The PES Performance Team, are delighted to hear that Yorkshire Man of Steel project has been awarded initial support from the Heritage Lottery Fund (HLF); the first and key stage in moving the project to realisation.
PES Performance have been involved in the project for the past four years, and we were immediately enthused by the Man of Steel concept from the first time we met Steve Mehdi & Jane in 2012.
We’re proud to be based at the heart of the Sheffield City Region, with the region’s heritage and reputation in the coal, steel and advanced engineering industries, and this is one of the key reasons why we decided to locate our business at the Advanced Manufacturing Park.
We therefore feel that it is entirely fitting that the Man of Steel celebrates the importance of the Yorkshire steel and coal industries, the lives of the men and women who worked in them and ensures that the next generations understand their local and Yorkshire heritage.
But it is not all about the past. The project also will showcase the best of the region’s current and future manufacturing technology, and as a high performance engineering design company this is what we are all about. It may appear to be a simple challenge; however the construction of the iconic Yorkshire Man of Steel will require the design engineering, manufacturing and construction expertise of the regional businesses, the ‘Team of Steel’ to deliver this unique and challenging project.
Not only will the Man of Steel put the region and Yorkshire firmly on the ‘international stage’ it will also profile regional expertise around the globe through this amazing and innovative sculpture. We are certainly very excited and our design team cannot wait to start the engineering design on the external structure of the Man of Steel.
We have been fully supportive of Steve as he pushed hard to offset the inevitable critics, who only saw the sculpture and not what it truly represents as an icon of the people, community and Yorkshire. Nothing could have cemented this more than the development and creation of the Heart of Steel; the first sculpture of which now sits proudly outside Rotherham’s Minster.
The Heart has already raised over £100,000 with thousands being given to the British Heart Foundation as part of the support for Rotherham as a ‘Heart Town’. All of the money being donated by the people, who in return will get their names placed on the second heart that will be placed inside the Man of Steel. Donations have not only come from Yorkshire but from around the world, showing the global reach of the project and pride of the region.
We have used our expertise in 3D scanning and engineering design to help bring the Man of Steel to life. The scanning has allowed the accurate reproduction of Steve’s 300mm high bronze maquette, and which has been scaled up to create the famous model now seen by thousands of people around the region. Eventually the scan data will help us to create the final 30m high piece.
It is important that the entire project will be designed and fabricated locally, harnessing a range of specialist skills and materials and showcasing the region’s renowned reputation for excellence.
Following the generous Heritage Lottery Fund donation, we look forward to working with Steve, Jane & the other companies in the ‘Team of Steel’ to bring the project to reality over the coming months; helping create a new Yorkshire Icon which will both celebrate the past and present, encourage people to visit and also help boost the region’s future economy.
