Located northeast of greater London, Essex is one of the most populous counties in England. Notable towns include the new towns of Basildon and Harlow, the county town,
Chelmsford, as well as Colchester and Maldon.

The name Essex comes from the old English Ēastseaxe (i.e. the “East Saxons”). Colchester – in the northeast of the county – is the oldest recorded town in Britain.

The county is one of geographical extremes with heavy  industrial landscapes, the ancient woodland of Epping Forest and 350 miles of coastline (making it the longest of any English county). It is also known as Constable Country because of the undulating rural landscapes made famous by the painter John Constable.

Mid Essex has much to offer with Colchester, Chelmsford, Witham, Maldon, Tiptree and Burnham on Crouch proving especially with visitors to the region.

Colchester has a rich heritage and history including the largest Norman castle keep in Europe.  Today it is also a modern, vibrant town with shops, restaurant and family attractions such as the zoo. It also offers walking and cycling art trails across the region.

Recommended: Visit Colchester.com

Chelmsford is known as the birthplace of the radio with the first radio broadcast being made in 1920. Marconi – the radio pioneer – opened his factory in Chelmsford and the company (in some form) still exists in the town.

Recommended: AboutMyArea Chelmsford

Witham is a picturesque Georgian town at the very heart of Essex. Visitors can enjoy picturesque town walks and visit Whetmead Nature Reserve.
The town was also home to celebrated writer Dorothy L. Sayers from 1929 to 1957.

Recommended: Witham.gov

Maldon is a great example of maritime Essex. Along with nearby Mersea Island, Maldon has been described as the ‘new Brittany’ and is celebrated for its fresh seafood. The area is a popular venue for leisure sailing and there are numerous marinas throughout the area.

Recommended: AboutMyArea Maldon

Tiptree is famous for its prize winning strawberry jam, a local favourite and praised by James Bond in ‘From Russia with Love’. The ‘Little Scarlet’ strawberry is the perfect strawberry for jam making and Tiptree is one of the few places worldwide where the variant is grown.

Recommended: Tiptree.com

Roger from Hire Plus Limited. Maldon Essex.

www.hire-tools.com

According to Aquila the property development company, several nationwide chain stores
such as B&Q, Homebase and Halfords have all shown an interest as well as hotel chain Travelodge. A planning application for a new £20 million retail park to include a major store, restaurant and hotel was rejected even though it would have generated up to 160 permanent jobs, Aquila plans also included to build a new access route on the nearby roundabout which serves The Causeway and the A414, one of the main gateways into the town and just off the Fullbridge where HirePlus are based.

As a local plant hire business, I have mixed views but I can’t help feeling deep down that anything attracting significantly more visitors to Maldon would benefit the town hugely, I hear weekly from visitors that they love the independent shops in the High Street, Maldon, so I can’t see how a Retail Park would change this.

Let us know your thoughts Yes or No to New Retail Park in Maldon.

Until the next time Roger.

Suppling hire equipment to the organisers with aluminium access towers, scaffold and ladders as required. The Event was postponed from the New Year due to extreme cold weather, this dash across the Blackwater estuary is an annual and what an event this was.

A record 12,000 people lined the sea wall in Promenade Park for the unusual sporting event on Easter Monday. Now organisers of the Maldon Mud Race have said they would consider the possibility of moving the event to the Easter weekend on a permanent basis.

The race, which saw more than 250 people run across the River Blackwater, is usually held over Christmas.

Brian Farrington from the Rotary Club of Maldon said the 2011 running had been a “highly successful event”.

“It was one of the best ones we’ve ever had, certainly the weather was on our side and to have some celebrities along as well made it a fantastic event,” he said.

The 500-yard (457m) race was originally due to be held on 28 December, but was postponed due to the extreme cold weather at the time.

Mr Farrington explained any moving of the race from its traditional winter date would need to be discussed.

“We’ll have to review the whole event with Maldon District Council with whose property we share on the day and also talk to the police as well,” he said.

“But it was a highly successful event and if it’s possible to move it, then the committee will make that decision in conjunction with the council.”

Until the next time Roger.

Hire Plus Limited Number One in Maldon Essex for Tool Hire.

Cherry Picker, Boom Lift, Man Lift, Basket Crane and Hoisting Equipment are all names that are used for aerial work platforms make sure you put safty first working inside or out.

Remember a fall from a stepladder did in 2008 put a man in a coma for two months and the results were a hefty fine for the employer, keep on the right side of the The HSE before it’s to late.

For information about working at height log onto the HSE site at www.hse.gov.uk/falls

Until the next time.

Roger

Why is it important that we are members of the scheme.

The Buy with Condence is an approved trader scheme which has been set up to assist residents and business to find reputable local businesses. That’s why Hire Plus are proud to be part of Essex Tranding Standards Seheme.

The secheme is run by a partnership of local Tranding Standards services offices,  All business are audited by Tranding Standards to ensure they comply with consumer protection legislation and only once they have pass can they display the Buy with Confidence logo and be entered onto the website.

Approved business are monitored on a regular basis and feedback is invited from customers. The Essex Buy with Confidence scheme has just approved its 200th member.

The Essex Buy with Confidence scheme has members offering a wide range of services, you can search for approved traders by visiting:  www.buywithconfidence.gov.uk

Until the next time Roger.

It broke out at Sill-Die in Fullbridge Quay shortly before 1pm just over the road from us however matters escalated when the fire exploded two chemical tanks. Witnesses reported seeing a bright white flash and hearing a huge bang as the phosphorus tanks caught alight. Forty firefighters were called in to tackle the blaze but were hampered by the presence of magnesium, which has a violent reaction to water.

Police sealed off the area from Station Road to Market Hill and evacuated nearby businesses, including the Tesco superstore and fuel station.

Until the next time, Roger.

New for 2011 we are up dating our user friendly website to enable you to gain a clearer picture to all our equipment and prices available, along with this we are going to be sending out a bespoke monthly e-mail newsletter keeping you informed as to what’s on offer and more importantly what we are up to.

www.hire-tools.com

Plus our reports on our blogging platform, which hopefully in time will give you insight to the day to day life of a hire centre here in Maldon. (The good the bad and the ugly).

www.hireplus.wordpress.com

You can also follow us on Social Media site Twitter at www.twitter.com/hireplus

Local news.

As a result of the December 2010 “Maldon Mud Race” being postponed due to bad weather the new date set for the event is Easter Monday 25^th April at 11.30am.

Once again we will be helping by being one of the Event Sponsors. For more details please checkout www.maldonmudrace.com

Till the next time.

Roger.

A short introduction about us, we are a Plant and Tool hire centre based in the Fullbridge area of Maldon, Essex supplying and servicing customers across the local areas and villages of Colchester, Chelmsford, Braintree, Stansted, Harlow, Brentwod, Grays and Southend Essex.

A wide range of equipment from a basic small hand drill , access equipment, aluminium staging, ladders, hammer drills, concrete mixers, floor screeding equipment, cutting and grinding equipment, general building tools, gardening and landscaping tools, heating, lighting and drying equipment and specialist plant dumpers, rollers and excavators.

For more information please checkout our website at www.hire-tools.com