With 125 years of expertise, Malin Abram leads in heavy lifting
Having been a mainstay of the UK marine industry for over a century, Malin Abram personifies professionalism and practical expertise. The company is known for its ability to provide unparalleled client support, building creatively on its long-held values and heritage. As James Bowie, Managing Director of Malin Abram, begins: “Malin Abram, part of Malin Group, can trace its roots back to 1899, with the founding of Henry Abram & Sons by Henry Abram. Back then it had another name – the Steamship Strathleven Co. Ltd. This was reflective of the fact that we owned ships and was a reference to our flagship vessel The Strathleven.
“The company owned several vessels throughout the early years, before diversifying into ship delivery following WWII. At this time, half of the world’s vessels were designed and built in the UK. Henry Abram Ltd managed the delivery of ships from the UK to emerging countries all over the world, with the successful delivery of over 300 vessels between 1928 and 1964. As the company then moved into the 1970s, ship delivery requirements reduced as the demand for UK built ships dwindled. This resulted in a move away from ship delivery and into heavy lift transport services, which they continue to deliver today. As you can see, across the last 125 years, the company has grown, developed and responded to client requirements, a commitment we still uphold, with a continual desire to innovate and develop industry practices.
“Malin Abram offers a range of heavy lift and transportation services, from initial feasibility and FEED studies to FEA and stability analysis, seafastening design, third-party warranty services – and everything in between. Many of our clients come to us for full turnkey transportation services, for example the load-out and installation of a saturation dive system for WellSafe’s Guardian, or the more recent load-out and float-off of HMS Cardiff. We may work in tandem with a number of other suppliers, as well as the client, to deliver the best possible solution.”
Forming part of the wider Malin Group, Malin Abram is able to provide its clients with a full end-to-end service. “Our work covers the defense, nuclear, oil and gas, renewables and civil sectors. In this, the Malin Abram team is supported by colleagues who are specialists in a variety of complementary areas, covering feasibility studies and concept design, specialist equipment design and delivery, and specialist welding and training. We also have a partnership with Augustea, through which we offer the CD01, a 137-meter semi-submersible barge, to the market, one of the largest available across Europe.
Bespoke solutions
“The CD01 withstanding however, we pride ourselves on not being equipment owners. Instead, we source the best solution from the market for our clients, or, if the market doesn’t have what they need, we can even design something bespoke and built for purpose. Heavy lift, to us, is more than the operational side of supplying cranes, ships, barges and heavy haulage. We want to really understand our clients’ needs to provide practical, economical, and often novel solutions. The CD01 is a pertinent example here, where we worked with Augustea to take an existing asset, and modify it, strengthening and lengthening the barge to 137 meters, to support the requirements of the BAE frigate program. Until that time there wasn’t an optimal solution on the market, so we designed a customizable solution, with removable caissons, to serve the vessels, and provide longer term support to the nuclear and renewable markets.
“We don’t therefore have a standard set of products per se – instead what we offer, and love to provide, are bespoke solutions, wherein the team can draw on their experience and expertise to provide an answer that best serves our clients requirements. Each member of the team, me included, is passionate about our industry. We are motivated by a desire to push best practice, innovate, and continually question, reflect and refine. It’s a drive that fits very well with our company history, which is one of continual innovation and refinement of services,” James enthuses.
Project portfolio expansion 
Thanks to its wide array of in-house capabilities, Malin Abram has worked on a diverse range of cutting-edge projects. “There are so many great projects to choose from – for example, the Tay Whale transportation posed a unique challenge due to its complexity and design – and certainly not the type of project the team normally work on. We also are grateful to be involved in many major defense projects such as the large-scale turnkey scopes of the launch of HMS Glasgow, HMS Cardiff, the Aircraft Carrier, OPVs, and CVFs, whose size and scope can often take your breath away.
“But there are also those projects that represent a move into a new area, geographically or across sector, such as our work with Wave Energy Scotland and AWS on the Archimedes Waveswing tidal device, or our current work in the Middle East on a few key civils projects. We’ve also been working on some feasibility studies for the transportation of offshore renewables structures.
“Each of the projects I have noted also demonstrate how the group may work together, whether that’s through a combination of specialist equipment design and roll-out operations, or the design, specialist fabrication, finishing, transportation and installation of structures for Hinkley Point C. Everything we do draws upon the skills of each of our specialized business units,” James details.
In November 2024, Malin Abram was excited to announce a brand-new exhibition to commemorate its monumental 125-year anniversary. Hosted in the Scottish Maritime Museum (SMM), the showcase celebrated the Abrams’ family heritage and the incredible impact they’ve had on the sector, as well as highlight wider industry developments throughout history within the Glasgow region.
Reflecting on the business’ journey and success, the coming years for Malin Abram will continue to be characterized by innovation, teamwork and the harnessing of new technologies; as James discusses: “It’s been a great year and we would be happy to see more of the same, with a variety of interesting projects across various sectors. Our team is a great mix of experienced engineers and graduates, and a variety of projects enables the latter to get valuable experience that’s also varied enough to continually challenge our more established team members. I think we will continue to grow over the next 12 months, and there are always opportunities to join our team as our portfolio of projects expands.
“Our long-term focus will be on the continual refinement of products, services, and solutions to ensure we retain our commitment to best practice. I believe we will continue to harness new technologies and methods, with increasing partnerships and collaborations with other like-minded organizations, from industry bodies to higher education establishments. Personally, I would also love to see some of those young people we have worked with through Malin Young Engineers to join the industry – with Malin or more widely,” he concludes.