Giant Cake Marks Second Anniversary Of Construction At MediaCity:UK

10/08/2009


To mark the second anniversary of work beginning on the ‘MediaCity:UK’ project at Salford Quays, Manchester, Bovis Lend Lease organised a cake with a number of preferred suppliers, one of which being AFI Uplift – their preferred supplier for powered access equipment on site.


Topped with an edible scissor lift, plant machinery and site images, the cake was shared out amongst the 1,500 contractors who are working on site. MediaCity:UK is a 200 acre development for the creative and digital industries. The BBC will move 2,500 staff to MediaCityUK in 2011, including five departments currently based in London.

Bovis Lend Lease are the management contractors for Media City:UK, which is being developed and managed by Peel Media, a division of the Peel Group, with the support of partners including the Northwest Regional Development Agency, Central Salford Urban Regeneration Company and Salford City Council.

AFI Director Graham Osmond said: “We are delighted to be working with Bovis Lend Lease on the Media City project and wanted to help them celebrate the anniversary by contributing to a cake, although with so many people on site it needed to be an enormous cake.”

AFI-Uplift Machines Help To Protect Steelwork

AFI-Uplift boom and scissor lifts were hired by contractors to help them carry out work to protect the steelwork of a new galvanising plant being built in Cambridgeshire.

JPV (Painters) Ltd used the five boom lifts and one scissor lift from the AFI fleet to reach high level steelwork and apply an epoxy coating to protect it from the vapour created during the plant’s galvanizing processes.

JPV treated the whole of the 5,500 square metre steel structure over a six-week period, with up to seven staff working on the site at any one time.

Paul Allen, Director of JPV (Painters) Ltd said: “The AFI machines gave us the reach and flexibility to get around a number of obstacles when we were working in areas where space was restricted.”

The AFI boom lifts specified for the contract have working heights ranging in size from 20 metres to 26 metres and the scissor lift specified was a Skyjack 92/50, which has a maximum height of 17.2 metres.

AFI-Uplift Invests In More Small Machines

AFI-Uplift has purchased 50 Leonardo personnel lifts to add to its powered access fleet – meeting customer demand for lightweight machines which can be used on floors with significantly reduced loadings.

Weighing only 450kg, the battery-powered Leonardo is compact, enabling it to fit through a standard doorway. It has a working height of 4.9m, an extended platform length of 0.68m by 1.71m, and can turn within its own axis, making it extremely manouevrable.

AFI have also recently invested in an additional 25 Pop-Ups for its rental fleet. The battery-powered Pop-Up has a working height of 3.63 metres, a closed height of only 1.64m and a width of just 0.7m.

AFI Director Nick Selley said: “This significant investment in the Leonardo and Pop-Up means we now have one of the UK’s largest fleets of small and compact machines. These machines are able to meet all client requirements, particularly in relation to replacing the need for ladders and steps in many instances.”

The full AFI fleet, which comprises more than 4,300 machines, is spread throughout a UK network of depots in the following locations: Birmingham, the East Midlands, Hull, Liverpool, London East, London South and London West, Manchester, Milton Keynes, North East, Peterborough, Preston, Scotland, Southampton, South West, South Wales, and Wakefield.

AFI-Uplift Strengthens Its Resale Operations

AFI-Uplift has further strengthened its powered access machine sales operation by appointing Richard Onslow as Resale Account Manager for the South.

Richard brings to AFI 13 years’ experience of working in the powered access industry. After joining the industry as an apprentice, he has held positions in the service, hire and equipment sales areas of the business.

“I’m very excited to have joined AFI and am eager to play my role in further developing the company’s sales of new and used machines,” said Richard, who will work from his home in Bridgewater, Somerset.

Tony Havercroft, Manager of AFI Resale, said: “I’m delighted to welcome Richard to the team. His considerable experience within the industry will help us to further develop our service to customers.”

“Whilst AFI is primarily a new and used scissor lifts rental provider we often come into contact with a significant number of customers who wish to purchase a machine for their own long-term use. Through AFI Resale we are able to satisfy this demand – both for used machines and for new ones,” he added.

To help customers stay within their budgets whilst also finding the machine that meets their needs, AFI has categorised its used machines into two bands on its website: afi-uplift.co.uk/resale.

BAND A machines are fully tested, complete with new batteries, and repainted to look as good as new. BAND B machines are also fully tested and have new batteries, but they have not been repainted.