A DORSET firm has placed an order for more than £1million of machinery from JCB.

The order from Mark Farwell Plant Hire & Contracting cements a relationship with the manufacturer that has lasted more than three decades.

The Blandford company’s new fleet includes 10 3CX Sitemaster backhoe loaders – the digger invented 60 years ago by JCB founder Joseph Cyril Bamford and still the biggest-selling backhoe in the world.

Mark Farwell Plant Hire & Contacting runs more than 80 machines.

Its latest– which also include tracked and midi excavators – have been bought through dealer Holt JCB.

Owner Mark Farwell said: “We’ve operated JCB machines for 32 years. We’ve never had a bad one and they’ve always been reliable. Holt JCB is right on our doorstep and they give us a really good service too.”

Farwell has always run backhoe loaders as part of its fleet, changing the machines every two to three years to keep pace with the latest technology.

The 10 backhoe loaders are the latest fuel efficient 3CX ECO models which consume nine per cent less fuel than previous models.

Mark Farwell added: “The JCB product is good value for money and it’s a good British product and it is nice to buy British.

“They are not the cheapest machines on the market, though the cost to buy is reasonable.

“But when you come to sell a JCB you always get a good resale value, so that gives us the best total cost of ownership.”