The South Hams scaffolding expert making building easier, safer and more cost effective

A family business operating across the South Hams and beyond, P&N Scaffolding has built its reputation on due diligence, reliability and providing helpful solutions to clients’ needs. Bringing the latest technology to building sites to make them safer, more efficient and ultimately more cost effective for the client, here, owner Ian and his son Andrew tell us more…

How did P&N Scaffolding start?

I worked in a dockyard for about four years before I started working for EJ Wilson, where I got experience and training in scaffolding between 1987 and 1993. Over time I learned enough about the industry that I decided to start working for myself. I did work in the evenings, and eventually had enough business to leave my job and start my own company with a business partner. That was in 1997 and it’s been growing ever since. I started in Plymouth and gradually moved over to the South Hams, but we still do work all over.

What kind of work do you do?

We’re scaffolding experts for residential, commercial and industrial customers throughout Kingsbridge, Salcombe, Modbury, Dartmouth and the whole of the South Hams. We are also starting to get into other, related areas of the industry since my son, Andrew, became part of the business and started to being in new ideas.

We’re always looking into ways we can enhance health and safety. For example, we do a crash deck system called Rhinodeck. It’s a platform we put inside the houses as an alternative to traditional scaffolding. It fills up inside the building and it takes more weight than the scaffold. It’s cheaper, quicker and faster for the client as well, because it takes less time to put up than a traditional ‘bird cage’, which allows you to get on with the job and reduce man hours. We’ve also introduced a new stairwell system that contractors can use instead of a ladder - it’s much safer and makes work much quicker as well as it’s easier to get about.

Andrew is currently completing his Advanced scaffolding training, which is as high as training levels go. That means he can do all things technical, working with temporary roofs, bridges and overseeing others. With that level of training and the mentality he has, he’s really looking at the ways in which we can offer the most forward thinking solutions to clients.

Have you always lived and worked in the South Hams?

I’ve been down here since 1984, but I used to live in Stirling in Scotland. I came here because my gran used to live in Higher Batson and I used to come here to stay on holiday for five weeks in the summer growing up. One year I got a holiday job, which was only supposed to be for a season, but I ended up staying and the rest is history!

Is there anything that people are surprised about when working with you?

I think they are surprised by the new alternatives we are beginning to offer to traditional scaffolding, and the difference they make to the ease, speed and safety of their work. Most of them take up the use of the stairs I mentioned as an alternative to ladders. So I think what they find surprising is how solutions focused we are; that they don’t have to come to us knowing exactly which product they need, they can say what they need to be able to do and we will design the right scaffold solution for them and put it up.

We put people on the right track and make sure what we deliver is meeting the demands. That’s the result of experience. On every job we’re thorough about what we do. We come along, find out what you need, do a drawing and then put together a digital mock up so you can see what you’re getting. Of course, it all complies with strict regulations to make sure it’s safe.

What have you got on at the moment and what do you have coming up?

We have a number of jobs on at the moment, most is in the South Hams and some are further afield. They’re mostly extensions, renovations and new build residential properties, although there are a few commercial buildings as well, and we’re happy and qualified to work on them all.

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