Golden days are ahead for Eureka Concrete in Ballarat, who recently collected a bright-yellow FYJ 300-350 Auto concrete agitator to add to their growing fleet.
Providing services in Ballarat, Ballan, Beaufort and Maryborough for more than 50 years, the family-run business operators four concrete plants alongside a quarry in Amphitheatre.
“Back when Dad (Graeme Beaston) first started the business 52 years ago, he had two concrete trucks and a front-end loader,” said Eureka Concrete Manager, Troy Beaston.
“I’ve been here for over 30 years with my three brothers also working for the business.
“We now run around 45 concrete trucks plus a few tippers as well.”
The foundations for the working relationship between Ballarat’s biggest concrete supplier and one of the region’s busiest truck dealerships were cemented long ago.
With their new Isuzu FYJ Agitator on hand, Eureka actually provided a substantial quantity of the concrete required to build Ballarat Isuzu’s new dealership in Mitchell Park.
“Eureka Concrete enjoys looking after the local community and businesses in Ballarat, providing high quality service and support,” Troy said.
“We have a connection with Ian Deacon, Chris Todd, Jason Homberg and the team at Ballarat Isuzu. We’ve known them for a long time and we’re glad to do business with them.”
Ballarat Isuzu’s new site is geared to support growth, extending the service and product support that customers such as Eureka Concrete have come to rely on, as one of the most well-equipped dealers in the network.
Dealer Principal Ian Deacon said the dealership was delighted to hand over the keys of the new agitator to a local customer, noting the mutual trust between Eureka and Ballarat Isuzu.
“The two businesses have enjoyed a long relationship, so it was a happy milestone that their FYJ Agitator could be the latest addition to their fleet,” said Ian.
While Eureka can be found delivering concrete for government projects, commercial projects and domestic builds, they also provide the goods for clients ranging from display homes, to industrial sites and even wind farms.
Trucks in Eureka’s fleet take on five to six loads per day on average, with busy days jumping up to as many as 10 loads. This is prevalent on sunny days, which according to Troy are “always busy”.
“Eureka’s new FYJ Agitator would probably travel up to 200 or 300 kilometres a day and be in operation for up to 10 hours,” he said.
Importantly for Eureka’s tough line of work, the FYJ 300-350 Auto Agitator cab chassis is supported with a three-year ‘harsh application’ new vehicle warranty with no ‘hours stipulation’, which includes three years of 24/7 roadside assistance and Isuzu Care only a phone call away.
Most of Eureka’s agitators are on the road for eight years before being replaced with newer models, with Troy noting that the barrel wears out faster than the cab chassis—presenting a unique challenge in fleet turnover management.
“Our Isuzu truck is going really well for the business… we are planning to update older vehicles over time with Ballarat Isuzu so we can have Isuzu trucks all throughout our fleet.”
