After 50 years of working in the construction industry, you can call yourself experienced. With a career in operated plant going back to 1955, John Rooney can make just such a claim. Hailing from tough Cumbrian stock, John started out as apprentice on a Fordson Tractor. He drove his first dumper in 1957, a 1500cwt at Watlins, and his biography reads like a history of operated plant throughout the 20th and early 21st centuries.

Assisting as a Slinger Banksman with a RUSTIN 43RB Dragline with an air start engine, he then learned to drive his first 1¾ yard bucket. In 1958, he drove his first JCB Backhoe Loader with metal seat 'for comfort'. In those days, there were no stabiliser legs, no radio, no CD player and no air conditioning - operators just don't know how lucky they are today! He then moved onto driving Dinkham Diggers at Whitlocks.

In his early days John learned the importance of “don't get good on just one machine, get good on everything”. His earliest trainer was Bill Tomlinson from Egremont who “took no prisoners - operators had to be perfect.” From Tomlinson, he learned to drive a wide range of machines including, Dozers D7 and D8, Trackscavators 955 and 977 – and Drott crawled loaders.

In 1960, John joined Border Plant Hire where he first experienced the operated plant hire sector. He later moved to McAlpines in 1963, where he drove dozers and scrapers 22RB draglines, followed by Seymours, Trackscavators and CAT dozers. Getting good on many machines gave him the skills.

In 1966 John started at BEC Plant in Whitehaven, Carlisle as a spare operator where he took up the formidable challenge of learning to operate 14 different machines in just 5 months. So well suited was he that he remained at BEC for the next 22 years, progressing to plant inspector and then depot manager taking charge of opening a new depot in Kendal.

He then moved on to Lakes Plant & Tool Hire in 1980, home of the Lakes Training Centre. He obtained his Instructor qualifications from the National Construction College at Bircham Newton and spent the next 26 years training operators in the Cumbria area and across the UK.


In 2006, John sold his training company for a quieter life. Now a semi-retired professional operator and CITB-recommended trainer, he takes up specialised requests including specialist operator training overseas. This includes recent jobs as far a field as Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan.

But for many he is a familiar figure at SED, working as usual with Ausa dumpers demonstrating the range. Constantly stopped by drivers he has trained over the years in his 50th year it was time to celebrate the fact. So rigged out in his ROONEY 50 overalls he put many machines through their paces. He says he has lost count of the hundreds of operators who have come under his wing. Now with over 32 categories on the CSCS Card from crawler cranes to 360 excavators and anything in between he has well and truly mastered the techniques of the operated plant industry

He may be a old hand in construction but he’s also a veteran in Judo, 3rd Dan to be exact, so don't be surprised if you see him at the world veteran Judo championships in 2008, or one of his other sidelines giving an after dinner speech while performing magic tricks!

With 50 years' experience under his belt, John has a wealth of knowledge. Here are his top tips for new operators:

1. The 4 in 1 bucket is the best invention in UK construction.

2. Operators should 'get good' with the 4 in 1 before stepping inside a mini digger - this will make them far more effective operators of any machine as they will have mastered a really versatile attachment.
3. Having enjoyed many years in plant operation, he would recommend it as a career for any young person looking to join:

“It's as good a trade as any, and if you become highly skilled and professional, you will never be out of work.”