Stuart Banks

Founder and Director

I founded the company in November 2011 and purchased our first truck in May 2012. I first gained regular transport work through Tarmac’s owner-operator scheme and as the business grew in the first years, we purchased additional vehicles and then a construction plant to support our growing client base.

I’ve always loved working with trucks and diggers (construction plant); at the age of 17, I left college after completing my first year of BTEC in Groundworks and Civil Engineering and gained a summer job working for a local groundworks contractor. With the summer holidays drawing to a close, the company owner offered me and full-time position and allowed me to attend college 1 day a week to complete my theoretic studies in Groundworks and Civil Engineering which I completed during the proceeding year, I continued to study in my own time acquiring additional knowledge and qualifications within the Groundworks and Civil Engineering Section (including multiple Plant Operating Certification) and at the age of 22 I was promoted to Groundworks Foreman and began managing small to large Groundworks Projects.

I had a deep desire to be my own boss and run a Transport, Plant Hire & Groundworks Business from a very young age so with that in mind and not really knowing where best to start I set up A R Banks Ltd when I had managed to source an opportunity with Tarmac Ltd as one of their subcontract hauliers moving bulk Aggregates.

The first truck I bought was a MAN TGS 32.400 8x4 insulated tipper, during the first couple of years I would share the driving of the tipper with my dad while I would go off and complete small groundwork projects from Foundations to drainage, Swimming Pools to Ponds as the client base grew so did the fleet and soon after that, I bought our first Volvo 8x4 tipper grab lorries. As the business was growing at a reasonable pace we bought our first rigid HIAB with fliptoe ramps in 2017 which allowed us to transport existing clients' plant & Machinery and also our own digger which we purchased in May of 2019 this was an 8t Tracked Excavator (Kubota KX080.4) this was somewhat of a pivotal moment as I have always wanted to own our own plant (16-year-old me would be very happy) and since then the services we offer have grown and the business has gone from strength to strength allowing us to offer Groundworks & Earthworks Services, Road Transport, Hiab Hire, Plant Hire & Lifting Operations.

During the course of the business, I have continued to study and acquire knowledge, understanding & qualifications some of which are listed below. However, I’m a keen learner and always studying.

• Certificate of Professional Competency in National Road Transport
• FORS Practicioner
• Various Construction Plant Operating Certification
• Appointed Persons in Lifting Operations along with Lift Supervisor & Slinger / Signaller
• Temporary Works Coordinator
• NVQ7 Senior Construction Manager
• NVQ5 in Civil Engineering
• Deep Excavations

Whilst maintaining an overall management of the business I also manage the Project Division, This can include providing a consultancy service to clients and the designed stage of the project to formulate a Transport and/or Construction solution, Engineering solutions to overcome obstacles. Management of the Groundworks/Earthworks Project(s) & Lifting Operations or perhaps behind the controls of an Excavator.