All Access Articles

Italian company Barin has delivered its second truck mounted AP 60/30 to Australia. The machine has been purchased by Ace Tree Management, based in Victoria and will be used primarily for tree surgery.

UK based design and engineering company, Semmco has officially launched a specialist access solution for aircraft maintenance. The tail docking system encases the aircraft tail and consists of a series of platforms which allow engineers to work at four height levels from 2.5 m (8 ft) to 9 m (30ft).

Irish scaffold tower manufacturer Instant UpRight has set itself a target of appointing 20 new dealers in developing markets as well as a significant expansion of its ‘specials' business.

Niftylift in the UK has named Trasek TS in Havlickuv Brod as its dealer in the Czech Republic. The creation of the "official relationship" coincided with the Brno Construction Exhibition in September, at which Trasek presented a 12 m working height Nifty HR12NDE self-propelled boom and a 17 m working height Nifty N170 trailer-mounted platform.

Landscaping products specialist Henchman Limited in the UK, formerly known as Haygate, said it will introduce its adjustable height Podium Step product. Henchman designed the product, which is manufactured by another firm.

The Arboricultural Association in the UK has published an operator's guide to safe use of mobile elevating work platforms during tree surgery. The publication is the Arboriculture MEWP Operators Guide (AMOG) 2008: Safe Use of Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs) in Arboriculture.

Alimak Hek Group AB announced that two of its product manufacturing companies, Alimak AB, Sweden, and Hek Manufacturing B.V, Netherlands, will be renamed Alimak Hek AB and Alimak Hek Manufacturing B.V, respectively.

Australia's first two Tadano Hydraulic Truck Cranes featuring the new 2.5 tonne capacity extendable work platforms have arrived at Hanchard Crane Hire.

Tanfield Group, owner of UpRight, Snorkel and electric vehicle maker Smith Electric Vehicles, has written off £75 million (€96 million) from its books, comprising £48 million (€61 million) to reduce goodwill and intangible assets associated mainly with Snorkel, £11.5 million (€15 million) for bad debt provision and a £15.3 million (€19.6 million) charge on the value of inventories of “slow moving and obsolete” machines.

UK-based AJ Access Platforms, which sells and rents aerial platforms, has renamed and rebranded itself as Access Platforms, incorporating the website address AccessPlatforms.com

New York rental company Atlantic Hoisting & Scaffolding will supply 12 Raxtar construction hoists built in the Netherlands for use on the construction of the 420 m high ‘Freedom Tower’ on the site of Ground Zero in Manhattan.

Aerial work platform manufacturer Genie Industries, part of the Terex Corp., broke ground in Changzhou, China, for a new facility.

Verania Costa Rivas has left UpRight after seven years as district manager for Southern Europe. She will be replaced by Enrique Garcia who takes on responsibility for Southern Europe along side his product support duties

The UK's National Access & Scaffolding Confederation (NASC) is encouraging its members to anonymously "whistle blow" on principal contractors who continue to opt for non-regulated scaffolding companies.

The sixth APEX exhibition, held in Maastricht on 17 - 19 September, was a big success with a record number of visitors. More than 5300 industry professionals from 44 different countries attended the show, which is 25% higher than the figures for the previous event in 2005.

Tanfield plans to increase prices of its UpRight and Snorkel ranges in line with those imposed by its competitors – in the 5% to 10% range – but the increases will not apply to current machines in stock.

South African rental company Johnson Access and Independent Parts & Service (IPS) have formed a 50/50 joint venture to distribute access parts in Southern Africa.

Indian rental company Gemini Equipment Rentals PVT Ltd has made its first investment in self-propelled aerial platforms, ordering 25 MEC scissor lifts and considering placing further orders for booms and Spider type machines.

Japanese company, Hanix announced that its European arm, Hanix Europe, will soon be distributing Nagano aerial platforms across Europe.

A UK company has ordered a 103 m truck mounted platform from Wumag Palfinger, with delivery in a year’s time. It will be the first 100 m machine to operate in the UK, although an Irish crane rental company, McNally's Crane Rental, expects delivery of one of the WT1000 models by the end of the year.