RSS expands into South West

UK lifting equipment manufacturer and supplier Rope and Sling Specialists (RSS) has opened its eighth UK facility. The new 5,000 square-foot site is located at Broadley Park Industrial Estate, Roborough, Plymouth, UK. The company, encouraged by initial Ministry of Defence (MoD) contracts, believes the area holds “significant long-term demand in the region for engineering, hire and sales”.

The site will provide RSS’s full range of lifting and rigging services. In March 2021, a new 60 tonne capacity tensile test bed and wire rope press will be installed. To better serve marine sites, RSS has also invested £35k on a Humber Defender RIB boat.

According to RSS, the new site will also offer a platform for it to showcase various brands that it distributes, including JD Neuhaus’s (JDN) Profi air hoist range and fall protection systems supplier MSA Latchways.

RSS is currently recruiting for a dedicated depot manager for the new site. In the interim, it is under the management of Matthew Rogers, engineering services director. David Homeyard has been recruited as head of projects and programme for MoD work.

Rogers commented, “The MoD is providing an immediate focal point for the business but we are strategically located to support the whole south-west region of the country. The marine industry is naturally of primary interest — Plymouth has a strong history in ship-building — and the geography generally will produce demand for our full range of lifting and rigging services.”