485 Aluminium Panels Transform Edinburgh Marathon Festival
The Project Brief
Established in 2003, the Edinburgh Marathon Festival is Scotland’s largest mass participation running event, with over 35,000 runners and 100,000 spectators enjoying eleven different race distances over two days. The races include a full marathon, half marathon, 5K, 10K, two junior races, and a team relay race called the “Hairy Haggis”. Aluminium Panels were required for the event to go ahead.
We feel privileged that our client, GSI Events Ltd, have approached us to support them with this iconic Scottish event, every year for a whole decade! Since our first interaction with the GSI team, we proved ourselves with in-depth, safe planning, as well as thorough and efficient solutions, allowing us to build a trusted relationship and be lucky enough to win the job year after year.
And so, once again the organisers required our aluminium DTH panels to create temporary walkways, parking areas and site compounds for the finish straight, baggage area, medical area and catering area.
Due to the requirement of a mixture of walkways, parking and compounds, (that continue to grow, year upon year with increased popularity!), it was a large and technical job, more important than ever. We knew with the high footfall of participants, as well as attendees, our trackway would need to be seamless, and methodical with health and safety considered from every angle! Once our project engineers mapped out a precise plan, the total calculation of panels was a huge 485!

Location & Ground Type
The location was at the Pinkie Playing Fields in Edinburgh, although standard playing fields are relatively flat, there are always parts of the ground that are not truly level which can equate to small areas of stagnant water puddles, mud and slippage.
We needed to fulfil trackway requirements for three different purposes, planning and preparing the ground for temporary walkways, parking areas and site compounds. This made for a tricky assessment and risk calculation. Due to the soft turf we also needed to ensure the trackway would be laid sufficiently, with the correct cushion underlay and accessories, so there was no damage to the grass from the vehicles and the largely anticipated footfall.
Project Challenges
- Trip hazards were a huge priority with this being a sporting event where participants run at a fast speed.
- Vehicles as always, were a great concern. We were particularly concerned about the ground on entrance and exit to and from the medical tent which emergency services would potentially need to access.
- The weather for the event on the weekend in May was predicted to be dry which is always a bonus from a health and safety perspective, however, we still had to prepare for harsh downpours and severe slippage, as UK weather is very unpredictable.

Our 2nd generation aluminium DTH Panels solution
Considering the high volume of footfall at the event it was imperative that there were no trip hazards, making our 2nd generation aluminium DTH Panels the perfect solution. With counter-sunk fixings and overlapping male/female ends, our panels were also centre-braced to create a continuously flush and trip-free 6m wide surface. PVC cloaking mats were also fixed to each end of the runs to provide smooth access and egress for vehicles and pedestrians alike.
“Davis Trackhire are proud to be a long-standing supply partner to EMF over the past 10 years, having supplied our temporary walkway and roadway systems for the festival since 2014. The intricate Trackway installation schedule is an integral part of the event set-up, and any delays would have a significant impact on the rest of the build. This is what sets us apart in our industry, and we are very pleased to have played a key role in the delivery of another first-class event” – Rob Palmer, Head of UK Sales

Project Outcome
With our extensive experience in outdoor events and the use of our state-of-the-art remote-controlled trucks, we successfully fulfilled our client’s brief and provided an effective trackway solution for the 2024 race.
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The nature of our job specification demands a flexible and professional approach to navigate the numerous and complex challenges presented by our event delivery model.
Davis Trackhire not only meet these challenges, but exceed our expectations in every aspect. Their team demonstrate exceptional expertise, adaptability, and dedication to our needs. The continued support and hands-on involvement from their senior management have been instrumental in maintaining the high standards of service we require. Their proactive approach and unwavering commitment to excellence ensure that they continue to provide outstanding service, contributing significantly to the smooth delivery of The Edinburgh Marathon Festival.”