The Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA) congratulates the winners of the 3rd Annual LEEA Awards 2021, who were announced and presented with their trophies during the prestigious Awards Dinner at the Grosvenor House Hotel in London, on the evening of Friday 5 November.
- The Stuart Everitt Award was given to Denis Hogan. Ross Moloney commented on the award to the now retired LEEA Stalwart: “This Award is given at the will and recommendation of the LEEA Board and I am extremely grateful to them for supporting my suggestion. Denis was a huge support to me from the time that I first walked into the Association nearly four years ago. Always challenging, always opinionated, and relentlessly passionate about the essence of our wonderful Association, Denis is to many Mr LEEA.”
- The Safety Award, sponsored by Rigging Services, recognises commitment to safety in the lifting equipment industry. It was won by Gareth McNary of Select Plant Hire – Laing O’Rourke. The judges recognised the complex work being done safely. The runner up was Karayi Manghattu Devadasan from Romson Oil Field Services Ltd.
- Best Lifting Equipment Inspector recognises individuals who are ambassadors to the profession and the industry, demonstrating commendable attributes and professional behaviours. It was won by Chris Elwick from Sparrows Offshore Service, for showing a great commitment to inspection detail, good commination skills with clients, as well as the drive to come up with innovative ways for reporting. The runner up was Manny Segundo from Technical Royal Excellence Oil & Gas Services LLC.
- Best Innovation Award recognises a product or service that is truly innovative, providing a unique value proposition and tangible benefits to the lifting equipment industry. It was won by the Crosby BlokCam from The Crosby Group. The judges agreed that this technology showed crystal clear visual and audio features and a vertically integrated manufacturing process that differentiated it from other suppliers. The runner up was SensorSpace Remote Monitoring, Mantracourt Electronics Ltd.
- Outstanding Apprentice, sponsored by Bridger Howes, recognises talented apprentices who have demonstrated an outstanding commitment to their professional development in the lifting equipment industry. It was won by Lewis Behai from Sunbelt Rentals. The judges felt that Lewis displayed consistent performance and achievement. Runner up was Ivan Osawe from Speedy Hire.
- Best Lifting Operation recognises a company that has performed a lifting operation that provides evidence of complexity, risk, uniqueness and customer testimonials. It was won by Thames Tideway East Greenwich Pumping Station team by Costain. This was a truly impressive project. Kudos to the team for realising the risk and operating the mobile crane remotely. AquaTerra Dunlin Team was runner up.
- The Kevin Holmes Award for Excellence in People Development recognises excellence in supporting and facilitating the continual professional development of its employees. It was won by Hoist UK. The judges loved that this organisation’s approach is to find great people and train the necessary skills. In an era where finding individuals with lifting experience is becoming increasingly difficult, they took the challenge to invest time and money to develop a competent team. Bridon Cookes, New Zealand was the runner up.
- Unsung Hero, sponsored by Lift & Hoist International, recognises individuals who excel in their work ‘behind the scenes’, underpinning the successes of their organisation. It was won by Bailey Lewis from Reid Lifting. The judges commented that Bailey is dedicated, dynamic, and challenges the status quo – so truly deserves this award. Anthony Hope from Sparrows Offshore Services was runner up.
- The CEO’s Award went to City of Bristol College. Ross Moloney commented: “This Award goes to an exceptional individual or company who did something particularly notable in line with LEEA’s aspirations. This year I am pleased to make this award to a partner who has supported us in pushing the Apprenticeship Standard to near completion. With hours of work wrestling with funding equations, crunching numbers, sourcing appropriate comparisons – without this partner we simply wouldn’t have got to the very edge of having an Apprenticeship for our industry. I am extremely grateful for their dedication and support.”
- Best Team recognises a team or department within an organisation that demonstrates how its work has helped achieve or exceed objectives and contributed to the overall competitiveness and/or success of the company during the previous 12 months. It was won by the Engineering and IT team at Reid Lifting Ltd. The key to their success is that they work as a team. They know that working together and supporting each other will make them successful. Runner up was Hinckley Point C Lifting Management and Assurance Team from Notus Heavy Lift Solutions.
- The Craig Morelli Award for Accredited Training Scheme – Best Trainer focuses on LEEA’s Accredited Training Scheme and the professional trainers delivering high quality end-user training courses. It was won by James Cox, from Industrial Training International, who consistently met or exceeded challenging objectives and demonstrated a quality approach through personal values and working practices. Craig Douglas from JCD Training Ltd was runner up.
LEEA CEO Ross Moloney said: “Congratulations to the hugely deserving LEEA Awards 2021 winners as well as the runners up and all those shortlisted. I extend my gratitude to everybody for coming to the Awards Dinner and those who made entry applications, the industry experts that had the hard task of judging the entries, and to our award category sponsors. I would also like to thank the LEEA team for bringing the event together despite the difficult circumstances experienced by everybody this year.”
Welcoming the 250 guests to the Awards Dinner, Ross Moloney said: “We have come together to celebrate the successes and triumphs of our wonderful, inspiring, foundational, innovative, underpinning, active, solution finding, safety focused, diverse and fantastic industry.” Special Guest comedian and TV presenter Dara O Briain delivered an entertaining comedy set before being joined on stage by Ross Moloney for the Award presentations.
The Awards Dinner also raised money for this year’s Chairman’s Charity, Sobell House, chosen in memory of LEEA colleague Craig Morelli.
Ross Moloney concluded: ”I encourage everybody to start thinking about their entries for the next LEEA Awards, which will take place on 5 October 2022 during LiftEx In Aberdeen.”
