Ainscough deal swallows Sparrow Crane

In a multi million pound takeover deal, Wigan based Ainscough Crane Hire has acquired the business of Gordon Sparrow Crane Hire of Bristol and its sister company, Coventry Crane Hire.

Ainscough, number three in the UK crane hire league, claims that the move plugs a gap in its existing hire network.

The deal - part of series of expansion plans proposed for 1995 - takes the number of depots run by the company to nine and increases Ainscough's fleet size, with the addition of 30 machines, to more than 160 machines.

Both Coventry Crane Hire and Gordon Sparrow Crane Hire are managed by chairman Gordon Sparrow and his son Timothy Sparrow. After the handover they will concentrate on their used crane and brokerage business, Gordon Sparrow Plant Sales.