AWL or pewag,” says Charlesworth. “There is a huge amount of experience and engineering knowledge within pewag. That means we are able to listen to the client and offer customised solutions.” What begins as a custom lifting solution can sometimes evolve into a standard product. This is particularly true at Modulift, where custom beams and frames are regularly developed around customers’ specific lifting applications.
Career path The career path from operations to sales is well-documented – but a road less travelled is from finance to sales. This is the route that Charlesworth took, starting his career in this industry in the accounts department at Bridon International in 1990. The company, based in Doncaster in the north of England, gave Charlesworth the opportunity to progress and he grabbed it with both hands. “Bridon was great at supporting the career development of its employees,” he says. “The management team believed in promoting from within and were happy to help you to switch from one department to another.” He found it an easy transition from finance
to internal sales. “You are still speaking to customers on a daily basis, so it wasn’t a hard move to make – and looking back it was definitely the right one.” He stayed with Bridon for 18 years, mainly as its business development manager, before moving on to other roles within the lifting industry. More recently, he spent five years in business development for Modulift, the modular lifting beam and frame specialist based on the English south coast. Modulift was acquired by the lifting chain manufacturer pewag group in 2022. Incredibly, pewag can trace its roots back to a forge in Austria founded in the 1400s, with pewag itself formed in 1923. In recent years it has been snapping up synergistic companies
At Modulift, custom beams and frames are developed around customers’ specific needs. “One of the best things about this industry
including Modulift and load monitoring systems specialist LMS. Today the group operates more than 15 multinational brands, spanning over 50 locations on five continents. In March 2025, it consolidated the UK
sales teams of pewag, Modulift and LMS, with Charlesworth appointed as sales director.
and my role within it is that you never stop learning,” he says. “I appreciate it is a cliché, but every day is a new day. Each day I come across something new, whether it is a new application or lifting challenge, or even a new customer. There is always something to pique your interest.”
The lifting industry’s close-knit nature brings people together.
In addition, the familial nature of the industry means that the people within it form strong bonds. “Lifting is a very close-knit industry, and people tend to stick around – I know people who have been in it even longer than me. That says something about how hard it is to leave this industry, and part of that is down to the relationships you build. It is a small industry, and quite niche, but it is also a great community.” In addition, Charlesworth still loves the solutions aspect of his job. “I’ve still got a way to go in my career, but I have amassed a lot of experience and I do like sharing that knowledge and passing it on. I really enjoy helping people solve their lifting problems and helping to make lifting safer.”
www.hoistmagazine.com | November/December 2026 | vii
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