The Royal Burgh of Annan Pipe Band had a special role to play in Finland to celebrate a major milestone for the forestry industry.
Ponsse UK was established in 1996 and, since 2017, the company has operated in Annan with about 30 staff at the service centre.
So, when Ponsse’s 19,000th forest machine was completed at the Vieremä factory, it was fitting to hand it over to Scottish long-term customer Elliot Henderson Ltd, with the Royal Burgh of Annan Pipe Band playing in the background.
The Ponsse Scorpion Giant harvester with H8 harvester head will now be working at logging sites in the Scottish Borders and Scottish Lowlands.
Gary Glendinning, managing director of Ponsse UK, said: “Thank you to the Elliot Henderson group and the Royal Burgh of Annan Pipe Band for coming to Vieremä to celebrate the 19,000th machine milestone with us.
“I understand this is the first time a pipe band has played at Vieremä village, which makes this day even more special for all of us, as this is Ponsse UK’s first milestone machine.
“This is a day that we will remember for years to come.”
Selkirk-based Elliot Henderson Ltd has grown from a small team planting trees 35 years ago to a major company which has diversified into forestry, construction, and scaffolding.
It has more than 40 forest machines which can undertake clear fell, thinning, steep ground harvesting operations, ground preparation or the construction of forest roads, and has the capability for site brash clearance, stump removal and servicing the biomass
industry.
Neil Purves, director of harvesting for Elliot Henderson Group said: “We are excited to be adding this Scorpion Giant to the fleet.
The first Ponsse forest machine came to the country in 1994, and the fleet now comprises nearly 400 Ponsse machines.
