Customised solutions to building needs

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A sideline that started in a backyard to fill in time is now a major business providing roofing, fencing, sheds and a range of other building materials and services around Millicent and beyond.

3MP has its origins in a roll-forming machine that was built from the ground up in the same yard that housed Stefan and Karen Pulmer's transport business.

"We had a bit of spare time in the mornings so we built a dual-level roll forming machine with our long-term employee Nick Fox to roll corrugated iron and trimdeck, started selling it to local people by word of mouth, and then basically one thing led to another and it just grew and grew," Stefan said.

That was in 2011 and by around 2016 Stefan and Karen found the shed was simply too small to cater for their expanding building supplies business as well as servicing trucks and trailers for their transport business. In 2018 3MP moved into its new premises in Saleyards Road in Millicent.

Today the business employs 19 staff and supplies an extensive range of building materials. Stefan did his apprenticeship in cabinet making and carpentry and understood what supplies and products would add value to their customers.

"We're pretty unique in what we do; there's not many people like us that actually do all their own roll forming as well. That means we have our own production lines and can roll our own C and Z purlins, flashings, iron, gutters. We also have our own welding team to manufacture everything in house.

"We have our own building teams for shed and fence installations, and our own transport so we can deliver to the site. We have our own crane truck and extendable trailer so no job is too big for 3MP."

In fact 3MP offer a complete building service including 3D modelling, engineering, council submissions and have been engaged to build sheds and fences as far as Mildura, Adelaide and Broken Hill.

Knowing that many of the products supplied are manufactured locally brings a sense of comfort to customers.

"They can come to 3MP and we can take them back into our modern workshop where we can show them the process of manufacturing our sheds and fences from start to finish.

"As everything is done in house we have the ability to be flexible to customer's needs and custom make products as required," Stefan said.

The fencing side of the business is just as comprehensive. Stefan added they do all different types of fencing from tubular loop top, PVC, aluminium, gates, post and rail, neighbour friendly and powder coating. Damian Harrigan recently joined the fencing team at 3MP and brings 25 years' experience in the industry.

"The neighbour-friendly fencing is our most popular style, but the tubular fencing is great if you are wanting to border off your house yard from the paddock. You can still look through that fence but you keep the kids and dogs in and sheep out," adding to this the darker colours are currently on trend.

3MP also supply roofing iron, and there has been a growing demand for yard covers as people discover they provide a much better working environment in winter. "The instant tax write offs prompted a lot of farmers to install the covers, but we expect that to continue with the increased focus on work environments."

Whatever a customer's requirements, the 3MP team are happy to come on site and talk through options.

"We have specialised teams that understand that sheds, roofing and fencing can be a big investment and it's something that will be around for a long time, so we tend to place a lot of emphasis on that initial discussion, making sure that the customer is happy, and then we go back and check that they're satisfied with the finished product.

"For example, we'll think ahead and make sure the shed can handle solar panels down the track, even if the customer isn't planning to install them right away. Our shed expert Luke Rainsford has more than 20 years' experience in sheds and provides great advice," Stefan said.

"Our level of service is a very one-on-one process, and we follow through with all our projects."