PASMA's council and committees held meetings during this year's annual members’ meeting (AMM) event.
28/11/2023 – In preparation for next year’s work, there have been a few elections, nominations and reshuffles that give a new look to our council and committees, which PASMA relies on in steering the association forward as the mobile access tower industry continues to evolve.
Council and committee elections ensure members have a voice in the association and are represented by its leadership.
Council
PASMA’s council,
now chaired by Steve Booker (Kentec), will have
Charlie Wright (Lakeside Industries) as vice chair. Elected member
Carl Evans (Sunbelt Rentals) and co-opted member
Darren Verschuren (HSS Hire) join them in shaping PASMA's objectives, strategies, and actions.
Andrew Davie (Instant Upright),
Roger Verallo (Euro Towers),
Paul Gallacher (Pop up Products) and
Stuart Price (Lyte Towers) were re-elected. We also thank those who’ve put their names forward but didn’t make it in this year: Chong Yan Lee (CYCC Access Systems) and Stuart Van Dort (Wernerco).
The PASMA Council is a small group of representatives from across our membership who meet regularly to discuss, debate and make decisions about the work that PASMA does. Any of our qualifying member organisations can become a council member. In fact, it works best when there's a range of perspectives represented, and fresh faces are always welcome. The only requirement is being passionate about advancing the industry and committing to working collaboratively to shape its future.
Regular council meetings focus on advancing the access tower industry while championing safety, standards and training. Recent discussions have covered new membership applications, PASMA's finances, the digitalisation roadmap and our net-zero journey.
Training committee
A warm welcome to the new training committee chair,
Tony Warren (Sunbelt Rentals), and vice-chair,
Gillian Rutter (Skyward Access Training). They succeed Steve Booker, who is now PASMA's chairman. New committee members
James Wall (Konecranes Demag UK) and
Paul Harrington (Harrington Safety) join, alongside co-opted members
Richards Mands (Speedy Training) and
Bobby Creed (Nationwide Platforms).
Debbie Forbes (HSS Training) and
Patrick Douglas (Euro Towers) were re-elected.
The PASMA Training Committee, a small group of training members with big ideas about how our courses could be evolved and improved, is committed to helping the association ensure training is up to date and aligned with industry needs. They meet regularly to develop these ideas into projects, such as revamping many of PASMA's training courses over the past few years.
The committee's 2023 agenda included course re-launches, updates to CPD and mentoring and recruiting new PASMA lead instructors. Keep an eye out for next year’s training committee election! Anyone who works for a PASMA training member, including one freelance instructor each term, can join – whether you have one approved centre or many.
Each year, PASMA invites training members to nominate someone from their business to join the committee. When there are more nominations than vacancies, an election is held, and all PASMA training members can vote. The result is announced at our AMM and elected committee members begin a two-year term. A separate process is held to elect a freelance instructors’ representative.
Technical committee
While the Technical Committee, chaired by
Charles Wright (Lakeside Industries), remains unchanged, it’s worth noting that its positions are not elected. Any manufacturing members can join PASMA’s founding committee.
Their leading role in developing standards such as EN 1004 and BS 1139-6 has been instrumental in shaping the mobile access industry, as well as
PASMA’s Operator’s Code of Practice. Having met for the first time in 1974, the Technical Committee is due to turn 50 next year alongside PASMA!
Hirer/dealer committee
Chaired by
Martin Doran (Astley Hire), the Hirer/Dealer Committee’s most recent change was
Marcus Gunning's (ET Hire) nomination as vice chair.
Formed only last year, the committee provides PASMA with insights from the tower rental and sales membership category. Amongst others, these cover the need for depot staff training, helping domestic tower users select and use products safely, challenges to net zero and widening PASMA’s range of guidance in support of hirer/dealer members.
With their flagship Hirer/Dealer Knowledge Academy, the committee aims to provide training for staff involved in tower rental or sales. Their plans also include developing a guide to buying and renting mobile towers, as well as auditing hirer/dealer members.
Hire & assembly committee
The Hire & Assembly Committee, chaired by
Paul Hackett (Generation UK), has also had no recent changes to report. This committee is not elected either, so any hire & assembly member can join!
Their work focuses on developing PASMA’s hire and assembly membership category. Ongoing projects include new
TowerSure features to support hire & assembly businesses and actions to raise awareness of the
Access Tower Specialist qualification.
Thanks to our council and committee members
Council and committee members’ dedication ensures that PASMA remains a driving force in advancing safety, standards, and training in the access tower industry. We thank everyone who has volunteered to contribute their expertise and commitment to help keep tower users safe.
