44 contenders will compete in eight challenges at Errol Airfield this Saturday (July 27) in a bid to be crowned Scottish Plant Operator Challenge Champion of 2024.
Organised by Morris Leslie, James Currie and Callum Mackintosh, the competition will take place alongside the Vintage Plant Working Weekend, a long-established fixture in the diary for plant enthusiasts.
The inaugural competition was won last year by Gordon Durno of Currie Contractors. More people are participating this year following the successful qualifier held at ScotPlant in April, where 100 operators displayed their skills on a Kobelco SK75 for the ‘On the Hook’ challenge.
The 44 entrants to the Scottish Plant Operator Challenge represent a diverse mix of self-employed operators, as well as those working for established businesses in the plant industry.
Steven Sutherland from GBSS Civil Engineering will be competing again this year. He said, “Funnily enough the challenge that caught me out last year is the one that I do most often – the grade challenge! I will just approach each challenge in the same way. I reckon Scott Hamilton is one to watch. I’d like to say thank you to the organisers for putting this event on, it’s a really good day out, gives us the chance to meet up and have a go on new machines.”
William Frame, a self-employed plant operator, added, “I finished fifth overall last year so we’ll see what happens this year. I think Scott Hamilton is the one to beat. I reckon the backhoe loader challenge might prove the biggest challenge but we’ll have to wait and see, I’m trying to work out what the ‘mystery wildcard’ could be! It’s a great day out, I’ll take my family with me and I think my partner might even be doing some face painting for kids on the day. I’m looking forward to it.”
Scott Hamilton of Hamilton Plant Hire commented, “I reckon William Frame is the one to watch. I really enjoyed the competition last year. It had a good selection of challenges and a good scoring system which took into account all of the challenges and gave a good representation of a top operator who can perform any task put in front of them. I’d certainly like to win it this year, I will keep my fingers crossed!”
The qualifier at ScotPlant gave visitors from all over the British Isles the chance to enter. In order to ensure impartiality and a continued high standard of judging, the organisers have drafted in father and son duo, Chris and Dale Blake from Mervyn Lambert Plant Training in East Anglia. Chris was until recently the plant curriculum manager at the National Construction College (NCC) in Norfolk, and has decades of experience on the levers of a variety of machines as well as being a trainer, assessor and consultant to many industry working groups.
Dale has also been a trainer and assessor for several years at the NCC following a career for Mervyn Lambert. Dale also has a background of involvement with Scottish plant operators, having travelled the length and breadth of the country completing SVQ assessments on learners who have attended the apprenticeship programme at Bircham Newton. They have just developed the new plant training centre at Mervyn Lambert Plant Ltd from scratch with CPCS test status awarded.
Chris said, “Having judged myself last year it’s great to be involved once more in such a family-friendly spectacle with Dale. It is clear to see what a resounding success last year was with the vast interest once more from operators and manufacturers this year. I know Morris, James and Callum have looked to further enhance from the 2023 show, good luck with that as the 2023 event was fantastic!
“We cannot wait to arrive and both view and judge this year’s competitors, we know the standard will be extremely high again.”
The competition will feature eight simultaneous challenges and all participants will be required to compete in every challenge. The primary objective is to identify the most versatile and proficient operator, mirroring the demands and expectations of employers.
This approach is designed to ensure every operator, regardless of experience, is presented with an equal opportunity to showcase their capabilities on a level playing field. The challenges are intended to emulate real-life scenarios, testing operators’ adaptability, safety adherence, observations, technical prowess, and experience.
This year’s prize pot totals £17,500, which includes tools from Milwaukee courtesy of Highland Industrial Supplies.
- Overall winner and Scottish Plant Operator Challenge Champion 2024 will receive £5,000 as well as an array of exclusive rewards from sponsors.
- 2nd place operator will receive £2,500.
- 3rd place operator will receive £1,000.
- Individual challenge winners will receive a cash prize of £250 and exclusive merchandise from the challenge sponsors.
