RSS Raises Profile at LiftEx 2024

Rope and Sling Specialists Ltd. (RSS) will return as a lead sponsor and take a new exhibit to LiftEx 2024, which takes place 16-17 October at London’s Olympia. See RSS at Stand 40.

August 23, 2024

Having steadily grown its presence at the Lifting Equipment Engineers Association’s (LEEA) flagship event, RSS will again sponsor the water bottles and lanyards, while a larger hospitality area will be at the centre of a new-look stand.

The exhibit will be the same overall size as last year’s display, which was the focal point for many attendees at the Exhibition Centre Liverpool, but the concept has been revamped and built around a longer bar set against a backdrop of enhanced graphics. Lifting and lashing products will be among those given greater prominence in Olympia’s West Hall.

Alan Varney, engineering services director at RSS, said: “We had a successful show in Liverpool last year, but we want to build on that this time. Visitors can expect a more immersive experience, with interesting visuals, supported by an expert team and the usual company hospitality. The jury is still out on the relocation to a less central [UK] venue, but we’re not participating in any negativity; we want to drive a crowd to our stand and give them a flavour of the best the industry has to offer in terms of lifting and rigging products, and the personalities that support it all.”

Last year, at the centre of the exhibit was a map, detailing all of the company’s national facilities, including the Gemmak Engineering fabrication site. Since then, RSS has recently opened a new depot in Glasgow, Scotland, fronted by Tony McAtee, operations manager, expanding a footprint north of the border created by its Grangemouth site. An additional location in Netherton, West Midlands, will be opened later this year, under Paul Smith, while another depot on the South Coast is also in the pipeline, likely to be unveiled in early 2025. That will take the total to 14 national facilities.

Varney said: “We continue to be strategic in where we open our premises, steadfast in our plan to position product and expertise as close to the point of use as possible. We have wanted to expand in Scotland for a while, and putting ourselves in the city of Glasgow will enable us to more efficiently deliver services to the region.

“The Midlands site is more focussed on equipment hire and serves as a hub for specialist lifting products in the middle of the country. The southern regions are generating work for our services all the time, and our existing depots are finding it a challenge to cope with that ongoing demand. All of these locations will require engineers, drivers, and hire / sales representatives.”

RSS will be represented at LiftEx 2024 by Steve Hutin, managing director; Alan Varney; Paul Glover, national director of operations; and Mark Barnard, operations manager, Swansea; they will be joined by representatives of its Heathrow and Aylesford, Kent operations.

The company’s LiftEx carnival will also include a presence at the LEEA Awards, which will be presented on 16 October at London’s famous Dorchester Hotel.