RSS Stocks ASCO NSL Handbooks, Posters, Push-Pull Poles

Rope and Sling Specialists Ltd. (RSS) has added safety awareness handbooks, posters, and Push-Pull Poles, to its online store and Pyle, Wales stockroom. The offering, new for 2025, is provided by ASCO’s Lifting and Assurance Specialists – NSL.

With over three decades of field experience, NSL is well known for making lifting operations safer, while helping clients to remain compliant in increasingly complex environments. Its range of services includes technical assistance and practical training courses supported by handbooks, posters, videos, and interactive tools.

RSS has an exclusivity agreement, primarily related to the UK, to stock handbooks, covering a range of subjects, from packaging standards to rigging and lifting; posters, showing messages on a wide range of safety topics; and Push-Pull Poles, which are designed to help facilitate hands-free lifting.

The NSL suite of 10 specialist lifting and safety publications includes the International Rigging & Lifting Handbook, which has sold over one million copies to date. Other titles include: Working at Height; International Advance Rigger; Safe Cargo Handling; Crane Operations; Manual Handling; Injuries to Fingers & Hands; and Confined Space Entry. Additionally, RSS will stock 16 different suites of bespoke posters that are available in any requested size and can be framed or laminated.

Craig Revie, head of specialist services at ASCO, said: “We are delighted to strengthen our product distribution network through this partnership. As one of the largest independent lifting equipment suppliers in the UK, with a national network of soon-to-be 14 depots, this collaboration will allow our lifting handbooks, media, and safety products to reach new markets and customers.”

Alan Varney, engineering services director at RSS, said: “The detail covered by ASCO’s NSL safety awareness tools and hardware is second to none. Any companies that use lifting equipment should encourage all staff to have one of their handbooks in their desk or at least grant them easy access to one. There are countless scenarios where I refer to mine, even after decades in the lifting and rigging industry. The posters are perfect for workshops and canteens.

“I’ve seen all the relevant literature in the market and there is more information in these products than anywhere else. We will monitor who is purchasing other equipment and wares from us, and make sure they are aware of this new essential offering.”

The Push-Pull Poles are a lightweight tool designed with ease of use and handling in mind. When retracted, they help personnel position a load at a safe distance and, when extended, give a long reach to retrieve taglines and ensure nobody is positioned beneath a suspended load. As Varney pointed to in NSL literature, hands-free lifting hinges on an understanding of the hazards; a plan to use best methods; Push-Pull Poles (positioning devices); and taglines.

Varney added: “As you are not allowed to touch a load once it is in the air, you can use the poles to position the load, while the other end has an attachment that is used to grab a tagline. Logistics, offshore, and wider energy industries present loading, unloading, and material handling challenges on a daily basis where the use of Push-Pull Poles are perfectly suited. The addition of the poles to our portfolio gives existing and new customers access to a complementary range of tools that goes hand-in-glove with our established offerings and the products that are already in their rigging lofts.”

RSS is stocking the popular International Rigging & Lifting Handbook.
NSL is well known for making lifting operations safer, while helping clients to remain compliant.
The NSL range of services includes technical assistance and practical training courses.
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