Excellence in the 3PL industry will once again be rewarded at the forthcoming UKWA Awards for Warehousing Ceremony. Details of the finalists for each of the Awards categories in this event which has to be regarded as one of the most enjoyable events in the logistics and materials handling industry’s calendar, are reproduced here. A profile of the winners of each category will appear in a future issue of Warehouse & Logistics News.
The United Kingdom Warehousing Association’s (UKWA’s) Annual Awards for Warehousing Luncheon 2010 takes place at the Dorchester Hotel, Park Lane, London on Wednesday July 7th and Warehouse & Logistics News is proud to be the event’s official media partner.
The UKWA Awards for Warehousing reward excellence in the third party logistics sector and attract entries from some of the most influential companies in the logistics and materials handling industry.
UKWA received a record number of entries for this year’s Awards for Warehousing. Each nomination has been considered by the UKWA Awards Committee – which comprises past chairman of UKWA, Mel Grainger, Phil Culling, MD of Redirack Ltd and the chief executive officer of UKWA, Roger Williams – and three finalists for each category have been selected. There are eight categories of Awards open to UKWA members and suppliers to the 3PL sector and the overall winner of each one will be announced at The Dorchester. In addition, a further award – the Chairman’s Award – will also be presented.
As a special occasion featuring a celebrity speaker, the UKWA Awards for Warehousing enjoys a high profile within the logistics industry. Last year 400 UKWA members, associate members and their guests who all seized the chance to relax with colleagues or catch up with industry contacts and this year’s event promises to be even better.
Roger Williams, UKWA’s chief executive officer, comments: “The Awards Luncheon represents an excellent opportunity to network with some of the most influential figures in the logistics and materials handling industry. Networking is one of the most important business tools available and, in the current economic climate, being pro-active in networking your business has become more vital than ever. A network of personal and professional contacts is imperative and there are few better places for those in the third party logistics services industry or suppliers to the sector to network than at UKWA’s Awards for Warehousing event.”
AWARDS SPONSOR
The main sponsor of the UKWA Awards for Warehousing 2010 is Jungheinrich UK Ltd. The company is a leading materials handling equipment supplier and offers pallet trucks, stackers, counterbalance and reach trucks, order pickers, Very Narrow Aisle trucks and stacker cranes. In addition, Jungheinrich provides an extensive aftersales support network, rental and financial services, racking systems and warehouse planning.
BEST NEW MEMBER
This is a corporate award given to the company showing the highest professional standards of warehousing on joining the UKWA. The judges considered the initial inspection reports of members recommended by the UKWA inspectors.
White Arrow Logistics Ltd
White Arrow Logistics is a new business incorporated during 2009 with the aim of providing swift, flexible, high quality warehousing solutions.
White Arrow decided from the outset that membership of UKWA was essential and prepared a dossier of evidence in support of its application.
Following the company’s acceptance in to the ranks of UKWA, White Arrow has taken an active role in the association and has advertised in a number of UKWA’s publications. The advertising has generated a number of opportunities for White Arrow to quote for business and its impact has, the company says, repaid its faith in the UKWA brand.
To date, all the agreements and proposals that White Arrow have written have used UKWA’s standard terms and conditions of business. This gives customers the confidence that they are signing up to a benchmarked industry standard.
Expect Distribution Ltd
When UKWA’s inspector, Douglas Fearnley, called on Bradford-based Expect Distribution he had no hesitation in accepting the company’s membership application. Furthermore, he was so impressed by the operation that he nominated Expect for the Best New Member Award in the 2010 UKWA Awards for Warehousing.
Douglas was inspired by the manner in which Expect’s managing director and owner, Bob Rushworth, ran his business. The company operates from a new building with cutting edge IT, up to date systems and security. Expect provides a good working environment for its staff with all employees dressed in Expect uniforms and the company’s facilities – including the car park, gardens and surrounding areas – well maintained.
Since becoming members Expect have agreed to host a UKWA regional meeting.
DP Packaging (Spalding) Ltd
DP Packaging were nominated by UKWA inspector, Bernard Howard. On his visit to the company, Bernard found DP Packaging to be “friendly, switched on and ready to assist.”
The company’s temperature controlled warehouse was clean and tidy – as would be expected for a company that includes many of the major supermarkets among its client base and, therefore, is well used to visits by quality inspectors.
ENVIRONMENT AWARD
Sponsored by Lutterworth Electrical
This Award will be presented to the company that demonstrates the most significant and successful application of ‘green’ processes, procedures or monitoring during the year. The judges sought evidence of a reduction in energy use, and a reduced carbon footprint. In the latter case, the judges considered percentage reductions, rather than actual reductions of CO2 to allow smaller companies an equal chance of winning the award.
Hoppecke Industrial Batteries
Consideration for the environment is central to HOPPECKE’s core values, this is reflected in the company’s commitment to re-cycling at its own facilities and the development of battery technology that helps to reduce the carbon footprint of its customers.
The company’s range of battery systems utilise high frequency and air circulation technology that make them up to 30 cent more energy efficient than traditional systems.
In addition to reducing the carbon footprint of users of its products, the company has also invested in the very latest re-cycling facilities at its headquarters in Germany. These are supported by the company’s Stoke-based UK division.
The company offers its customers and the wider market a complete recycling system for lead-acid batteries. This recycling service includes the removal of battery installations and the safe conveyance of the battery to the company’s recycling facility, where it is processed to remove the lead. It is then used in the production of new grid plates for new batteries.
At all stages of the process the batteries are stored securely to ensure they do not present any risk to the environment. Any harmful waste from the recycling process is disposed of responsibly and in line with the most stringent European standards and legislation.
NYK Logistics UK Ltd
As part of a global business that has green investment principles, NYK Logistics UK Ltd has been at the forefront of environmental initiatives for some time, being an early adopter of teardrop trailers and biodiesel vehicles among other new technologies.
The company’s key environmental achievements include:
• a reduction in electricity consumption of 35 per cent at each of its UK sites;
• a reduction in CO2 emissions of 11 percent per vehicle across its fleet;
• a 46 per cent drop in the amount of general waste it sends to landfill;
• a 54 per cent reduction in the number of ‘waste miles’ driven.
NYK has achieved these commendable savings in a number of ways. For example, the installation of ‘Smart’ meters has allowed accurate measurement of water, gas and electricity consumption across all sites and enabled the company to investigate anomalies and take corrective action where possible. The installation of sensor lighting at two sites also brought about massive reductions in electricity use.
Improved vehicle routes allowed NYK to reduce road miles and experience less idling, while driver training programmes led to smoother and more fuel efficient use of vehicles.
And, by working with suppliers to reduce transit only packaging and managing waste collections better, NYK has reduced the amount of waste it generates and the number of waste miles travelled.
TECHNOLOGY and INNOVATION AWARD
Sponsored by Redirack Ltd
In drawing up their shortlist, the judges looked for evidence of bold and innovative responses to the changing marketplace such as the introduction of new technology, products, processes or procedures. The judges also sought products and systems that would have a net effect on warehousing operations.
Briggs Equipment (UK) Ltd
Speedshield is an intelligent asset management tool that gives forklift truck users full control of their fleet. It provides a suite of options that can be individually tailored to provide the exact level of control, efficiency and HSE compliance that is required. In doing so, it promotes optimum safety and efficiency, giving customers complete control over their forklift fleet.
Speedshield directly impacts bottom-line costs by reporting in real time on speed, truck efficiency, damage and misuse. Customers can then access this information on their PC through a web-based application, thereby eliminating the need to buy an additional software licence. Customers have the option to send commands to their fleet for an individual unit, rectifying issues immediately.
The device has been designed to manage all kinds of mobile assets requiring monitoring and maintenance and can operate on any asset powered by up to 90 volts DC.
Barloworld Handling Ltd
The management of forklift trucks and materials handling equipment relies heavily on gathering utilisation and performance data from the machines.
Barloworld Handling has developed its own state-of-the-art equipment monitoring solution. The system provides accurate daily recording of equipment utilisation and when fitted to the latest forklifts provides early warning to Barloworld of any problems that may require servicing.
Barloworld’s fleet management system utilises a telemetry device which Barloworld installs onto customer forklift trucks and other equipment. The device automatically records each truck’s performance and transmits the data daily to Barloworld’s service management system. From here management reports are created for customers to view over the web.
Among the system’s key benefits is the fact that the telemetry device captures live data across the customer’s whole fleet and is unrestricted by the number of trucks, sites or geographic boundaries.
The reports generated include truck utilisation, uptime, service and cost per hour information. Reports are based on fully up to date information from the trucks and are therefore much more accurate than conventional systems.
Barloworld’s Fleet Management system provides fleet managers with improved visibility of their fleet performance and therefore greater ability to control and reduce costs.
Hoppecke Industrial Batteries
The principle of HOPPECKE’s trak® air is relatively simple. When a battery is charged, concentrated sulphuric acid is formed. Sulphuric acid is heavy and naturally sinks towards the bottom of the cell, resulting in acid stratification.
In standard systems, the removal of this stratification is achieved when the electrolyte is mixed through rising gas bubbles. The gaseous bubbles are produced by defined overcharging of the electrodes. The deliberate overcharging, means increasesd energy and water consumption, extended charging times and higher temperatures.
The HOPPECKE trak® air system avoids these consequences. Air is introduced into the battery right at the main charging stage. The rising air bubbles circulate around the electrolyte and prevent the stratification of acid. In comparison with other methods, mixing sulphuric acid by in-blown air creates maximum efficiency, places minimal stress on the plate group and eliminates the need for the otherwise necessary weekly equalising charges.
Independent tests have shown that savings of up to 43 per cent can be achieved when using the system. Working with its customers HOPPECKE has found that a basic 50Hz charger, operating over a five year period would accumulate a running cost of £742,710. With the new system in place, the costs are significantly reduced to £430,173, saving a total of £312,538.
TRAINING AWARD
Sponsored by PD Ports
This award is given for training achievement. It can be awarded to an individual, organisation or jointly to both but the winner will have shown significant personal and/or team achievement at any level of individual or team development.
System Training
YODEL – formerly known as Home Delivery Network – is the UK’s largest dedicated home delivery and collection service and delivers parcels of all shapes and sizes to every postcode in the country, currently employing over 2,200 drivers to make sure 300,000 consignments a day reach their destination.
However, with fuel costs continuing to rise, the company had to take action in order to maintain its ability to provide a cost-effective service.
In May 2009 System Training offered to assist YODEL’s current driver training team by training Safe and Fuel Efficient Driving (SAFED) instructors to reduce fuel consumption and accident rate.
System Training up-skilled 13 existing members of staff to become Driver Training Instructors (DTIs). They completed an initial five-day course and a further two-day SAFED instructor’s course. As a direct result all the instructors then went on to deliver Driver CPC and SAFED training across the business. Eight DTIs were also sent on a Collision Investigation and Reconstruction course.
To date, 202 drivers from the Transport and Two Man teams have completed CPC training with a further 133 drivers completing the Driving Goods Vehicles NVQ at Level 2.
YODEL has saved £2.2million in fuel costs and accident damage since introducing the training programme for its staff last year. With its implementation of SAFED it has saved £600,000 in fuel costs across the fleet. This figure takes the winter period into account when the weather was poor and there was more stop/start driving – and the company expects even more impressive figures later in the year.
Furthermore, accidents involving its drivers have been reduced by 48% from May 2009 and the cost of damage due to accidents has decreased from £3.4m to £1.8m per year.
The Potter Group
The Potter Group has long been committed to regular training, recognising its value in raising the standard of service it provides to clients and in retaining staff by providing positive career support. Courses provided and attended range from internal training to external qualifications including NVQs, management training and courses supporting the company’s expertise in chemical and hazardous products.
During the past year the company maintained a high level of training activity despite severe pressures on the business as the economy declined. While all forms of training took place across the five distribution centres, the company focussed particularly on Health & Safety, correct procedures and requirements for chemical and hazardous products, quality and the increasing volume of international transport.
The company has been awarded a Skills Pledge accolade in recognition of its continued commitment to training and personnel development, particularly in NVQs
As well as a low accident rate, the provision of staff training at all levels encourages employees to stay with the company and to recognise and benefit from the support provided for career development. As a result of having a well trained, experienced and motivated staff, the company was able to make eight internal promotions during the past year which, the company estimates, saved some £56,000 in recruitment costs, management time and salaries.
TEAM OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Clarion Events
The award will be won by a company or depot that is able to demonstrate an outstanding team effort during the past year in their warehousing operations that has resulted, or will result, in greater productivity and/or increased profit.
The judges were looking for evidence of:
• Bold and inspired leadership
• Positive engagement by team members
• Application of Best Practice principles
• Results
Wincanton Group Ltd – DSE site, Yeovil
The Wincanton DSE site in Yeovil serves AgustaWestland Helicopters and provides a support service involving the receipt, inspection, storage, issue, design, packaging and export of both Ministry of Defence and Military Export helicopters.
The site is recognised by the Department of Transport as a regulated agent of air cargo and holds ISO9001, ISO14001, OHSAS18001 accreditations for quality, health and safety and the environment and was the first company in the UK to have a recognised Integrated Management System.
Within the past year the team has successfully implemented EFQM processes and achieved SC21 Silver accreditation within the Aviation sector. The whole team is rightly proud of this achievement being one of only four awards at this level and the only logistics provider to get accreditation at any level.
The team has also received the Support Supplier of the Year award from AgustaWestland Helicopters for its work in supporting the client’s needs. This is the second year in succession that the team has received this award.
EDF Energy
Network Logistics is an in-house operation for EDF Energy. It has two distribution centres – one in Bury St Edmunds and another in Maidstone. The logistics team operates all warehousing and associated delivery functions, providing material and equipment for engineers in the field who serve EDF’s 7.8 million customers in East Anglia and the South East.
In 2009, the Network Logistics team set out to become the leading logistics supplier in the utilities sector by providing field engineers with their order on time and in full (OTIF) in over 98 per cent of cases at the lowest possible cost.
Since implementing a number of changes to working practices across both sites, OTIF picking and deliveries have risen from 50 per cent to 99 per cent, while overtime has been reduced from 25 per cent to zero.
Such has been the success of the effiency gains that the company has set itself a new goal – to become known as the best logistics provider in any sector.
Hoppecke Industrial Batteries
HOPPECKE pride themselves on the quality of after care and service that they provide to clients. Being able to meet a client’s needs is of prime important to the company and HOPPECKE can only facilitate this through teamwork. It is in HOPPECKE’s “Rail Power” sector that the need for teamwork is most important.
Railways are one of the world’s largest users of industrial batteries. The safety critical nature of rail applications means that it is a top priority to select the right battery system whether it is for signalling, crossing protection or rolling stock.
Hoppecke UK have assembled a team of engineers, who are experts in this unique field of DC energy supply. The majority of trains in the UK are powered by a HOPPECKE battery system. In an industry where so much importance is placed on time management it is imperative that HOPPECKE provide the best in maintenance and back-up services. HOPPECKE have assembled a team that is specifically dedicated to its “Rail Power” sector, the teams ethos is to make sure that the country’s network of rail and rolling stock keeps running.
CUSTOMER SERVICE AWARD
Sponsored by Briggs Equipment (UK) Ltd
Open to all UKWA member companies. The judges sought evidence of customer insight and a customer focused culture within the organisation.
The finalists will be able to demonstrate:
• An in-depth understanding of customer needs;
• Effective ways of measuring the results of their services and customer satisfaction.
MDA
As a leading supplier of logistics services to the marketing services sector, MDA supports an array of international brands from Volkswagen to Cadbury.
The company has successfully attracted a succession of major businesses by demonstrating a strong ‘client centric culture’ which sees MDA’s entire business perform as an extension of it’s clients’ organisations.
MDA has introduced a number of initiatives to ensure that its high levels of customer service are maintained.
For example, in 2009 the office housing the company’s client facing teams was re-opened as the MDA Client Support Centre. This move helped to focus the teams on their main purpose for coming to work – namely to support clients.
In many cases, MDA has purchased a token share ownership in a client’s business as a demonstration of support and commitment to the client’s brand. MDA is now looking to gift small shareholdings in client companies to the dedicated team members that support them.
This Spring the company introduced its Client Dashboard project. The Client Dashboard gives MDA’s customers 24/7 online access to KPIs. KPIs are pre-agreed with clients so there is never doubt over MDA’s success in reaching its targets.
Hellmann Worldwide Logistics UK
As part of a drive to raise the standard of customer service within the organisation, Hellmann developed the HAM (Hellmann Account Manager) concept towards the end of 2008. Launched on 1 January 2009, its purpose was to create a combined sales and customer service department for the road freight product based at Lichfield.
It is a fundamental part of the concept that HAMs are recruited as young trainees and given a thorough induction into the team. They normally have no sales experience at all, the only requirement is that they should be personable, enthusiastic, eager to learn and ready to work hard, developing a book of business and servicing it consistently.
The HAM team develops its own leads, sells Hellman’s road freight product, manages customer dealings from start to finish and nurtures the ongoing relationship with customers. By giving the team responsibility for ensuring that the customer receives a quality service as well as responsibility for generating sales, Hellmann ensures that the customers’ interests are fully aligned with those of the HAM team. The members of the HAM team are absolutely committed to exceeding their customers’ expectations with regard to service and are building a strong base of satisfied customers.
None of this would be of any value if Hellmann were not seeing the benefits in enhanced customer satisfaction, retention and yield. The company monitors customer satisfaction by arranging regular update meetings or by inviting customers to see our facilities at first hand. This offers a face-to-face opportunity for the HAM to discuss the account with the customer contact with the support of the department manager. Customer surveys are also sent with invoices and offered in HAM meetings to encourage necessary feedback.
We recently asked 40 customers to comment on their customer satisfaction and 15 emails came back immediately with positive comments.
The success at Lichfield means the sales structure will be rolled out across other Hellmann UK branches.
Bibby Distribution Ltd /Toyota Logistics Services GB
In 2004 Toyota piloted the SDS (Same Day Service) with the operational warehousing infrastructure being finalised in 2009. This service provides Toyota and Lexus service centres with the ability to order spare parts before noon and have them delivered by 3pm the same day.
Toyota launched the Same Day Service to maximise customer satisfaction allowing the customer to take his vehicle home on the same day instead of having to leave it overnight awaiting conventional parts deliveries.
Bibby Distribution was heavily involved in the pilot scheme which was conducted at Toyota’s National Parts Centre in Lutterworth. The pilot was very successful and resulted in Toyota and Bibby launching the SDS nationwide.
The launch of the service is another example of Bibby Distribution working in partnership with Toyota to provide their customers with an exceptional customer service.
“With this service in place we can offer customers seamless service. Working with Bibby means we always have real time visibility of order status and the knowledge that our products can be securely delivered,” comments Ray Duffey, Senior Manager of Toyota Parts Centre GB.
WAREHOUSE MANAGER OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Luxonic Lighting plc
The judges were looking for excellent personal and professional qualities which are reflected in an efficient operation, optimum warehouse productivity, and a highly motivated and flexible team. The winner will demonstrate:
• Strong and hands-on man management style
• A keen awareness of H&S issues and
• An ability to develop innovative and sustainable initiatives to deliver continuous improvements in warehouse management
Pawel Kwasniewski – BOX-IT DATA MANAGEMENT LTD
Box It is a data and document management business. The company stores over 1.5 milion boxes of paper and over 30 million files at 14 sites and its success over the last decade has been due to its ability to deliver a consistently high service to its clients.
Boxes or files are guaranteed to be delivered the next day if ordered before 3pm and Pawel Kwasniewski identified that he could retrieve data from the company’s database in a manner which would enable him to manage the warehouse operation and plan drivers’ daily task in a more efficient way than the system originally allowed. With the blessing of Box-It’s management, he set about implementing his changes.
According to Simon McCowan, Chairman of Box It, Pawel’s approach has transformed the company. One of the biggest advances since Pawel’s system went live is the fact that management reports relating to volumes of boxes being delivered, collected, stored and recycled have been made available not just to the business, but also to clients who have web access to their archive to enable self management.
In addition, Pawel is an excellent manager – a point borne out by the fact that in the last six years Box It have had just one staff change among their warehouse workforce.
Stephen Steenson, Malcolm Logistics
Stephen Steenson joined Malcolm Logistics’ Newhouse facility as an administration clerk in 2006 to support a recently awarded warehousing and distribution contract. He immediately displayed a willingness to educate himself on every aspect of the contract and his honest and forthright attitude coupled with strong interpersonal skills led Maclolm Group to start training him for a future role in warehouse management.
He was appointed manager of Malcolm’s Newhouse operation in 2009. The 455,000 sq ft facility handles a full range of products predominantly for the food and drinks industry.
Since his appointment Stephen has been responsible for the appraisal of a specific contract and instrumental in the restructure of forklift drivers working hours which has reduced costs while retaining the same level of service for the client.
He was also part of a team from within the company involved in a Lean Management Project that has brought about a number of significant savings for Malcolm Group.
EMPLOYEE OF THE YEAR
Sponsored by Warehouse Training Group (WTG)
This category is open to any employee not in a supervisory or managerial role. The finalists have been able to demonstrate a number of key personal attributes and a sound professional competency. The winner will be an excellent role model who is inspirational to their colleagues and he/she will show an enthusiasm for customer service, success in achieving personal and company goals and a commitment to career development.
The winner of this Award will be announced at the Awards Lunch.
CHAIRMAN’S AWARD
Sponsored by Translift Bendi Ltd
Awarded by UKWA’s National Chairman to an individual or company who has made a real and lasting contribution to the warehousing industry. That contribution may be a single event or the result of many years’ involvement in the industry. The winner of this Award will be announced on July 7th at The Dorchester.
United Kngdom Warehousing Association www.ukwa.org.uk
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