St Paul’s calls for Darlington business

A County Durham specialist repair and maintenance company is completing thousands of pounds worth of work at one of the UK’s most iconic landmarks.

Darlington-based Stone Technical Services is already the only lightning conductor contractor approved to work at St Paul’s Cathedral in London and has worked with Clerk of Works for over 20 years on aspects such as maintenance and structure surveys.

Stone has recently been appointed to install state-of-the-art safety systems which will allow safe access to the difficult cornice and tri-forum levels. The system will make it easier and safer for any maintenance and conservation works to be carried out.

Stone designed the bespoke safety systems using QBM Soter safety equipment, which offers the best safety standards in the industry, for St Paul’s tri-forum level on the West front and also for the peripheral upper cornice some 300 feet high.

Stone’s system is both practical and compliant with stringent safety guidelines, inline with HSE legislation offering full protection against issues including corporate manslaughter. In addition, the Soter system will allow for lower cost future roof maintenance as it provides easier access for works such as gutter cleaning, roof-light cleaning and lightning protection maintenance.

Stone Technical Services has grown to be a UK leader in high level and general maintenance, lightning protection, safety systems and historic restoration and renovation.

Last year growth surpassed managers’ expectations with turnover peaking at around £2 million. The company opened a new Edinburgh office to add to its sites in London, Middlesex and Cheshire and its HQ on Kellaw Road in Darlington.

Already in 2013 Stone has created five new jobs, taking staff numbers to 35, and is on target to increase its workforce throughout the year.

As well as being the approved contractor managing lightning protection on St Paul’s Cathedral, Stone works with a variety of organisations such as local authorities and housing associations and on historic structures, churches, war memorials, schools, offices and car parks, counting organisations such as English Heritage, the National Trust, the NHS and British Waterways amongst its clients

MD of Stone Technical Services, Dave Stone, said: “Our work is now so varied- from smaller but vital jobs repairing windows, gutters, masonry or roofs to renovation and technical repairs at landmarks such as St Paul’s Cathedral. It’s a real honour to be entrusted to work on this type of structure as it is recognised and highly regarded all over the world. Our extensive skills portfolio and the way we work- with little or no disruption- have helped to cement our reputation as one of the UK’s leading businesses in this field and it is projects like this that are enabling us to grow and create new job opportunities.”

http://www.stonetechnicalgroup.co.uk