Castors fit for a king

King Richard III being laid to rest is certainly one of the most important events to occur this century. The symbolic procession from Leicester University, past the Bosworth battlefield and finally to Leicester Cathedral was a fitting tribute to one of the nation’s most legendary historical figures.

Throughout the week-long proceedings quietly working behind the scenes were a host of local businesses. One of these businesses, helping to keep the operation moving – quite literally – were Ross Handling.

King Richard III being laid to rest is certainly one of the most important events to occur this century. The symbolic procession from Leicester University, past the Bosworth battlefield and finally to Leicester Cathedral was a fitting tribute to one of the nation’s most legendary historical figures.

Throughout the week-long proceedings quietly working behind the scenes were a host of local businesses. One of these businesses, helping to keep the operation moving – quite literally – were Ross Handling.

For over forty years Ross Handling have been supplying to customers throughout the globe and one of these customers is Sprint Lifting Equipment, also in Leicester.

Sprint Lifting design and manufacture a full range of integrated material handling and lifting solutions. They were commissioned to move and position the Swaledale Fossil tombstone – crafted by stonemason James Elliott – which was placed in Leicester Cathedral to mark King Richard III’s final resting place.

Such an important – and not to mention heavy – object required Sprint to develop a range of bespoke trolley solutions; of course any trolley needs wheels and this is where Ross Handling come in.

Sprint Lifting Managing Director Danny Carey explained his reasons for choosing Ross Handling for what is one of the most important commissions in the company’s history, “It was a real honour to be asked to position the tombstone in Leicester Cathedral and we would like to thank James Elliott for bringing Sprint on-board. It was a project with a number of unique challenges for us and all eyes have been on this event throughout the world. We knew that only Ross Handling could provide the wheels with the quality and reliability that we needed for such an important occasion.”

Louise Horne, Ross Handling Director added, “Our products are used in many wonderful places including film sets and the Olympic Opening Ceremony, but this has been particularly special. We are delighted that we could play our part in what is an important occasion for the entire country”.

Richard III was reinterred in Leicester Cathedral on Thursday 26th March 2015.