20.01.2014

First female director for LEEA

The UK headquartered Lifting Equipment Engineers Association (LEEA), has appointed Rope Assemblies’ managing director Siobhan Hitchen as its first female director. It has also appointed Douglas Price of Gunnebo, Richard Oldknow of Crosby and James Bolger of Certs Assured, as directors.

Hitchen joined Retford-based Rope Assemblies in 1997 and became managing director a year later when her father and company owner Terry Hitchen retired. The company manufactures and supplies a wide range of wire rope and fibre rope assemblies.

Hitchen said: “The overwhelming majority of our 22-strong team at Rope Assemblies is female, and I hope that my new role at LEEA highlights the growing opportunities for women looking to pursue a successful career in the lifting industry.”
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Siobhan Hitchen

“I’m delighted to be able to support the invaluable work of LEEA. In particular, I am keen that the Association reflects the needs of members that are serving rapidly developing markets such as theatres, lighting and rigging, and the leisure industry, which typically have very distinct lifting requirements to the manufacturing, construction and offshore sectors.”

Established in 1944, LEEA has over 740 member companies worldwide. It campaigns for higher standards of safety and professionalism within the overhead lifting industry and provides services such as training, accreditation and expert technical advice. Member companies are involved in the design, manufacture, hire, repair, refurbishment, test, examination, verification and use of lifting equipment.