Sydney’s FCG Ground Control is a business built on strong industry relationships. Founder Pascal Mouawad discusses his business, and how the above-and-beyond support from STM Trucks & Machinery made him and his team Kobelco excavator converts.
Over more than 30 years the in earthmoving and demolition industries, Pascal Mouawad has seen it all – the highs, the lows, the good, bad, and ugly.
But as the founder of Sydney-based contractor FCG Ground Control, Pascal seems to have found a sweet spot in the industry – a business big enough to take on some serious demolition work, but small enough to ensure that it still feels and works like a tight-knit family.
Decades of experience has taught Pascal to value strong relationships, both in business and life. And for FCG, one of the relationships most crucial to the business is with Sydney equipment dealer STM Trucks & Machinery.
“We all love STM – we’ve developed a beautiful relationship with them over the last few years,” Pascal says.
Pascal says a friendship with Mark Morris – now STM’s Sales Manager – dates back to when they were both employed elsewhere. And when, in the early days of FCG, Pascal found the backup support for his once-preferred excavator brand had become unsatisfactory, Mark encouraged him to try Kobelco.
Pascal took the plunge, adding multiple Kobelco excavators to FCG’s fleet and, ever since, he’s been thrilled with the support provided by Mark and the STM team.
“Mark’s a big-hearted man, and he always goes out of his way for me,” Pascal says. “If I ever need anything, he’ll deliver it for me. That’s a big deal for any company.
“That’s what separates STM for me. The fact that I have that true personal friendship, as well as a dealership that supports my business.
“And we’ll go out of our way to let people know – we’ll always include them on our social media posts. When you’re good to your dealers, they’ll be good back.”
Building trust
FCG Ground Control is a business built on a strong foundation of extensive industry experience and connections.
“We deliver all types of works,” Pascal says. “Any earthmoving and trucking works for demolition, excavation, remedial groundworks – and more.
“We run a 10-15-man company – nothing too big, nothing too small. That includes a full-time residential knock down crew which does around 400 houses a year.”
Pascal says this arm of the business works almost exclusively for one company – Icon Homes. Another example of why he takes relationship building so seriously.
“We do essentially all the demolition work for their Northern Beaches sector,” he says. “I’ve been doing their work for 15 years non-stop, and we’ve become their preferred demolisher.”
Precision demolition
As well as demolition and tipping, FCG’s offering also extends to hook bins.
“We’ve got two units that facilitate hook bin services around the region, for both residential and commercial projects,” Pascal says.
Both demolition and hook bin teams were called into service on a recent FCG project – the demolition of a massive old factory in Sydney’s inner south.
“It’s the old pipework factory at Alexandria,” Pascal says. “It was a four-week project with full remedial control plans that we needed to meet, involving asbestos waste and lead dust waste – a lot of highly contaminated materials. And we managed to clean it all up, execute it in accordance with the plan, and complete the job successfully.”
Pascal says it was an interesting and intricate job – one that required some very specific demolition knowledge and expertise.
“The front façade of the whole building had to be retained, so we had to do all the provisions and groundworks for that,” he says.
“There were also some serious safety requirements, because it was a big steel structure that would rock and shake if you touched it. There was even a more than 100-year-old overhead crane that we had to retain under heritage order. We were able to recover it safely, and it’s going to be reused as a feature in the construction of the new building.
“It wasn’t a project for everyone – definitely not your standard demolition job.”
While Pascal’s experienced team was the brains behind this complex operation, two Kobelco excavators from STM brought the muscle – including a powerful 22-tonne SK225SR-2. Additionally, STM also supplied the Fuso truck that FCG uses to cart its hook bins.
Throughout the operation, Pascal says the team at STM was readily available to provide any support necessary for FCG’s excavators and attachments – something he says demonstrates a dealer willing to do whatever it takes to support his business.
“They’re great people at STM, and they’re definitely on the rise,” he says. “They have great systems in place, and they do the right thing by the people in the industry. I hope our relationship stays this way for a long time.
“Because right now, when it comes time to buy another piece of gear, I wouldn’t even bother looking anywhere else. STM’s the company I want to deal with.”