HISTORY OF THE HOLMWOOD GROUP
The history of Holmwood dates back to 1950/51 when AMA (Adams, Mellish Anderson) was formed in the outskirts of Brisbane. AMA won a job to refurbish an ex-war tanker that turned out to be constructed of Aluminium. As the welding of light alloys was unheard of locally, the company imported the first aluminium welding equipment and technology into Australia. By 1956, AMA were constructing aluminium tankers of their own design, and several were the largest petrol carrying tankers seen in Australia.
In or around 1963, Sid Mellish formed a new business with Eddie Gumbelis – Holmwood Enterprises – named after a park back in England where Sid enjoyed time with his wife. Colin Mellish took over from his father, and is still the principle in Qld. Colin and Eddie joined forces with Alex Stables in 1985 to strengthen the Holmwood brand in the Southern states, and the Melbourne operation was born.
From these beginnings, Holmwood has grown to become a national force and a much respected name in the bulk liquid transport industry with a reputation for the most reliable equipment.
During the early eighties, Holmwood Enterprises (as it was then known) acquired Highgate Engineers (formerly a division of Comalco) from ‘INDENG’ (Industrial Engineering) who were market leading manufacturers of road tankers and aluminium tippers throughout the 70’s. Funnily enough, Alex Stables was one of Highgate’s principle sales engineers when owned by Comalco. Highgate Engineers now manufactures truck fuel tanks, water, and hydraulic oil tanks, as well as all associated accessories. It provides a number of OE solutions to truck manufacturers here and abroad. More recently, Highgate Engineers have also diversified into providing the aluminium fabrication for Runaway Bay Pontoon boats.
During 1999 we acquired Australia’s leading manufacturer of fuel and lubrication service vehicles for major mining, oil & contracting companies and local government bodies. This division operates as “Narwhal Fluid Quip” and designs and manufactures vehicles with payloads up to and above 85 Tonne.
At the start of the year 2000, the ‘Hockney Alcan’ business was purchased by Holmwood. Hockney was started in the 70’s by Phil Hockney and was quickly established as a market leader, and strong competitor in aluminium road tankers. Hockney (as part of the Alcan enterprise) also diversified into aluminium tray manufacture, and in fact the very first one-tonne aluminium tray was the legendary ‘Alcan’ tray, still sold today. We have completely absorbed the Hockney road tanker designs into the Holmwood Highgate division, whilst Hockney Engineers operates as a specialised truck and tray body manufacturer.
Today, the entire group of companies remains 100% Australian and family owned by the Mellish (Qld) and Stables (Vic) families. Dealing with anyone at the Holmwood Group is dealing with a family of people committed to long term customer satisfaction, and product durability. We are here for the LONG haul!
How We Roll
Our Vision
We will lead the way in specialised transport equipment & aviation refuelling solutions throughout the Australasian region.
Our Mission
Through our commitment to customer service, quality, constant improvement and providing the right solution, we aim to exceed expectations and be rewarded with customer satisfaction and loyalty.
Our Values
The Holmwood Group has four core values that provide the foundation of our company. They reflect the ‘Holmwood Way’ of doing things and enhance our ability to achieve our vision and strategy. These values provide a basis for our decision-making and define how we prioritise our actions and behaviours.
Pride in the product
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Do the right thing
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Co-operative spirit
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Make it happen
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