23/07/2025
Introducing the man behind (or more often on!) the diggers at W. Woodward Hire & Maintenance 🚜🚜
Meet Will - lifelong heavy diesel and plant engineer, digger enthusiast and the hands-on force behind all the machines you’ll find at W. Woodward Hire.
Wills been working with heavy plant machinery since he left school, from quarries to breakdowns, he knows these big-ass machines inside and out having spent a lifetime fixing, maintaining, and operating them.
7 years ago, his engineering skills (plus me nagging him to come to work with me!) took him to sea, working aboard superyachts and traveling the world fixing some of the most prestigious mega-yachts in the world.
However, 2 years ago after having our baby girl, Will decided to hang up his epilates & focus on making a future here in France. Those of you who have come to France probably know how hard it is to set up and get a visa here, so its taken a good year or so, and due to wills engineering certificates being English, its a pain to transfer to France. So, it came as a natural path to hire out the diggers we have been using to renovate our home here.
So, in March when he FINALLY got his entrepreneur visa, he registered as a location hire and operator, and here we are (with a courtyard full of machinery 🫣) - but the ability to be together as a family and spend the majority of our time with our daughter.
Anyway, so we have a 0.8 mini digger which is easy to operate & drive (even I can drive it - his other half (Eleanor Jessica Cheffe Privée) by the way if you're wondering who's writing this!) and amazing for getting inside through doorways
A big boy for the bigger jobs (but not too big it's scary!) 1.5 tonne digger
A 1 tonne dumper that works alongside the 1.5 digger
A mini dumper that twins with the mini
A tipper trailer
If you send a message we can give you a quote - to give you an idea of our prices, the mini digger is €90 a day, the big digger €130 - but give us a message and we quote to suit your job. We do combo offers for the diggers and dumpers of course also!
It's all of course solid kit due to Will taking a lot of pride in his duties as a heavy diesel engineer, and fully insured. Wills also been driving the things since he was a teen, so if you need an operator, he will come along and do the job for you.
We’re not big or flashy — and we don’t want to be. We’re just a couple of honest grafters, doing what we know best, building a life here in France. So get in touch if you need a simple digger hire to get into those projects that need a machines help! 🤩🥰
SIRET 9416868180019