09.06.2025

GGR ILLAPG/open day

Despite the UK weather, GGR hosted a successful Industry Lifting Lead AP Group (ILLAPG) annual meeting and open day last Thursday, with more than 370 delegates. The oversubscribed event - held at GGR headquarters in Haddenham, Buckinghamshire - was very well attended with more people arriving before 10am than during the whole of its previous events.

The day also celebrated GGR’s 30th anniversary having started out in 1995 as GGR Glass Services, after having some success with its first product - a glass vacuum lifter. It also designed a glazing robot which launched in 1998. Having entered the spider crane market, it imported its first Unic crane in 2001, obtained CE approval and sold the first unit in 2003, forming Unic Cranes Europe in 2004 and GGR Unic Glass Handling and Mini Cranes in 2006.

In 2002 it opened its Royton depot near Oldham, followed by a southern location in Long Crendon. Oldham was added in 2007 followed by a Scottish depot in 2010 and selling its 1,000th Unic crane in 2015 the same year it opened its Oldham training centre.
It added the Sunward dealership in 2018, the Faresin electric telehandler dealership in 2021 while Almac came in 2022, and this year Ganterud. In 2024 it introduced the UK’s largest capacity glass lifter.

There were numerous well attended talks throughout the day including Charles Stevenson of JCB asking ‘How can we decarbonise machinery’, Gavin Hamblett of Lindner Prater on ‘Transforming construction challenges into opportunities for innovation, and Ben Long of Malley Aeronautics on ‘Lifting with advanced drone technology’.

Craig Hook of Sir Robert McAlpine launched the CPA’s Planning and control of lifting operations in wind CIG/TCIG 2507, Shaheen Sadough of Evercam talked on ‘Elevating safety and efficiency’ and Zachi Flatto from Skyline Cockpit on ‘From cab to cockpit: Redefining lifting with Winvic’.

A number of organisations including Emerson Cranes, Ainscough Crane Hire, ALLMI, LEEA and the CPA displayed their services, while equipment demonstrations were held both indoors and outside when rain permitted.
New products from GGR included Ganterud auto levelling yokes, the Unic UM445 lithium pop-up and Unic URW 806-3 spider cranes, one of two Palfinger PCC115.002 articulated spider/crawler cranes and the 4.5 tonne all electric remote controlled JMG MC45SB pick & carry crane.

Here are a few pictures providing an overview of the day.