Aldercote wins Product of the Year at the 2025 IAPAs

Our Jack-less Transit Conversion was named Product of the Year – Vehicle and Trailer Mounted Platforms at the 2025 International Awards for Powered Access (IAPAs).

The awards are jointly organised by Access International and the International Powered Access Federation (IPAF) and celebrate best practice and excellence across the industry.

Marc Paish, director, said: “We’re so proud to have won this award, it’s an incredible achievement and testament to the hard work and commitment of the whole Aldercote team.

“To be recognised, especially, at global level for our engineering rigour and innovation is fantastic.”

Aldercote’s Jack-less Transit Conversion addresses demands from the sector for greater vehicle payloads and cost-effective ways to adopt more electric vehicles.

The unique product means that a two-man 13.8m access platform with outreach of up to 8.4m and safe working load of 230kg offers 700kg gross payload after fuel on a typical 3.5T front wheel drive Transit. This 400kg payload makes a 3.5T electric van mount a viable proposition for the first time.

For comparison, equipped with Aldercote’s VZ Neo lightweight booms, a 3.5T electric Ford Transit weighs 3,100kg, provides the same gross payload - 400kg.

Award judges praised the innovative conversion’s unprecedented payloads, without the use of stabilisers, making electric van-mounted platforms an even more practical proposition.

Jack-less Transit Conversion – product specification
•    Two-man 13.8m access platform with outreach of up to 8.4m
•    Working height of up to 13.8m
•    230kg safe working load
•    700kg gross payload after fuel on conventionally powered 3.5T vehicles
•    400kg gross payload on 3.5T E-Transit

The IAPA 2025 awards were announced at a gala event in Dublin’s Royal Convention Centre on 13th March.

Posted on 2nd May 2025 06:25:15 by surrect.media

Tags: News.

Introducing Mark Tooley

We are pleased to announce a new sales executive has joined the Aldercote team.

Mark Tooley joins us with almost a decade’s experience in the industry and will be working with current and prospective customers to help make them aware of our range of products and the expert engineering and diagnostic support services we offer.

His previous role was with Access Hire, one of the largest hire companies in the sector.

Mark said: “I’m looking forward to this new challenge in the industry I’ve gained a lifetime of experience in!

“I’m already enjoying engaging with customers and explaining how Aldercote’s commitment to engineering and innovation can help them find solutions for their platform needs.

“I’ve had a really positive experience with the wider Aldercote team and it’s fantastic how we’re all working towards the company’s shared goals.”

Marc Paish, managing director, said: “We are delighted to welcome Mark to the Aldercote team. His wealth of experience in the sector, and the knowledge he can share with us and our customers, is invaluable.”

Two other new members have also recently joined us - Emily Boyd as customer relationship co-ordinator and Sam Dillon as the company’s newest service engineer. Both new hires are part of our strategy ensuring gold-standard customer service.

Posted on 2nd May 2025 06:23:50 by surrect.media

Tags: News.

Aldercote hands over fleet of specialist machines to Irish energy company ESB

We are delighted to have supplied Irish company ESB with ten custom-made machines.

The electricity distribution network operator ordered ten Altec AT37s, custom-mounted to Volvo F250 chassis, and less than a year later they have been delivered.

Marc Paish, Aldercote director, said: “To take this project from a blank sheet of paper to a finished fleet within a year is a real demonstration of our capability. I couldn’t be prouder of our employees and suppliers.

“ESB has been an attentive and supportive customer and has helped at every stage with the teams’ attention to detail and understanding of the process. It’s been a particular pleasure to work with our partners in Ireland. Together we have demonstrated that efficient cross-border collaboration between the UK and Ireland is more than possible after Brexit.”

The Altec AT37 is an insulating access platform designed for work on electricity networks. The new fleet will be used by ESB to build and maintain the Irish electricity distribution network.

The subframe was designed from scratch, in partnership with ESB, to meet the company’s specification and choice of vehicle.

One of the many innovative aspects of the project involved galvanizing the subframes at Joseph Ash in Telford – the only facility in the UK able to treat such large structures.

Trial fitting, full assembly and mounting of the first subframe took place at the Hull site while the remaining subframes - fully equipped and functioning - were shipped to partner engineering firm, Mooretown Precision Engineering in Dublin, for mounting on ESB’s vehicles and final fit-out.

During the manufacture of the subframes, the Altec AT37 booms were manufactured in the USA and shipped directly to Ireland for final assembly. Full structural assembly took place in September, with CE type testing, final fit-out and commissioning following through the autumn and early winter. The whole process took less than 12 months.

Martin Convey, fleet asset manager at ESB, took delivery of the machines in Dublin earlier this year.

He said: “It has been a pleasure to work with Aldercote on the delivery of these ten Altec AT37s. From design work, to commissioning, we have felt fully informed and consulted at every step.

“The finished product is a credit to the teams at Aldercote, Mooretown and Altec, and we’ve every confidence that these machines are fit for 20 years of productive service, building and maintaining the electricity distribution network in Ireland.”

Noel Carey, managing director at Mooretown Precision Engineering, said: “This project has really demonstrated what we can do. We have developed our site significantly to handle the large subassemblies for this type of project, and our team has really risen to the new challenges we have faced.

“We’re looking forward to working with Aldercote on many more projects like this for customers in Ireland.”

Posted on 2nd May 2025 06:22:37 by surrect.media

Tags: News.

Van-Mount Platform Designed for Electric Vehicles

Aldercote Launches Innovative Access Platform for Electric Vans

Aldercote, a UK-based manufacturer of vehicle-mounted access platforms, has introduced its first platform specifically designed for fully electric vehicles.

The new platform was developed in collaboration with Norwegian distributor Liftco AS and is aimed at utility providers and local authorities. Aldercote supplies a range of clients, including telecoms giant Openreach, Irish energy provider ESB, and several UK local councils.

Lightweight Design Without Stabilisers
The platform represents a departure from traditional designs, as it is Aldercote’s first product built entirely without stabilisers. Instead, the load path is routed directly to the vehicle’s strong points. This approach reduces the overall weight of the platform while maintaining high safety standards, according to Aldercote.

Marc Paish, Director of Aldercote, explained:

“One of the challenges our customers face in transitioning to fully electric vehicles is that heavy batteries greatly reduce vehicle payloads. The design approach we’ve taken hands much of the payload back, which will be welcome news for fleet operators across a range of sectors. We expect to see increased demand for the new design as organisations continue the shift to electric vehicles over the coming years.”

High Performance Specifications
The new platforms developed for Liftco AS are mounted on Ford Transit vans. They offer:

• A maximum operating height of 13.8 metres.
• A maximum outreach of 8.4 metres.
• A safe working load of 230 kg.

Gjermund Kristiansen, Director of Liftco, highlighted the value of the innovation:

“We had clients who were ready to switch to fully electric vehicles but were concerned at the prospect of a reduced payload and how this would affect their operating efficiency. Aldercote’s focus on engineering rigour and innovation has delivered a practical solution that will enable my customers to meet their sustainability aims while maintaining required productivity levels.”

Adaptable E-Drive System
The new product also features Aldercote’s E-Drive system, which can be used on both electric and traditional engine-powered vehicles. When fitted to conventional vehicles, the E-Drive system operates via a battery pack that recharges during travel.

Aldercote’s latest innovation reflects a growing focus on sustainable transport solutions, supporting businesses and authorities in meeting their environmental targets while ensuring operational efficiency.

Full article: https://www.theconstructionindex.co.uk/news/view/van-mount-platform-designed-for-electric-vehicles

Posted on 5th Dec 2024 09:26:40 by surrect.media

Tags: News, Access Platform.

A Breath of Fresh Air for Fleets

In an exclusive interview with Fleet News, the leading authority on all things fleet management, Aldercote, a UK manufacturer of access platforms, unveils their groundbreaking E-Drive system. This innovative technology promises to revolutionise the industry by offering a cleaner, more efficient, and altogether superior alternative to traditional power take-off (PTO) systems. Let’s delve into the details and discover how E-Drive is poised to make a significant impact on the way fleets operate.

Reduced Emissions, Increased Efficiency

Traditional van-mounted access platforms rely on idling engines to power their hydraulic systems, resulting in wasted fuel and harmful emissions. Aldercote’s innovative E-Drive system tackles this issue with a self-charging electric solution.

E-Drive Advantages:

• Compared to PTO systems, E-Drive uses significantly less energy, reducing fuel consumption and CO2 emissions by up to 1.5 tonnes annually.
• E-Drive boasts faster operation, smoother movement, and quieter functionality – all without sacrificing power.
• The system utilizes readily available lead-acid batteries that recharge during travel, eliminating the need for external power sources. It also minimizes energy waste by pressurizing only the necessary oil for specific movements. This reduces heat generation, extending component lifespan and lowering maintenance costs.
• E-Drive is compatible with both conventional and fully electric vans, adapting to the evolving automotive landscape.

Benefits Beyond the Bottom Line:

• The quiet operation of E-Drive creates a more pleasant work experience for operators.
• Reduced emissions contribute to cleaner air quality in urban areas.

Positive User Experience:

Fleets using E-Drive report numerous benefits, including increased productivity, improved operator experience, and overall reliability. Openreach, a satisfied customer, describes the switch to E-Drive as a “breath of fresh air.”

Available Options:

Aldercote offers E-Drive as part of their VZ van-mounted platform range (13.7m to 18.3m height) and the newly launched CZ pick-up mounted platform range (14.1m to 16.2m height). For existing platforms, E-Drive mounts are available separately.

Investing in a sustainable future, Aldercote’s E-Drive system makes access platforms cleaner, more efficient, and better for everyone.

Read the full article here: https://www.fleetnews.co.uk/news/electric-access-platform-cuts-co2-and-improves-productivity

Posted on 18th Mar 2024 16:47:50 by surrect.media

Tags: E-Drive, News.

Marc Paish celebrates 10 years at Aldercote

Marc Paish, our Technical Director, joined us at Aldercote in 2013. I caught up with him to find out what has changed in that time. His response was candid, true to our company culture.

“Aldercote has gone from being a being a general-purpose vehicle conversion company, with an interest in access platforms, to a dedicated access platform manufacturer”. For his first five years, Marc recalls, “the company seemed to be fighting a daily battle for survival. Since our focussed approach on access platforms, we are making serious in-roads into the UK market. This success has allowed us to invest in our site, production process and product range”.

“Today, we have a consolidated portfolio, with a wide range of platform options for a variety of van models and pickups. These access platforms are our most popular, but we’re not limited to vans and pickups, we also manufacture tracked crawler access platforms and custom vehicles too.”

Dave Dillon, Sales Director and one of the co-founders of the company commented, “It’s been a great journey over the last 10 years; with Marc’s knowledge and ideas, to his understanding of the company and the direction we are going. He came to us from being a good customer and is now a great business partner and friend.”

When asked what his greatest achievement to date was, Marc answered: “When I joined the company I developed our numerical engineering software, which has since been the cornerstone of our product development. We are always proud to demonstrate how it can quickly generate stability and overload data for an unlimited combination of platforms and vehicles.”

Conversation then moved to discuss future targets. Marc shared that we are now building a team of committed professionals and: “The next five years is about continuous improvement in everything we do. The aim is to become the UK’s leading manufacturer in the small-vehicle mounted platforms market, and then expand our focus onto exports.”

“I hope that in 5 years’ time, our team will number more than 100, and we shall be known as one of Hull’s manufacturing success stories,” he continued.

Finally, when asked what drew him to Aldercote in the first place, and what his motivation is? Marc replied:

“I feel incredibly lucky to be doing what I do. Paul and Dave [Co-founders] have been fantastic business partners. Their friendliness and family values are central to how we operate. Not many people help to build a significant manufacturing company from scratch, and it’s a privilege to be in this position. I am proud of our products, and of the fact that we are creating more and more quality jobs for our hometown.”

Congratulations, Marc! All the best to the next decade.

Interview by Christine Bettinson, Marketing Manager, Aldercote

Posted on 20th Jun 2023 05:41:30 by surrect.media

Tags: News.

Celebrating 5yrs Remote Diagnostic Service

Since its introduction in 2018, over 400 connections have been made to our Remote Diagnostics Service, and we’ve helped customers throughout the UK as well as further afield in Norway and Canada.

Our Remote Diagnostics Service is an online Bluetooth-enabled diagnostics tool fitted as standard on all platform models. This tool, as the name suggests, allows us to quickly understand the cause of breakdowns remotely, identifying the breakdowns as operator error or machine faults.

Over 85% of issues have been correctly diagnosed remotely. Even when we can’t fix a breakdown, having the remote diagnosis prior to arrival enables our service engineer team to be fully briefed and prepared before attending site, making for a speedier repair.

To use our remote diagnostics service, operators require a free app available on the App Store and Google Play. Older machines can be upgraded to enable remote diagnostics. Call us (01482 222377), to see if your platform is compatible.

To read more about the platform click here: https://aldercote.com/blog/more-about-our-remote-diagnostic-service/

Posted on 13th Jun 2023 07:17:08 by surrect.media

Tags: News.

Welcome Paul Westgarth

On 6 March 2023, Paul Westgarth joined us as Production Manager.

Previously the Operations manager at Normanton Laminating Services, Paul has joined our team to support us as our business continues to grow to ensure the processes are seamless as production increases.

Paul brings with him over 25 years in manufacturing engineering and production management. His vast experience of project and process management, continuous improvement and his expertise across a breadth of related industries including automotive, and most recently composites, will be valuable in this new role at Aldercote.

“Aldercote is an exciting enterprise with a solid strategic growth plan for the next five years,” comments Paul, when asked about his decision to join the team, “the company is becoming recognised for the calibre of its access platforms, and I’m excited to be on board for the next chapter of this journey”.

“We’re extremely excited to have him on board,” comments Paul Dillon, one of the company founders, previously overseeing production; “His personality, experience and expertise are a perfect addition to the team’s skillset.”

Welcome!

Posted on 2nd Jun 2023 14:09:15 by surrect.media

Tags: News.