smoother to drive.”
The FRR 107-210 has a 10,700 kg rated GVM and a turbocharged Isuzu N-4HK1-TCS engine – a highly fuel-efficient, low-emissions engine – which can produce 154 kW @ 2,400 rpm and 726 Nm @ 1,600 rpm,
This makes the FRR powerful enough to carry huge loads, without sacrificing its mobility in tight areas.
“Floyd ergonomically designs our vehicle bodies to make the job easier, and is always looking to improve on the next, every time. It’s that attention to detail that sets us apart from the rest. Much like Isuzu.” Damon said.
With ease of operation one of Serious’ priorities, the company chose the FRR’s third generation Torque Converter equipped Automated Manual Transmission (TC-AMT), with fully automatic and clutchless manual operation modes.
Isuzu’s TC-AMT provides a sophisticated and intuitive driving experience for Serious’ drivers, which Damon said matches the company’s business strategy.
“The FRR’s capability is huge,” he said. “We’ll be able to react to new jobs a lot quicker and enhance our profits.
“I really enjoy driving the Isuzus because I find them non-complicated and easy to operate, and our new drivers will feel the same.
“When we were buying our initial fleet, we experimented with our selection process and bought a range of different truck brands to find out which would work best.
“Our Isuzus have been by far the most impressive, we have two new trucks being built right now.”
The FRR has the superior comfort of an Isri 6860 air-suspension seat, as well as Isuzu’s Idle Stop System (ISS), which automatically switches the engine off when the truck’s idling, and restarts it when the accelerator is engaged.
Considering many transport businesses have a high idle time, this can save fleets significantly on their fuel usage.
Besides improving job reaction times and saving on fuel costs, Damon has identified another advantage Isuzu is delivering to Serious in employment flexibility and reliability.
“Our major focus is on buying more Isuzu NPR 45-150 models.
“They’re reliable and when we advertise for positions, we can employ anyone with a car licence.
“We stand out from our competitors because we’re serious about service, Isuzu do the same for us.” Damon said.
“We’re a growing company, but we still bend over backwards for our clients.
“We look for what’s required, and if our customer needs help, we’ll go the extra mile to complete the job.
“We learnt our lesson from buying other Japanese truck brands, because they’re much more fragile. Isuzu’s aftersales service is also excellent and really sets it apart.
“I cannot say enough about the service team at Gold Coast Isuzu, Nerang, they’re just brilliant.
“We’ve been so impressed with them that now we only buy Isuzus.”
With safety Isuzu’s top priority, the FRR also has Anti-lock Braking (ABS), Anti Skid Regulator (ASR) traction control, Hill Start Aid (HSA) for manual models and a driver and passenger airbag with seatbelt pretensioner.
“If any of Serious’ employees have a weekend job to do, we’ll always choose one of our Isuzus because of their power, handling and robustness.” Damon said.
“They are our hardest working vehicles, and we know we can give them the toughest jobs.
“When we go to Toowoomba, we take an Isuzu, when we go to the Sunshine Coast, it’s an Isuzu.
“We feel comfortable taking the trucks anywhere because owning Isuzus has given us peace of mind.
“I tell everyone, “Isuzus get the job done!”
Just like their owners.
