Thursday, March 5, 2026
I could go back 20 years to when I acquired the business, or 32 years to my first day in the lifting industry. Either way, it’s a long time. Today, we employ people that weren’t born in March 2006 and only staff of a certain age will remember much about 1994.
Throughout the journey, I have spoken a lot about my goal to become a truly national rigging equipment supplier, which we were probably able to put a tick against five or so years ago. Before and since, we’ve been intent on equipping ourselves to efficiently serve the UK’s most notable large-scale infrastructure projects and blue chip firms. All the while, the wider world has been changing apace. Think about Artificial Intelligence (AI), Automation, Blockchain, Cloud Computing, Internet of Things (IoT), Machine Learning, and Robotics.
It has afforded me a perspective from which two things standout before all others:
- Growth comes at a price
- Technology is nothing in isolation
Let’s explore both a little further, before talking about diversification…
Government health warning
It’s funny how growth never comes with a disclaimer. No warning that profits might wobble, supply chains could snap, or that scaling up might come with a few bruises along the way. I realise now how much there was still to learn when I got the keys to the Pyle depot here in South Wales; and know that no matter how much bigger a business gets, or how hard it hits, it can still get a bloody nose.
It’s not a case of being careful about what you wish for, but it is a situation where it’s important to plan in case your dreams do come true. For example, if two decades ago I was offered a national network of depots, 100-plus employees, and a diverse product portfolio that went far beyond lifting and rigging gear, I would have grabbed it with both hands. I would have assumed that such an organisation would be living in a trouble-free utopia.
Reality is, challenges don’t go away, they just change. As a champion boxer goes through a career, he or she will be more experienced, punch harder, and learn to avoid more blows, but their opponents get bigger, better, and faster too. As a business grows, there is more at stake, and more impacting factors — many of which I didn’t even know existed.
First, the concentration of risk is much higher. Large firms often pursue fewer, but vastly bigger, contracts. When a single project is worth more, a delay, dispute, or cancellation doesn’t just dent performance — it can materially affect earnings and cash flow. Smaller suppliers can absorb the loss of one contract; a Tier 1 contractor losing or mispricing a flagship project may not.
Contractual and balance-sheet exposure is heavier. Mega projects often push risk down the supply chain via fixed-price contracts, performance guarantees, and liquidated damages. Large companies have the balance sheets to carry this risk, which means they’re expected to. When assumptions around inflation, labour, regulation, or supply chains shift, those risks crystallise quickly and at scale.
Additionally, large organisations build teams, factories, and capabilities around expected project pipelines. If a major programme stalls or is cancelled, those sunk investments become stranded. Smaller firms can pivot; large ones are structurally committed.
It’s also true that servicing large-scale infrastructure projects and blue chip firms aligns a company closer to government policy. Take the UKs infrastructure pipeline, managed by the National Infrastructure and Service Transformation Authority (NISTA), for example. While authorities signal welcome ambition, infrastructure delivery ultimately depends on practical levers rather than policy architecture alone. Fragmented decision-making, long planning horizons, and risk-averse procurement cannot be resolved by coordination in isolation. For supply chains and delivery partners, confidence comes not from strategy documents but from visible pipelines, clear timelines, and repeatable project flow. Bridging that gap remains one of the UK’s most persistent infrastructure challenges.
A system that needs rebooting
Industry is still not understanding technology’s role in our short-, mid-, or long-term future. AI, IoT, etc. are repeatedly tabled as though they’ll carry businesses to profit and success on their own. We don’t hear nearly enough about the importance of human beings working in tandem with them, and even less so about people harnessing tech as a tool.
I’m not a technophobe — far from it — but there’s something to be said for being a human-centred technologist. We are at the forefront of the lifting industry’s increasing adoption of digital safety systems. Our live365 programme combines digitalised inspection services with comprehensive data analysis software to analyse safety trends. live365 centres on the importance of maintaining essential safety documentation (current and historical) along with any-time access. But we need competent, experienced professionals to know where to point it. It’s nothing in isolation.
Our newest recruit, Bob McFarlane, will focus on national delivery of on-site engineering services. As he recognises, digitalisation, evidenced in concepts like live365, creates tools to support decision-making, not substitutes for leadership or judgement. Even the most advanced digital platforms require human direction; they do not independently make us safer or better.
As I told trade media, I’ve known Bob for over three decades; when he became available, we had to act quickly to secure the recruitment, given his background and experience. Tech can’t replace it. Yes, we are at an exciting dawn of an era where digitalisation and compliance technology will transform the way lifting and rigging gear is supplied, used, examined and serviced — but only through the competence of people can we truly pioneer positive change.
Ultimately, technology alone does not define progress — people do. Digitalisation, AI, IoT, and sophisticated compliance platforms provide unprecedented insight, efficiency, and safety potential, but they are instruments, not decision-makers. The lifting industry’s future will be shaped by human expertise guiding these tools, ensuring that innovation enhances, rather than replaces, experience. As Bob told journalists upon his arrival, only because of seasoned managers and competent engineers and inspectors, are the business’s testing, examination and compliance services positioned for further growth.
The human hand on the tiller must be as steady as ever.
Product, training diversification
When I reflect on the last 20 years, I think about the people behind the products and services. I also consider the individuals that have made bright and sometimes bold decisions to expand on product portfolios to enhance our offering to the point of use. I see this process being just as important during the next two decades as it was the two previous ones.
We’ve now got more pewag product on our shelves than ever before. Then there’s innovative solutions like the LiftingXperts leveller and load balancer; and The Buddie System, an instant wireless safety alert device that sounds an alarm in a crane cab if a slinger or rigger pulls a breakaway clip on a lanyard. That’s without referencing Terrier clamps, load monitoring technology, magnets, and high-pressure hydraulic (lifting) tools. A full catalogue includes safety awareness handbooks, posters, and push-pull poles.
Training ourselves and others is at the centre of our diversification strategy — and it should be yours too. It’s true that, in some sectors more than others, technology is reshaping entry-level roles. Tasks that were once routine are increasingly automated, while even junior staff are expected to interact with digital systems, IoT-enabled machinery, and data-driven safety platforms. This makes training and up-skilling essential, not just to operate equipment correctly, but to interpret information, make safe decisions, and add value.
We recently rebranded the RSS Training Academy to closer align course content and delivery with industry trends. Critical challenges face the lifting sector in terms of skills shortages, limited training pathways, and a lack of awareness of the industry among the next generation.
Overseeing this activity is another important person, Andy Hawkins, our training manager, who was a well-respected Appointed Person (AP) at international infrastructure groups, joint ventures, and other consortiums.
How are you equipping your workforce with the tools they need for today’s — and tomorrow’s — challenges?
Here’s to the next 20 years.
Stand and deliver
Even in an increasingly digital world, networking and trade show appearances remain invaluable. Face-to-face interactions allow professionals to build trust, assess partners and suppliers firsthand, and see equipment or technology in action — experiences that virtual meetings and webinars can’t fully replicate.
To that end, we’re exhibiting at this spring’s MACH 2026 (stand 6-492), which takes place at Birmingham’s NEC from 20-24 April. The show claims to connect the world of manufacturing technologies and be the destination of choice for companies looking to adopt and invest in the digital revolution. We want to be part of that process. See you there.
Steve Hutin
Managing Director
Rope and Sling Specialists Ltd
