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An Ainscough employee has been commended for his superior customer service during his work at a vibrant new lifestyle district in Edinburgh.
St James Quarter is a new destination in Edinburgh’s City Centre providing an inspiring, attractive, and vibrant place for locals and visitors to live, shop, eat, sleep and play. It will house an exciting lineup of restaurants, cafés, bars, shops, public spaces, and leisure venues covering 1.7 million square feet. The new development is set to become a welcoming cultural and lifestyle hub for art, culture, and fashion that will complement the city’s world-renowned cultural offering and support its events calendar.
Laing O’Rourke began work on the project in 2016, and the tight environs of the local area have presented some challenges during the construction process. By chance when looking through LinkedIn, David McCulloch, appointed person at St James Quarter project for Laing O’Rourke, encountered a solution that would mark the start of a very fruitful working relationship.
“It all started with scrolling through LinkedIn and seeing Lee Fieldhouse, a crane operator at Ainscough Crane Hire, promoting his firm’s MK88 on a nearby project in Edinburgh,” explains David. “I have had the MK140 on Edinburgh St James before but where I needed this crane it couldn’t fit.
“I didn’t know Ainscough supplied such a crane until I saw Lee’s social media post. I immediately set about getting Ainscough – and Lee – to work on this project.
“Ever since day one, Lee has been a breath of fresh air and went above and beyond to help out this project.. The MK88 is an amazing piece of machinery, very versatile, and a great lifter. Lee made the impossible, possible without compromising safety at any point.”
Since spotting Lee’s initial post of his MK88 on LinkedIn, David has subsequently hired Lee and his Ainscough colleagues on a variety of Laing O’Rourke jobs at Edinburgh St James for over eight months.
The MK88-4.1 has a compact design, 4-axle chassis, and is designed to reduce noise and CO² emissions. It has a maximum lift capacity of eight tons and Euro-Stage 5 engine.
An all-terrain self-erecting mobile tower crane, the MK88 also features one-person assembly, a fast setup cycle, and remote control for all crane functions. The turning circle is just 11.88 metres and has travel dimensions of just 2.75 m x 15.94m with a 45m jib carried on board.
David continues: “I have suggested Lee and his crane to a variety of different companies, and I have even taken his crane and his services to my next project. I see the service I’ve received from Lee and Ainscough as the embodiment of ‘People are the solution’.
“I could go on and on regarding how much Lee has done to help us out – no problem ever phases him. He will always meet you with a smile and a very positive attitude. Lee is an asset to any company, and Ainscough is lucky to call him an employee.”
Lee and Ainscough are currently onsite at Edinburgh St James supporting the building of the new Roomzzz hotel, where David is again Laing O’Rourke’s appointed person and the MK88 is once again demonstrating its versatility and agility.
