The versatile telehandler enables the removal of nearly 300 hazardous trees in the Cumbernauld and Kilsyth districts, enhancing safety and efficiency.

Councils are required to manage and undertake work to any tree which constitutes a statutory nuisance and all councils have a programme of inspection and tree maintenance works to not only protect local residents but to preserve and maintain a healthy tree population.

Keith Gallacher, director of Complete Weed Control operations in Scotland, said: “North Lanarkshire Council has a very comprehensive strategy in place to deal with the threat of hazardous trees, which has been exacerbated by the spread of Ash Dieback disease.

“Its teams have surveyed its tree estate and have supplied us with detailed information about all the trees which need to be dealt with within Wards 1 and 4.

“The Merlo Roto can reach up from ground level to remove large parts of the affected tree, and bring them to operators who can further dismantle them for removal and disposal.”

The firm’s investment in the Merlo Roto means that work that was previously done laboriously and often dangerously by hand can now be carried out much more safely and in a fraction of the time.

The machine can lift nearly 5,000 kilos in one grab and is ideal for working in confined or awkward spaces, or difficult-to-reach areas such as back gardens.

Complete Weed Control posted a record £2.75 million in sales last year, up from £2m the previous year.

Growth has been boosted by new client acquisition as well as its tree services division, which now contributes equally with the longer-established weed suppressant and grass cutting services it supplies to mostly public sector organisations.