Positioning a Specialist Rope Access and Training Business for Structured Growth
Business Overview
Dangle is a Belfast-based rope access and industrial services company delivering specialist work at height solutions alongside industry-led training.
The business supports clients across the renewables, marine, construction, industrial maintenance, and film industries. Alongside operational services, Dangle provides accredited training including IRATA Rope Access, workplace health and safety programmes, and the internationally recognised Train the Painter industrial coatings scheme, for which Dangle holds exclusive training rights in Northern Ireland.
Training operations began in 2025 with a clear strategic aim: to build a model where operational delivery and training develop side by side, ensuring programmes reflect real industry requirements while supporting individuals from qualification through to employment.
The Challenge
As a new business operating within a highly specialised industry, Dangle faced several early-stage challenges.
The company needed to:
- Establish credibility within the Northern Ireland business and industrial community
- Position itself within the right professional networks
- Communicate clearly across two distinct but connected areas: services and training
- Make early growth decisions that were commercially sustainable
- Build confidence that they were targeting the right opportunities
Entering a new regional market meant that relationships, visibility, and trust had to be built from the ground up.
Strategic Support
Our senior business advisor worked closely with Managing Director Simon Dunn to bring structure and focus to Dangle’s early growth phase.
Support included:
- Identifying and accessing relevant industry and business networks
- Clarifying marketing messaging across both training and services
- Strengthening digital visibility, including connections that led to the development of YouTube video content showcasing the training environment
- Financial mentoring around sustainable growth, funding and expansion planning
- Guidance through networking events and business masterclasses to strengthen strategic decision-making
The focus was not simply on promotion, but on ensuring that visibility, financial planning, and operational growth progressed together.
Results
The outcomes demonstrate the impact of structured mentoring at a critical stage.
Within a short period, Dangle achieved:
- An increase in enquiry-to-booking conversion from 27% to 49% in just two months
- Growth in both training enquiries and service partnerships
- 27 Rope Access trainees trained with a 96% first-time pass rate
- Successful progression of a candidate to Coating Supervisor, the highest level within the Train the Painter programme
- Development of internal capability, including progression of a Level 3 Trainer to IRATA Instructor status
- Engagement with initiatives such as Living Wage NI and the Belfast Business Promise, strengthening ethical positioning
The business moved from the planning phase into structured, measurable growth with improved commercial performance.
The Impact
The support helped Dangle transition from a technically capable start-up into a strategically positioned and networked business.
It provided:
- Confidence that growth decisions were structured and financially realistic
- Access to relevant networks within Northern Ireland
- Clearer messaging and improved market visibility
- A stronger foundation for building a training-to-employment pathway
Today, the business operates with a clear model that bridges the gap between training and employment, supporting skills development while also addressing industry shortages.
In Simon’s Words
“When you’re building a specialist training and services business, having access to the right guidance and networks early on makes a real difference. Our business advisor helped us connect with people and organisations relevant to our industry and gave us the confidence to grow Dangle in a structured and sustainable way. The support came at a key stage in our development and has continued to influence how we approach growth.”
Simon Dunn, Managing Director, Dangle
Future Plans
Dangle’s next stage of growth includes:
- Introducing new accredited training programmes such as GWO training, EUSR Tower Climbing and Rescue, and City & Guilds Confined Space qualifications
- Expanding the services division, supported by further engagement around tendering and accessing public and private sector contracts
- Continuing to strengthen the training-to-employment pathway
- Maintaining sustainable growth while upholding high training and safety standards
Dangle is now positioned as a credible, specialist operator with both operational capability and recognised training provision, underpinned by structured business development and strategic growth planning.
