THE outstanding achievements of businesses and individuals within the plant, tool, equipment and event hire industries have been celebrated as the Hire Association Europe Event Hire Association (HAE EHA) Hire Awards of Excellence returned with a bang.
The awards were handed out at a ceremony in London, hosted by comedian and writer Jo Caufield, following a ‘record’ number of entries for individual awards.
Young Apprentice of the Year went to Louis Derome of Speedy Services, while Ryan Boden of Sunbelt Rentals was named Apprentice of the Year.
Steven Jones of MHM Group enjoyed double success, winning both the Workshop Manager and Hire Achiever of the Year accolades. He said, “After many wonderful years working in the industry I’ve met some inspiring people and made some lifelong friends who keep me motivated to continue to learn and grow.”
Travis Perkins Tool Hire won the inaugural Diversity & Inclusion Initiative award, while Point of Rental Software was presented with the Hire Industry Supplier of the Year award.
HAE EHA’s CEO Paul Gaze said, “It has been incredibly challenging for many within our sector. But the one thing we all know about hire and rental is its resilience. Our sponsors have played a major part in making the Hire Awards such a huge success. There has been a record number of entries which far exceeded the number ever received before. This gave the judges some difficult decisions, especially when selecting the winners.”
Chairman of HAE EHA, Neil Bravery, added, “It’s wonderful to have the event back. Congratulations to all the finalists. Our industry certainly gives opportunity to those who want to succeed. Many successful hirers have started on the bottom rung of hire and worked their way up to either running depots or their own company.”
President and outgoing chair, Brian Sherlock, accepted the Outstanding Contribution to Hire Award on behalf of the main board and members of the association. He commented, “I appreciate the support of the many colleagues, suppliers and customers I have worked with throughout my career in hire. Our ability to keep our sector working as an essential supplier and to influence government on the practicalities of trading demonstrates why 3,500 hire businesses rely on the support of the association.”
The full list of winners is as follows:
Website of the Year – sponsor Niftylift – Genquip Groundhog
Best Use of New Media – sponsor JCB Sales – Niftylift
Catalogue of the Year – sponsor Warners Group Publications – HSS Hire
Best Diversity & Inclusion Initiative – sponsor inspHire – Travis Perkins Tool Hire
Best Sustainability & CSR Initiative – sponsor Travis Perkins – Vp Brandon Hire Station
Hire Industry Product of the Year – sponsor The Hire Exchange – Cube Modular (Modular Foldable Portable Buildings)
Hire Industry Supplier of the Year – sponsor BTE Plant Sales – Point of Rental Software
SafeHire Plant Tool & Equipment Hire Company of the Year under £10m Turnover – sponsor Hire Certification Services – PSM Plant & Tool Hire Centres
SafeHire Plant Tool & Equipment Hire Company of the Year over £10m Turnover – sponsor Towergate Insurance Brokers – Boels Rental
SafeHire Event Hire Company of the Year under £3m – sponsor Euro Towers – Capital Barriers & Temporary Fencing
SafeHire Event Hire Company of the Year over £3m – sponsor Snorkel UK – Sunbelt Rentals
Young Apprentice of the Year – sponsor CITB – Louis Derome – Speedy Services
Apprentice of the Year – sponsor CITB – Ryan Boden – Sunbelt Rentals
Workshop Manager of the Year – sponsor PSM Plant & Tool Hire Centres – Steven Jones – MHM Group
Hire Manager of the Year – sponsor HireTrain – Amy Yorke-Smith – Sunbelt Rentals
Hire Achiever of the Year – sponsor Point of Rental – Steven Jones – MHM Group
