Grapevine

3 May 2024

Welcome to this week’s Grapevine, the place to get your bitesize FM updates in one place, in a handy five-minute read.

Got a story for us? Please send news stories & press releases to: newsdesk@twinfm.com.

OCS’s Goodness Initiative Shortlisted for Prestigious Cateys Award

The Cateys, the most prestigious awards in the hospitality industry, have announced their shortlist for this year’s awards. The awards acknowledge outstanding performers, inspiring brands, and top achievers within the sector, as determined by industry professionals.

Among those shortlisted is OCS, a leading global facilities management business. Their catering brand, Angel Hill’s Goodness initiative, has been nominated in the Health and Nutrition Award category.

The Goodness initiative was born from a need to communicate the value of proper nutrition, debunk food fads, and reintroduce fun into healthy eating. Their team of chefs and nutritionists passionately crafted pathways to bring diverse, nutrient-dense meals to teams. In 2023, they bolstered the initiative with customised and cost-conscious approaches in both the public and private sectors. Through strategic investments, they empowered on-site catering managers with resources to provide nutritious meals to teams nationwide.

The initiative comprises various forms of activation material and events aimed at introducing “more of the good stuff” into eating. The team carried out local pop-ups on customer sites, including schools and hospitals, where they engaged in complimentary ‘Goodness Lessons’ for students. These lessons communicated how foods can aid students in their learning and processing. In hospitals, the team engaged in complimentary ‘Coffee & Chat Sessions’, taking the familiar format of a coffee chat to create an engaging, conversational setting for healthcare residents. This provided insight into evidence-based information to empower residents on the benefits of proper nutrition.

Apart from the events and pop-ups carried out by the teams, their Goodness initiative also aimed to tackle a more climate-conscious food service delivery by providing “reduced-carbon recipes”. These recipes, where possible, use 20% less meat, substituting with lentils and pulses instead. This approach does not entirely isolate the large percentage of the population that still eats meat, but slightly alters the recipe to use less of it.

The winners will be announced on the 2nd of July at JW Marriott Grosvenor House London. Congratulations to all the nominees!

Heath and Wiltshire Celebrates 50 Years With Brand Refresh

Heath and Wiltshire Ltd, a leading cleaning and facilities management services organisation in South West England, proudly announces a significant milestone as the company commemorates its 50th anniversary with a brand refresh and new trading name.

As part of its strategic development, Heath and Wiltshire Ltd will now trade under the name HW Facilities, while retaining its registered company name. Founded in 1974 by the company's founder and current chairman, Tom M Marriott, the organisation has transformed significantly in terms of services and reputation and is now a trusted partner for multi-million-pound contracts, serving household names and servicing over 500 contracts in both the public and private sectors.

"We are excited to embark on this new chapter in our company's history," said Tom Marriott, operations director at HW Facilities and son of the company founder. "It’s been five decades since my father founded Heath and Wiltshire Ltd, which was previously a coachworks company. Over the years, the cleaning side of the business developed, originally servicing Hampshire and Berkshire before we moved to Wiltshire.”

“We now have 750 employees, and our services extend nationally across a wide range of commercial cleaning, valeting and facilities management services. We needed a new brand that better represented the scale and operations of the company now.”

The new brand identity features a contemporary 'HW' logo mark, which honours the legacy of Heath and Wiltshire, accompanied by the integrated tagline 'Clean Spaces', emphasising the company's commitment to providing clean environments in many different sectors.

“While the organisation has changed over time, our core values of cleaning excellence, innovation and family values have not. Employee well-being and FIR values are key priorities.” Tom continued. “We recognise that the dedication of the Heath and Wiltshire teams over the years have been the foundation to our success and extend our sincere gratitude to everyone involved in the business including our clients, suppliers, partners, and industry friends who have supported us.”

In addition to the brand refresh, the organisation has invested in revamping its online presence, with a new website which showcases the new brand identity. Its clean, modern design features the new brand colour palette and has improved site navigation to help users find the information they need with ease.

"We believe our new brand will help strengthen our market position and reinforce our reputation as a trusted partner in cleaning and facilities management," adds Tom. “The future of HW Facilities is exciting with our key focus to continue our sustainable growth.”

£98 Million Worth of Tools Stolen From Tradespeople

Tools worth £98 million were stolen from tradespeople in 2023 according to new analysis2 by Direct Line business insurance. In total, 44,514 incidents of tool theft were reported to police forces in 2023 a five per cent increase from 2022, which equates to a tool theft reported every 12 minutes.

Last year saw 24,543 reports of tool theft from a vehicle, up 14 per cent from the previous year, accounting for over half (55 per cent) of all tool thefts in 2023. This comes even though 94 per cent of tradespeople are taking extra precautions to secure their tools, with tradespeople spending on average £626 retrofitting their vans with additional security3 including additional locks, drill plates, trackers and alarms.  Over half (56 per cent) of tool thefts from a vehicle occur at night, with thefts most commonly occurring while the vehicle is parked overnight at the tradespersons home or in a carpark. 

Tool theft has a massive financial impact on tradespeople. As well as the cost of replacing tools, 83 per cent say they lost business because of the theft and not having their tools to work. Tradespeople reported losing work worth an average £1,836 the last time their tools were stolen, meaning an estimated £82 million4 worth of jobs were lost by trades in 2023.

London’s Metropolitan Police accounted for over half (54 per cent) of all tool theft, but when the size of the local population is assessed, Cleveland police had more tool thefts per resident than London.

26 April

Pareto FM Welcomes New Apprentices at Whipsnade and London Zoo

Pareto FM, a leading facilities management company, is excited to announce the appointment of three new apprentices, with one joining the team at Whipsnade and two at London Zoo. These valuable additions highlight Pareto's dedication to nurturing talent and providing outstanding service in diverse environments.

The apprentices will embark on a comprehensive training program under the guidance of experienced professionals, gaining hands-on experience in various facets of facilities management. Through this apprenticeship, they will have the opportunity to develop essential skills and knowledge while contributing to the operational excellence of both Whipsnade and London Zoo.

"We are delighted to welcome our new apprentices to Pareto FM," said Dave Richards, CEO at Pareto FM. "Their passion for learning and dedication to excellence align perfectly with our values, and we look forward to supporting them on their journey towards becoming skilled professionals in the facilities management industry."

Pareto FM's commitment to investing in talent and providing opportunities for growth reflects our ongoing dedication to delivering innovative solutions and exceeding client expectations.

Southern Health Trust and Medirest Achieve NHS Exemplar status for National Healthcare Cleaning Standards

Southern Health Trust, in partnership with Medirest, has been awarded NHS ‘Exemplar’ status for outstanding cleaning services at four sites. The acknowledgement recognises their partnership approach to cleanliness, which has embraced the 2021 National Standards for Healthcare Cleaning, alongside using innovation, sustainability and efficacy auditing systems.

Over the past year, progress and investment has been made across the cleaning services including the introduction of a cleaning robot, which enhances repetitive cleaning procedures in open spaces. Plus, an upgraded auditing system for cleaning that aligns with the 2021 National Standards for Healthcare Cleaning and frictionless facilities management technology linked to integrated workforce management solutions. They have also implemented a new laundry system for cleaning cloths and mop heads; new iMops, which use fast brush rotations, that leave surfaces cleaner than other traditional methods and chemical free cleaning in non-clinical areas.

Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust provides community health, mental health and learning disability services across Hampshire. It is one of the largest providers of such specialist services in England and the first to receive the NHS Exemplar status. Four sites within the Trust that were visited received the Exemplar status, with consistent standards and processes implemented across all its hospital sites.

The NHS Exemplar recognition acknowledges the delivery of the best-in-class service and means that the teams commit to sharing learnings and experiences to enable other Trusts to follow suit. Medirest also has Exemplar status at Royal Surrey and Barnet Hospital for cleaning, portering and catering.

Veolia Joins Forces with the London FA to Recycle the Banner from the 2022 FA Cup Final

The London FA and the UK’s leading resource management company, Veolia, have donated recycled bibs and drawstring bags, made from the 2022 FA Cup Final recycled pitch cover, to local youth football clubs in support of the London FA’s green developmental activities.

Veolia and the Football Association (FA) teamed up back in 2022 to shoot for sustainability by creating a recycled plastic banner which unveiled the pitch ready for the 2022 FA Cup Final. 

Veolia collected and sorted 47,600 plastic bottles from previous events at Wembley Stadium and recycled them into PET plastic yarn. This recycled material was then spun into the 2022 FA Cup Final’s 105 metre long and 68 metre wide match day pitch cover, emblazoned with the two finalist teams’ logos. 

Now in 2024, in line with The FA’s Sustainability Strategy to Save Our Resources and Veolia’s regeneration of resources strategy, the banner has been repurposed into drawstring bags and sports bibs. These were donated to participants of the London Girls Cup Final and local London grassroot teams.

In addition to supporting the London FA’s green development activities, this project also delivers carbon reductions as recycling plastic typically saves up to 70% of the emissions associated with virgin material production.

Gisela Endres, Veolia Senior Contract Manager commented:

"Supporting the 2022 FA Cup Final was just the start of the recycling journey for these plastic bottles, and it has been exciting to put sustainability first once more with this project.  “We have utilised our expertise to create bibs and bags for footballers all over the country to enjoy and showcase what can be achieved when regenerating resources. 

“This is just one of the innovations we are working on to proudly support The London FA, and we are excited to continue finding sustainable solutions to make our game greener."

London FA Head of Partnerships Aquila Burgess commented:

“We are delighted to be working with The FA and Veolia UK who have kindly helped to support some of our developmental activities. We look forward to seeing this in practice and hope our clubs will benefit from this support”.

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