One of the latest additions to the Nationwide powered access fleet has been put to good use by ship repair, conversion and marine services specialist, A & P Group. The company, which carried out extensive maintenance work to the hull of Japanese-registered Jingu Maru while she was in dry dock in Southampton, used the new Skyjack SJB-66TK self-propelled boom that, uniquely, allows "down reach" below the machine.

The 66TK was located on the dockside, adjacent to the NYK Line-owned 195-metre long car carrier, believed to be among the largest car carriers in the world. It was used in conjunction with several other Nationwide self-propelled booms, two of which provided extremely useful 27-metre high working platforms, for scraping, painting and polishing.

With a 22-metre working height and 17.98-metre outreach, the diesel-powered, articulating boom 66TK will also "down reach" 11.28 metres below the machine. It allows 360-degree boom rotation, has a platform that measures 0.76 metres by 2.44 metres with a safe working load capacity of 272kg, and can be driven while the boom is at its maximum height. The 66TK is diesel powered and features dual controls.

According to Nationwide's Paul Maxwell, who negotiated the deal with A & P Group, the powered access solution was a fraction of the cost of using fixed access equipment, or even powered access equipment where the reach is limited to upwards. He says: "The alternatives were either an expensive and obstructive scaffolding 'birdcage' or powered access equipment that would have to have been relocated on the dockside in order to reach the highest parts of the hull."

All of the units utilised on the Jingu Maru were supplied from Nationwide's Southampton depot, one of a network of 50 depots located across the country.

Nationwide is headquartered in Lutterworth, Leicestershire and is the country's market leader in powered access rental with a hire fleet that is twice the size of its nearest competitor. It is part of the publicly-quoted Lavendon Group Plc, the European market leader in powered access, trading under the name Zooom in Germany, France, Spain and Austria. Full details on the Nationwide offering of booms, scissor lifts and truck-mounted units can be found at www.nationwideaccess.com

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November 2002 Nat2.068a