From its humble roots in a lock-up in Dyce 30 years ago, Aberdeenshire-based Safelift Offshore has grown into a global market leader in the design, supply and manufacture of manual handling and lifting equipment across the energy sector and beyond.
The company has invested c. £1million over the course of the past year in enhancing facilities and expanding the team, with a view to fulfilling larger scale projects within the renewables sector.
Now based in Kemnay, the firm was established in 1994 by founder Peter Innes, who applied his expertise as a draughtsman and engineer to designing many of their products and equipment. Safelift now provides a comprehensive range of standard products, from baskets and trolleys to crane forks and pallet trucks, as well as designing and manufacturing custom-built items for specific applications.
Safelift will shortly be unveiling their state-of-the-art new fabrication facility, which is set to open up a multitude of larger projects, particularly within the offshore wind and wider renewables market. The increased floorspace will enable the team to work with larger pieces of equipment, frames and container solutions, and will provide additional storage to support projects in the renewables space. The new space, which has been part-funded by a grant from the Energy Transition Zone (ETZ), will offer a tailored layout for these projects, improving the team’s working conditions, and freeing up more space within the original facility.
Currently Safelift has a team of 36 staff, including those employed at its sister division, Safetrade, which supplies equipment to the onshore industry. Earlier this year, Safelift appointed Steven Simpson as Managing Director. An experienced business development, sales and marketing executive and leader, Steven has been appointed to drive Safelift’s growth strategy across both sectors and geographies. Andy McKay has also joined the team as Sales and Marketing Manager for Safetrade. With a strong background in BD, Andy will be working across both teams to maximise future opportunities.
In addition to working across multiple sectors, Safelift has established a global footprint, with a significant presence in the Middle East. The manual handling and lifting specialist currently work with around 35 clients in the region, but is targeting further growth in 2025, with a number of large-scale projects in the pipeline.
The company remains steadfastly rooted in the local community in Aberdeenshire and has long-standing relationships with a number of local firms in the supply chain. They have also developed close links with schools in Kemnay, Oldmeldrum and Huntly and training providers, as an approved Developing the Young Workforce (DYW) partner.
Managing Director, Steven Simpson, said: “We recently celebrated our 30th anniversary with a party attended by over 200 of our colleagues, families and friends. This important milestone is a fantastic opportunity for us to take stock and reflect of the successes and achievements of the past 3 decades, and to look forward to realising the exciting ambitions that lie ahead.
“The fact that we have not only survived but thrived and flourished over more than a quarter of a century, is testament to the vision and leadership of our founder Peter, and the talent and dedication of our in-house team. We have a deep understanding of the often-harsh environments in which our equipment is deployed, and to that end we design and fabricate items to the highest standards of safety and efficacy. It’s that dedication to quality which has forged our reputation as the go-to for manual handling and lifting specialists.”
