Making a video

When we came into work last Thursdaay we were unsure as to what would be expected of us.  We were going to be making a 3-5 minute video for the Cheshire High Sheriff's Awards ceremony.  We have done a fair bit of TV news slots, but this did not prepare us for the 6 hours of filming required to get the dialogue and scenes finished for this professional quality piece.  It was a real 'lights, camera, action' event..... and they do shout 'Action!'

Andy gets a grilling

Proper Hollywood, where's the catering trailer?

The video will centre around Innovation at Up and Under from the early involvement in the introduction of rope access to the uk scene - yes we were in right at the start - to the adaptation of existing products and technologies to solving clients problems.

Rope access, especially its use on bridges, was part of the early years of the Up and Under Story.  At the outset rope access was focussed on high rise buildings and offshore structures.  It was the combination of engineering competence and access skills, then as well as today, that made Up and Under rope (and confined spaces) teams obvious choices for technical bridge inspection, testing and investigation projects.

After basic rope access we concentrated on the use of materials borrowed from other industries and successfully utilised in the asset management sphere.

Strengthened and adapted lighting trusses from the film and stage industries have been developed and used by Up and Under over the years to successfully complete a range of projects covering bridges, buildings and even cliff faces; taking trusses from rock and roll to stabilised rock!

The final part of the film concentrated on our capability to provided a variety of maintenance activities on structures over flat or slow moving water using sectional pontoons originally developed for military activities.  These are available to provide stable platforms for inspection towers or repair/construction activities; all without causing interferance to the structure above.

These innovations have saved our clients literally hundreds of thousands of pounds over the years.  Every day we provide solutions to your problems with value, safety and efficiancy at the heart of every decision.

That was the subject of the video.  It will be shown at the Awards Dinner at Chester University on the 29th March and hopefully we will bring home an award, if we are a runner up it will still be testament to our performance over 25 yers and will not lessen our commitment to solve your problems. If you've not worked with Up and Under before, call us, we'll surprise you. 

Shrove Tuesday at Up and Under

Andy had to put up with a bit of ribbing at lunch time today when he was company tosser. 

What?!? I here you ask, he was in charge of making pancakes!  Tradition was upheld with a Shrove Tuesday lunch consisting of pancakes garnished with either sugar and lemon or swiss chocolate.  Grant managed to mix the two with a combination that Heston would have had something to say about, chocolate AND Lemon.

Flipping heck!

Donations from the Up and Under team raised £20 for the Up and Under Foundation which is about the same amount of weight that we put on between us! 

Foundation donates £600 to Scouts

The Up and Under Foundation recently presented a cheque for £600 to the 10th SW Cheshire, Haslington Scout Group. The money will be used to purchase tracking devices to allow groups of youngsters to undertake hikes with the added security that the leaders know exactly where they are if they get lost. Members of the group will be training for the Cheshire Hike, an annual event where youngsters cover distances of up to 50km over a weekend, carrying camping equipment. Andy Fewtrell, Up and Under Group MD, spoke fondly of his days in the Scouts and related how he still regularly uses many of the skills learned in the organisation, such as navigation, fire lighting and motor mechanics.

The Up and Under Foundation, funded largely by the Up and Under Group, a local civil engineering and building group, manages two funds, the Eric Swan Bursary that covers the costs of youngsters attending courses at the Conway (Menai or Nelson to older readers) Centre and the Tom Dootson Memorial Fund, which aims to support Scouting activities.

Lorna Joins the Scouts

The cheque was presented by Alastair Dootson, Tom’s son, a Surveyor in private practice from Tarporley. Tom, a long time supporter of youth activities near his home on the Isle of Man, was the inventor of the modern retail park, along with Peter Jevans and John Whittaker of Peel Holdings (Property Week, 2012), when they created the first standalone retail warehouse in Bury in 1981. He later went on to develop sites as far afield as Warsaw in Poland.

The Up and Under Group, now in its 25th year, will be seeking to raise further funds via a levy on company turnover during 2012. They are therefore hoping for a successful year providing rope access and confined spaces based consultancy and construction services. The newest addition to the Group, Zenith Interior Contracts, a specialist in the installation of office partitions and suspended ceilings, has several local projects ongoing, especially with it’s latest product offering hygienic interior cladding.

Staff and clients will also be undertaking a range of activities to raise further funds to support less well-off youngsters in the area. In the past, this has taken the form of marathon running, bike rides, mountain climbing and even cake baking. We would welcome any support from local businesses, with whom we are happy to discuss the benefits of deeper employee involvement resulting from active CSR programmes. The Up and Under Group, Employer of the Year locally for the past two years, are committed to being a positive force in their community.

For more info see http://www.upandundergroup/ or http://www.upandunderfoundation.org/

ICE Awards Dinner

We sponsored the ICE NW Awards dinner held last Friday in Manchester to raise the profile ofthe Up and Under Foundation

We are pleased to report that the guests at the Dinner donated over £1000 to the Up and Under Foundation. The money will be used to help less well off youngsters from Cheshire. In the past 12 months we have supported numerous events, helping to pay for scout camps, school outdoor activity trips and safety equipment for youth groups.

Much of the funding for the Foundation comes from the Up and Under Group who also cover the running costs of the charity from money earned through their rope access, confined spaces, asset management, interior refurbishment and training businesses. In addition a percentage of every invoice is donated to the charity, with this amount being displayed to the client. This is one situation where work really does make a difference.

During our 25th year of operation we are hoping to boost our fund raising activities, which have included marathon running, bike rides, mountain climbing, arctic travels and even cake baking. We would welcome any NW company that would like to use fund raising for the Foundation as a means to improve staff engagement and improve moral. Money raised at the NW dinner in 2011 was used to help a young lad attend a course at the Conway (Menai or Nelson for the older readers) Centre. He described the experience as the “Best thing” he’d “ever done”. That is special and we thank you for making it possible by your generosity, we can assure you there will be more “Best Ever” moments in 2012!

If you want more information contact www.upandunderfoundation.org or andy@upandundergroup.com