04.08.2006

60 years working at height

One of the oldest active directors in the specialist access world, Herbert Bird, chairman of the Delta Group, celebrated his 80th birthday last Saturday.

He and his more than 60 year career, were honoured with a celebration of his achievements by his family and close friends at Manchester’s famous Bridgewater Hall.

During the celebrations he was presented with a very special handmade trophy featuring an original, reclaimed LB1 fixing from the Pilkington Chimney, St. Helen’s – the first tall structure Bird ever worked on in 1961.
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Birt Bird admires his very special trophy

Bird recalled the 260 ft. high structure which was built on top of the Pilkington Glass Works in Lancashire. He and his team worked day and night for 12 days straight to finish the project; a huge chimney that was to revolutionise the plant.

Bird established Oldham based Delta International in 1977 and has built the business into a multi national company specialising in steeplejack and other specialist working at height services, including a wide range of training services.
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Bert Bird in his younger days, as usual working at great heights

Recalling his career of over 60 years, Bird said:

“I’ve been very lucky and had an incredible life. I love this industry. Of course, working year round in all weather conditions does take a physical toll on your body and the workload is not for everybody. For me, this business is in my blood and I love it!”

“The industry must constantly change to meet new clients’ needs. Great skill is involved in working safely at height. There should be no such thing as a dangerous project if you have prepared correctly. At Delta, we never stop training which is why our teams can perform any function required at any height. People believe that danger is the first concern when working at height, not skill. We need to change this image. The work may look horrendous, but it isn’t. It is all about adopting the correct approach.”

Bird was instrumental in setting up the Industry’s National Training Group, over 30 years ago, today it includes 86 Specialist Access companies.