AMD Contract Services has completed a landmark deal by investing in the first JCB 420X tracked excavator in Scotland.
Supplied by Scot JCB, the model is a 40-tonne class digger built around a Cummins L9 dual-certified engine producing 241kW (323hp).
A new 2.6 cubic metre heavy-duty bucket delivers 10% more capacity and 11% better lifting performance than the 370X, while a wider, longer undercarriage has been designed to add stability. Internally, the cab’s 10-inch touchscreen enables operators to store settings for up to 15 attachments.
The machine joins a fleet that already includes a substantial number of JCB machines, from mini and midi-excavators through to 40-tonne tracked excavators. AMD has also invested in the JCB e-tech range with electric mini-diggers and dumpers added to the fleet.
Founded in 1967 by Albert Munro Dykes as a land drainage contractor, the Dumfries-based firm was taken on by sons Fraser and Trevor Dykes in 1997 and renamed AMD Contract Services Ltd. Fraser Dykes became sole MD in December 2016. What began as agricultural machinery work has grown into a diversified plant hire and civil engineering business, with the company now running a fleet of around 150 machines and employing between 50 and 60 operators.
“My background is as a digger driver, I drove them for 50 years, and the 420 is a proper machine,” said Fraser Dykes. “It’s been beefed up in all the right places. The undercarriage, the stability, it’s fantastic. JCB’s been part of this business for more than 50 years, since my father bought his first machine back in 1973. I recommend Scot JCB for customer service, and there’s nothing better than word of mouth.”
Iain Bryant, joint MD at Scot JCB, added, “It’s fantastic to see the first 420X in Scotland go to a business with such a long-standing relationship with JCB. Fraser knows exactly what he needs from a machine, and the 420X’s strength and stability made it the right fit for AMD’s fleet.”
