Fitzgerald, the former chief executive and current non-executive chairman of Galliford Try, has taken up the post at the plant hirer, which was from the amalgamation of Fork Rent and One Call Hire last August.

Ardent claims to have the largest joint telehandler and excavator fleet in the UK and trades from 11 depots nationwide with a fleet holding of around £150m.

Steve Corcoran, chief executive of Ardent Hire Solutions said: “With Greg’s long standing, extensive and wide ranging experience in the housing and construction arena, he will bring an invaluable in-depth knowledge of our markets and customer activities to our business.

“We look forward to working with Greg with immense enthusiasm and are confident that he will bring significant value to the development of Ardent Hire Solutions.”