Monthly Archives: August 2020

News

What’s the Climate Change Levy and how can I reduce it?

By Conor McArdle at Opus Energy

Whether you realise it or not, it’s likely that you’re paying the Climate Change Levy (CCL) as part of your business’ energy costs.

Brought into effect almost 20 years ago in 2001, the CCL is an environmental tax charged on the amount of electricity and energy your business uses. It’s designed to encourage organisations to minimise their energy usage and cut their carbon emissions – one of the cornerstones of the fight against climate change.

The CCL is particularly important to SME owners at the moment, as not only will you likely be under pressure to undertake cost cuttings across your business, but sustainability is also high on the agenda.

That’s why it’s important to understand the CCL and explore ways of reducing the cost it has on your business.  

Firstly, who pays it?

The CCL applies to all those operating within the industrial, commercial, agricultural, and public services sectors.

Who’s exempt?

Domestic energy users are exempt from the Climate Change Levy, as are charities who use energy for non-business use or business customers who use very small quantities of energy. There are also exemptions for power that won’t be used in the UK and certain forms of transport.

Depending on your business classification, it may be useful to review the full list on the government website to see if you fall within any of these groups.

How is the CCL calculated?

CCL rates are calculated per kilowatt hour of usage. Your energy supplier will calculate it using the current rate and add it directly to your bill. You’ll be able to see this listed as a separate line item on your bill statement.

As the CCL is a tax, this cost doesn’t go to your supplier. It is transferred from your supplier directly to HM Revenue & Customs.

How do I save money?

There are a few different ways to reduce the amount of CCL you pay each time you get an energy bill.

The most efficient way is to keep your business energy consumption down. While this can be hard for a business, smart meters are a useful way of monitoring your energy usage, as the real time data they generate can provide useful insights into different behavioural patterns across your business.  

Businesses using very small quantities of energy may also be exempt for the levy, and you may also qualify for a reduction in VAT, so this is worth checking with your supplier. 

If your business is described as energy-intensive – which can be anything from supermarkets to pig and poultry farming businesses – can save money by applying for a Climate Change Agreement (CCA).

If you’re unsure about whether you’re eligible to sign up, you can find out by looking at Appendix A of the CCA operations manual. Those bound by a CCA will have to meet emission targets as agreed with their local authority, but can enjoy a discount on CCL charges of up to 90% for electricity and 65% for gas.

Further savings on energy costs

Business energy costs are usually accepted as a given, but you can reduce your overheads. From taking advantages of schemes like the CCA to investing in electricity generation infrastructure and becoming self-sufficient, or through improving energy efficiency, you can reduce your energy bills and contribute to the fight against climate change at the same time.

For more information and advice on reducing your energy costs and adopting more sustainable business practices, head to Brighter Business.

Construction, News

Flooding Then Pandemic Proves Immensely Challenging For South Wales Construction Firm Who Clinch Their ISO 27001 Recertification

A South Wales construction company which continues to play a major role in helping to redevelop properties hit by flooding at the start of the year, at the same time trying to operate safe workplaces and practices in the midst of the COVID-19 outbreak, has just passed its international certification for information security.

Camilleri Construction is a building firm which concentrates on insurance-related projects, so the provision of the global standard ISO 27001 is crucial when handling data in the financial and insurance sector.

The company said that they had successfully managed to juggle all of the challenges of 2020 so far, and that they were particularly delighted to have been given the ‘seal of approval’ regarding their handling of policy holder and client information.

Ceri Camilleri, Risk & Compliance Manager at Camilleri Construction, said: “This year has been a difficult one for so many people and businesses alike, and we have been no different – which is why we have been particularly indebted to the work of our ISO consultants, The Ideas Distillery, who have supported us again this year in securing our ISO 27001 certificate with no issues whatsoever.

“In February, residents of houses and commercial properties in South Wales, and other areas of the UK, were battling flooding as a series of storms battered parts of the country. As they sort through sodden possessions in the aftermath, saving what they could, many were made homeless and told it could be up to nine months before they could return to their homes.

“Camilleri Construction quickly mobilised to try to turn around as many of these houses as possible and took on 80 flood-related projects, working long hours to get people out of emergency accommodation and back into their homes and businesses as soon as possible.

“Refurbishment of these houses and commercial properties were progressing steadily, until the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. Driven by the thought of many homeowners and businesses enduring the trauma of being locked down, we were determined to redouble our efforts to complete as many projects as quickly as possible.

“During this time we were audit against our full suite of standards – ISO 9001 which is our quality systems; ISO 14001 is about our environmental performance; ISO 445001 which shows our commitment to health and safety; and ISO 27001 which demonstrates our competency in handling information securely.

“I want to pay testament to the professionalism and sheer hard work given to us by our consultants, The Ideas Distillery, in making sure these went utterly smoothly, with no issues – even minor ones – given in our audits, despite the difficult conditions we were working under.

“We now want to look forward to playing our part in rebuilding our economy which has taken a battering thanks to the pandemic,” she said.

Camilleri Construction is a CIOB Chartered Building Company and NHBC Registered Builder specialising in high-net-worth insurance repairs. The Company is certified to ISO 9001:2015, ISO 14001:2015, ISO 45001:2018 and ISO 27001:2013, and achieved the 2020 Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA) Gold award.

The company also supports defence personnel and has recently received the bronze award from the Defence Employer Recognition Scheme. It aims to achieve the Silver Award in 2021 as part of its continuing recruitment strategy supporting defence personnel.

Russell Lawson. Managing Director of The Ideas Distillery, said: “This is fantastic news for Camilleri Construction and, as a company, they really deserve it.

“They are a great company to work with, and really take their compliance obligations seriously – all of the standards they operate they genuinely live throughout their whole business, which is obviously why they are the go-to construction company for insurance firms operating in South Wales and the West.

“This is exactly the type of company that we need to nurture and develop and will be crucial to any recovery post-COVID.

“If anyone wants to take a look at how a company should operate with an emphasis on using management systems, developing a competent workforce and having a focus on quality and customer satisfaction, then they shouldn’t look any further than this company.

“We wish Camilleri Construction continued success in everything they do,” he said.

News, News from Wales, Transport

NAT Group Teams up with South Wales Chamber of Commerce to Become a Corporate Partner

Leading Welsh transport provider NAT Group has joined South Wales Chamber of Commerce as one of their select number of Corporate Partners, to share expertise and gain support and advice from the business network at a time of key development for the group.

The company, which operates bus services across South Wales from its depots in Cardiff, Swansea and Taffs Well, is currently undergoing a rebrand, gradually updating all 150 vehicle livery with the new ‘Adventure Travel’ branding and fleet names.

NAT Group has led the way with the recent introduction of rigorous cleaning and hygiene procedures across its 150 vehicles, in keeping with Covid-19 rules and regulations, along with being one of the only bus operators in South Wales to adopt cashless bus travel to reduce the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic. It is this pioneering approach which aligns the business with many of the Chamber’s priorities.

Throughout this pandemic, NAT Group has illustrated the agility and flexibility of the business, reacting swiftly to passenger needs and Welsh Government requirements while ensuring that the group’s environmental ethos has not been compromised.

NAT Group Managing Director Adam Keen said: “We have gone through a significant period of change over the last 12 months, but we have much more to do. Becoming a Corporate Partner of the Chamber will help us achieve this by providing guidance and connections which will assist the group in cementing its reputation as an innovative, pioneering and responsible Welsh business.

“The Chamber’s longstanding relationship with Welsh Government and other key decision makers also had a great impact on our decision to enter into a partnership. We value other business’ opinions, priorities and input and the Chamber provides a great forum in which to share all of this. We want to be an employer of choice in Wales and a business which works closely with local Welsh commerce.”

South Wales Chamber of Commerce CEO Heather Anstey added: “Partnering with New Adventure Travel will give a pinpoint focus on corporate travel and public transport services. This has never been more important than now, as we deal with the health issues around Covid and as we move to a greater emphasis on sustainability and the environment.”

For further information, visit www.natgroup.co.uk.

News

Headhunter for Uber and Zalando appoints new CEO and increases focus on international expansion

Ethan Partners, a London based specialised Executive Search company that finds and attracts top talent for C-, VP-, and Director-level positions in international startups and corporate ventures, has appointed Lars Sodergaard as CEO. He has been with the company since 2017 as COO & Partner.

With the appointment Ethan Partners embarks on the next step of an impressive growth journey, during which the company has supported +150 companies in 50 countries and set up offices in four countries, with more in the pipeline.

“Since Lars joined the company, he has strengthened the operations, by successfully optimizing the company’s processes and services. Further, our approach has become even more data-driven, which has been instrumental to our success with much quicker delivery and a significant increase in the suitability of our candidates, fulfilling the client’s needs,” says founding partner Ann-Christine Roope, who will remain active in the company with an increased focus on business development, client and public relations, as well as board work.

Lars holds 2 masters degrees in Finance and Auditing from Copenhagen Business School, and has extensive private equity and corporate experience. He has held positions at A.P. Møller – Mærsk, at a PE fund as one of Denmark’s youngest associates, at Accenture Strategy and at TDC Group. He also has experience from startups, having worked as COO for a leading Nordic e-commerce site that was sold to a large international player listed on AIM London Stock Exchange.

Ann-Christine adds: “The services we can provide as a trusted advisor with solid experience in supporting and scaling hundreds of startups are truly unique. We are experiencing a particularly high demand throughout Europe, confirming that our services continue to fulfill a need amongst startups and scaleups.”

“We have helped some very exciting startups like Uber, Zalando, HelloFresh, HighQ and Deliveroo,  but I also see a need for our services from corporates, both in terms of an increased focus on specialised talent to drive digitalisation throughout the organisations, as well as when we advise and hire for corporate ventures.”, says Lars Sodergaard and continues: “It has been a challenge for European corporations to attract international talent and since that is one of our unique value propositions, I hope we can be part of the solution.”

Ethan Partners was founded by Ann-Christine Roope in 2013, when she saw the need for a global and digital approach to executive recruitment. Previously she was Director of International
Recruiting at Rocket Internet where she was responsible for Founder and Senior Executive recruitment for +75 portfolio companies in +45 countries, taking Rocket Internet from a few 1000
people European company to a +25,000 person global organization in 2 years. Before this Ann-Christine was Director of International Recruiting at Groupon as they entered +50 countries
globally

Manufacturing, News, Packaging

TEQ’s expansion means it now offers total packaging solution to medical, pharmaceutical and commercial sectors

Leading thermoformer TEQ has rebranded its business having previously been known as Plastique across Europe, and TEQ Thermoform Engineered Quality more widely.

The business, which was recently acquired by Sonoco, is now able to offer a complete range of cleanroom-manufactured and injection-moulded packaging to the medical, pharmaceutical and commercial sectors.

Alongside TEQ, which operates two European sites, in the UK and Poland, Netherlands-based Sonoco Plastics produces millions of injection-moulded parts with high optical properties for use in diagnostic and clinical chemistry instruments.

In the US, TEQ has three thermoforming facilities and one extrusion operation. With more than 50 locations across the world, TEQ, a Sonoco Company is now part of a truly global packaging business.

“With 75 years of combined experience and operating more than 30 thermoforming lines, TEQ has world-class facilities that will see us continue leading from the front in innovative packaging solutions,” says Anne-Sophie Belamine, TEQ’s European Sales Director.

As customers work to address critical health requirements associated with Covid-19, TEQ continues to offer a range of high-quality medical packaging solutions.

The company’s specially commissioned Class 7 and 8 cleanroom facilities in Nottingham, UK and Poznan, Poland are both certified to ISO 13485: 2016. This enables TEQ to meet medical device and pharmaceutical manufacturers’ most rigorous packaging requirements.

TEQ’s medical packaging range includes clamshells, dosage cups, trays, tubs, lids and sterile barrier blisters. The company also manufactures custom thermoformed handling trays, including dry powder inhalers, auto-injectors, injection-moulded components, pre-filled syringes and pharmaceutical bottles.

The company also produces recyclable, moulded-pulp-fibre packaging under the Fibrepak brand for commercial customers.

“At the heart of our business is a team of talented experts all driven to exceed our customers’ expectations in everything we do,” adds Belamine. “From our state-of-the-art technology, to our many years of experience, to the quality of the partners we work with, we have what it takes to deliver on time, on budget, and with unequaled precision.”

News, Technology

10ZiG® Technology Sets Record-Breaking Number of Customers for Remote Support Feature During Global Pandemic

10ZiG Technology has been a virtual desktop remote-working solution for years, but the number of customers and organizations requesting this kind of support feature has exploded during the global pandemic. The quality and functionality of in-office setup for employees who have been sent home to work has never been more relied upon when it comes to virtual desktop connections and management. With diversified 10ZiG cutting-edge Thin & Zero Client endpoints stocked and ready, The 10ZiG Manager Software with Cloud capabilities, and not having to close its doors for even one day, the Power, Speed, and Performance of 10ZiG Technology to assist its customers has kept organizations up-and-running as usual in a very unusual time.

Customers are turning to 10ZiG even more for powerful, reliable, and affordable Thin & Zero Clients for remote-working environments. 10ZiG endpoints are customized to provide the best performance in virtual desktop and server-based applications & desktops to fit hosted and Cloud environments. The 10ZiG Manager Software is an in-demand part of remote-working as the 10ZiG free enterprise centralized management tool, whether premise or Cloud-based. At no-cost or license limitation, it successfully and easily manages 10ZiG Clients, both Linux and Windows, in-office or remote locations.

Key factors to quality 10ZiG remote-working, as well as these record customer numbers, are The 10ZiG Manager’s Cloud Connector and Cloud Agent. The Cloud Connector provides configuring and managing of 10ZiG Clients through its bi-directional SSL tunnel communication between the Clients and The 10ZiG Manager. It also proxies connection securely between web browsers using the Web Console for communication to The 10ZiG Manager. The Cloud Agent is available on both 10ZiG Linux & Windows Clients and is used to connect to the Cloud Connector both locally and remotely, in both cases connecting via the bidirectional SSL tunnel. For 10ZiG Linux Clients, the Cloud Agent is native in firmware and for 10ZiG Windows Clients, this feature was fast-tracked and debuted in the 2.1.0 XTC Cloud Agent update, in line with the unprecedented demand for remote management from customers.

Digital Transformation, News, Transport

Keeping On Track: How Network Rail has Documented the COVID-19 Pandemic

David Portman reports on how Network Rail are managing record keeping during the COVID-19 Pandemic

Network Rail owns and operates Britain’s railway infrastructure from tracks and signalling to stations, tunnels and bridges. During the COVID-19 pandemic they have been responsible for keeping Britain’s railway running. It has been the job of Network Rail’s archivist, Vicky Stretch and her team to document their response to the pandemic for historical, cultural and legal reasons alike.
Network Rail is a critical national service, enabling vital passenger train services for key workers, whilst also increasing freight traffic to get medical supplies, food and other goods around Britain throughout a prolonged coronavirus outbreak. From a governance and corporate responsibility level, keeping records relating to this activity is essential.

Network Rail is also mandated to keep records under the Railway Heritage Act; in Britain the railway industry is unique in that it has a specific Act of Parliament that requires it to keep records for historical purposes. So aside from the usual governance and accountability aspects of record keeping, the Network Rail COVID-19 archive will also demonstrate how the business coped with delivering a much-planned-for scenario, how the ‘railway family’ came together to deliver critical services to the country, and how the business and colleagues supported each other.

The shape of the railway industry has changed radically since the start of the pandemic. Key to this was Network Rail’s planning and publication of new emergency railway timetables. This had to be introduced in response to falling passenger demand, as people changed their travel patterns to help tackle the spread of Coronavirus, as well as the need to dramatically increase freight movement.

Capturing these new timetables as they are published, as well as the planning documentation behind them is key to Network Rail’s COVID-19 archive collecting. It would usually take around 14 weeks to process a major timetable change such as this, but in these unprecedented times the Capacity Planning team turned it around in just one week.

As a business, Network Rail’s own ways of working have changed radically too. Signaling and maintenance teams have kept the railway safe and open for business, while back office functions have almost wholesale moved from office to home working. Capturing the contingency planning and operational documentation related to this shift has also been vital.

The COVID-19 content Network Rail is producing is almost entirely digital. Vicky and her team are capturing policy, working instructions and guidance issued to the business as a whole to keep the workforce safe, as well as more ephemeral content such as all company messages, company magazines, information posters and press releases. These files are produced entirely digitally and distributed electronically to be printed on site if needed. This digital dissemination means items for the archive can be collected and ingested into Preservica by the archive in real time.

Information previously only accessible from corporate offices, needed to be accessed by staff based at home. The business had already been moving towards SharePoint Online and Office 365 and this was only accelerated in the new circumstances. This has meant the archive team quickly looking at how they can save SharePoint sites and libraries into Preservica on a much larger and automated scale, to be ready once the contingency planning and emergency operational requirements are scaled down and those records are able to be transferred.

The archive team’s own transition to remote working was made easier by Preservica. Since the solution is cloud-hosted and includes many features ‘out-of-the-box’, remote access has not been a problem. From home, the archive team have been able to ingest records into Preservica as they are published as well as set up more frequent web crawls of Network Rail’s websites to capture press releases and public facing communication.

The past few months have highlighted the importance of the archive keeping in step with the organisation; staying in touch with record creators and IT contacts as well as keeping up to date with how records are being created and how they are being stored and shared. Colleagues across Network Rail’s business are now much more actively involved in sharing material with the archive to be preserved, rather than a more traditional approach of relying on record retention schedules that mandate the handover of records after a period of time. Dynamic, proactive collecting in real time is now at the heart of the Network Rail archive – history is no longer something that is relegated to the past, it’s happening now and needs to be documented today.

 

Creative News, Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Location marketing and out of home specialist Posterscope launches proprietary trading platform to enable advertisers to plan, purchase and activate digital outdoor campaigns in real-time

Posterscope has today launched ECOS NOW, a proprietary OOH trading platform which enables the planning, purchase and activation of digital OOH in near real time, subject to defined operational and performance criteria – the most significant enhancement to out of home advertising since the introduction of digital outdoor screens.

ECOS NOW will allow advertisers to purchase their optimal campaign solution but only when it is going to perform the most strongly, based on the specific data that will have most impact. For example, a drinks brand, where sales are heavily correlated with the weather, will now be able to only spend when its optimal weather conditions are met, or a food retailer reacting to promote an abundance of perishable goods or simply reacting to an increase of target audience in a specific location. This approach truly leverages the inherent agility and flexibility that digital OOH has the potential to offer.

From a technical perspective the key difference between ECOS NOW and other automated routes to market, such as a DSP, is the way that it connects to media owner systems. ECOS NOW uses the IAB Open Direct protocol rather than Open RTB, used by all other systems. In practice this means the transaction is wholly centred on what the advertiser wants to buy, rather than what the media owner wishes to sell.

This way media plans can be fully described by all of the important planning parameters that a traditional manually bought plan would be; specific location, weight, time and audience etc, which is contrary to the DSP approach, which generally excludes all but impressions and time.

The decisioning engine for ECOS NOW is Posterscope’s proprietary ECOS DMP, which comprises over 30 location data sets, but can also ingest any external data set with a location component, including first party client data. For example, OOH activation could be triggered by a client’s real-time sales data, CRM or stock availability.

Glen Wilson, Managing Director of Posterscope, says: “In considering our ‘programmatic’ OOH offer we were adamant that it had to deliver truly distinct client benefit with that being to fully unlock the potential of digital out of home; namely to enable advertisers to deliver the right message, at the right time, to the right audience but uniquely when recognised optimal conditions were met. In ECOS NOW we believe we have a game-changing solution which will become increasingly important, particularly as people’s movement and behaviour is less consistent post lockdown.”

 

Customer Service, News

The changing landscape of customer experience and why brands are still getting complaint handling wrong

A leading customer service provider has challenged businesses in the UK to change the way they think about customer interaction, amid rising levels of consumer dissatisfaction.

Woven is a leading contact centre, customer management and BPO service provider, operating from offices in Bristol, Swindon and Ipswich and working with brands across a range of industries, including Toyota and Kärcher.

Its research found that the number of customers experiencing a problem with an organisation has increased during the last two years by 1.5% to 14.3%, its highest ever level.1

The number of customers who cited an “organisation not keeping its promise or commitment” as a key cause of their complaint is also at its highest ever rate, being mentioned in 17.2% of all problems or complaints.2

Just under three in ten (29%) UK customers are prepared to pay more to receive a great customer service, while 36% of Brits say they’ll stop doing business with a brand due to poor customer service.3

Commenting on the findings, Woven chief executive officer Cyril Molitor says too many brands are treating customers as commodities and that a ‘lowest cost’ approach is damaging their experiences.

He said: “It’s a simple philosophy, so why aren’t more brands practising it?

“Approaches from a purely technological standpoint and an inability to invest are leaving customers out in the cold, and brands must learn that service should not be dismissed as just a number on a balance sheet.

“But because the current market is defined by a lowest-cost approach to providing service, innovation is being constrained and value isn’t being delivered.

“And it is the customers who are feeling the impact and becoming increasingly frustrated that their expectations aren’t being met.”

Molitor warns that dissatisfaction “is growing all of the time”, but says that brands prepared to work hard on getting customer engagement “extra right” will see their efforts rewarded.

He explains: “It’s not just about getting it right, getting it ‘extra right’ increases brand favourability.

“Those customers who had a positive experience that was better than expected are more than twice as likely to increase their brand favourability than those who had a positive experience that was in line with or worse than expectations.”

Molitor believes that service is increasingly becoming the biggest driver of value and that brands dismissing this aspect as a box-ticking exercise risk alienating their customers.

He adds: “In many ways, the tail is wagging the dog when it comes to service delivery, so it is all the more baffling that brands continue to force bad business solutions onto customers.

“All they want are simple, responsive services – regardless of who they are chatting to or what they are chatting about, and whether that be through voice or text.”

Marketing, PR and SEO, News

Critical Communications Technology Specialist Cardo Crew Appoints Context to Deliver PR Strategy

Global innovators in the field of critical communications, Cardo Crew, who provide hands-free wireless intercom for teams on the move, has selected Tech PR agency Context to deliver its B2B public relations strategy.

Israeli-based Cardo Crew operates as the B2B arm of Cardo Systems, drawing on 16 years of experience in radio communications in the motorcycle industry. Cardo Crew takes the Cardo Systems business into the Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) market with its reliable, hands-free wireless intercom, which can be used for workers in the fields of emergency services, construction, transport and more, providing safe and robust comms.

Context has been selected by Cardo Crew following a competitive, global five-way pitch, and will be responsible for raising Cardo Crew’s brand awareness in the key sectors they provide critical communications in, expanding its online profile and securing review opportunities of Dynamic Mesh Communications (DMC™) – a technology designed and pioneered by Cardo Crew. This new agreement follows a series of successful account wins for Context in the last year.

Speaking on the new partnership, Sarah Boyle, Account Director at Context, said: “We’re incredibly excited to be working with the Cardo Crew team, and we look forward to playing a key role in helping the business achieve its goals and raising the brand’s profile across key sectors.”

Shachar Harari, CEO at Cardo Crew, added: “Context is knowledgeable about our sector and able to build a PR strategy aligned to fit our business objectives. We look forward to working with an experienced partner to help further raise our brand awareness in the industries we provide our innovative communication solutions to.”