Member Article

Black Country company helps to keep Gatwick Airport moving

The UK’s number one supplier of heavy-duty vehicle lifting solutions is helping to keep flights on time and holiday makers moving at Gatwick Airport.

Black Country-based TotalKare has developed a bespoke modification to its T8DC wireless mobile column lifts, which Rushlift is using to repair and service vital ground support equipment (GSE), including tugs and tractors and passenger boarding steps/stairs.

This involved a site survey to understand the different challenges faced by lifting these unique vehicles, before technical specialists at the Halesowen firm came up with infill plates and drive on ramps that could be fitted to the lifts.

The modification means nearly all types of GSE can be maintained using one set of lifts, whilst the design of the lifts ensures they can be packed away leaving the workshop clear.

“Being able to develop a specific solution has made a massive difference to the way we are able to run our workshop, giving us the ability to carry out jobs that we were unable to do with conventional column lifts,” explained David Syme, Supervisor at Rushlift, who are part of the $20+ billion Doosan Group.

“It has made our technicians day-to-day jobs much easier and safer as we have virtually unrestricted accesses to the underside of our vehicles. Service times have also improved within the workshop as it is now so much easier to maintain the vehicles.”

He continued: “Another reason we chose TotalKare was how helpful Adam Bowser and his team were when we were looking to purchase the lifts, from the initial site surveys and tailored additions to loaning us lifts to test.”

TotalKare has been working with Rushlift for over a year, first supplying mobile lifts to help service and maintain forklift trucks at its workshop in Slough.

The system in operation at Gatwick is the first time that this method of lifting has been used at the airport, providing safe and controlled lifting of non-standard vehicles and ensuring ground staff have access to vital ground equipment.

Adam Bowser, Area Sales Manager for TotalKare, continued: “We had to find the right balance between offering a portable solution and one that still gave Rushlift complete control when lifting vehicles. The bespoke modifications did exactly that and gave the customer ease of movement and flexibility in the range of airport vehicles they can service and maintain.

“We have also agreed a full AfterKare-service contract on the T8DC lifts, which can be challenging to deliver when it comes to getting access airside. Again, our close-knit relationship with Rushlift has overcome any potential issues and we now have a smooth process in place.”.

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Russ Cockburn .