The burglars triggered the alarm at Chambers Portable Line Boring about 5.56am by popping the sliding door off its railing, police said.

Detective Senior Constable Tim Chester, of Portland Criminal Investigation Unit, said it took the offenders just 10 minutes to load up 15 brand new Husqvarna chainsaws worth up to $1500 each.

He said the theft of chainsaws and other power tools was a bit of a trend for thieves at the moment because they were easy to on-sell and hard to trace.

He said evidence left at the scene indicated that the culprits were from the Colac or Warrnambool area.

Office manager Fiona Chambers, whose son Todd owns the business, said they were devastated by the break-in.

“It’s a huge impact on a small business losing that amount of stock,” she said.

“It’s pretty devastating. You work really hard and to then have this happen, it’s just like you’ve been slapped in the face.”

Police have urged anyone who sees chainsaws for sale on social media to contact police. “If it’s a deal too good to be true, it usually is,” Detective Senior Constable Chester said.