# Somers Handling

> UK designer and manufacturer of lifting and handling equipment for heavy industry — slab handling, coil and sheet steel handling, rail vehicle lifting, jib cranes, spreader beams, billet lifting beams, davits and bespoke lifting solutions. Engineered and built in Wednesbury, England, to BS EN 13155, LOLER 1998 and CE/UKCA. Certified to ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 (Interface NRM Ltd, UKAS Management Systems 4718). LEEA Associate Member. Made in Britain. Delivered to customers in the UK and internationally.

Somers Handling is a UK-based designer and manufacturer headquartered at Unit 1, Kings Hill Business Park, Darlaston Road, Wednesbury, WS10 7SH. Registered in England, company number 16526522. Services include design consultancy, design and manufacture, repairs, servicing and modernisation. Sectors served include primary steel, aluminium, rail, aerospace, nuclear, energy (wind / oil & gas / power generation), logistics and ports, civil engineering and construction, utilities, and specialist steels. Recent international deliveries include aluminium billet lifting beams to the Middle East, an 85-tonne motorised duplex slab tong to ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India, and a hydraulic billet tong to Sweden. Contact: +44 (0)121 726 3947 · sales@somers-handling.com · https://www.linkedin.com/company/somers-handling-limited/

## Products

- [Jib cranes](https://somers-handling.com/jib-cranes/): UK-manufactured pillar, wall-mounted, articulated and portable jib cranes from 60 kg to 10 tonnes SWL, to BS EN 15011.
- [Slab handling equipment](https://somers-handling.com/slab-handling-equipment/): Tongs, grabs and motorised lifters for steel, aluminium and foundry slab handling, including hot-line up to 1,000 °C.
- [Coil and sheet steel handling](https://somers-handling.com/coil-sheet-steel-handling/): C-hooks, coil tongs (OD and ID), sheet grabs and bespoke coil lifters for steel and aluminium rolling mills.
- [Rail vehicle lifting](https://somers-handling.com/rail-vehicle-lifting-workshop-handling/): Synchronised rail vehicle lifting jacks (5,500 kg–50,000 kg per column), pit-mounted scissor lifts, bogie rotators and turntables.
- [Cranes, gantries and monorails](https://somers-handling.com/cranes-gantries-monorails/): Single- and double-girder overhead cranes, portable A-frame gantries and monorail systems up to 50 tonnes SWL.
- [Spreader beams and lifting frames](https://somers-handling.com/lifting-spreader-beams-frames/): Bespoke and modular spreader beams, H-frames and balanced lifting frames up to 400+ tonnes, engineered to BS EN 13155 and LEEA 059.
- [Lifting davits and sockets](https://somers-handling.com/lifting-davits-sockets/): Portable and fixed lifting davits with cast-in sockets for confined-space access, man-riding and plant maintenance, to BS EN 795 Class E where man-riding.
- [Automatic gravity scissor tongs](https://somers-handling.com/automatic-gravity-scissor-tongs/): Hands-free latch-trip scissor tongs for slab lifting, operator-safe and rated for high-temperature environments.
- [Bespoke lifting equipment](https://somers-handling.com/bespoke-lifting-equipment/): Purpose-designed lifting equipment for non-standard loads, hostile environments or non-standard duty cycles — full UK engineering from concept through commissioning.

## Services

- [Design consultancy](https://somers-handling.com/design-consultancy/): Independent engineering consultancy — feasibility studies, concept and detail design, FEA verification, tender-ready specification writing, design review.
- [Design and manufacture](https://somers-handling.com/design-manufacture/): End-to-end UK design, fabrication, machining, assembly, proof-load testing and commissioning of lifting equipment.
- [Repairs, servicing and modernisation](https://somers-handling.com/repairs-servicing-modernisation/): Planned preventive maintenance, breakdown repair, structural refurbishment and control-system upgrades for overhead cranes, jib cranes, tongs and lifting jacks.

## Case studies

- [Billet lifting beams — Middle East aluminium producer](https://somers-handling.com/case-studies/aluminium-billet-lifting-beams-middle-east/): Coordinated family of lifting beams for a premium aluminium producer's continuous billet casting operation.
- [85 t motorised duplex slab tong — ArcelorMittal Nippon Steel India](https://somers-handling.com/case-studies/arcelormittal-nippon-steel-india-duplex-slab-tong/): 85 tonne SWL motorised duplex slab tong, slab widths 750–2,200 mm, temperatures to 1,000 °C.
- [Hydraulic billet tong — Swedish specialist steel producer](https://somers-handling.com/case-studies/hydraulic-billet-tong-sweden-specialist-steel/): 15 t hydraulic billet tong for hot billets up to 950 °C, replacing a Somers-built tong that served for 20+ years.

## Industries

- [Aluminium](https://somers-handling.com/industries/aluminium/): Billet and slab handling, primary casting, hot-line equipment for aluminium producers.
- [Steel](https://somers-handling.com/industries/steel/): Slab, coil and sheet handling for integrated steel producers, continuous casters, rolling mills and service centres.
- [Rail](https://somers-handling.com/industries/rail/): Vehicle lifting jacks, bogie handling and depot workshop equipment for rolling stock OEMs and depot operators.
- [Aerospace](https://somers-handling.com/industries/aerospace/): Low-particulate monorail and crane systems for composites halls, tooling cells and clean fabrication.
- [Nuclear](https://somers-handling.com/industries/nuclear/): Bespoke handling equipment with customer-standard traceability for nuclear decommissioning and new-build.
- [Energy](https://somers-handling.com/industries/energy/): Wind turbine component beams, transformer H-frames, offshore oil & gas module lifters, substation handling.
- [Logistics and ports](https://somers-handling.com/industries/logistics/): Coil handling, break-bulk lifters, terminal overhead handling and specialist port attachments.
- [Civil engineering](https://somers-handling.com/industries/civil-engineering/): Precast-segment frames, bridge-component lifters, confined-space davits for infrastructure programmes.
- [Utilities](https://somers-handling.com/industries/utilities/): Jib cranes at pumping stations, confined-space davits, substation handling for water / power / gas networks.

## Resources

- [BS EN 13155 for spreader beams — what you need to know](https://somers-handling.com/resources/bs-en-13155-spreader-beams/): Practical explainer of the UK/EU standard for non-fixed load lifting attachments.
- [LOLER inspection intervals explained](https://somers-handling.com/resources/loler-inspection-intervals-explained/): 6-monthly, 12-monthly and post-modification thorough-examination intervals under the Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations 1998.
- [Scissor tongs vs motorised grabs for slab handling](https://somers-handling.com/resources/scissor-tongs-vs-motorised-grabs/): Decision guide — when gravity-actuated scissor tongs are the right choice and when motorised grabs make more sense.
- [Designing lifting equipment for high-temperature environments](https://somers-handling.com/resources/designing-for-high-temperature-environments/): Hot-line design constraints — material choice, thermal expansion, coatings, bearing design.
- [Retrofit vs replace — when to modernise an overhead crane](https://somers-handling.com/resources/retrofit-vs-replace-overhead-crane/): Decision guide for UK facilities managers weighing refurbishment against replacement.

## Standards

- BS EN 13155 — Non-fixed load lifting attachments (spreader beams, tongs, C-hooks, grabs).
- BS EN 15011 — Bridge and gantry cranes (overhead and jib cranes).
- BS EN 1493 — Vehicle lifts (rail vehicle lifting jacks).
- BS EN 795 Class E — Anchor devices (man-riding davits).
- LOLER 1998 — UK Lifting Operations and Lifting Equipment Regulations.
- LEEA 059 — Lifting Equipment Engineers Association code for spreader beams.
- CE / UKCA — European and UK conformity marking.

## Contact

- Phone: +44 (0)121 726 3947
- Email: sales@somers-handling.com
- Registered office: Unit 1, Kings Hill Business Park, Darlaston Road, Wednesbury, WS10 7SH, United Kingdom
- Company registration: 16526522 (England and Wales)
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/somers-handling-limited/