Instant UpRight enjoys upturn, plans growth: AI joins its distributor conference

Instant UpRight is planning for the future with product and geographical diversification, while maintaining its core speciality and quality manufacture, Maria Hadlow reports from the distributor conference.

Ireland based scaffolding system manufacturer Instant UpRight has reported that first quarter sales in 2011 are 47% higher than the same period in 2010. Managing director John Nevin said, "We continue to see strong demand into Q2 and have positive news in dealer development and growth in our boiler, aviation and Industrial markets."

Mr Nevin says that some of the growth is coming as a natural occurrence of the return to a more positive economic cycle, especially in the Nordic countries, but the growth is also the result of key initiatives taken internally in the business in response to customer identified needs. "In particular our new more competitive EN 1004 Compliant tower 'Upright 5025' has been well received in the Middle East and is delivering good growth in those markets. Our US Span 540 development is another initiative delivering growth as is our focus on the emerging markets which continue to deliver new sales."

In order to better deliver on its service, technical, marketing, new product and market sector objectives, Instant UpRight has committed to add significant customer communication and market development resources as well as making some internal organisation changes.

Among its plans for this year is further product development including low-level access and the setting up of an operation in China to serve that region more economically.

At Instant UpRight's distributor conference held in early March Mr Nevin said that he was pleased to have some innovative new products to show but admitted that the company needed to continue working on that area of its business

In his report Mark Edwards Instant UpRight's finance director said that the ATS (aluminium tower system) business was vital but the company needed to diversify and pointed to the industrial markets as one way this could be achieved.

This theme was picked up by Eamon Grffiths who heads up the power generation division. Mr Griffiths anticipated that the Quick erect Boiler Access System would be worth €6 million in 2011. This will be achieved through existing dealers in India, Austrailia, Korea, Brazil, Malaysia and Taiwan and new dealers in the US, Canada, South Africa and Thailand.

Mr Griffiths will be working to establish more new dealers in Europe, Japan, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Russia.

The Instant UpRight aluminium boiler system is designed to take less than half the time to erect as traditional steel systems. In a conservative estimate Mr Griffiths suggested that on labour costs alone the supplier could increase profit by 46%. He admitted that original outlay for the aluminium system is more expensive than steel but said that labour savings alone would soon recoup that. (see box ).