Morris Leslie places £68 million JCB order

JCB Chairman Anthony Bamford (left) presents Morris Leslie with a special scale model version of the Platinum Edition backhoe loader produced to mark the JCB machine’s 70th birthday. (Photo: JCB)

Morris Leslie Plant Hire has placed an order worth £68 million for a range of new JCB machines.

The order, which will be delivered by JCB dealer Scot JCB throughout 2024, includes Loadall telescopic handlers, X Series excavators, mini excavators, compaction rollers and site dumpers. 

It also includes 50 JCB backhoe loaders, which Morris Leslie Plant Hire said represents one for every year it has been in business as it celebrates its 50th year.

JCB Chairman Anthony Bamford handed over the keys to one of the backhoes to founder Morris Leslie – a special Platinum Edition machine produced to mark the JCB backhoe’s 70th birthday.

Lord Bamford said, “We are very proud of our long association with Morris Leslie Plant Hire. Like many of our customers, the company has grown from very small beginnings into a force to be reckoned with in the plant hire sector. From one family company to another, we wish Morris Leslie Plant Hire a very happy 50th birthday.”

Morris Leslie, said, “Over the years we have bought more than 7,000 JCB machines, so our success over the past half century is very much intertwined with that of JCB and we look forward to building on our partnership in the years to come.”

David Park, sales director, Scot JCB, added, “This significant order for new JCB machines in the company’s 50th anniversary year underlines Morris Leslie’s commitment and confidence in the construction industry.”