AINSCOUGH Crane Hire has told Project Plant of the importance of being just a ‘stone’s throw’ away from the needs of its customers in Scotland, having just opened a fifth depot north of the border in Invergordon.
Founded as a family business in 1976 with just small cranes and a van, the national crane hire company is marking its 50th anniversary this year having grown to a point where it now has a national network comprising 30 locations, a portfolio of over 320 Liebherr cranes, and what it believes to be the largest heavy haulage fleet in the UK.
Ainscough is gearing up to make its ScotPlant debut at the Royal Highland Centre in April. Hailing Scotland as being of ‘massive importance’ to the business, Ricardo Guimaraes, regional sales manager at Ainscough Crane Hire, praised the level of development being undertaken in the country – particularly in the north, where the company’s fifth depot is based.
Ainscough also has sites in Glasgow, Aberdeen, Dundee, and Falkirk, and employs over 100 people in Scotland.
“Our customers, such as Murphy and Balfour Beatty, have opened offices in the Highlands and we want to have a base to support our customers locally,” Ric said. “We’ll be positioned in prime locations to support projects and be a stone’s throw away from our customers and their needs.”
A 2025 study commissioned by Highlands and Islands Enterprise found there is over £100 billion worth of projects planned for the Highlands. This includes SSEN Transmission’s £22 billion upgrade to the electricity in the north of Scotland and the Scottish Government’s A9 dualling programme – both of which Ainscough is involved in.
On the SSEN project, which is delivering critical grid infrastructure upgrades, the firm has provided everything from 40-tonne cranes right through to its 800-tonne Liebherr LTM1750-9.1 mobile crane. The all-terrain machine offers significant power, utilising static calculation methods to maximise lift capabilities. The model boasts a 52m main boom, a maximum hook height of 152m, and is designed to travel on public roads with its full boom.
“Due to the fact that we have such a large fleet, with all sizes of cranes, we always provide the crane that our customer needs,” Ric added. “We move our cranes all across the UK. The size of our fleet is one of our main benefits.”
Ainscough has a long history of servicing milestone Scottish projects. The firm provided extensive crane capabilities to the construction of the Queensferry Crossing, lifting 122 deck sections into place. In 2022, the company installed Lossiemouth East Beach’s new crossing and has also delivered work at Murrayfield and supported operations on the build of Edinburgh’s St James Quarter.
“Every customer in Scotland has access to over 320 of our cranes and our extensive fleet of vehicles,” Ric continued.
“The benefit for the customer is there’s always a depot less than 30 miles from the main locations in Scotland – and that allows us to serve customers quickly.”
With Scotland aiming to be carbon neutral in 2045 – five years ahead of the rest of the UK – particular appreciation is being paid to Ainscough’s carbon neutral status, which it has held for three years.
All of the company’s vehicles run on HVO, which Ric explained allows it to cut carbon emissions by more than 98% per crane on site – with this being independently accredited and certified each year.
“It’s not just (winning contracts), but also operating within cities,” Ric added, whilst rhyming off the benefits of the machines beyond helping the environment.
“It’s a big impact having a 90-tonne machine in the middle of Edinburgh or Glasgow shooting diesel. All of our cranes are HVO, and we also operate hybrid cranes that can be connected to electricity – which people will be able to see at ScotPlant where we will be showcasing one of our hybrid cranes, which works either by plugging in or with a battery pack.”
Describing the firm’s impending ScotPlant debut as ‘really important’, Ric underlined the importance of allowing customers in Scotland the chance to see the machinery in person, liaise with its operators, step inside the models, and see live demonstrations.
“Visitors to ScotPlant will be able to see a range of our cranes – we’ll have our mobile tower cranes, alongside a 230 50-tonne crane, our hybrid crane, battery packs, and a few surprises,” he said. “The hybrid crane will be a big attention driver, as well as the tower crane. The mobile tower crane gives great cab visibility. It’s a really useful crane for locations where you cannot extend the boom of the crane; we use them a lot in Scotland.”
The remainder of 2026 is expected to see continued investment in Ainscough’s fleet and depots, with the Invergordon site being joined by a base in Sizewell, Suffolk.
“The company is continuing to expand and develop,” Ric concluded. “Our goal is to keep supporting our customers.”
