The Voice of Scaffolding Since 2008 | U.K. Edition
TRAD Southern wins £1.5M Leon House conversion contract
TRAD Southern has won a £1.5 million contract supporting the conversion of Leon House in Croydon. Built in the 1960s, the 22-storey office building will be transformed into 256 residential apartments. As one of the foremost scaffolding contractors in the UK, TRAD was successful in winning this project because of their capacity, coverage and expertise in erecting large scaffolds safely, on time and within budget.
Award-winning construction company Bouygues is overseeing the ambitious project at 233 High Street. The exterior conversion involves cleaning the entire building, replacing the existing windows and removing all existing balconies. The ground floor will be given over to commercial space, and residents will have access to a new rooftop garden.
TRAD is using 700 tonnes of system scaffold on this project, and will install 1.3 metre Altrix HD beams over the low-level roofs. The design will also add back propping to the existing underground car park, to allow vehicle access and support the huge weight of the main scaffolding structure.
TRAD have the resources to take on a number of very large projects concurrently, and are set to erect 14,500m2 of scaffold at Leon House in just 70 days. During the installation, the on-site Tesco and Turkish restaurant will stay open for business. As TRAD Southern’s Divisional Director Chris Smith commented, “It’s very important to the businesses based here, and to us, that they can get on and trade with the absolute minimum of disruption while we carry out the work.”
TRAD Southern and MTD Midlands are part of the TRAD Group of Companies. The TRAD Group have a nationwide coverage, ensuring that they have the capability to build many large, complex projects simultaneously. They currently hold over 19,000 tonnes of system scaffold, in addition to 66,000 tonnes of traditional Tube, Fitting and Boards – equivalent to more than 6,700 London Buses. No other UK scaffolding contractor has TRAD’s capacity and level of equipment.
ScaffMag probes CISRS on the launch of CPD
CISRS speaks out about the new CPD course
The somewhat controversial mandatory CPD course came into force on Saturday July 1st, we caught up with CISRS Scheme Manager, Dave Mosley for a Q&A on the new CPD course. Dave, today sees the 2 day CPD scaffolders refresher course become mandatory when renewing your Scaffolder & Advanced CISRS card. Can you remind our readers of what the CISRS CPD scaffolder refresher course is, and why do we have to have it ?

- CISRS General Information booklet
- CISRS Practical Scaffolding Module 1
- CISRS Practical Scaffolding Module 2
- CISRS Practical Scaffolding Module 3 For Advanced Scaffolder (to follow when Advanced Standardisation process is complete)
- SG4: You
- TG20 User Guide
- SG6 User Guide
- SG15 Substance Abuse
- SG19 Rescue Plans
- SG30 Working From Vehicles
- SG34 Protection of the public

With thanks to CISRS Scheme Manager, Dave Mosley for taking the time to answer our questions.
P&D Scaffolding Expands its Northwest Operations
P&D Scaffolding Limited, then based in Bristol, was bought out of receivership at the start of 2016. By the summer of last year the owners had also acquired Northgrant, one of the South West’s longest established scaffolding firms. Now, following large-scale projects in Wrexham and Blackburn, P&D Scaffolding has moved its operations to the Northwest and has a number of Liverpool jobs in the pipeline.
P&D Scaffolding Limited was failing when it was bought by James Proudfoot in January 2016. In just a few short months, Mr Proudfoot turned the company’s fortunes around and welcomed Liverpool based Richard Anderson on board as his business partner. Together, the pair landed a number of high-profile public and private sector clients, including Lloyds Bank, Halifax and Virgin, amongst others. Then, in June 2016, they undertook the purchase of Northgrant Scaffolding, a Bristol company with 30 years of experience and a great reputation.
The pair’s most significant client win to date has been construction company Keepmoat Homes. The relationship with Keepmoat has been instrumental in facilitating P&D Scaffolding’s move to the Northwest. P&D Scaffolding is currently working on two Keepmoat sites, one in Wrexham and the other in Blackburn, playing its part in the construction of two nursing homes. To support the Northwest expansion, P&D Scaffolding has now moved its head office to Widnes. Several sites here in Mr Anderson’s home city of Liverpool are in the company’s pipeline. Announcements will follow soon. With over 12 new positions created in Liverpool and hopefully more as projects grow.
Business partners James Proudfoot and Richard Anderson now own and operate two thriving scaffolding firms – Northgrant and P&D. The firms are based, respectively, in each of the partner’s home territories of Bristol and Merseyside. Building on Northgrant’s 30 year track record down in the Southwest, their current focus is on establishing the same great reputation for P&D up in the North. By partnering with Keepmoat, a UK market leader in the house building industry, they are off to a flying start.
Richard Anderson, co-owner of Northgrant Scaffolding and P&D Scaffolding said:
“We are really pleased with how the Northwest move is playing out so far. Down in Bristol our aim is to do great work using a reliable, experienced, local team. We have brought those values north with P&D Scaffolding. I was born and raised in Liverpool and now, as part of our commitment to create jobs in the area, the entire P&D Scaffolding workforce is made up of Liverpool locals.
“We are already on site in a few locations around Northwest and will be in a position to announce our next projects very soon. At the moment I am most excited about our imminent move into Liverpool’s booming construction market. The Liverpool economy has been growing for years now and everywhere you look there are fantastic new developments happening. It feels good to be able to play a part in the ongoing regeneration of this special city.’
TRAD Southern uses Plettac Metrix System on iconic Goldfinger Tower
TRAD Southern has been awarded a £1.93 million contract for the restoration of Trellick Tower, which is one of London’s most iconic residential blocks. This scaffold package is the largest Wates Living Space has ever awarded to a single subcontractor. TRAD was chosen because they are one of the foremost scaffolding contractors in the UK who have the coverage, capacity and expertise to complete the works safely, on time and to a very high standard.
Scaffolding this landmark 120-metre high building (including the communications mast) requires a unique approach. TRAD’s Design Team and Contracts Staff worked closely with Wates to create a design concept unlike any other, using 21,000m2 of Plettac Metrix System Scaffold (exclusive to the TRAD Group) to create the vast scaffolding structure.
For instance, large spans of bridging are to be installed over the low level roofs and balconies, comprising of 1.3m Altrix HD Beams, and with space at a premium, the team will build twin hoist run-off towers to raise the 800 tonnes of materials. The design will also add back propping to the existing underground car park, to allow vehicle access and support the huge weight of the main scaffolding structure.
TRAD decided to use Plettac Metrix for Trellick Tower because the revolutionary ring based system enables rapid and safe erection of very complex structures, such as this large Grade II listed building. Indeed, if you want speed, safety and flexibility, Plettac Metrix is strongly recommended for all scaffolding operations, including listed works, refurbishment projects and building inspections. It is a CISRS approved system, and NASC compliant.
Trellick Tower, located in Kensal Town, is set for a major external transformation. It was designed by Hungarian Modernist architect Ernö Goldfinger and built in 1972 as part of the Brutalist movement. Wates plan to preserve the historic 31-storey tower, which has appeared in numerous films and music videos, with minimum disruption to residents. The £7.2 million restoration will include replacing windows and restoring balconies on all 217 flats. The concrete will also be reworked, and the entire building cleaned and refurbished.
“Plettac Metrix has once again proven to be at its best when challenged to overcome unusual shapes and sizes – and all within the 20-week project timeframe,” says Peter McShane, TRAD Southern’s Divisional Director.
Peter also explains, “Plettac Metrix has many advantages over other ring based systems, such as its unique divisibility, which allows bay lengths to be completely divisible by one another. This divisibility means it’s far quicker to erect than other scaffolding systems. The versatility, time saving and excellent safety features, such as unique perforated steel decks with built-in lifting handles, windlocks and anti-tipping devices, as well as the optional Permanent Advanced Guardrail makes this scaffold system second to none.”
Plettac Metrix is proven to be significantly faster to erect than all other ring based systems but even more so compared to traditional Tube & Fitting Scaffolding, making it the best choice for cost effective, rapid access solutions.
TRAD Southern and MTD Midlands are part of the TRAD Group of Companies. The TRAD Group have a nationwide coverage of system scaffold – they currently hold over 19,000 tonnes in addition to 66,000 tonnes of traditional Tube, Fitting and Boards – ensuring that they have the capability to build many large, complex projects. No other UK scaffolding contractor has TRAD’s capacity and level of equipment. Indeed, TRAD have enough stock to complete over 60 Trellick Towers simultaneously.
Avontus Releases HoloLens App at HAKI Open House



Generating Scaffolding Success on HMS Queen Elizabeth
A top UK scaffolding company has won praise for its 100 per cent delivery of services and materials to Britain’s new aircraft carrier, the HMS Queen Elizabeth.
Generation, based in the West Midlands was the primary access and scaffolding supplier for the huge project involving the MOD and a number of carefully chosen contractors. The global company provided partners, the Ship Support Services, a joint venture between Pyeroy (WGIS) and Cape Industrial Services, with more than 5,500 tons of scaffolding equipment.
Generation made more than 4,000 deliveries including a range of Aluminium products and their Genlok System Scaffold, supplying more than a million pieces of scaffolding and 14.5 million feet of scaffolding tube. This was all possible thanks to their outstanding haulage fleet. Laid end to end it reached 2,718 miles, the same as travelling from Land’s End to John O’Groats three times.
The sheer scale and complexity of the operation required great discipline and organisation. Generation had the largest supply of European Standard compliant scaffolding hire and sale stock, combined with its UK wide branch and distribution network. This meant the firm could guarantee a constant supply of scaffold to the four main build and assembly yards.
It simply wasn’t possible to construct the ship in one yard, so six modules were built across Glasgow, Appledore in Devon, Hebburn in Tyneside, Birkenhead in Merseyside, and Portsmouth before everything was assembled and completed at Rosyth in Fife. It is hard to understand the scale of the Super-carrier unless at close quarters.
The HMS Queen Elizabeth is longer than the Houses of Parliament and taller than Niagara Falls. Inside the ship, specially designed hand-held navigation devices help crew and workers find their way around. This state of the art cutting edge super-carrier, the UK’s first, set sale from Rosyth for the start of sea-trials on the 26th June. Because of the efficiency displayed by Generation, partners lost no time through a lack of the correct access and scaffold equipment being available.
With a complex supply-chain none of this would have been possible without the full commitment of everyone involved. A company spokesperson said: “It has been a privilege to be part of the construction of the back bone of our Nation’s naval force for years to come. We wish the crew the best of British as they set sail.”
It’s also proof British scaffolding is the best in the world, generating success for the industry here in the UK.

First Female Scaffolder Joins GKR
GKR have had the pleasure in announcing that Yvette Freeman has joined the company as a Trainee Scaffolder. Yvette brings an impactful set of capabilities and experience to her role, having worked as a Police Constable for the British Transport Police.
London based GKR Scaffolding say her dedication to safety processes, proactive attitude and great communication skills set her apart from other candidates. The recent headlines about how only a handful of women are working as scaffolders caused some industry debate. For a while, GKR have been involved in various industry initiatives to address the skills gap and increase diversity in the industry. It was this that encouraged Yvette to apply to work for the business after having a dialogue with Vicky Welch, who is behind the Facebook community, Females in Scaffolding.
Yvette Freeman said: “It means a lot to me that a business has recognised my potential after switching careers, and is willing to invest in my training and development. I’ve been keen to build a career in construction since leaving the Police force and then working as a labourer for a renovations company. I’m really excited about training and working with GKR, and helping break down barriers in the industry.”
Yvette will also be working on GKR’s BetterFuture programme, advising and acting as an ambassador for skills and diversity initiatives. Yvette knows how important it is to have female role models within an industry after having a female mentor in the police.
“It would be great to walk past a building site in a few years time and see women scaffolders at work. I’d like to think that I played a part in them choosing construction and scaffolding as a career by showing them that women can do it.”
GKR’s MD Lee Rowswell added: “What impressed us about Yvette was her attitude and approach, and given that she comes from a different industry she will bring valuable transferrable skills. We hope that our announcement about Yvette will encourage women and anyone wanting a career change to see past perceived barriers to working in this sector. This goes a long way in ensuring we attract the right skills, not just the right gender to our industry. We are genuinely excited about Yvette joining us and helping her shape the career in construction that she aspires to.”
Rotherham Scaffolders Found Guilty of Health And Safety Breach
A scaffolding company and director have been heavily fined for breaching Section 37 of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974.
Sheffield Crown Court passed sentence on Bullet Scaffolding Limited, after hearing how a worker suffered life changing injuries following a fall from height. Shane Percival fell through a fragile roof light, six metres onto a concrete floor receiving severe spinal injuries.
The accident in November 2014 left him paralysed from the waist down. Mr Percival was working from the roof, fixing guard rails around the perimeter of the industrial unit at the time.
A subsequent investigation by the Health and Safety Executive revealed the company and director failed to adequately plan for working at height, or provide a safe system of work. Bullet Scaffolding were contracted to provide edge protection around the roof of the unit at Aldham House Industrial Estate, Wombwell, Barnsley, so the host company could repair damaged roof lights.
The Rotherham based company pleaded guilty to breaching Section 3 (1) of the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, and was fined £65,000 and ordered to pay costs of £3600. Tony Jackson of the same address pleaded guilty to breaching and was fined £5000 and ordered to pay costs of £3600.
HSE Inspector commenting after the hearing said: “It was foreseeable Mr Percival and others could have fallen off the edge of the roof or through a fragile surface. The accident was entirely preventable by using a mobile elevating work platform or by constructing an independent scaffold thereby avoiding the need to access the roof.
“As a result of the accident the lives of Mr Percival and his family have been tragically affected.”
The Executive is Britain’s national regulator for workplace health and safety. It aims to reduce work-related death, injury and ill health. It does so through research, information and advice, promoting training; new or revised regulations and codes of practice, and working with local authority partners by inspection, investigation and enforcement.
CISRS Teams Up With Training Providers To Provide A Series Of Fully Funded CPD Courses
CISRS have announced that with the collaboration of four of their approved training providers they are able to offer six fully funded (free) CPD courses across the UK in July and August.
The providers involved – LTC Training Services, National Construction College, Safety and Access Ltd and Simian Skill Ltd – have agreed to run these courses at a greatly reduced price, CISRS will be picking up the cost of the training courses, the course literature and renewed CISRS cards for all delegates attending.
Dave Mosley CISRS Scheme Manager said: “All of the providers taking part have been heavily involved in the development of the CPD course through their positions on the standardisation committee. We would really like to thank them for all of their hard work and their generous offer to work with CISRS to provide these fully funded courses.”
If you include the two CPD Pilot courses which took place at NCC Midlands in February and March 2017, this project will allow for almost 100 operatives to meet the CISRS CPD requirement and be issued with their Mobile Access Towers (MATS), Scaffold Inspection and CPD endorsed cards, free of charge. Had this training been delivered commercially it would have cost in the region of £30 – £35K.
CISRS are considering working with other approved providers later in the year in order to offer additional subsidised courses, should the programme prove to be a success.
The courses are open to all scaffolders or advanced scaffolders who have a card which expires in 2017.
Places will be offered on a first come first served basis and limited to 1 delegate per company in the first instance.
Those interested must contact the centers directly to secure their place and must act quickly as the first course takes place 3rd/4th July (see dates and contact details below.)
Monday 3rd/Tuesday 4th July 2017
Simian Skill Ltd Warrington
Contact: [email protected]
tel: 0345 602 2418 (option 1)
[email protected] tel: 0345 602 2418 (option 2)
Monday 17th/Tuesday 18th July 2017
NCC South (Erith, Kent)
Contact: Course Bookers [email protected] tel: 0344 994 4433
Monday 24th/Tuesday 25th July 2017
Safety and Access Ltd (Catch, Immingham)
Contact: Sarah Cockell [email protected]
tel: 0115 979 4523
Camilla Sunderland [email protected]
tel: 0115 979 4523
Monday 31st July/Tuesday 1st August 2017
LTC Training Services Ltd (Plymouth)
Contact: Carol Holmes [email protected]
tel: 01752 485 303
Monday 31st July/Tuesday 1st August 2017
NCC Scotland (Inchinnan)
Contact: Course Bookers [email protected]
tel: 0344 994 4433
Monday 31st July/Tuesday 1st August 2017
NCC East (Bircham Newton)
Contact: Course Bookers [email protected]
tel: 0344 994 4433
For further details on CPD or the Construction Industry Scaffolders Record Scheme (CISRS), please visit www.cisrs.org.uk or email [email protected].


NASC announce support for its members as CPD approaches
The National Access and Scaffolding Confederation have set aside £30,000 to help members needing to meet the CISRS CPD scaffolders requirements by 1st July. This initial funding will enable them to make a payment of £125 to NASC member companies, who support their employees through this process. These monies will help subsidise training costs for 240 operatives in the first instance. A further £20,000 will be ring-fenced for additional CPD funding (160 operatives), should this initiative prove successful.
“The Confederation fully supports the introduction of the CISRS CPD requirement prior to card renewal”, said NASC President Alan Lilley of Commercial Scaffolding Ltd in Hull. “We see the benefits it will bring to the scheme, the individual card holder and their employers. We do realise however, as with all training these benefits do not come without costs. As such NASC is looking to reinvest a substantial amount of money into NASC member companies who support their employees through this process, and meet the costs of the CISRS CPD training.”
Operatives must hold a current valid CISRS Scaffolder or Advanced card renewed via the CISRS CPD 2-day course, to be eligible for funding. A link will be provided by NASC enabling members to complete an online application form in order submit a claim. Applications will be verified via the CISRS database prior to funding being released, with payments being made within four to six weeks for those who meet the criteria. Any individual member company will be limited to a maximum of 10 applications initially.
UK Scaffolding Contractors currently paying a CITB levy will be able to apply for a CITB short duration training daily attendance grant. This currently stands at £50 per day for employees completing CISRS CPD training. CITB are currently running a pilot scheme with NASC members which could see the daily attendance grant figure to be raised to £100 per day for those undertaking CPD when the new CITB funding is made available later this year. Again, this will be available to all both NASC and non NASC members
CISRS Scheme Manager Dave Mosley said: “It’s great to see the level of financial support NASC is willing to make available to assist their membership a possible figure of £50,000 and I hope I can convince them to consider further funding in 2018.”
A number of subsidised CPD courses will be available across the UK over the coming months. Though all will be open to employers, it’s strictly on a first-come-first-served basis. All will be limited to one candidate per company. CISRS with the support of National Construction College, LTC Group 87, Safety and Access Ltd and Simian Skill Ltd, will be running the scheme.
