Iceman Group, the beginning
For Iceman Group, it all began when founder, Cindy Marshall, and her partner, Ron Inman, embarked from the United States en route to Australia in the 1980s.
The Iceman Group
Humble Beginning's
For Iceman Group, it all began when founder, Cindy Marshall, and her partner, Ron Inman, embarked from the United States en route to Australia in the 1980s. Prior to their arrival in Queensland, Cindy and Ron were working at Thermo King in the US – Cindy was running the parts division of the business while Ron was a service technician, until they decided to have a crack at the game themselves. For Iceman, that date in the history books is 24th of March 1984. Cindy made history as the first female in Australia to complete an apprenticeship in refrigeration.
Initially, Iceman focused on field servicing to enhance customer service, eventually dominating the Brisbane Markets. Despite the challenge of competing against large companies with no advantage in selling new units, Iceman thrived through maintenance and repairs, even refurbishing their own units for resale.
Iceman Group Director, Robert Maguire, has been instrumental in this growth. He initially came across the company as a customer looking for a solution in the middle of the ‘90s, and since purchasing it in 2017 with his business partner, Jason Murray, he led it through its national expansion from end to end and saw it shift from having a local subcontractor model to being a national company-owned business with various workshops.
In 2019, Iceman acquired Transport Innovators to complement its transport refrigeration network. This marked the beginning of a strategic shift and the launch of Iceman’s national expansion plan. Through its branches in major capital cities, offers a comprehensive range of services including mechanical, body, smash and refrigeration repairs. As a one-stop shop, customers can drop off their vehicles at any of Iceman’s facilities where its technicians can access and review their entire vehicle service history from any location.
In June 2020 Iceman Group acquired Pantec Refrigeration, which became Iceman’s first workshop in Western Australia. Since Robert joined the business, he carefully selected his management team and workshop managers based on their extensive industry knowledge. And collectively, this group delivers over 400 years of experience in transport and repairs. Wayne Bailey joined the team as the National Sales Manager in July 2021, followed by the opening of the Cairns workshop in October 2021.
Greg Lemmon was appointed General Manager in January 2022, leading to the opening of new workshops in Truganina and Coleman Road in February and May 2022, respectively. The new purpose-built Perth Workshop, featuring refrigeration, mechanical services, and a body shop, opened in October 2022. Kirsty Moon became the Financial Controller in April 2023, and Iceman expanded further by acquiring Brisbane Valley Refrigeration’s Rocklea Workshop in July 2024.
Iceman Group's timeline
USA to Australia
Cindy and Ron where sponsored by QTK (Spectra) to come to Australia
Iceman started
Cindy and Ron decided to go out on their own on the 24/03/1984 Ron being ‘The Iceman’
Cindy was the first female in Australia to complete an apprenticeship in refrigeration
Field Servicing
Billy Harkness moved up from Sydney and started working in 1990 after completing his apprenticeship in Sydney
Iceman started field servicing to improve the service for their customers – they took over majority of the Brisbane Markets.
Iceman would travel 300km in any direction to do work due to the lack of field employees
Iceman was up against the big companies with no advantage of selling brand new units
Iceman mainly did maintenance and repairs
Started refurbishing our own units to sell.
Iceman Group's reach
Iceman owned a national footprint, servicing Australia
New Owners
Robert Maguire and Jason Murray purchased Iceman
Transport Innovators
Iceman Group merged with Transport Innovators - Fowler Road - Jeff Bird
Pantec Refrigeration
Iceman acquired Pantec Refrigeration
National Sales Manager
Wayne Bailey joined the team as National Sales Manager
FNQ Aut oAir
Iceman acquired FNQ Auto Air Cairns workshop
General Manager
Greg Lemmon joined the team as General Manager
Truganina Workshop
Opened Truganina Workshop with Refrigeration and Mechanical repairs
Coleman Road
Opened Coleman Road workshop with Refrigeration and mechanical repairs
Financial Controller
Kirsty Moon joined the team as Financial Controller
Rocklea Workshop
Iceman Acquired Brisbane Valley Refrigeration - Rocklea Workshop
From humble beginings
1982, Cindy and Ron were sponsored by QTK (Spectra) to visit Australia. On March 24, 1984, Ron and Cindy decided to strike out on their own, Ron earning the nickname "The Iceman."
Mobile workshops
In 1984, Iceman was launched with a workshop in Murarrie, providing services to the wider Brisbane area and supported by a team of mobile service technicians.
Trailer Repair Experts
In February 2019, Iceman Group acquired Transport Innovators and merged the companies, which had originally been established in the early 2000s.