Currently working towards net zero, London-based Admiral Scaffolding Group is set to reach its 2030 target date. With copious investments underway, Director of Operations Rhodri Harris spoke in detail to Inside Sustainability. Report by Imogen Ward.
NOa mission to be the first choice scaffolding sub-contractor in London, Admiral Scaffolding Group firmly believes it cannot achieve this without solid investments .
“As a company, we are very approachable and hands-on with all customer requests,” Director of Operations Rhodri Harris explained. “Our ability to be carbon neutral is a big motivator for clients as well – and it’s something our Managing Director genuinely believes in. “
Admiral Scaffolding’s presence on the market dates back to the 1970s. However , the formation of the group did not occur until 2000, when the current Managing Director, Terry Withers, acquired the company, merging his portfolio of scaffolding companies together to form Admiral Scaffolding Group. The company is also a certified carbon neutral business.
Source of sustainability
Mr Withers also works closely with the Worshipful Company of Constructors, a modern City of London Livery Company
for professionals within the construction industry. Over the years, Mr Withers has worked extensively with the Livery, before taking on the role of Master in 2023. The Worshipful Company of Constructors also run an internal Climate Action Group.
“This is what really inspired our dedication to becoming more environmentally responsible,” Mr Harris explained. “Off the back of that, we began engaging with carbon measurement specialist Positive Planet in 2021. At that time, the company measured our accounts to provide a carbon footprint base data set. We have witnessed a reduction in carbon in the years since then.”
When it comes to calculating its carbon footprint, Admiral Scaffolding takes every element of the business into account. The company strongly believes that carbon neutrality will not be possible without transparency and honesty.
“There are several scaffolding companies out there who don’t account for the impact of plant purchasing,” said Mr Harris. “We take the journey to net zero
seriously, which is why we always include our plant purchasing in our carbon emissions measurements.”
Working in collaboration with Positive Planet, Admiral Scaffolding also successfully offset its carbon emissions for the 2022 period. Having produced 120tCO2e, the company planted 1,450 trees and diverted 145kg of plastic from the ocean through various charities, to offset 145tCO2e.
Ingenious investment
In 2022, Admiral Scaffolding also purchased a new nail plating machine to improve its carbon footprint even further. Located at its yard in Wimbledon, this new machine is set to have a big impact on the lifecycle of the group’s scaffolding boards.
“Wooden boards are probably our biggest issue, because they degrade quickly and have a short life span of around three to four years,” Mr Harris commented. “The new plating machine was an important investment because it compresses boards and adds a plate
along the width, making them a lot sturdier. Every board that comes back from a site is now put through this process.
“By doing this, we are able to lengthen the life of the boards by at least 50 per cent. This commitment enables us to cut down our wood consumption considerably.”
Keen to continue the path of life extension, Admiral Scaffolding is also in talks to improve the longevity of its scaffolding tubes.
“We have located a company in the North of England who can weld our tubes back together,” Mr Harris continued. “This has enabled us to extend the life of offcut
tubing that are no longer of usable size. This saves us having to purchase new tubes. Off the back of this, we have implemented strict policies on tube and wood cutting to further improve the rotation of our equipment.”
As an extension of this, Admiral Scaffolding has invested heavily into a new system which relies on extendable and structural chart zones using fulllength boards in a configuration of five by three. This removes the need for cuttings to be made – further improving the lifespan of the group’s boards.
The group has also invested in iphorms software, bringing it one step closer to being a paper-free organisation. This new software will have a significant impact on Admiral Scaffolding’s journey towards becoming carbon neutral.
Admiral Scaffolding’s carbon neutral status has not only been a benefit to the environment, but it has also helped the group attain specific jobs over the years.
“In the past, we have been approached by companies that align with our carbon neutral status,” Mr Harris continued. “They were very keen to work with a company that was carbon neutral, which worked really well for us.”
Progressing plans
All of Admiral Scaffolding’s accomplishments would not have been possible without its committed and hardworking partners. Included in this, is George Roberts, who supplies all of the group’s plant. As a family-run business, George Roberts’ ethos and company vision perfectly aligns with Admiral Scaffolding –making it the ideal choice.
Also included in this line up is Positive Planet. According to Mr Harris, this company really stood out when Admiral Scaffolding first began its journey towards improved sustainability: “We looked at several measurement companies, but Positive Planet shone above the rest, because it has an excellent attitude, and it doesn’t do things half measure. The company’s comprehensive understanding of the construction industry was also another huge deciding factor.”
With its sights firmly set on being net zero by 2030, Admiral Scaffolding is ready to invest further in the electrification of its fleet, whilst keeping its eyes peeled for any potential investment opportunities.
“An obvious next step for us, will be transitioning our remaining fleet to
electric power,” said Mr Harris. “This will include all our commercial vehicles and our minibuses. We would also love to implement more processes to aid energy reduction, however, we are currently located in a rented premises – which limits our ability to invest. If the right land was to come up, we are prepared to relocate and build an energyefficient facility.”
When discussing his time with the company, Mr Harris was very reflective: “I really enjoy working for a family-run business. I am actually Terry’s son-in-law , and I stumbled into this job after around four years of knowing him; my time at the company snowballed from there.
“We have successfully grown year-onyear, and that is thanks to the amazing team at the heart of the company.” n
