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December 2011 Number 449 £4.00 www.bar.co.uk

Selling insurance to your customers 54 DMoty and CMoTY announcements 33

Euro USAdeliversChristmasPage 52

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No: 449 December 2011 www.bar.co.uk

This month:New s from Watford 06

Industry New s 07-16- HMRC cracks down on personal van use

- Trials for longer semi-trailers

- NEST publishes enrolment guide

- Traffic signs review concluded

- New traffic signs for service areas

- Road casualties drop

- Scotland prepares for winter

- New driving of fence introduced

- Exchange your paper driving licence

- Major road works start on M62

- Oxford tops congested cities list

- Road freight rises

- New financing options for medium-sizedfirms

- Countdown to London Gateway

- Britannia sponsors Bolton school event

- Knightmovers in mountain movie project

- Creative move for Harrow Green

- Reason Global find links Pickfords to

Captain Scott

- Crown Relocations appoints Pluscrates

- Pluscrates invests in LEZ compliant vehicles

- Sandersteads readies depot for LEZ rules

- Reddaways go Commando

- Anglo Pacific sees rise in Kiwi bookings

- Carlisle site caters for Momentous’ cross-country moves

- AGS Four Winds certified for data security

- Momentous adds new lorries

- O’Neil bridges data gap

- Housing market treads water

BAR New s 17-27

- BAR presents best practice

- Business Roadshows: Members speak up

- Modernising BAR Marketing

- Getting ready for Conference 2012

- Domestic Mover of the Year 2012

- Commercial Mover of the Year 2012- Young Mover: Ben Niddrie-Davies

- Industry statistics

BAR Services 28

QSS Updat e 30

Olympics M onitor 32

Commercial M oving Group New s 42

Overseas Group New s 44

Training New s 46

European New s 49

People New s 58

M emberships 60Competition 61

Diary Dates 62

Letters 70

December 2011 Removals & Storage 5

On the cover: Richard Flatt, Warehouse Manager,Euro USA is one of Euro Group’s volunteer Santas.

44

46

57

“Marketing and communication have changedcompletely – the biggest challenge that we andthe industry have faced in the last thirty years ishow to find new ways to market our services anddevelop online.” Gary Burke, Managing Director, Burke Bros.

- Euro Group: All in a good ‘Claus’

- Preparing for pension reform with Cobia

- Wellers’ first-hand experience in removals

- Case study: increasing revenue throughinsurance services

- New Member Revells: military precisionand logistical mastery

- Removal Recruitment: tailored service forremovals companies

Features 51-57

54

09

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BAR New s

Editorial Contribut ions on all aspects of the removals and storageindustry are welcome, together with photographs ifappropriate.Please contact the Managing Editor, Louise Gale on:

Tel: 020 3235 1806

Email: [email protected]

Deadlines: The deadline for all article submissions forthe January 2012 issue of R&S is 4th December.

Advertising For all enquiries and bookings, please contactSteve Pearce on:

Tel: 0117 957 5400


Deadlines: The booking deadline for all displayadvertisements for the January 2012 issue of R&S is4th December.

Subscriptions Removals & Storage is subscribed to by members of theBritish Association of Removers in the UK and Overseas.Current annual subscription is £48.00 in the UK and£72.00 overseas. Additional subscriptions are availablefrom BAR (see contact details to the left).

Registered as a magazine © The British Association ofRemovers 2011. ISSN 0034-4265

All right s reserved. No part of this publication may be scanned,reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in part or wholein any form or by any means (electronic, mechanical, phot ocopying,recording or otherwise) without the prior written permission of theBritish Association of Removers.

Opinions expressed in Removals & Storage are not necessarily thoseof the publisher, British Association of Removers. The description of aproduct or service in this publication does not constitute endorsementby the publ isher. The publisher does not accept any responsibilit y forany claims by advertisers. The articles in this publication are for generalinformation only and are not intended to be advice to any specificperson. Readers are recommended to seek professional advice beforetaking or refraining from taking any action on the basis of the contentsof any article in this publication.

The Brit ish Association of Removers

Tel: 01923 699 480Fax: 01923 699 481Email: [email protected]

Tangent House, 62 Exchange Road, Watford,Hertfordshire WD18 OTG

President: Reg Hackworthy

Director General: Stephen Vickers

Company Secretary: James Falkner

Removals & Storage is designed on behalf ofThe British Association of Removers by:Rubicon Marketing Ltd.Tel: 0117 957 5400Email: [email protected]

Article submission: 4th of the mont h preceding publication

Booking of display Advert s: 10th of the mont h preceding publication

Booking of classified adverts: 10th of t he month preceding publication

Booking of trade advert s: 10th of the mont h preceding publication

Artw ork for adverts: 15th of the mont h preceding publication

Copy and advert ising deadlines 2012 for fut ure issues of R& S magaz ine

NewsFROM WATFORD

Members will be aware of the

good work that is done by

the Removers’ Benevolent

Association, a registered charity which

has the aim to provide relief to

employees, and their dependants, of

current BAR Members who find

themselves in difficulties. Donations

towards the RBA are always welcome,

that really goes without saying, but it is

also necessary that the Trustees of the

charit y are alerted to any necessitous

cases. So, if you do know someone in

our industry who is in need of

assistance, please contact the CompanySecretary at BAR Headquarters for

further details of how to make a claim.

The programme for the BAR

Conference in Royal Windsor has now

been confirmed and full details of this

prestigious event can be found on

pages 17-20. The hotel, Beaumont

House, and its surroundings are quite

superb. There is a packed and varied

agenda for the business sessions and

one of the principal events will be the

Vehicle Exhibition and Competition,

featuring a drive-by with both new and

vintage removals wagons. This has

always been a very popular event in the

past, and the facilities at Windsor have

enabled it to be re-introduced for 2012.

You have to be there to enjoy it, of

course,

BARTS has a new Field Trainer, Peter

Walters, who has wide experience in

the removals industry stretching over

many years. Peter has been out and

about delivering training to Member

companies, and it has been noticed that

the BTEC courses in Removals

Management and Practical Estimating

have recently been fully subscribed.

Building on this success, BARTS will

provide fresh courses in these disciplines

in January 2012. Also in the New Yearwill be the 2012 Commercial Mover of

the Year and Domestic Mover of the

Year competitions, and these are

featured in centre-page pull-outs in this

edition of R&S . Always challenging,

these competit ions are nonetheless very

popular, and entrants tell us again and

again of the commercial advantages

that are to be had when pitching for

new work, by having taken part and

been shortlisted, let alone being the

winner.

In anticipation of all the celebrations,

and potential for traffic congestion,

which are associated with next

Summer’s London 2012 Olympic and

para-Olympic Games, BAR has teamed

up with Transport for London to obtain

as much advance information as

possible on planned changes to routes

and parking in and around London and

other Games venues. Regularly updated

details will be provided on the BAR

website. A representative from

Transport for London will also attend

the 2012 Annual Conference, with a full

up-date on the changes.

Most readers will recognise the value

of making the most of networking

opportunities, and BAR now has its own

LinkedIn page which will enableMembers to reach out to others. Go to

‘My BAR’ on the website and click on

the ‘Linkedin’ discussion group icon,

add your email address where

prompted and there you are.

Finally, BAR wish all Members,

International Associates and Af filiates a

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year.

Contact Det ails:

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Getting ready forLondon LEZ changesAs most members will be aware, from 3 January 2012 all lorriesentering the London Low Emission Zone (LEZ) will need to meet EuroIV standards and larger vans will need to meet the Euro III emissionsstandard.

The LEZ was launched in 2008 to deliver

cleaner air for London. Since that date,

vehicles have had to meet the Euro III

standard for the emission of particulate matter.

However, the LEZ emissions standards are now

becoming more stringent to meet EU legal

targets.

It’s still not too late to take action to make sure

your fleet meets these new standards and are

allowed to drive within the LEZ.

First off, check whether your vehicle is

affected by the LEZ on the Transport for

London (TfL) website. You should also check

whether your vehicle appears on the exemptions

and discounts list on the website.

Long-term strategies involve upgrading to

newer vehicles that meet the required emissions

standards, reorganising your fleet to use only

LEZ-compliant vehicles within the London

LEZ, converting to LPG, natural gas or

biodiesel, and fitting cleaner replacement

engines. A list of approved filters that can be

fitted to engines to reduce emissions of

particulate matter is available on the TfL

website; from 3 January 2012 all approved

filters will be full filters. Any vehicles fitted

with partial filters will need to have these

replaced with full filters prior to 3 January 2012

to continue to drive within the zone without

paying a daily charge.

Any modifications made to engines will need

to be physically certified by VOSA tests, for a

Low Emissions Certificate (LEC) or Reduced

Pollution Certificates (RPC) test, and the

certificate renewed annually at VOSA test

centres. Each test costs £32.

And if all else fails, there is always the final

option – paying the daily charge of £200 for

lorries and £100 for vans to be able to drive

within the LEZ with a non-compliant vehicle.

The BAR website has detailed information and

direct links to all the relevant pages of TfL,

HSE and VOSA: www.bar.co.uk/Consumer/

AboutBAR/NewsAndOffers.aspx.

HMRC cracksdown onpersonal van use

HM Revenue & Customs isincreasing the monitoring of theprivate use of company vans,

according to accountancy firm Wellers.Edward Parker, Partner at Wellers,

explains: “If movers don’t use theirvehicle for private use, it isn’t classed asa benefit and as such their company, orthe employee, won’t have to pay tax onit.

However, if the vehicle is being usedfor personal use by the employee orfamily members, it could mean anadditional charge equivalent to £700 for

the driver and an NIC charge of over£450 for the employer.“This is obviously big money for

HMRC so they are keen to crack downon the proper use of company vans,”says Wellers.

According to the accountants,insignificant use, such as taking out anold mattress or a slight detour to drop achild at school on the way to work, isnot a problem for HMRC. On the otherhand, tasks such as weekly shopping,holidays and social activities aredefinitely not permitted.

Traffic signsreviewconcluded

The Department for Transport hasnow completed its most extensivereview of traffic signs for over

forty years to ensure that the traffic signsystem continues to meet the needs ofroad users now and in the future.

The review sets out measures to reducethe number of signs on the road andprovides advice to local authorities onremoving unnecessary signing.

It will also help ensure betterinformation is provided including newtraffic signs to inform road users wherethere is disruption on other travelnetworks; when travel conditions areaffected by bad weather; that the roadahead is unsuitable for heavy goodsvehicles; and when the road user isentering a shared space trafficmanagement scheme.

The review requires a major overhaulof the Traffic Signs Regulations andGeneral Directions and the Departmentis proceeding with this work as apriority. Read the article on page 8 tofind out more.

Government slow to respond to fuelprice debate

Fair Fuel UK, the fuel price campaign

backed by BAR and other organisations,

has collected 100,000 signatures for its

online campaign in just over eight weeks. That

is the level needed to trigger a parliamentary

debate. BAR’s Director General, Stephen

Vickers, said: “Many of our members signed

this petition and the number of signatures

collected shows how strongly we all feel about

this issue. Members of Parliament should be

listening to the companies based in their

constituencies.” Excluding VAT, fuel duty

accounts for around 50 per cent of the cost of

diesel in the UK, outstripping the average of

just 35 per cent in the EU, at a time when UK

transport operators have seen the cost of bulk

diesel shoot up by 15 per cent over the past 12

months. FairFuelUK says that the Government

is now dragging its feet for allocating time for

the debate. It is calling for supporters to email

their MPs, using the following link:

http://action.fairfueluk.com/debate

Britain has a new Secretary of State for

Transport – Justine Greening who replaces

Philip Hammond. Mr Hammond has taken

over the position previously held by Liam Fox at

the Ministry of Defence.

Ms Greening is MP for Putney. Born in

Rotherham, South Yorkshire, she studied

economics at Southampton University.

She has an MBA from the London Business

School and was a Finance Manager at Centrica plc

before being elected as Member of Parliament in

May 2005.

Prior to her new position, she was Economic

Secretary to the Treasury from May 2010.

New Transport Minister named

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Transport Minister Keith Brown, said:

“Keeping Scotland moving is vital to the

Scottish economy, and we have built on

the experience of the last two harsh winters. We

are working with our partners across the public

and private sector to ensure our winter service is

as prepared as possible.” The Minister said that

Scotland’s salt stocks are at 70 per cent of the

total levels used last year but no roads authority

can guarantee to keep roads free from snow and

ice. “When severe weather comes there will be

disruption even with the best laid plans, but ouroperating companies are better prepared to get

Scotland moving again due to our focus on

improvement since last winter.”

Transport Scotland is enhancing its Traffic

Scotland service, providing drivers with more

information to help them make informed

decisions.

The Winter Service is being strengthened in

three crucial areas: Road User Information,

Treatments and Decision Making. Winter

Service operations involve over 38 depots and

over 230 vehicles, 190 of which are gritters

(plough/spreaders).

Six new weather stations are being

commissioned for this winter and a further 24

of the existing stations will have cameras added.

When the new weather stations arecommissioned, 64 of the total 141 weather

stations will have camera coverage.

Camera coverage is being further increased

with 10 Rapidly Deployable Cameras at

Variable Message Sign sites across the network.

Road casualtiesdrop

T

here was welcome news from the

Department for Transport, when it

reported that there were a total of208,648 casualties of all severities in road

accidents reported to the police in 2010, 6

per cent lower than in 2009.

There were 1,850 people killed, 17 per

cent lower than in 2009 and 22,660 were

seriously injured, down 8 per cent. Motor

vehicle traffic fell by 2 per cent over the

same period.

The number of fatalities fell for almost all

types of road user, with a fall of 21 per cent

for car occupants, 19 per cent for

pedestrians, 15 per cent for motorcyclists.

Pedal cycle fatalities rose by 7 per cent.

In 2010, it is estimated that 9,700 reportedcasualties (5 per cent of all road casualties)

occurred when someone was driving whilst

over the legal alcohol limit. The provisional

number of people estimated to have been

killed in drink drive accidents was 250 (14

per cent of all road fatalities).

Failing to look properly was again the

most frequently reported contributory

factor and was reported in 40 per cent of all

accidents reported to the police in 2010.

Not all non-fatal accidents are reported to

the police. The DfT estimates that the total

number of road casualties in Great Britain,

including those not reported to police, iswithin the range 660,000 to 800,000 with a

central estimate of 730,000.

In 2010, the economic welfare cost of

reported road accidents was estimated to be

around £15 billion, the DfT said.

Road freightrises

B

etween 2009 and 2010, the amount

of goods moved by GB-registeredvehicles in the UK increased by 11

per cent to 139bn tonne kilometres,according to road freight statistics

published by the Department for Transport

in October.Over the same period, the amount of

goods lifted increased by 10 per cent to1,489m tonnes and vehicle kilometres

increased by 4 per cent to 18.8bn vehicle

kilometres (11.7bn vehicle miles).Since the 1990s, there has been a change

in the type of vehicle accounting for HGVactivity, the DfT said. The percentage

share of freight moved by rigid vehiclesdeclined from 31 per cent in 1989 to 25 per

cent in 1999, and to 22 per cent in 2010.In 2010, the amount of goods lifted by

UK-registered goods vehicles travelling to

or from the UK was 10.6m tonnes, a 10per cent increase from 9.6m tonnes in

2009.

Scotland prepares forwinterWith all forecasts pointing to another bitter winter, on October 1stTransport Scotland began implementing its £15m winter service.

The service treats Scotland’s 2,000 mile motorway and trunk roadnetwork when snow and ice does inevitably arrive.

New driving offence introduced

Dangerous drivers who seriously injure

others could spend up to five years in

jail.

The new criminal offence of ‘causing seriousinjury by dangerous driving’ will more than

double the current maximum sentence of two

years, allowing the courts to impose tougher

punishments on dangerous drivers.

The changes will be taken forward as part of

the Government’s Legal Aid, Sentencing and

Punishment of Offenders Bill.

Justice Secretary Kenneth Clarke said:

“We have listened to the victims of dangerous

drivers, their families, MPs, judges and roadsafety groups and their experiences have

directly informed these changes. Making

our roads safer is a priority - five people died

on our roads each day last year, so we need to

do everything we can to further improve

safety.”

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When the scheme is completed in2013/14, road users will benefitfrom reduced journey times due to

the use of variable speed limits to smooth outtraffic flows and opening up the hard shoulderas an extra traffic lane.

The managed motorway scheme – the firstof its kind in the North of the country – covers a 15.5-mile section of the M62between Junction 25 (Brighouse) andJunction 30 (Rothwell).

It is one of 14 schemes due to start before2015 that is being delivered as part of a£1.4bn Government package of strategic road

projects to boost the economy.The first phase of construction will focus on

the stretch between Junction 27 (Gildersome)and Junction 28 (Tingley), with constructionon other sections starting in phases from nextmonth.

The scheme will include overhead gantriesand the construction of emergency refugeareas alongside the hard shoulder.

Three lanes will be kept available for trafficin both directions during the works with a50mph speed limit, enforced with averagespeed cameras, in place for the safety of road

users and the workforce. Some overnight laneclosures will be required during the schemeand full motorway closures (normallyovernight) will be required from Spring nextyear for gantry installation.

Work on the scheme is expected to becompleted in October 2013. HighwaysAgency Project Manager David Pilsworthsaid “in order to minimise delays to roadusers, we are carrying out this work in phasesand keeping three lanes available to traffic inboth directions at peak times throughout theconstruction.”

Oxford has seen the biggest increase in

traffic congestion anywhere in the UK,

according to new figures released by

TomTom.

Oxford has risen from sixth to third place in a

nationwide congestion ranking which shows

nearly a third (31.2 per cent) of its main roads

are clogged with traffic.

TomTom measured the top 50 most congested

areas across Britain in the past six months.

Findings suggest that whilst congestion is worst

in London and Edinburgh, it has increased most

in Oxford - by 2.2 per cent since March.

Belfast has seen the second biggest increase in

congestion, followed by Bolton, Southampton

and Sheffield. In Scotland Edinburgh, Glasgow

and Aberdeen are all in the top 10 cities that

have seen the biggest increase in traffic jams in

the past six months. The study shows that,

perhaps unsurprisingly, London is the most

traffic clogged city in the country, with 36 per

cent of roads significantly more congested

during rush-hours than at off-peak times. At

number two is Edinburgh with a congestion rate

of 33 per cent. Behind Oxford in fourth place is

Belfast where 31 per cent of roads are classed as

congested, followed by Bradford (30 per cent),

Manchester (30 per cent) and Birmingham (28

per cent). The least congested big towns or cities

are Northampton, Warwick and Chesterfield, all

with congestion rates of less than 10 per cent.

Only five in the top 50 have seen congestion fall

over the past six months: Bedford, Colchester,

Newport, York and Chester.

Oxford tops congested cities list

Major road works start on M62Major construction work is now underway for a £150m scheme to increase capacity, reduce congestionand improve safety on the M62 in West Yorkshire.

The scheme will include

overhead gantries and

the construction of

emergency refuge

areas alongside the

hard shoulder.

Momentous has opened up its Carlisle

site for groupage and full load

services for movements from the

North and Scotland, South, and for Southern

movements going North.

“We are able to provide this service as we have

reasonable volumes of our own moving in both

directions already,” says Simon Osborne, Group

Managing Director at Momentous.

Simon explains that the way it will work will

be for clients to “either drop the goods into one

of our sites or we collect if feasible. We then

transport either North or South and it’s collected

by the companies or their agent or onward

delivered by ourselves.” He believes this will

reduce the amount of journeys non-frequent

users have to make in either direction, and give

more opportunities to companies who

would not normally quote, due to the extra costs

in potential return journeys without loads. It

also reduces cost for the company sending

crews for low volume movements. “This option

means if the client wants to do the door to door

themselves, they can, we just provide the

warehouse to warehouse service. If they need

more, we can assist further. We let the client

choose.”

Momentous site in Carlisle caters for cross-country moves

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So when he was approached by Magnet

Films in 2010 to clear a property

perilously perched on a Snowdonia

mountain top, Wynn relished the thought of

working on a film project.

Gary Sinyor, Producer at Magnet, was looking

for a removal company that could operate under

the difficult circumstances of a rugged rural

location with virtually no access, and endure theharsh winter weather, for the shooting of

Retreat.

In the depths of a bitter winter, and armed

with quad bikes, tranship vehicles and thermal

long johns (Snowdonia in winter is always a

challenge!) Wynn and the team arrived at Plas

Llandecwyn eager to start the job.

Wynn and his crew cleared several barns,

outbuildings and a rambling cottage and

removed all the contents into Knightmovers

Storage.

They used a wide variety of vehicles, parked

at their limit of proximity to the properties.

On set, the props team had identified items toremain in situ at the property for use during

filming.

Antique furniture, farmhouse décor and rural

fireplaces were left to give the property an

authentic rustic look.

However, the props team were constantly

changing their minds, and the Knightmovers

team had to load, unload and move items back

and forth countless times until they achieved the

haunted feel they were looking for.

The film, Retreat, is now on general release

and is a dark thriller starring Jamie Bell (Billy

Elliott ), Cillian Murphy ( Inception) and

Thandie Newton (Crash).

According to Wynn, “it was quite an

experience working with the luvvies of the

entertainment industry but great fun too.”

Knightmovers inmountain movie projectSince setting in out North Wales as a ‘man with a van’ operation over15 years ago, Wynn Hammond, Managing Director of Knightmovers,has built up his reputation as a remote location specialist, solving thedifficulties presented by isolated settings and restricted access.

Creative move for Harrow Green

Harrow Green’s specialist

move teams are on courseto complete the relocation

of the North Warwickshire &

Hinckley College London Road

campus to its new site in Hinckley

town centre.

The new £13m campus will be

home to the College’s Creative

Arts provision, with state-of-the-

art recording studios, performance

spaces, dance and photography

studios, a theatre and computer

suites.

Harrow Green has been

partnering with the building

contractor, ISG, for the new build

to carry out an unusual industrial

move of heavy equipment that

includes potters wheels and kilns,

a print drying machine, glass-

making equipment, drawing and

cutting tables, sewing machines,

fabrics, theatre costumes, pianosand kettle drums.

“There is nothing usual about

this move,” said Simon Compton,

Harrow Green’s relocation

consultant for the project. “Each

item needs special consideration,

planning and handling – and we

need to be able to anticipate

problems, for example where lifts

meet grand pianos.”

The Harrow Green team is

working closely with Andrew

Crowter, Assistant Principal,

Facilities Management, to

complete the equipment

relocation and the administrative

move of crates, files and personal

items, as well as the library

sequential move of some 300

linear metres.

O’Neil bridgesthe on-site andoff-site data gap

O’Neil DataTech LLC has releasedRMBridge™, a series of web

services that enables end usersystems to simply, securely and seamlessly

manage both on-site and off-site records.RMBridge provides records management

software companies the ability to have an

integrated “real-time” interface, whichautomates and standardizes the access and

management of physical records stored inoff-site record centers utilizing O’Neil

Software’s RS-SQL® product suite. These

web services give a convenient, secure and“seamless bridge” that can be used to

access, manage and control records in aconsistent manner, utilizing just their in-

house file room software.

“RMBridge represents the latestinnovation from O’Neil, that will provide

an enhanced end user experience,” said IanThomas, Executive Vice President of

O’Neil Software. “The convenience of a

single platform, unifying the recordsmanagement experience, is something we

have been asked about by end users formany years. With this ability to integrate

to off-site records, record managementsoftware companies now have the

opportunity to put complete control in thehands of the record managers. This releasemarks a significant step forward within the

records management ecosystem, insupporting end users who have the difficult

task of managing staggering amounts of

corporate information.”

Harrow Green to relocate Hinckley Campus

C i l l ianMurp hy T handieNewt on

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New financing optionsfor medium-sized firms The Confederation of British Industry is calling for a broader range of finance to be made available to medium-sized businesses which itdescribes as the UK’s “forgotten army”, too long overlooked bygovernment but with the potential to inject between £20bn and£50bn into the economy by 2020.

Exchange yourpaper drivinglicence

Lorry drivers holding a British paperdriving licence are asked to exchange

it for a photocard licence in order to

receive their driver qualification card (DQC)

at no cost.

The DQC proves that a driver holds the

Driver Certificate of Professional

Competence (Driver CPC) which

professional bus, coach and lorry drivers

must now legally hold in addition to their

driving licence. Drivers with a photocard

licence will receive their DQC automatically

when they have passed the Driver CPC

initial qualification or completed 35 hours of

periodic training, as the same photographcan be used for both documents. While

drivers will still have to pay the usual £20

photocard licence fee, they will benefit from

receiving their DQC free of charge, which

could save them up to £30 over the 10 year

photocard licence period. Those drivers

leaving the exchange of their licence until

after they have completed their training may

risk a delay in receiving their DQC. Drivers

can apply to exchange their licence online or

by post or they can drop off their application

at DVLA local offices and selected Post

Office branches.

Britanniasponsors Boltonschool event

Britannia Anchor Removals Ltd

sponsored the prestigious annualMarcus Tillotson lecture at Bolton

School, which the company has worked

with extensively in recent years.

Managing Director Chris Smallwood

explained “We have a long established andexcellent working relationship with Bolton

School. We feel privileged to be asked to

support such a prestigious event. BoltonSchool like ourselves are proud to be

serving Bolton and putting something backinto the community.”

This year’s guest speaker was Lord Coe,

who spoke of the Olympic Legacy for theNorth West of England.

Bolton School is one of the oldest schoolsin Lancashire. The origins of the Boys’

School can be traced back to at least 1516

when the Bolton Grammar School for Boyswas recorded as being “a going concern.”

The School is looking forward tocelebrating 500 years of history and will

begin a year of activities in 2015 (100 yearsafter the School was re-endowed),

culminating with a 500 year party in 2016.

L

ondon Gateway, the new global shipping

port and logistics centre project, will open

in the fourth quarter of 2013 with an

initial capacity of 1.6 million TEU (twenty foot

equivalent container units), operator DP World

said in October.

DP World, headquartered in Dubai and the

world’s third largest port operator, has been

laying the foundations for the new port since

early 2010. The group is expecting to invest a

further £625m in London Gateway over the

next three years.

“London Gateway is a giant leap forward for

the UK’s supply chains and will benefit our

customers tremendously through more efficient

transportation of goods; it will also support

wider UK business and economic growth,”

Mohammed Sharaf, Chief Executive of DPWorld, said. “London Gateway will provide the

world class service that our customers have

come to expect from DP World across the

globe, using the most advanced equipment and

technology. London Gateway’s location is

unique, bringing the world’s largest ships

directly to Europe’s largest logistics park,

providing long-term value for our customers

and UK business.”

In addition to a major deep sea port, London

Gateway will integrate with Europe’s largest

logistics park and will offer individual units up

to and in excess of one million square feet.

An estimated 65m road freight miles will be

saved every year as many goods will no longer

need to be transported from deep sea ports to

inland distribution centres. Instead, goods will

be sent straight into the new London Gateway

Logistics Park and then directly to shops and

homes.

Transport Minister Mike Penning said

“As an island trading nation, having the ability

to handle the world’s largest ships efficientlyand effectively is vital for Britain, and London

Gateway will play a key role in delivering this.

This new port and logistics centre will form a

central part of our nation’s future

infrastructure.”

F irms with a turnover of between £10m and

£100m represent less than one per cent of

businesses but generate 22 per cent of

economic revenue and 16 per cent of all jobs. In

terms of new jobs created, six per cent of

medium-sized businesses (MSBs) create 60 per

cent of all new jobs.

With banks’ lending constrained, these firmscan no longer rely solely on bank lending for

long-term growth capital to invest in their

companies. According to a new CBI report, if

more firms could reach their potential to grow,

this could help achieve an extra £20bn to £50bn

by 2020, a major boost to the UK’s GDP.

John Cridland, CBI Director-General, said:

“We should be championing, nurturing and

encouraging our medium-sized firms so that

more of them grow and create jobs. For too

long these companies, which could inject tens

of billions of pounds into our economy, have

fallen under the radar of policymakers.”

The CBI wants the UK to have its ownversion of the German ‘Mittelstand’, a

backbone of MSBs which export, innovate and

generate growth. These future champions would

help the UK weather unexpected economic

shocks, and act as a new engine for growth.

For the CBI, “to achieve extra growth,

medium-sized firms must have access to new

kinds of finance. This means opening UK bond

markets to medium-sized businesses,

encouraging use of venture capital, and making

it easier for large companies to invest in

medium ones, possibly in their supply chains.”

Entrepreneurs’ Relief should also be

restructured to incentivise longer-terminvestments, with the threshold for qualifying

for the relief brought to below the current 5 per

cent. The scope of the R&D tax credit should be

widened to include all aspects of design to help

encourage even more innovation amongst

MSBs.

Countdown to London Gateway

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Industry N ew s

14

T he vessel is best known for its voyage

under the command of Captain Scott onhis ill-fated expedition to be the first to

reach the South Pole. The black and white

image, which shows a Pickfords horse and cartdelivering Shell motor spirit to the ship, was

found by Reason Global’s Graham Puddephattduring a search for images for a BAR

conference presentation. Unaware of his find, itwas fortunate that Michael Andrews, Pickfords’

Area Manager, was in the audience and spotted

the connection.Following the discovery, Pickfords teamed up

with the International Polar Foundation toembark on a rollercoaster search to find the

origins of the image.

Michael explains: “At first we thought theimage might have been taken just before

Scott’s famous British Antarctic Expeditionsailed in 1910, but lengthy conversations with

archivists at Shell UK, the International Polar

Foundation and the Scott Polar ResearchInstitute failed to find any evidence to support

our theories.”Dr Liz Pasteur from the International Polar

Foundation takes up the story: “After we drewa blank with the most famous of Terra Nova’scommissions, we started looking a little further

afield. After speaking to Terra Nova expert andauthor Mike Tarver, we were informed that the

ship’s name, just about visible in the picture,was not on the hull by the time it was

purchased by Scott in 1909, so the photo must

have been taken some time before then.

From what Mike has told us, the mostplausible explanation is that the photo was

taken at London’s West India Docks in 1905 as

the ship prepared to sail on a rescue mission toreach members of the failed Ziegler polar

expedition. The US party was stranded north ofthe Arctic Circle for two years after attempting

to reach the North Pole.”

Michael continues: “After speaking to Mikeour investigations have led us as far afield as

the US descendant of one of the Ziegler partyand to the Norwegian Polar Institute, but no

one can confirm when or where the image was

taken; it’s a complete mystery. We’ve run outof leads, so we’re throwing it open to the

public to see if we can shed any more light onthe origins of the photograph.”

If anyone has any information on the origins orbackground of the photograph, they are urged

to contact Lyndsey Daykin at Pickfords on

0203 188 2248.

CrownRelocationsAppoints

Pluscrates

Pluscrates has signed an exclusive

three-year deal with Crown

Relocations to supply crates

throughout the UK and Ireland. The move

comes following Crown’s continued growth

in the commercial relocation sector.

Pluscrates’ Managing Director, John

Mitchell said, “Crown Worldwide Group is

well known to us and we have coveted the

opportunity to support Crown Relocations

since we began trading in 2008. We’ve had

to be patient but now we have been

presented with this opportunity we’re

looking forward to justifying the trust Crown

has placed in us. We enjoy mutually

rewarding relationships with all our clients

and it’s great to be able to count Crown

Relocations amongst them.” Steve Durbin,

Head of Procurement for Crown Worldwide

Group, UK and Ireland said, “We have

worldwide business interests and are

acknowledged experts in what we do. It’s

therefore essential that any third-party we

bring into our business is equally proficient,

adds value to our service and shares our

uncompromising passion for excellence.

There must never be any conflict of interest

– for us, Pluscrates ticks all the boxes.”

BritanniaSandersteadsreadies depot forLEZ rules

B

ritannia Sandersteads have signed alease on a new site comprising 5warehouses that will increase its

current space from 24,000 ft2 up to39,000 ft2 and will add substantialparking and yard space. The company isnow in the process of moving depots.

Over the Christmas holiday, the teamwill be moving the office, companyequipment, materials and all the trucks tobe ready to operate out of the new depotearly in the New Year. 2012 will be itsfortieth year of being in business.

Once the move is complete by the end ofFeb 2012, Director Stuart Almandras saysBritannia Sandersteads will be offering agood quality trade storage service at great

prices inside the M25 but outside theLEZ. They will also be offering a Londonpart load delivery service using the depotto avoid LEZ charge for all movers whodon’t comply. All email addresses andcontact numbers will remain the same.

Reason Global find linksPickfords to Captain Scott A series of fortuitous events has sparked a hunt to find the origins of aphotograph linking Pickfords to the world famous ship, Terra Nova.

Pluscrates invests in LEZcompliant vehicles

Crate rental specialist Pluscrates hasinvested more than £250,000 in new 7.5

tonne low emission vehicles for its

central London Fleet. The move comes as part

of the company’s preparations for tough new

London Emission Zone (LEZ) regulations

which come into effect in January 2013. The

new LEZ regulations will compel vehicle

operators to meet Euro 5 specification or pay a

hefty £200 per day fine for each van enteringthe zone.

Pluscrates’ Managing Director John Mitchell

said, “Our London depot is in Wembley, well

within the LEZ, so we have no choice but to

upgrade our fleet to Euro 5 spec. However,

we’re taking a positive approach and using it

as an opportunity to acquire better vehicles

that will improve efficiency generally.” The

new Daf 7.5 tonne vans are equipped with

super lightweight honeycomb glass reinforced

plastic underbodies and fitted with a 20ft box,

permitting a much higher payload than was

possible with the old Iveco models. Other

improvements include aluminium cantilevertail-lifts to permit safe loading of up to 700

crates, and reversing cameras to improve

safety when delivering. Further Euro 5

compliant vehicles, including a Daf 18 tonne

box van, are due for delivery to Pluscrates’

Wembley depot next year.

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Industry N ew s

15

Momentous have added two new

Mercedes Atego 7.5t vehicles to the

company’s growing fleet. Both

chassis were supplied by S&B Commercials

with Essex Bodies building the removal spec

bodies. These new vehicles have been

selected for the company’s furniture delivery

contracts throughout UK and Europe Simon

Osborne, Group MD, said “We have invested

in 10 new vehicles and 5 new trailers this

year, and plan to do the same again next year.

It is important, and sensible to keep our fleet

as young as possible. We have seen our MPG

ratio go up and our costs come down,

through training and modern vehicletechnology. We choose Mercedes as they

offer exactly what we need on the rigid front

and we have found them to be the best for

our business over the life of the truck. Truck

manufacturers MAN have been superb on the

unit side, and have matched all of what we

need for long distance work. We are now

covering most of Europe on our own fleet

and this is working out very well for us and

our clients as we can now control our clients’

expectations much more. Having vehicle

tracking and using it to its maximum

potential has also enabled the business to

really focus on its costs and needs.”

Momentous adds new lorries

Reddaways go Commando The Reddaways Removals team ‘Move a Bit Quicker’ got down and dirty atthe Commando Challenge in October, raising money for Devon Air

Ambulance and The ‘C’ group.

Premier marksnew servicewith abseil

To mark the launch of its newsustainable workplace solutions,

Premier Sustain took part in a 500ft

abseil down Guys Hospital tower in

London, to raise money for St Mungo’s, a

charity which works to prevent

homelessness and support homeless people

in London and the South.

“Waiting around on the roof knowing that

you are next was a little nerve racking,” Carl

Robson from Premier Sustain says of the

terrifying descent. “To start the descent there

is a ledge about 4 ft you have to climb down

from a platform and there is no turning

back! There is only one way…… down!!!”

The new Premier Sustain service uses the

principles of the waste hierarchy to direct

and manage resources sustainably,

delivering social and environmental benefits

as well as cost savings.

In the last six months, Premier Sustain, on

behalf of its clients, has resold 6,700 items

of furniture and donated 1,250 items to

charities and social enterprises. The

company has also recycled over 675 tonnes

of waste, saving over £32,400 for its clients

in landfill tax alone. The carbon emissionsavings from this new service have

exceeded 1,265 tonnes to date.

Premier Sustain supports St Mungo’s

through its Giving Back Project, the reuse

element of the service that gives clients the

opportunity to donate unwanted furniture

and equipment. Four members of the

Sustain team (Amanda Russinger, Phil

Oram, Carl Robson and Ann Beavis)

fearlessly took part in the challenge, and

completed the abseil down Guy’s Hospital

Tower at London Bridge on Sunday 18th

September.

Phil Oram, Operations Director, PremierSustain told R&S that the team has so far

raised over £1,650 with more sponsorship

still coming in. If you wish to support them

further please visit www.justgiving.com/

premiersustain.

AGS Four Winds UK has proven its

commitment to providing the highest

levels of quality and security services for

their customers and partners, by achieving the

ISO 27001 certification earlier this year. The

award recognises that the best practices are in

place for protecting confidential information

through proper security processes. AGS Four

Winds UK is in a minority (less than 1 per cent)

of businesses in the UK that have been awarded

this certification which is recognised by the UK

Government and internationally. The company

applied for the ISO 27001 certification to

ensure that its information security systems

complied with the most stringent standards and

was protected against the increasing external

data security threats which are suffered by the

global business community. Mario Amato,Managing Director of AGS Four Winds UK,

commented, “The entire team at AGS Four

Winds UK works hard to ensure the satisfaction

of their clients. As an international removals

company, safeguarding personal client

information is a top priority for us, and we’re

proud that we’ve been recognised for our

endeavour to go above and beyond the normal

standards. I am confident that other movers in

the UK will follow suit.”

The team had to race round a gruelling

course at the Royal Marines’ endurance

training centre on Woodbury Common.

The course involved taking on various obstacles

including wading through a mud pit, scrabbling

through pitch black and rocky tunnels, and the

renowned ‘Sheep Dip’ - a completely

underwater tunnel.

‘Move a bit Quicker’ were placed an amazing

6th out of the 75 mixed teams, which means a

very commendable 11th out of the 134 teams

that entered the 4 km challenge.

AGS Four Winds certified for datasecurity

AGS FW UK receives ISO 27001 certification

Momentous New Mercedes 7.5 ton trucks

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Industry N ew s

16

Figures from the Land Registry show anannual price decrease of 2.6 per cent in

September which takes the average

property value in England and Wales to

£162,109. The monthly change from August to

September is a decrease of 0.3 per cent and

continues the negative monthly price change

seen in August of -0.1 per cent. The only region

in England and Wales to experience an increase

in its average property value over the last 12

months is London with a movement of 2.7 per

cent. The North West experienced the greatest

monthly rise with a movement of 1.0 per cent.

The North East experienced the greatest annual

price fall with a decrease of 8.2 per cent and themost significant monthly price fall with a

movement of -3.9 per cent. The most up-to-date

figures available show that during July 2011, the

number of completed house sales in England

and Wales decreased by 11 per cent to 59,919

from 67,475 in July 2010. The number of

properties sold in England and Wales for over £1

million in July 2011 decreased by 24 per cent to

707 from 932 in July 2010.

Nationwide, which covers the whole of the UK

and is based on a sample of loans issued in any

given month, reported that prices increased by

0.4 per cent in October, with an average houseprice of £165,650, 0.8 per cent higher than in

October 2010. Robert Gardner, chief economist

at Nationwide, said “Given the challenging

economic backdrop, October’s data is

encouraging, but it doesn’t fundamentally

change the picture of a housing market that is

treading water. Property transaction levels

remain subdued, and prices essentially flat

compared to last year. The outlook remains

uncertain, but with the UK economic recovery

expected to remain sluggish, house price growth

is likely to remain soft in the period ahead, with

prices moving sideways or drifting modestly

lower over the next twelve months.”

The October data indicates that there was an

increase in the proportion of sales occurring in

more affluent areas and a similar reduction in

less affluent areas.

Figures from Communities and LocalGovernment (CLG) for August show that,

based on mortgage completions, UK house

prices decreased by 1.3 per cent over the year

and increased by 0.6 per cent over the month

(seasonally adjusted). The average mix-adjusted

UK house price was £208,476. Average house

prices remain unchanged over the quarter to

August, compared to a quarterly decrease of 0.2

per cent over from the quarter to May.Average prices decreased during the year in

all UK countries; England (-1.2 per cent), Wales

(-0.3 per cent), Scotland (-1.5 per cent) and

Northern Ireland (-4.3 per cent).

Prices paid by first-time buyers were 1.8 per

cent lower on average than a year earlier and

prices paid by former owner occupiers also

decreased by 1.1 per cent. Prices for new

properties were 9.2 per cent higher on average

than a year earlier whilst prices for pre-owned

dwellings decreased by 2 per cent.

Halifax, which also covers the entire UK, but

bases its index on a sample of each lender’s ownloans each month, said that although house

prices rose by 1.2 per cent in October, house

prices in the three months to October were 0.3

per cent lower than in the preceding three

months; this measure of the underlying trend

turned negative for the first time since June. The

average UK house price in October was

marginally higher than at the end of last year.

The average price in October was £508 (or +0.3

per cent) higher than in December 2010 on a

seasonally adjusted basis, at £163,311.

“The prospect of exceptionally low official

interest rates over the foreseeable future is likely

to continue to support the market in the face of a

very difficult economic climate. Both prices and

activity levels are expected to remain close to

current levels over the coming few months,”

housing economist Martin Ellis said.

The latest monthly market report from the

National Association of Estate Agents showed

an increase in the number of people registering

to look for homes. The figure rose from 304 in

August to 308 in September as an average per

branch - the highest level since September 2007

(326). The number of houses available for sale

also increased from 65 per branch to 72 across

August and September while the number of

sales remained the same with eight per branch.

Price change by region Source: Land Registry

Housing market treads waterThe housing market is continuing to perform poorly, with latest housing surveys indicating that economicconcerns are weighing on prices and on transaction numbers.

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http://slidepdf.com/reader/full/rs-dec-11-web 21/72December 2011 Removals & Storage 21

BAR New s

BAR has received largely positive feedback

from members who attended October’s

Business Roadshows in various locations

across the country. These seminars covered a

wide range of topics affecting the industry, from

employment regulations and insurance to

training schemes, quality standards, and pension

reforms. Feedback from the London event

showed that 86 per cent of attendees found the

quality of the information provided by speakers

either very good or good, while in Scotland a full

100 per cent of those who responded to the

survey rated the information good or very good.

Speakers from BAR, solicitors Backhouse Jones,

accountants Wellers, and insurance specialists

Basil Fry and Reason Global were particularly

well received, reflecting the high level of interest

that members had in the topics covered.

In total, there was a high level of satisfaction

with the quality of the speakers and with the

information obtained, as well as with the

organisation of the Roadshow events.

Many of those attendants said they would come

again, as the subjects covered had been very

useful to their organisations. The only major

source of dissension was the quality of

refreshments provided as some BAR members

indicated they were not fully satisfied by the

buffet on offer. There was one area on which all

those who did attend the events were unanimous;

the main disappointment was the relatively low

level of attendance from BAR members. Perhaps

in these tough economic conditions, it was

harder to make the time than in previous years?

“It would have been good to see more

members,” one respondent said, suggesting that

BAR should email the delegate list several times

before the meeting in order to raise awareness

and increase attendance rates.

These events are not only useful in gaining key

knowledge and insights from speakers who are

experts in their field – they are also ideal

networking opportunities for the BAR

community, so we encourage all of you to try

to get involved.

BAR Roadshows: Members speak upMany thanks to all of those who made the time to fill in the feedback survey on the BAR BusinessRoadshows held this autumn. Those who attended the events were overwhelmingly positive about thequality of the speakers and the information provided, and have encouraged BAR to carry on with thisinitiative, which depends on continued member support.

“My first roadshow.

Overall, pretty good and

would attend again.”

“Best roadshow yet.”

“Very well organised and

run presentations. Content

was very relevant to the

challenging and changing

face of our industry.”

“Shame it was not better

attended – but it was their

loss!”

FeedbackFrom BAR Members

The London Roadshow

Marketing, Booking and Information:

Advertising materialspromoting the event

Online booking process

Quality of theinformation givenby the speakers

V.Good/Strongly

Agree

Average/

Neutral

Poor/

Disagree

V.Poor/Strongly

Agree

28.6%

14.3%

14.3%

71.4%

71.4%

71.4%

0.0%

14.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

14.3%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

Good/

Agree

Organisation andrunning of theBusiness Roadshow

Quality of Speakers

Knowledge gained

personally fromsubjects covered

Use of information toyour company fromsubjects covered

V.Good/Strongly

Agree

Average/

Neutral

Poor/

Disagree

V.Poor/Strongly

Agree

Good/

Agree

Lor en W ebst er - BART r ainingManager

Overall Summary Review:

42.9%running of theBusiness Roadsho

28.6%

14.3%


28.6%your company frosubjects covered


71.4%

71.4%




0.0%

14.3%




0.0%

0.0%



0.0%running of thBusiness Roa

0.0%

0.0%

personally frsubjects cov

0.0%your compansubjects cov

The Scottish Roadshow

Marketing, Booking and Information:

Advertising materialspromoting the event

Online booking process

Quality of theinformation givenby the speakers

V.Good/Strongly

Agree

Average/

Neutral

Poor/

Disagree

V.Poor/Strongly

Agree

71.4%

71.4%

100.0%

28.6%

28.6%

0.0%

0.0%

0.00%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

0.00%

0.0%

0.0%

0.0%

Good/

Agree

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


BAR New s

Modernising BAR Marketing Raising BAR’sprofile by

networkingI

n terms of businesspartnerships, the agreementwith Re:locate will raise

awareness of BAR and the BARbadge among the 30,000thousand specialist readers of theweb site.

The Re:locate web site willalso include a direct link to theBAR’s online estimating systemand a page dedicated toexplaining the benefit of using aBAR Member.

And by establishing new onlinelinks, these partnerships will alsomove BAR higher up the Googlerankings.

It’s a fully integrated marketingapproach, that is designed to helpthe BAR community competebetter in the Internet age andgenerate new leads for itsmembers.

B

AR is embarking on a major

overhaul of its advertising

and marketing strategy,

which will improve the onlinepositioning of the association

and its members, and will

provide advertisers in R&S with

more presence on the BAR

website.

Caroline Suard, Director of

Marketing, says that much of the

focus of the new approach to marketing

is focused on strengthening the online

visibility of BAR and its members, and raising

awareness of the advantages of using a member

company. In addition, BAR is developing

marketing alliances with strategic organisations

that increase recognition of the BAR badge in keysectors of the market. The two prongs of this

strategy are designed on the one hand to increase

the generation of leads and the recognition of

BAR as a brand, and on the other to improve the

level of information provided to members, while

also creating opportunities for networking.

The BAR world at a clickOn the online information front, BAR is now

beginning to map members worldwide on its web

site; members will be able to click on

a world map to identify the

location of full Members, or the

UK map can be used to identifythe location of all UK

Members as well as the

group(s) they belong to

(Overseas, CMG, SSSIG).

New additions to the BAR web

site include an Olympics section,

with the latest updates from

Transport for London, as well as a

new Funding page that lists the grants

available to BAR members. A page on pension

reforms and the role of NEST has been added in

the Resources section of MyBAR. Advertisers in

the print edition of R&S will also be able to

display their logo on the BAR website, while R&Sitself will move to a new position on the public

page, increasing visibility for our advertisers.

Also in the online space, there are already 111

members in the BAR Group on LinkedIn, the

social network for business-to-business. This

provides an ideal forum for members to engage in

debates and raise any concerns they may have.

If you would like to join the group, login into the

BAR website and click on the LinkedIn logo.

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


BAR New s

For the first time, the Conference has alsobeen opened to members of FIDI andFedemac, who are sure to appreciate the

historical beauty and royal atmosphere ofRoyal Windsor, and who will help make theevent a truly international and memorableoccasion.

As ever, the winners of the much covetedDomestic Mover of the Year and CommercialMover of the Year awards will be announcedat the Gala Dinner and Awards Night, onSaturday 19th May - it could be you!

This year, BAR is advertising theConference on the consumer-facing section ofthe BAR website, demonstrating BAR’scommitment to raise the profile of how itencourages best practice among ourmembers.

Conference sponsors and exhibitors are alsobeing given pride of place on the website,with full descriptions of the services that theyprovide to the Industry.

Industry expertsConfirmed speakers at the Conference includekeynote speaker Mike Nattrass, MEP fromthe UK Independence Party, David Silvey ofTransport for London (TfL), and Alan Ward,Chairman of the Residential Landlords

Association (RLA).Mike has represented the West Midlands in

the European Parliament since May 2004. Asa member of the Transport and TourismCommittee of the European Parliament, Mikewill share his views about how he is standing

up for the interests of the British transportindustry in Europe. Alan will be giving us adeep insight into the eight-million strongworld of the Landlord industry, by sharing hisunderstanding of valuable market trends andhis wealth of industry experience.

And David Silvey will present all the latestand most accurate information relating to thechanges affecting the road network, just twomonths away from the Olympics Games of2012!

Between them, the three speakers willprovide delegates with outstanding insightsinto residential market trends, Europeanpolicy and legislation, and how to plan aheadfor what is set to be a challenging summer forthose operating on UK roads.

Interactive sessions on the challengesfacing our industryIn response to BAR member feedback fromprevious events, BAR is pleased to announcethat the Business Sessions of 2012Conference will involve a series of high-value workshops, covering key topics ofinterest to the removals and storage industry.

Topics to be covered include:

• Web Marketing• Warehousing Best Practices• Cost Modelling• Shipping Overseas• Immigration• And many more!

With these new features, the Conference isset to become an even more useful forum fornetworking with peers, meeting industrysuppliers, addressing the Board of Directors,and learning about important new trends inbusiness practices and legal requirements.

BAR Members, international guests, BARaffiliates and partners, and, of course, theindustry’s valued suppliers are all welcome toattend the 2012 Conference and Exhibition.

We look forward to seeing you all at Royal

Windsor for what promises to be anenjoyable, informative, and rewardingoccasion for everyone involved in theremovals and storage industry.To register online, see www.bar.co.uk/conference2012.aspx

Getting

ready forConference2012 BAR’s 2012 Annual Conferenceand Exhibition at Windsor istaking shape, and is now only six

months away. BAR has attractedsome top quality speakers for theevent, and is launching anexciting range of new features,including a series of businessworkshops that are designed tobe of the highest interest to theremovals industry.

The 2011 DMOTY and CMOTY winners, Maidmans,

Bournemouth (left) and Delivery Services, Belfast

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


BAR New s

In addition to their presence at the AnnualExhibition itself, each of the exhibitors will

have the opportunity to showcase their

products and services within a dedicated area

of the Exhibition Hall. This ensures a much

higher exposure for exhibitors at the event.

And, the benefits of being an exhibitor at

Conference will not be limited exclusively to

the Windsor event. BAR has developed newAll-Inclusive Exhibition Packages that give

companies the opportunity to enjoy sustained,

high-calibre PR and advertising over the

course of six months, through a combination

of branding and advertising in BAR

communications, leading up to the conference

and also after the event.

The BAR Annual Exhibition is open to BARMembers, International Guests, BAR

Affiliates and companies that provide products

and services to the professional Removals &

Storage industry in the UK.

For more information, see www.bar.co.uk/

conference2012.aspx.

New look for Conference ExhibitionThe Exhibition at the 2012 BAR Annual Conference will include some attractive innovations, including thelaunch of an Exhibitor Showcasing initiative.

Vehicle Competition

T

he 2012 Conference will include the popular

Vehicle Competition, with top prizes to be

won.The event will host the finest display of new

and vintage removal vehicles in the country, from

horse and steam-powered carts to bespoke and

state-of-the-art vehicles that are bound to fascinate

anyone in the industry. There will also be a

special ‘Drive- by’ outside the White House,

Beaumont Estate, on Friday 18th May at Midday.

There will be press coverage at this event. For

more information, see www.bar.co.uk/

conference2012.aspx.

A roller-coaster evening atThorpe Park

The BAR Friday ‘Party Night’ on the 18th of May will be held at Thorpe Park,one of the leading theme parks in the UK and home to some of the most

extreme and fastest roller coasters ever built!The evening will begin with drinks and canapés, then the thrill seekers among you

will have exclusive use of three roller coasters during one hour. Alternatively you

can savour the Lake view over a relaxing drink. Members will enjoy unlimited beer,wine and soft drinks all night. The evening will culminate in a fully interactive and

fun game show. BAR’s Young Movers will also be touring the Windsor & EtonBrewery. We expect all participants to return as experts in the business of beer, after

a lot of in-depth research through tasting the different beers produced by theBrewery! For more information, see www.bar.co.uk/conference2012.aspx.

B AR Director General Stephen Vickers

(pictured right, above) talked to the

audience, which included Chris

Grayling (pictured, right, below), the Minister

of State for Work and Pensions and DavidBluhkett MP, about how BAR promotes its

Code of Practice to its members and to

consumers.

The Code of Practice was approved by the

Office of Fair Trading (OFT) four years ago,

following consultation with BAR members,

the OFT, and consumer associations, and has

proved to be a major success in winning new

business for the BAR membership.

For Stephen, the Code of Practice is a

unique selling tool, which is helping to raise

and maintain standards in the industry: “It

gives members a real competitive edge against

non-members, and ultimately it helps ourmembers win more business.”

The Code of Practice means that every

BAR member is committed to acting fairly

with their clients, providing them with clear

descriptions, prices and timetables for work,

and offering insurance or other protection

options. As part of this commitment, BAR

members provide staff who are competent

and motivated, and they must deal quickly

and sympathetically with things that go wrong.The financial protection provided by the

Code has been a major differentiator in the

marketplace as it establishes refunds of up to

150 per cent for cancellations, and provides a

pre-payment protection scheme. BAR’s

Consumer Affairs department also provides a

free independent conciliation service in the

event of any dispute.

BAR encourages members to actively

publicise the Code, making sure to use the

logo on company web sites and vehicles and in

any marketing material. BAR and the OFT

have also prepared a leaflet for consumers that

is designed specifically for members to give totheir customers. This leaflet summarises the

main points of the Code of Practice. With the

Code extended to all domestic removals

worldwide since 2009, it’s clearly here to stay,

so it’s important to make the most of it!

Promoting BAR’s CodeAs the winner of the 2011 Trade Association Forum Best Practice awards for Website of the Year and forMembership Pack of the Year, BAR was invited to present its approach to best practice at the high-profileBest Practice Exchange in November.

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BAR New s

Ben’s main role at White and Company

is that of Sales Estimator, which

involves visiting clients and completing

a survey, and then taking the time to do

follow-ups with clients. As everyone knows,

no-one who works at a mid-sized removals

company sticks to just one set of duties, and

Ben’s other responsibilities include making

appointments for surveys, creating invoices,

writing up quotes, and even helping with some

operational work.

“During my time in the office there willalways be other tasks to complete and it does

get quite hectic at times, which is when being

organised really matters,” Ben told R&S.

Ben started at White and Company in

November 2010. Understandably he says that

it feels like he has been there a lot longer, as

the work has been so varied and at times so

intense. Not that it’s a completely sink or swim

environment; the company has provided Ben

with a lot of support as he learns his way in the

trade, and he has already completed his

BARTS BTEC Practical Estimating course.

White and Company have also put Ben

forward for the BARTS BTEC in Removals

Management course. “Investing in training is

going to prove essential for our business, if we

want to attract and motivate a new generationof talented young people to the trade,” he says,

“and it’s good to see White and Company

taking this so seriously.”

The Young Movers initiative has also helped

Ben feel a part of the industry. “It seems like a

lot of fun and a really good way, if not the only

way, of meeting people who are interested in

Removals,” Ben says. “At the Star City event

in Birmingham, a number of speakers

discussed a variety of topics, which was

followed by Laser Quest, an unexpected

youthful twist to the day!”

Away from removals, Ben clearly has agood business brain. He studied accounting

and finance at the University of Portsmouth

and did a work placement in the Management

Accounts department at Southampton NHS.

After university, he worked in some temporary

assistant accounting positions before joining

White and Company.

He was also able to spend a year travelling in

between education and employment, and

admits to having a real appetite for travel

– a passion that the international removals

business should be able to cater for.

A keen sportsman, cricket and football are

two of Ben’s other passions, while he has also

played the drums in a number of local bands.

Looking ahead, Ben is clear that the

removals industry needs to have a greateremphasis on the management of its

environmental impact. After all, it is this new

generation that will have to manage the

consequences of the environmental bad

practice of today. “There are many ways in

which removal companies can help in meeting

the national emissions target, whilst

simultaneously reducing costs,” Ben says.

“It’s something that a lot of young movers

believe needs to be taken more seriously.”

Travelling man:

Ben Niddrie-Davies It’s now exactly one year since Ben Niddrie-Davies joined the removalsbusiness, at BAR member White and Company, one of the largest andoldest family-owned companies in the country. Ben talks to R&S abouthis first impressions of the industry, and about the environmentalconcerns of young people starting out in the trade.

Young Mover Profile: Ben Niddrie-Davies

Every mont h Removals & Storage includes a numberof feature item s. These are planned w ell in advanceto allow mem bers of BAR and suppliers to theindustry t o join in.

Please contact Andy or Louise at Analyt icaM edia on: 020 3235 1806or e-mail: rands-editorial@analyt icamedia.com

Feat ure Schedule 20 12

“Investing in training is

going to prove essential

for our business, if we

want to attract and

motivate a new

generation of talented

young people to the

trade.”

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BAR New sBAR New s

The results for October 2010/2011suggest the following:

Our latest statistics show a positive increase in

domestic removals of approximately 4% for

October 2011 compared to the previous year’s

findings. It is encouraging to see positive results

for the fifth consecutive month which perhaps

signifies optimism for the UK domestic market

going forward.

Reports show

a slight decrease

of 5% in the

number of

European moves

for October 2011

compared to

October 2010,

however theoverseas market

held strong

throughout the October month compared to the

same month for the previous year with an

increase of almost 2%.

BAR Members identified the top European

removal destinations for October 2010 as France

followed by Spain and then Ireland. The top

European removal destinations for October 2011

were Spain followed by France and then

Germany.

BAR Members identified the top Overseas

(non-European) removal destinations for

October 2010 as Australia followed by USA and

then New Zealand. The top Overseas (non-

European) removal destinations for October

2011 were New Zealand followed by Canada

and then USA.

Number of staff employed in October 2011

dipped slightly by just 2% compared to October

2010. Despite the decline in the number of staff

employed, the number of vehicles in use for

October 2011 is still higher than the same time

last year.

BAR will continue to report monthly industry

statistics. To take part in the new industryincentive scheme, look out for the monthly

email which will contain a link to the online

survey. It is important for BAR to receive these

monthly statistics from Members as it helps

BAR gain a better understanding of the industry

and allows BAR to send regular reports to the

press and relevant industry bodies.

Industry Statistics: October 2010/2011

BAR would like to thank thoseMembers who have participated inthe October Industry Survey.

Take part in the online industrysurveys and automatically beentered into the monthly cash drawto win £100.

For more information, please contactthe Commercial Department:[email protected] or call01923 699 483

Please note all information received is aggregatedand treated in the strictest of confidence.

4.00%

3.00%

2.00%

1.00%

0.00%

-1.00%

-2.00%

-3.00%

-4.00%

-5.00%

+3.89%

+3.89% +1.74% +0.38%-5.00% -2.00%

+1.74% +0.38%

-2.00%

-5.00%

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BAR New sBAR New s

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BAR New sBAR Services

W

ith a slow and patchy 2010, 2011has proved to be a year of pretty

much the same for the housingmarket and therefore the removal industry.House prices have at least stabilisedthroughout the year but many estate agentsare reporting a stand-off between buyers andsellers. With sellers reluctant to cut theirprices and buyers unwilling to pay over theodds, many homes remain unsold.

To add to these problems, 2011 saw threefurther price increases in corrugated boardprices. BAR Services has negotiated hard onbehalf of the members to ensure thepercentage increase on cartons has beenminimal but shockingly over the last two

years there has been a total increase in excessof 30 per cent. For BAR Services, the fragilemarket coupled with several increases inpaper prices throughout the year have provedfrustrating. As a cooperative, the companysympathises with its members that anincrease in the cost of their packagingmaterials is not helpful at a time when thereis stiff competition for fewer removals.

Adapting to new market conditionsIn mid-2011, BAR Services began to see achange in carton buying behaviour. In 2010,it had recommended a change to kraft cartons

in order to save money and there seems tohave been a general move towards this bymost members. Many medium-sized removalcompanies are making the most of the BARServices’ special offers on Pack 2s and Pack6s as they are able to take ten pallets at atime. However, smaller companies appear to

be buying small quantities from localpackaging businesses as and when they are

needed. The larger companies ,who have thebenefit of storage space, are bulk buying inquantities of say 10,000 to keep the unit costright down.

BAR Services has always seen its role toinclude the provision of important and usefulpackaging information to members.Throughout the year, the BAR Services‘Product of the Month’ has suggested somenew or helpful packaging products. Thisarticle helps BAR Services to introduce themembers to new products such as,destruction sacks and security seals but alsoto remind members of some trusty old ones

that often get forgotten about e.g. utility bagsand correx board. During 2011, we alsocommunicated information about exportpackaging, the potential revenue in retailself-storage products and provided memberswith guidance to deciphering the board gradeon your carton quotes. This was to givecustomers a better understanding of thequality of board that is being used and tohighlight that when prices of cartons are toogood to be true, this may be because theboard quality is of a lesser grade.

Increasing sales

In July, BAR Services announced its newaffiliate link to its new look website. The‘Packaging Materials Catalogue Module’ hasbeen designed by David Miller from OpenSEO and will allow your customers to buypackaging products through your website butthe order will be placed directly through the

BAR Services website. It is that simple andyou don’t need to do anything! Your

customer places the order and BAR Servicesdelivers the order; all you need to do is sitback and watch the extra revenue come in.The product has already proved extremelypopular with many members lined up tointegrate the module. Further information onthis can be obtained by contacting David on01732 740894.

After a several years without a salesperson, BAR Services was very pleased toannounce the recruitment of its new SalesAccount Manager, Tim Oliver, whose wealthof sales experience makes him the idealperson to look after BAR members and

discuss their packaging needs. In this way,BAR Services can fulfil its main aim toprovide the members with low prices ongood quality products and an excellentservice. Throughout 2012, BAR Services willbe dependent on contact from themembership to be able to find new ways andproducts, and to negotiate new deals that willbenefit your company. As a cooperative,BAR Services is owned by the members andexists solely to work on your behalf. It relieson industry knowledge and feedback utilisesthis to buy more intelligently. Please feel freeto contact any of the sales team with any

information you may have or products youwould like sourced. Don’t forget BARServices is your company and is working foryou. It is just remains for BAR Services towish you a very Merry Christmas and aprosperous New Year, and to thank you foryour support throughout 2011.

If the last two years are anything to go by,we are likely to be in for snow this winter.

As always, the country will come to astandstill and probably the amount of healthand safety claims will increase due toaccidents on dangerous ice.

Particularly for removal men, the snow andice can be a major hazard as carrying heavyfurniture in these conditions can lead toserious injuries. BAR Services has sourcedan easy-to-use product that will stop such

accidents occurring.

The product is called the Trex Ice Gripperand from the picture you can see it is astraightforward traction device that slips

over the shoe or boots, delivering tenaciousgrip and stability. Its three major benefits areas follows:

• Rugged steel studs for grip

• Stretchable rubber for fit and easy on/off

• Flexible to (-40degrees)

This simple product can be bought in Small,Medium and Large sizes and is just £16.50per pair.

For further details of this product,please contact the BAR Servicessales team on 01342 321172 or [email protected]

BAR Services 2011 yearly round up It is December again and before BAR Services eat, drink and be merry, a roundup of the year is in order!

Product of the MonthIce grippers

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BAR New s

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Industry N ew s

30

“I’ve got fire in my belly!” Those were the

words from Tom Ryan that greeted the

member of the QSS team on arrival at

Ryans Removals, of Solihull, Birmingham.

And so it has proved.

Ryans Removals was founded in 1969 by

Tom’s grandfather, also called Tom, and his

wife Eileen. With their three sons the removal

firm went from strength to strength, based on

the main attributes of ‘care’ and ‘reliability’.

This has never changed.

Tom Ryan senior passed away in 1976 but

his wife continued to run the business with two

of the sons. A few years later Eileen retired

from the business as did one of the two sons

which left Dave Ryan, the remaining son, to

continue. Keeping to the company’s unwritten

motto Dave ensured that the service remained

of high quality, with the main objective being

customer satisfaction. Ryans Removals

continued to grow and became a force to be

reckoned with as far as removals were

concerned in the Birmingham area.

In time Dave’s two children joined him to

help run the business. Stacey was the office

manager and played a major part in the

company, which became the main removal

contractor for the NHS at Heartlands Hospital,

Birmingham & Solihull Hospital.

Tom joined them at the age of 19 in 2000. He

worked first as a porter, then a packer whilst

occasionally helping out in the office. In 2004

he passed his LGV Class 2 and regularly drove7.5 tonne removal trucks up & down the

country, moving customers just like his father

and grandfather had before him.

In 2006 Tom took the Estimating Course at

BAR Head Office in Watford and has not

looked back since. He is now the Company

Manager and main estimator. His father still

keeps his hand on the tiller but is able to

take more of a back seat. (Although, while

we were there, he seemed still to be rushing

about estimating and taking phone calls.)

Recognition for high standards

Pursuing its long-held objective of qualityservice, Ryans Removals obtained

certification for BS EN 12522 and BS 8522

in 2010 and they are now working towards

gaining more certificates. They are spurred

on by Tom’s enthusiasm for quality

standards and a strong belief in their value not

only for marketing purposes but in terms of

what they have helped the company to achieve

internally, in efficiency and consistency.

Having recruited an experienced part-time

Quality Manager they are already well on the

way to obtaining ISO 9001 and are looking at

other British Standards such as ISO 14001 and

27001. The fact that the company has several

standards has been a major factor in obtaining

work from several hospitals including Solihull

Hospital, Heartlands Hospital, Good Hope

Hospital and the Birmingham Children’s

Hospital. Diversifying into other areas, Ryans

have also moved and stored stage equipment

& props for various shows for the BBC in

Pebble Mill, Birmingham and conducted large

commercial moves for Melville Exhibitions

based at the N.E.C. and for Network Rail.

Dave Ryan is proud of the company he has

been involved with for forty-seven years and

says: “As a family run business it gives me and

the rest of my staff great pleasure in taking

pride in the fact that we are a BAR member

and still continue to receive thank you letters

as gratitude for our service. It gives us all the

peace of mind that our customers are

happy with our service and that we

make a potentially stressful time for

them exactly the opposite.”

Propelled by Tom’s determination

and, yes, that ‘fire in his belly’,

Ryan Removals and all its staff areliving proof that a commitment to

quality ensures that the company

will deliver the satisfaction that

the customer expects.

In this case study, the QSS team considers how Ryans Removals turned their desire to be the best intoa viable, and convincing, business strategy.

Ryans Removals – a burning

desire to be the best

The fact that the

company hasseveral standardshas been a majorfactor in obtainingwork from severalhospitals includingSolihull Hospital,Heartlands Hospital,Good Hope Hospital

& the BirminghamChildren’s Hospital.

QSS Update

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BAR New s

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BAR New s

>>>> Olympics monitorOlympics monitor

This regular section of R&S is designed to help members prepare for the transport challenges that we will all face in thesummer of 2012, as the UK hosts the largest sporting event in its history.

F

ree workshops are being provided by the

London 2012 Olympic Delivery

Authority (ODA) for firms with less than

200 employees based in areas set to be mostimpacted by the Games.

These two-hour sessions were designed to

help small and medium enterprises (SME)

prepare for travel disruption that may affect

their business. Topics covered include how

they will be impacted, how to get started on

their action plan, what they need to plan for to

keep their business running, how to manage

staff travel and how to manage deliveries to

and from their business during the Games.

To sign up for a workshop please email

[email protected] with your

business location, sector, number of

employees and the session you wish to attendwhich is closest to your business location.

Multisite companiesBespoke support is also available for multisite

companies employing more than 200 people,

such as retail outlets, restaurant chains andfinancial institutions.

Each session will help businesses manage the

impact of the Games on staff and business

operations and optimise deliveries, servicing

and freight during Games time.

If your business is in an affected area and

you have over 200 staff located at one site,

you may be eligible for free assistance from a

dedicated 2012 travel advisor.

For further information, please email

[email protected] with your

contact details, organisation’s address and

number of staff.

Workshops to plan ahead

TfL’s at Windsor

David Silvey, London 2012 Road

Freight Interface Manager for

Transport for London will be one of

the speakers at BAR’s Annual Conference

which will take place in Windsor on 17-19May 2012.

For information and to book your place,

contact the Conference Team on 01923 699

483, email [email protected] or visit

www.bar.co.uk/conference2012.aspx

Olympics M onitor

Statutory consultation is now closed for

the last two phases of the proposed

Olympic Route Network. This

consultation was required before Traffic

Regulation Orders can be issued – this is the

legal process that enables enforcement of thechanges to be made to the roads.

As BAR members will know, Temporary

Games Lanes will operate on around a third

of the ORN/PRN (the Paralympic Route

Network). They will only be accessible to

athletes, Games officials, the media and those

that ‘make the games happen’, as well as on-

call emergency vehicles.

There will also be some temporary changes

along the routes including:

• Changes to traffic signal timings

• Restricted turns

• Suspension of parking or loading bays• Suspension of some pedestrian crossings

The Phase 3 and 4 consultations covered

sections including the Blackwall Tunnel,

central London, the North Circular, Wembley,

and Heathrow.

Traffic consultation ends

Food forthought

B

AR’s dedicated Olympics 2012section in MyBAR has detailed

information about all of theOlympic activities that will take placearound the UK.

For those who are likely to be doinga significant amount of work withinLondon during the Olympic Gamesperiod, there is also a helpful checklist

– Food For Thought. BAR’s tips toconsider are:• Will your manpower be sufficient

to handle delivery and packingwithin the time constraints?

• With the London Lorry ControlScheme in place, will you have

enough vans available to operatewith a shuttle method if required?

• If you plan to stop packing anddelivery during the Olympics andreceive overseas shipments, do youhave enough storage spaceavailable?

• Should you consider workingtogether with other BAR Membersto help each other with manpower,storage, deliveries in certain areasetc.?

• Will your employees be able to get

work?

T he UK’s largest ever park-and-ride scheme is to enable ticket holders for the London 2012

Olympic Games to benefit from over 30,000 parking spaces.The park-and-ride sites are mainly intended for spectators who may find it difficult to

make their entire journey to and from the Games by public transport, particularly those who live

outside of London.

A fleet of buses will transport passengers between the sites and venues. There will be spaces

for around 350,000 vehicles at the park-and-ride sites over the 16 days of Olympic competition.

Park and Ride scheme launched

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M ak e t he mostof your BAR membership

For more information visit: www.bar.co.uk

or contact: [email protected]

Instant recognition

• Use of the BAR brand• OFT approved Code of Practice

• FREE use of the BAR model Terms &Conditions

Aw ard Winning Website

www.bar.co.uk

• Unique sales lead generator

• Member’s search directory

• Real-t ime onl ine est imat ing & enquirysystem

• Member’s area wit h f ree broadcastsand not iceboard facilit ies

Netw orking Events• Annual fl agship conf erence and exhibi t ion

• Business seminars

• Area meetings

• Young Movers

FREE Professional Support& Advice• FREE legal advice line

• FREE fi nancial advice line

• FREE informal conciliation service and low-costarbit ration scheme

FREE Products and Services

• FREE Marketing & promot ional materialsdownloadable from bar.co.uk members area

• FREE monthly issue of Removals &Storage (R&S) magazine

• FREE Award winningmembership pack

Subsidised Products andServices• Comprehensive range of products, services

and marketing materials from BAR Services atexclusive member rates

• Subsidised industry specifi c training

• Discounted advert ising in R&S magazine

• Exclusive rat es for indust ry specifi c Quali tyStandards

Exclusive Promot ionalOpportunities• Indust ry recognised annual aw ards:

- Domestic Mover of the Year (DMotY)- Commercial Mover of the Year (CMotY)

Full member representat ion

• BAR Board o f Directors, including threedirectly elected members

• BAR Execut ive Commit tee

• Local representation through 16 BAR areas

• BAR Funct ional Group Councils and SpecialInterest Groups

PLUS• Access to full range of business partners:

- Affi liat es

- Internat ional Associates

- Professional Advisers Panel

- Corporate Alliances

- Furn it ure recycling

- Conf ederation of Brit ish Industry (CBI)

- Trade Association Forum (TAF)

• Easy Payment Terms:- Membership Subscrip t ions- Training Courses

• FEDEMAC membership including freeEuropean information on www.fedemac.eu

• Range of lobbying act ivities

• The Removers Benevolent Associat ion (RBA)charit y for the removals indust ry

• New M embers Induct ion Incent ive Scheme

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CM G New s

BS 8522

CMG Profile: Company Moves

For almost twenty-five years, Company

Moves has been specialising in exactly

what it says on the box – professional,

high quality commercial moves, for companies

that range from local one-man bands to large

multinationals.

Established by Ted Mooney in 1987,

commercial relocations remain the dominant

business of the Farnborough-based company.

But as the company evolves, it has also

responded to the many changing demands ofits customers. Company Moves now offers

storage, archive storage, safe and machinery

moves, computer transport and the

decommissioning/recommissioning of IT

facilities.

Some ten years ago, Ted also expanded the

company into the domestic market, offering

household removals as an additional service.

Kevin Mack joined the company at that time to

oversee this work and has since moved on to

become Operations Director.

But it is the commercial business that is the

lifeblood of Company Moves. Recent

innovations that the company has introducedfor the corporate market include a confidential

destruction service for shredding documents in

house, and a clearance service, in which the

company recycles or disposes of all unwanted

items when customers clear a building.

Company Moves also undertakes WEEE

disposal as part of this service.

Unsurprisingly, Ted says the economic

downturn has had a major impact on the

company. “On the 1st of October 2007 our

turnover dropped by 50 per cent overnight and

it has never recovered to the level it was,” Ted

says. “In response, we started taking cost

saving measures which we are still doing to

this day.”

Ted is a little downbeat about the future; likemany BAR members, he complains that

financial institutions have become reluctant to

support the industry. “It’s difficult to be

optimistic especially as regards expanding or

diversifying further due entirely to the cash

restraints imposed by the Banks and their

unwillingness to assist in any way as far as

funding is concerned.”

While in the long term, the ongoing shake-

out in the removals market may make for a

more comfortable competitive environment,

the priority for a lot of companies right now is

just survival, he says.

And in addition to the difficulties in findingfinance, legislative pressure is creating further

problems for the sector.

“The Industry has changed enormously over

the last fifteen years or so mainly due to

the incessant stream of legislation that has

emanated from Brussels, none of which is

necessary and all of which costs an increasing

amount of time and money,” Ted says.

Still, as a BAR member Ted says that the

support of both head office and the company’s

peers has provided a real boon in times of

need. Ted himself is a former Area Chairman,

and was once a tutor at the Institute. “It

seemed a natural progression for us to join the

CMG as it applies to the bulk of our work,” he

says.And as the MD of a smaller removals

company, Ted warns that moving to a

standards-based membership for BAR would

only add to the reams of paperwork and

bureaucracy that Company Moves is already

burdened with. He recognises however that the

“benefit of a Standard Based Membership is

that gradually this is being put forward to

potential customers as a criterion for being

invited to tender for any contract”.

For most of the corporate market, being

qualified as a BAR member remains

confirmation enough that the company has the

professionalism and expertise to carry outsensitive relocation work; “I would have

thought that once the company has passed the

initial inspection to become a BAR member

then that should suffice,” Ted says.

CM G Profi le

The Commercial Moving Group (CMG) is a dedicated group of companies withinthe British Association of Removers that specialise in all aspects of

commercial relocations.

Commercial moving is the mainbusiness of Company Moves Ltd.,and few people understand themarket as well as founder andmanaging director Ted Mooney.

R&S talks to Ted about how thecompany has diversified, and abouthow BAR membership is helpinghim cope with the challenges of falling demand, rising paperwork,and unfriendly banks.

COMPANY MOVES

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Overseas Group N ew s

B urke Bros Removals & Transport was

formed in 1982 by brothers Gary andChris Burke with a start up loan of just

£1,000, and became members of BAR in 1985.

In the early 1990s, the brothers purchased

George Clark Removals in Wolverhampton,

Goddards Removals Rugby and Hudson &

Rudge Removals in Birmingham, which

included their three separate locations across the

West Midlands. At this stage, the brothers

decided to incorporate those names and use the

name of Burke Bros, trading as Burke Bros

Moving Group.

“We are very much a traditional moving

company operating in all traditional fields,

Domestic, Storage, European, International andoffice moving,” Gary says. “We joined the

Overseas Group in the early 1990s and FIDI

shortly after that.

Global reach

Prior to being in Removals, Chris was employed

in finance and insurance, while Gary had a

business and finance background in the aircraft

industry. “We always wanted to start our own

business and accidentally came into the moving

industry with the intention of starting off in

general freight,” Gary recalls. “Dealing with

people has always made the removals industry

appealing, and that continues to be the casetoday.”

The business has been grown based on the

simple ethos: Listen to customers, listen to your

staff and listen to your suppliers. These principles

are the key to moving forward. “It’s not very

complicated!” says Gary.

Overseas and corporate work now represent 65per cent of all of Burke Bros’ business.

“Although we have seen big declines in all areas

of our business we have seen upturns in a few

countries,” Gary says. “Corporate moves both

within the UK and overseas have declined

although we are now seeing a little growth

compared to two years ago.” September of this

year was Burke Bros’ best month, beating sales

in July and August. Gary attributes this to

corporate moves and to better communication

and fast response during August leading up to

September.

The company operates a weekly service

relocating private and corporate families toFrance and enjoys good links with French

removal companies, some of whom they have

worked with for nearly twenty years. They also

operate weekly services to Cyprus for private

customers and trade colleagues.

“To be a global mover you have to understand

the cultural differences and not expect customersand agents to be like ourselves,” Gary says.

“What you say and how you behave in one

country can cause offence in another, so cultural

education certainly has to be the way forward in

our business. The main challenges ahead for us

are communication, marketing, and relationships.

In my first economics lesson I was taught the

importance of the 3 Cs, communication, cash and

credit, and that has never been truer or more

relevant than it is today.”

Meanwhile, back home in the West Midlands

area, Burke Bros remain a major player in the

office moving market, and have a strong

portfolio of loyal accounts.The company has also diversified into storage,

and now has facilities of 50,000 sq ft with ample

parking. These facilities serve many transport

and removals companies, including McGimpseys

of Belfast.

And during the recession, a 30-month logistics

contract kept the team busy around the clock,

with the company taking on 36 drivers at the

peak of the contract, as well as warehouse and

management staff. This helped to offset the

slowdown in household and office moving

during this period, Gary says.

Industry mattersThe brothers have always played high profile

roles in the wider industry. Gary is currently Vice

President of Paima, the Pan American

International Movers Association, which has

membership in nearly fifty countries and is now

Burke Bros:Brothers inArmsOver the last thirty years, Burke Brosof Wolverhampton has become theleading privately-owned internationalmoving company in the Midlands,

with particular strengths in LatinAmerica, Cyprus and France.Managing Director Gary Burke(pictured) talks to R&S about how thebusiness has grown, and discusses theway ahead for BAR members and theremovals industry in general.

Overseas Group P rofi le

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Overseas Group N ew s


based in Florida. Initially, Gary represented

Northern Europe as regional Director before

representing all of Europe. Two years ago he was

voted onto the board and was then elected by the

full assembly in California to Vice President ofPaima; he is the first person from outside of the

Americas to hold such a high rank in its history.

“The Latin market is one we have been

developing slowly over about seven years now

and we have agents throughout all of Central and

South America in place to receive our shipments

and to also carry out origin services when

required,” Gary says. “Many good friendships

have come through meeting and visiting

countries such as Panama, Colombia and others.”

Paima awarded Burke Bros an ecology award

for their operation to recycle old refrigeration

units in Hospitals, Hotels and other industries –

an attractive side line that has secured the

company a lucrative new stream of business.

In addition to BAR and Paima membership, the

company also has quality accreditation through

ISO and FAIM.

Improving public perceptionsGary Burke believes BAR may need to do more

to raise the market profile of the association; “I

wonder whether BAR should be spending more

cash on Public Relations,” he says. “Public

awareness of our industry is what all BAR

members want to read about in newspapers.

Removers know that we want to show we have

high standards, and for years we have tried to

find many ways to raise the profile of BAR to

show the consumer that they are in better handsthan with a non-BAR member,” Gary believes.

“We all need to raise the level as a business as

the consumer expects a better and greater

service.” For Gary, “it’s not what we say that

counts but what the customer says afterwards,

and to meet these ever changing demands we

have to change ourselves which means having to

prove ourselves. If a standards-based

membership is the way forward then, so be it.

What is crucial is how this is discussed and

communicated with our membership as we want

to preserve the diversity of the association!”

He also told R&S, “One thing is clear – the

industry needs the BAR as a voice that canrepresent it to the greater public, differentiate the

professional, responsible mover from the online

cowboy, and market high-quality removal

services.”

“Regardless of the recession, work will never

come back the way it was,” Gary says. “The

industry needs to constantly keep working at new

ideas that will bring new work. Marketing and

communication have changed completely – the

biggest challenge that we and the industry have

faced in the last thirty years is how to find new

ways to market our services and develop online.”

Overseas Group P rofi le

Our company’s sole purpose since its inception in 1977 is to serve the membership – tosupply good quality, innovative packaging products at low prices. This is achieved by buying jointly on your behalf and passing on the discount achieved from this bulk purchasing power!

As a member, we should be your preferred supplier but are we? For many of you the answer

will be yes but for those of you that say no then we would like to know why?Your feedback is important so please ring us on 01342 870087 or you can simply emai

[email protected]

We look forward to hearing from you.

Are we your preferredsupplie r - if not, why not?

“It’s not what we say

that counts but what

the customer says

afterwards.”

Gary Burke, Managing

Director, Burke Bros

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Training New s

“I have worked in the Removal Industry for 27

years. I started in 1983 at Vanguard

Commercial Removals as a removal porter,

where I gained a lot of experience in large

commercial relocations, handling all types of

office furniture and in some challenging

circumstances. I soon learnt various techniques

of handling furniture in these situations and

one of the first things I was taught was the

correct lifting procedure, which provedinvaluable throughout my career in the

industry.

It was a fascinating experience, as I hadn’t

known much about removals before, I was

amazed at the sheer size and scale of these

removal operations, and over the years they

became less daunting as my experience grew.

In 1988 I left Vanguard Commercial

Removals and started working for Olympic

Removals; they were a new company formed

by a friend and colleague from Vanguard.

Olympic Removals were a domestic and

commercial removal company and this is

where I gained more experience in domesticremovals, learning new skills, mainly being

export wrapping. I started as a porter but was

soon promoted to foreman, and Olympic

Removals became recognised as a commercial

removal company capable of large-scale

relocations, which I was now supervising, with

crews of up to 20 operatives. This also

involved onsite training to less experienced

staff.

In 1994 I passed my HGV class 2 driving test

and I was promoted to driver foreman.

Although at this time I had some knowledge of

vehicle loading, it was at this period that I

honed my skills, which proved helpful onmany occasions where I had to load some very

tight loads.

Olympic also became recognised as the

country’s leading Library Removal specialists,

which involved understanding the packing

techniques and adapting labelling systems for

each library to meet their requirements.

An opportunity arose at Olympic Removals

in 2004 to become an estimator which I

undertook with relish, as it seemed a good time

to take on a new challenge. This was a role

that I enjoyed for the next 6 years, successfully

estimating and managing Domestic,

Commercial and Library Relocations, but

unfortunately Olympic could not survive the

economic crisis and sadly went into

administration.

I found myself in the unfortunate situation of

looking for a new job, and when the

opportunity came along to work for BARTraining Services, I jumped at it, as it will

provide more challenges for me and the chance

for me to pass on my knowledge and

experience to others.”

Out & about with the BAR Field TrainerJamie Briggs Removals are an established

Removal company who mainly deal in

Domestic Removals and Export Wrapping in

Heyford Park near Bicester. Although the

personnel are experienced in Removals, they

felt that they needed a refresher course in

Export Wrapping skills and also how to

prepare, pack and transport barometers.In mid-October, I went along to their

warehouse in Heyford Park to deliver their

BARTS training course. Most of the morning

was spent on the theories of Export Wrapping

covering aspects like the correct use and

economy of materials, types of materials,

wrapping pictures, mirrors and clocks. They

all had a sound knowledge of this and I was

able to give them some hints and tips,

especially on the different methods for each

type of barometer, which they found very

useful.

During a break from the course, as they were

loading a container, I watched the Jamie

Briggs’ personnel load, during which I spotted

some minor flaws in their wrapping, which I

was able to address in the next session.

The practical session showed that all

personnel had good skills in wrapping and

what stood out for me was how well they all

worked in teams. By the end of the session

they had competently wrapped various items

of awkward shapes.

Diamond Relocations. BARTS also delivered

a half-day training course in October on

Manual Handling to Diamond Relocations,

just off the Purley Way in Croydon. Thecompany specialises in Commercial

Relocations and wanted to enforce the

importance of safe handling and lifting

techniques.

They were very responsive to the safety

aspects of safe lifting, and it was clearly

obvious that they wanted to improve their

knowledge and standards in handling furniture

carefully and safely. All of the trainees were

impressed with the use of lifting aids,

especially the use of webbing in tying furniture

securely and assisting in carrying large items

of furniture up staircases.

All participants took part in the practical useof webbing and also demonstrated that they

were able to carry awkward items up and

down stairs using the web. They collectively

agreed that wrapping the webbing around the

wrists as well as hands added more support

and comfort. The feedback from Diamond

Relocations Operations Manager Gary

Harding was: “Well informed course,

especially to us new employees.”

Introducing Peter Walters,

BAR Field Trainer

The Team at Jamie Briggs and (Inset) The team D iamond Relocations

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Because your people are your greatest asset

BARTS Courses

Book your places todayCall: 01923 699484 or email: [email protected]

BTEC Advanced Aw ard inRemovals M anagement 2012The BTEC Advanced Award in RemovalsManagement is a 2 unit course and is the onlynationally recognised removal specific qualificationof its kind. Students will be required to pass anexamination on an additional date in order to passthe qualification.

Course Dates 2012Part 1 - 28 February – 02 March 2012

Part 2 - 3 – 15 March 2012

Part 1 - 16 – 19 July 2012

Part 2 - 07 - 09 August 2012

Part 1 - 22 – 25 October 2012

Part 2 - 06 – 08 November 2012

Writ ing a Winning Tenderfor the public sector

This is a brand new workshop taking place at BAR

Watford covering topics such as:

• Risk Management • Opportunit ies to score

• Constructing a winning stategy

• Presentations • What to write • Feedback

• Identifying your USP • Pricing

• Where you can stand out • Tips & techniques

• Common Mistakes • Useful information

Course Dates 2011

08 December 2011

£99 + VAT p/p

£1675 + VAT p/p (BAR Member)

£1995 + VAT p/p (Non BAR Member)

BTEC Aw ard in Pract icalEstimat ing 2012This 2 day course is practically based and is designed toteach students the art of estimating as well as face toface sales techniques, covering topics such as:

• Practical Estimating at 2 local properties• Quantity Assessment • The Role of the Estimator• Health & Safety • Contract Conditions• Communication Techniques• Removals Insurance

Course Dates 201224 & 25 January 2012

06 & 07 March 2012

09 & 10 May 2012

03 & 04 July 2012

12 & 13 September 2012

14 & 15 November 2012

Selling Skills/Promot ing t he

BAR OFT Code of PracticeThis 1 day course is designed to enhance salesskills and to demonstrate the most effective wayof promoting the BAR OFT Code of Practice to winbusiness, covering topics such as:

• The Role of the Salesperson • Marketing• Prospecting & Negotiating • Promoting the

OFT Code • Communication & Presentation

• Identifying Customer Needs • Closing the Sale

Course Dates 201215 February 2012

11 July 2012

17 October 2012

19 December 2012

£545 + VAT p/p (BAR Member) £99 + VAT p/p (BAR Member)

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Training New s

BAR Training Services have

added further 2012 dates for its

BTEC in Practical Estimating

course due to the huge demand from

BAR Members.

The recent November course was

fully subscribed with twelve students

visiting BAR Watford to take part in

the two-day programme.

BARTS’ BTEC in Practical

Estimating is the only removal industry

specific, nationally recognised,

removals estimating qualification.

Taking place at BAR Head Office

Watford the qualification is uniquely

designed for BAR members and the

removal industry as a whole.

The two-day course includes two

practical visits to local properties

enabling students to improve and

practice their skills in real working

environments. The course focuses on

methods of estimating, selling skills

and communication techniques and is

ideal for both current estimators and

anyone new to the skill of estimating.

Staff who successfully complete the

BTEC qualification and examination

are presented with certificates that are

recognised throughout the United

Kingdom as a further educational

award. See page 47 for details of

BARTS 2012 dates for the

qualification. If you would like further

information on any of the courses

available from BARTS, please contact

a member of the training team on

01923 699484 or email training@bar.

co.uk For a full list of the training

programmes that are available from

BARTS, please visit BARTS’ new

website at www.removalstraining.com

where a copy of the training brochure

is available for download.

Demand for extra dates for BARTS

BTEC Practical Estimating

From a recent course in November 2011

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


European New sEuropean New s

R&S is grateful to FEDEMAC forits contribution to this section

Parliament

backs eCallplan

A European Commissionrecommendation to make eCall

road accident reporting devicesmandatory on all new cars and light

commercial vehicles sold in the EU from

2015 was welcomed by TransportCommittee MEPs at a meeting with

Digital Agenda Commissioner NeelieKroes. The devices currently cost under

€100 to install.

Transport Committee MEPs called onthe Commission to work on organizing

an effective eCall information campaignfor EU citizens and recommended that

eCall technology also be introduced onheavy vehicles, such as trucks or buses.

The eCall system, which is activated

automatically when in-vehicle sensorsdetect a serious crash, dials the EU

emergency number 112 and sends detailsof the accident, including accurate

location data, that enable emergency

rescue teams to arrive 40 per cent fasterin urban areas and 50 per cent faster in

rural ones.Replying to MEPs’ concerns about data

protection and privacy safeguards, Ms

Kroes said that the device is activatedonly in the event of a serious crash and

that safeguarding human lives is moreimportant than safeguarding privacy:

“eCall has the potential to reduce thenumber of road fatalities by at least 4 per

cent and severe injuries by at least 6 per

cent. This means that one life could besaved every 6 hours if eCall were

deployed,” she said.

Czechs ruleout LEZs

The Czech president Vaclav Klaus

has intervened to stop the CzechRepublic introducing Low

Emissions Zones (LEZs). The law had

been agreed at all levels of the Czechlegislature, but was vetoed by the

president because it would have anegative impact on business and – due

to a number of loopholes – would not

be effective in reducing emission levels.The aim of the law is to reduce air

pollution from transport, especially inthe industrial area of Moravia.The

president’s veto could yet be overturned

in the Czech parliament.

Europe readies EUR250bn transport networkThe European Commission has announced a plan to transform theexisting patchwork of European roads, railways, airports and canalsinto a unified transport network (TEN-T).

The Commission said that the new core

network will remove bottlenecks, upgrade

infrastructure and streamline cross border

transport operations for passengers and

businesses throughout the EU. It will improve

connections between different modes of

transport and contribute to the EU’s climatechange objectives.

European Commission Vice-President Siim

Kallas, responsible for transport, said:

“Transport is fundamental to an efficient EU

economy, but vital connections are currently

missing. Europe’s railways have to use 7

different gauge sizes and only 20 of our major

airports and 35 of our major ports are directly

connected to the rail network. Without good

connections Europe will not grow or prosper.”

Freight transport in the EU is expected to

grow by 80 per cent by 2050, and passenger

transport by more than 50 per cent. The new

policy follows a two-year consultation processand establishes a core transport network to be

established by 2030 to act as the backbone for

transportation within the Single Market.

The aim is to ensure that progressively, by

2050, the great majority of Europe’s citizens

and businesses will be no more than 30

minutes’ travel time from this comprehensive

network.

The TEN-T network consists of two layers: acore network to be completed by 2030 and a

comprehensive network feeding into this, to be

completed by 2050. Both layers include all

transport modes: road, rail, air, inland

waterways and maritime transport, as well as

intermodal platforms.

The core network will connect 83 main

European ports with rail and road links and 37

key airports with rail connections into major

cities. 15,000 km of railway line will be

upgraded to high speed and 35 cross border

projects will be implemented to reduce

bottlenecks.

It is estimated that the cost of implementingthe first financing phase for the core network

for 2014–2020 will cost 250 billion euros.

News Roundup R&S is grateful to FEDEMAC forits contribution to this section

The European Commission has

requested that Portugal take the

necessary measures to comply with

the Eurovignette directive on the charging

of heavy goods vehicles for the use of

certain infrastructure.

The Commission alleges that tolls onHGVs in Portugal may not be based only on

the need to recover infrastructure costs.

The directive requires member states to

respect certain conditions when maintaining

or introducing tolls and/or user charges. The

directive sets out a methodology for

calculating average tolls, which must be

followed by member states for all new

tolling arrangements put into place after 10

June 2008.

The Portuguese law transposing the

Eurovignette Directive contains a provision

that leaves concession toll systems entirely

outside the scope of the directive. TheCommission considers this to be contrary to

the directive. In addition, Portugal failed to

comply with the obligation to communicate

to the Commission information on the

calculation of the tolls for newly introduced

tolling arrangements. The Commission said

that failing to implement this directive

appropriately and to communicate to the

Commission the relevant information means

that Portuguese tolling arrangements risk

contradicting the general aims of the

directive, such as the prohibition ofdiscrimination or the principle that tolls

must be based only on the recovery of

infrastructure costs. If Portugal fails to

inform the Commission within two months

of measures taken to ensure compliance

with EU law, the Commission could refer

the case to the EU Court of Justice.

Portugal in the dock over HGVcharging

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Industry N ew s

50

European New s

Spain scraps

new speed limit

S pain is to abandon its temporary110 km/h motorway speed limit.

The limit for cars was introduced

as a money-saving measure when theprice of oil was around €90/$125 per

barrel. It resulted in an immediate yearon year reduction of fuel consumption by

8.4 per cent and saved Spain €450

million in oil imports. Despite its obvioussuccess, the government now says the

limit can return to 120 km/h becausecrude oil prices have fallen under

€80/$110 per barrel again.

Polish lorrycharging nowin place

Poland has now introduced its

‘viaToll’ distance-based lorrycharge on parts of its national

road network. The system requires allvehicles over 3.5 tonnes using a

network of 1,560 kilometres of nationalroads, express roads and motorways tobe equipped with a tracking device.

Some 350,000 on-board units havebeen distributed. The level of the toll

varies according to vehicle weight and

emissions class.

Denmark backsdown on bordercontrols

Denmark’s new centre-left

government is to withdraw plansto reintroduce permanent border

controls.

The EuropeanCommission had

strongly criticisedmoves by former

Danish PrimeMinister Lars Loekke Rasmussen to

place permanent customs controls at the

country’s border with Germany.The Social Democrat Prime Minister,

Helle Thorning-Schmidt, also pledgedto reverse other conservative policies,

including a point system which made

it more difficult for foreign spousesof Danish residents to move to the

country.

News Roundup

Lynxs to develop aircargo hub at ShannonD

ublin Airport Authority (DAA) has

signed an agreement with US company

Lynxs to develop a new global air

freight hub at Shannon Airport.

Under the agreement, Lynxs is planning to

construct a new temperature-controlled freight

logistics facility at Shannon with infrastructural

support from DAA. This new facility will now

be marketed to both existing freight and

logistics companies at Shannon and to potential

new customers both domestically and

internationally.The new cargo hub will provide significantly

improved facilities for Shannon’s existing cargo

businesses and will radically reposition the

airport’s cargo capabilities. The Lynxs facility

will include chilled, frozen and heated areas

for cargo which would enable Shannon to

bid for more high value, high volume

freight business.

According to Shannon Airport Authority

Chairman Brian O’Connell: “Lynxs will give

Shannon Airport an excellent opportunity to

exploit its central location between the major

economies of the US, Europe and Asia and to

develop as a significant cargo destination.” He

added: “Shannon has always led the way in

international air trade, with its pioneering dutyfree and Free Trade Zone operations, and more

recently with the successful US Customs &

Border Protection (CBP) passenger and general

aviation pre-clearance facility.”

Construction is set to begin on a new

multimodal logistics complex,

Trilogiport, in the Belgian city of Liège

at the start of 2012, following project approval

by the development minister for the Walloonregion.

Trilogiport should begin operating at the end

of 2013, after receiving public funding of 45

million euros. The project is designed as an

“extended gateway” to the ports of Rotterdam,

Antwerp and Zeebrugge, and will include a

container terminal operated by Euroports and

its partner DP World.

Liège is the third largest inland port in

Europe after Duisburg and Paris, and is well

located at a cross road of European trade

corridors.

Trilogiport will contain road, rail, andwaterway transport, and could generate up to

two thousand jobs in the region.

Trilogiport is located along the Albert Canal

and is therefore considered to be a key

logistics artery by the Port Authority of

Antwerp. This location is crucial for accessing

the south of Belgium as well as the highly

industrialized Ruhr basin in Germany.

Green light for Liège logistics project

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Industry N ew s

51

From 2012, as a result of the pension reforms,

businesses will also be required to pay

contributions towards their enrolled

employees’ pensions. These new arrangements

represent a significant administrative burden for

large and smaller employers alike.

Every employer in the UK has now been issued

with a staging date - the date on which it will

need to enroll all qualifying employees into a

qualifying pension scheme.

Even if an employee does not want to

contribute or join, the employer must opt them in

to their scheme and then allow the employee toopt out with the pension provider, who will then

also need to notify the employer.

Exactly three years later, the employer must opt

any employees who initially opted out back

into the pension scheme, again with the

employee then having to opt back out

with the pension provider should they

not wish to participate.

Documentary evidence of the “opt

in and out” process must be retained

by the employer for six years. The

employer will also need to identify

all qualifying staff (by age and total

earnings) and determine which of

the eight different types of ‘worker’

categories employees may fall into.

Hard costsAs well as the administrative costs, there is

a compulsory employer contribution rising to

3 per cent of qualifying earnings and significant

financial penalties if employers do not comply

with their responsibilities.

Penalties will vary according to the size of the

business but the initial fine for employers who

fail to register by their staging date will be

£400. Businesses with less than four employees

can incur non-compliance penalties of £50 per

day, rising to £10,000 a day for the largest

employers.For more information on how these

changes could affect your business, contact

Minesh Gandhi at Cobia by email on

[email protected] or phone01582 390003.

The 2007 and 2008 PensionActs have together introducedthe most fundamental change tothe UK pension system for over

fifty years. From 2012 allemployers will be required tomake a Qualifying WorkplacePension Scheme available to theiremployees and to auto-enrolleligible employees into suchscheme. Here’s what you need toknow, as explained by businessconsultants Cobia.

Preparingfor PensionReform

Pension Reform Seminar

Cobia will be hosting a free Pension Reform

seminar in London on the 7th December2011. To reserve your place at the seminar,

please contact Minesh Gandhi by email on

[email protected]

or phone 01582 390003.

These newarrangementsrepresent a significantadministrative burdenfor large and smalleremployers alike.

Feature – Preparing for Pension Reform

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Industry N ew s

52

It’s tough

for anyone

to be in

hospital over the

Christmas period,

but especially for kids

far from the Christmas

Trees and Christmas

stockings of their own

homes.

That’s why Euro USA has

teamed up with the local

community radio station to

make a big effort to bring

some real festive cheer to

these children.

“Christmas is a time for

families, for giving presents

and is a very special time of

the year for children,” says

Jon Barton of Euro USA.

“We want to help make this

Christmas memorable for

those children in our

community who

unfortunately will have to

be in hospital this year.”

Euro USA has donated and

distributed cartons for 14

collection points for presents

to be donated throughout the local area.

A radio campaign on Zack FM, “Toys for

Tots”, will appeal for donations of new toys

from the local community. Euro USA will

then collect the cartons to enable the

distribution of the toys on Christmas Eve to

the West Suffolk hospital.

As the photographs show, the team at Euro

USA are already getting into the Christmas

spirit, and there is a long line of volunteer

Santas ready to give their time to the good

“Claus”.

All toys donated to the “Toys for Tots”

campaign will be distributed to the children

in the West Suffolk Hospital Rainbow Ward

on Christmas Eve with surplus toys being

given to the Forest Heath area department of

social services.

“We’re very proud to be in a position to

help these children,” Jon Barton says. “It’s

very important to us to be able to use our

skills and our expertise to help the

community. Everyone at Euro USA is really

looking forward to making a difference this

Christmas and seeing the smiles on the

children’s faces!”

For more information, contact EUROUSA

Shipping Ltd. Tel: +44 (0) 1638 515335

or visit: www.the-eurogroup.com

Euro USA of Mildenhall has teamed up with local radio station Zack FM to deliver a very special

Christmas to children who will be in hospital over the festive season.

Cover Feature – EuroUsa

Euro Group Delivers Christmas

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Industry N ew s

53

Feature – Wellers

Wellers’ first-hand experience inremovalsBAR’s very own financial helpdesk experts, Wellers Accountants, recently moved to new premises in VincentSquare, Westminster, London. BAR member Clockwork Removals assisted them with the move.

The move to larger offices after 11 years

enables Wellers to cope with theirgrowing team and expanding client base.

Neil Beck, Managing Partner at WellersAccountants told R&S: “Although it is really

tough out there at the moment, we are still

achieving steady growth. To be able to recruitin such a difficult climate is very rewarding

and we are feeling very positive about the

future. Our approach to working as an integralpart of our clients’ businesses is in demand: in

this climate they appreciate our pro-activityand day-to-day involvement.”

Wellers are also demonstrating theircommitment to corporate social responsibility

by donating all of the furniture from their old

offices to a charity called Aspire Oxford, whorecycle items raising funds for homelessness

and the disadvantaged.

Clockwork RemovalsWellers naturally chose a BAR member to be

sure that their commercial move would be

carried out properly and professionally. As thecompany works closely with BAR, Wellers

knows that all BAR members meet stringentcriteria and are regularly inspected to ensure

that their staff, vehicles, premises and

facilities meet the required standards set out inthe BAR Code of Practice. After getting a few

quotes from different BAR members, Wellersselected Clockwork Removals. James

Tillotson, Manager at Wellers, says:

“Everyone we dealt with at Clockwork, fromthe Commercial Business Developer to the

team members carrying out the move werecourteous, helpful and quick to respond to any

questions and issues that arose. The two daysthey were onsite went very smoothly and wewould definitely recommend them to anyone.”

For more information visitwww.wellersaccountants.co.uk.

“Our approach to working as an integral part of ourclients’ businesses is in demand: in this climatethey appreciate our pro-activity and day-to-dayinvolvement.”

Neil Beck, Managing Partner, Wellers Accountants

Wellers Accountants is one of the mostsuccessful medium size accountants in

the South East.

Established more than 50 years ago,

Wellers has four offices covering

London and the Thames Valley with

around 80 loyal and experienced

employees. Wellers provide a

comprehensive range of accountancyservices whilst retaining a partner-led

approach. Partners work integrally with

each client to achieve their business

objectives.

Clients benefit from tangible savings and

sustainable business growth, branded by

Wellers as ‘Business Oxygen’.

About Wellers

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


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54

Feature – Case study in increasing revenue through insurance services

Anchor Removals, part of the Britannia

Moving Group, specialise in UK

household removals and international

shipping. They selected Reason Global to

provide insurance services after a rigorous tender

process. Chris Smallwood, Managing Director of

Anchor, said “originally we chose Reason Global

because they came up with the best all-round

package, and their service, attitude and general

demeanour suggested they’d be a good fit.”

Reason Global were quick to recommend that

Anchor start selling customer goods insurance to

their customers as an optional extra, but thecompany was initially sceptical about the idea.

“There were a couple of reasons why we didn’t

think it would work,” explains Chris. “Firstly, we

thought it would reflect badly on our service.

And secondly, we were worried about how we

would manage the insurance premium tax

collection. We were also concerned that even if

customers agreed to take the insurance, they

would be more likely to make a claim.”

However Reason’s experience meant they were

able to answer these concerns. “Graham at

Reason showed us how simple the process could

be,” Chris says. “Rather than charging a

percentage of the cost of the job, we could justcharge a flat fee – around £25 including

Insurance Premium Tax (IPT). We don’t have to

get involved in the IPT because Reason deals

with that. In fact charging the insurance

separately actually reduces the amount of tax our

customers have to pay because they are only

required to pay 6 per cent IPT instead of 20 per

cent VAT.”

Anchor’s confidence in Reason pays off Since implementing Reason’s recommendation,

Anchor reports that 99 per cent of customers

have agreed to take the insurance. In just two

months, Anchor was able to increase their

revenue per job by an average of £28 – resulting

in additional income of £1,500 to £1,600 across

60 jobs.

“We were absolutely thrilled,” Chriscomments. “Replicating this over a year will

increase our turnover by around £12,000 to

£14,000 minimum. Realistically, it is likely to

increase our turnover by closer to £20,000.”

In fact Reason Global’s advice has had such a

positive impact on Anchor Removals that the

increase in revenue will more than pay for their

insurance premiums. “I think a fixed, optional

cost is actually quite attractive to customers,

particularly when it’s a relatively small amount,”

says Chris. “It means our pricing is completely

transparent and in some cases it actually saves

our customers money, as well as generating extra

income for us. Reason Global has given us all

the advice and tools we need to sell the insuranceefficiently. We’re very knowledgeable about the

product we’re selling which gives our customers

confidence that we’re professional and

reputable.”

A good deal for everyoneAlthough the industry in general appears to be

quite nervous about selling insurance, Anchor’s

experience shows that it can actually help firms

generate a good profit with very little extra

effort. “Reason’s advice has been invaluable –

the figures speak for themselves,” says Chris.

“The fact that 99 per cent of people take the

insurance shows how compelling the argumentfor it is. And to date we haven’t had a single

claim, which I think demonstrates that people are

comfortable that they’re getting value for

money.”

In fact through customer goods insurance sales,

Selling insurance to your customerMost BAR members will be familiar with specialist insurance broker Reason Global, in particular thetireless globe-trotting figure of marketing manager Graham Puddephatt. In this case study, ChrisSmallwood (pictured below) of Anchor Removals explains how the company is partnering with Grahamand Reason Global, selling insurance services to their customers and boosting Anchor’s turnover andbottom line significantly.

Gra ham Puddep ha t t ,

Mar ke t ing Manager , Reason G lo ba l

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Industry N ew s

55

Reason Global has helped many clients earn

additional revenue of up to 10 per cent per year.

Graham says that’s because they don’t just

provide excellent cover at extremely competitive

rates; the company also tries to provide high

quality training, professional documentation and

constant advice and support to all clients. Chris

confirms: “Although I was dubious to begin with

I’m so pleased Graham talked us around. He has

not only got me more revenue with which to pay

my premiums but also around £12,000 pure

profit in my bank account.”

Feature – Case study in increasing revenue through insurance services

For more informationplease contact:

Chris SmallwoodTel: 0161 790 6666


Website: www.anchorremovals.co.uk/

Graham PuddephattTel: 01273 200 479


Website: www.reason-global.com

“The fact that 99 percent of people take theinsurance shows how

compelling theargument for it is.”

Chris Smallwood,Managing Director,Anchor.

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Industry N ew s

56

Feature – New M ember P rofi le

Revells is based in Suffolk and operates

four large capacity vehicles and several

smaller vans while also providing

containerised storage in a substantial, new,

purpose-built warehouse with security systems

and environmental monitoring. Established in

1961, the company was bought by proprietor,

Antony Bowring (pictured), in 1999 and

currently employs nine full time members of

staff.

Although Revells does have commercial

clients, the major focus of business is the

residential market which is derived fromrecommendations of existing customers, estate

agents and solicitors. The company does not

have a big PR or marketing programme but it

does have an enthusiastic clientele who have

developed a good rapport with the staff.

Although local house moves make up a

substantial part of the workload, the client base

has increased throughout East Anglia and now

includes London, the home counties and reaches

to the continent and overseas.

Significantly, in recent times, the company has

developed an excellent relationship with a

number of international antique and fine art

dealers, galleries and collectors.

Fearlessly managedRevells is managed by Paul Nichols who has

worked in the removal business for 20 years.Prior to that, he was in the Armed Forces. He

runs Revells with a military precision which is

very popular with customers.

Antony Bowring took over the company after

years of working with Sir Ranulph Fiennes

Revells: militaryprecision andlogistical masteryBefore acquiring Suffolk-based Revells in 1999, AntonyBowring managed expeditions for Sir Ranulph Fiennes –perfect training, some would say, for the varied logistical andmanagerial challenges of the removals business. With ex-Services man Paul Nichols as MD, this new BAR member hasthe service-focused culture that characterise all the bestremovals companies.

“[Removals] is one of the few proper ‘service’industries and thephysical effort, longhours and permanent

good humour requiredof those at the cuttingedge are worthy of thehighest praise.”

managing expeditions. He organised a number

of ground-breaking projects including the

marine side of the Transglobe Expedition from

1979 to 1982. This was the first and only

surface, longitudinal circumnavigation of the

world via North and South Poles.

In an effort to get a ‘proper job’ at the age of

fifty, he bought the removal business from the

founder, Des Revell. Bowring saw that Revell

had prospered from the business in contrast to

the income derived from expeditions. However,

experience shows that Removals and Storage is

a far tougher and more competitive trade than he

anticipated with little profit to show after

revenue is reinvested into the development and

improvement of the business.

“For years, I was involved in non-profit and

charitable activity,” Antony says. “It is ironic

that now I am trying to earn a living in a

respectable commercial business, I find that for

many small traders such as myself ,‘profit’ is arather elusive concept! However, we have

remained extremely busy throughout the

recession and our diary is pretty full for the

months ahead. The team here are wonderful and

have my greatest respect and gratitude for all the

hard work and long hours they put into the

business. We are a great team and I think our

customers appreciate it”.

Looking ahead, the proprietor is bullish. “I’m

fully committed to this business. I’m sure that

I’m not alone in realising that the appreciation

and trust of customers is really the only thing

that matters. Removal people are extraordinary.

Theirs is one of the few proper ‘service’industries and the physical effort, long hours

and permanent good humour required of those

at the cutting edge are worthy of the highest

praise. We have a housing shortage in Britain

and while there is a demand, there is likely to be

business. As long as we are not priced out by

legislation and rising costs, and as long as we

provide the highest standard of service and

integrity, ours is an industry to be very proud

of.”

Revells joined the BAR in August this year

and already Paul Nichols has noticed that

customers (particularly those with larger

properties) are impressed. “It gives greaterconfidence that standards will be met

effectively, efficiently with the minimum of fuss

and at a competitive price,” Paul explains.

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Industry N ew s

57

Feat ure – Af fi lia te Profi le

Removal Recruitment: tailoredservice for removals companiesIn these uncertain economic times, the use of casual staff is an increasingly compelling proposition forcompanies looking at reducing their operating costs. Removal Recruitment is a specialist company that hasbeen providing trained staff to the industry for more than ten years now. Directors Lesley Crumpton andPaul Dyde tell R&S how the company is working with removal companies to improve their profitability.

Removal Recruitment provides trained,

experienced porters, drivers, teamleaders, fitters and more, exclusively to

the removal industry on a daily, weekly or

project basis. The key to the company’ssuccess, Director Paul Dyde says, is the

investment that it makes in training andinduction; even people who have worked for

removal companies in the past still have to dothe same training.

That training ensures that the industry knows

it can rely on Removal Recruitment to supplycapable, professional and responsible staff to

meet its every need. The company’sprogrammes are tailor made to the industry

and cover everything from manual handling to

export wrapping.“When we worked for removal companies,

we knew about the headache and hassle ofdealing with full time and casual staff,” Lesley

Crumpton says. “One of the reasons we set upRemoval Recruitment was to support removalcompanies, by offering a solution to reduce

the stress, also to keep their operating costsdown when it comes to staff, allowing them to

take on extra work and increasing

profitability.”

Best in class Removal Recruitment is a proud holder of an

Investors In People Bronze Award, dedicatedto selecting the right people, with the right

attitude for the job, with a commitment to

quality and reliability. This has enabled them

to be one of the few companies in the countryto achieve the prestigious bronze award.“Our clients save valuable time by using our

services” Lesley says. “It allows the remover

to concentrate on getting more business andless time on dealing with the stress of staff–

using our service is just one phone call away.”It’s now over ten years since Removal

Recruitment first entered the market; thecompany was established in April 2001, after

identifying the need for a steady supply of

high quality staff for the industry, whichwould give removal companies the confidence

to take on the extra work. The company’sexperience in the business extends even

further back than that: Lesley started out in a

commercial moving company sixteen yearsago, while Paul has been in the industry for

nearly twenty-one years, starting out workingon the vans, before moving into operations,

project management and general management.

“With my previous experience, and ten yearsat Removal Recruitment, dealing with severalremoval companies, I feel I have the

knowledge to understand what our clientswant and need, and what they don’t need!”

Lesley says.

Removal Recruitment became affiliatemembers of the BAR in 2003. Membership

enables them to attend area meetings, networkwith potential clients and keep in contact with

existing clients in a relaxed and agreeableatmosphere; they do not constantly pester

companies on the phone trying to sell their

services. BAR membership also serves as an

indication of their complete commitment tothe industry, which is highly appreciated bytheir client base.

Improving profitability for removalscompanies

Like every other company in the sector, theteam at Removal Recruitment is concerned by

the current economic uncertainty and by fearsof a double dip in the market. Removal

Recruitment is responding to increased

demand in the commercial moving sector withits IT service support decommissioning and

re–commissioning of computers. “We hadtrained some of the people we have to do this

type of work and have seen an increase in

demand, so to meet the increase we haverecently trained more people to the standard

required,” Lesley says.Lesley and Paul are also keeping a lid on

prices, keeping their services competitive in a

difficult environment for business; in the lastten years with yearly increased costs, theyhave kept any increases to the bare

minimum.“We are always willing to discussoptions with clients depending on their

individual needs,” Paul says. “RemovalRecruitment has always negotiated with

individual clients that need our support to be

specially tailored to their requirements (e.g.CSCS cards that are required to work on

particular sites with regard to health andsafety)

As Paul says, Removal Recruitment is

dedicated to the removal industry only, there

is no true comparison; “what suits oneremoval company doesn’t always fit another -we do everything we can to become a valuable

part of their team and enhance their company

in what they do and the quality of service theyprovide to their clients”

“[Our services allow] theremover to concentrateon getting morebusiness and less time

on dealing with thestress of staff – using ourservice is just one phonecall away.”

Paul Dyde and

Leslie Crumpton

of Removal Recruitment

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Industry N ew s

58

James Dasey, Group International Director, Doree Bonner International

Baby for Frenchmember

C edric Zibi of Paris-based

BAR InternationalAssociate Neer Service

has contacted us to let us knowhis wife Maud has just had the

couple’s first baby, a healthygirl named Chloé (pictured).

Congratulations to Cedric from

R&S magazine and its readers!

Momentous adds tointernational team

A sti Constantinou has joined the growing

corporate andinternational team at

Momentous.Asti (pictured) has

extensive experience with a

well-known internationalmoving company in the UK. She will be a Move

Manager based in the Momentous International andFine Art Shipping Office and will handle corporate

accounts and key worldwide agent partners

business.

Grospiron appointssales director

G rospiron

International hasappointed

Christophe Chevallier

(pictured) as Sales Director.Christophe worked for

eight years in the movingindustry, for large

companies in England and

France and then with Asian

Tigers in Asia. Since returning to France eightyears ago, he has occupied sales positions forFederal Express and American Express.

Using his combined experience in sales and

removals, Christophe will now be based inGrospiron’s Paris headquarters, where he will be in

charge of the sales team, the moving and relocationcorporate portfolio, and partnership with agents.

During his free time, Christophe likes to go to art

galleries, share good meals with friends and relaxby swimming and jogging. Christophe has a nine-

year old daughter.

James Dasey has been appointed as

Group International Director, a new

position for Doree Bonner

International.

James joined the International department

of Doree Bonner in 1998 as International

Sales Consultant then in 2003 he became

International Manager London. Following

five successful years in this role he was

promoted to Group International Managerwhere he successfully completed the

reorganisation of the Group’s Co-

ordination Centre.

In his newly created role, James will now

take responsibility for the International

product across the Doree Bonner Group for

both consumer and corporate business.

James will be based at Doree Bonner’s

head office in Dartford and will report

directly to the Joint Managing directors

Geoff Watson and Gordon Lyall.

Commenting on the appointment,

Geoff Watson said that James “has been

instrumental in the successful development

of our International product over the last

10 years and is a well-known and respected

figure in the Industry. In addition to his

responsibilities at Doree Bonner he is also

currently president of the FIDI under 35

club. In his new role James will be tasked

with strategically cementing our position

as one of the UK’s leading migrantMovers. Our International division is going

from strength to strength and James’s

appointment will enhance the capability of

our renowned and dynamic team.”

The Doree Bonner International Group

has over 90 years’ experience in providing

a friendly and professional service in the

removals industry. Its branches stretch

across Southern England from Bath in the

West to Canterbury in the East.

For further information, visit the Doree

Bonner website www.doreebonner.co.uk.

New senior managementappointment for Doree Bonner

People News

Interdean Geneva has made two new

appointments; Rafael Fiorgentili has

joined as Customer Services and

Quality Manager, and Sandra van Gessel,

of dual French and Dutch nationality, has

been appointed Sales Manager.

In her new role with Interdean, Sandra

will be heading the sales function in

Geneva, maintaining current client

relationships and developing new ones.

She will also be responsible for the

relationship with Interdean’s network of

approved partners in the region.

Rafael’s role will see him reinforcing

Interdean’s European transport and

logistics capability. Rafael is a talented

linguist and is fluent in English, French,

Spanish and Italian and has dual Spanish/

Italian nationality. As if that wasn’t

enough, Rafael is also currently learning

Portuguese.

Two appointments by InterdeanGeneva

Do you have any news toshare with R&S readers?:

Send to [email protected] ael F ior gent il i Sandr a van Gessel

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


For any independent insurance, financial or legal advice, please contact aBAR Professional Adviser partner.

Financial Legal

Insurance

Basil Fry & Co Ltd

Tel: 01372 385 985


Website: www.basilfry.co.uk

Reason Global Insurance

Tel: 01273 739961


Website: www.reason-global.com

Wellers

Tel: 0207 630 6665


Website: www.wellersaccountants.co.uk

Backhouse Jones Solicitors

Tel: 01254 828 300


Website: www.backhousejones.co.uk

in association with

The Professional Advisers Panel is a brand new

initiative specifically designed to offer members

extended support across every aspect of their business.

This is a development of our highly successful Insurance

Broker Panel scheme whereby BAR members receive

unlimited support, guidance and advice from qualified

specialist companies within the UK. We are constantly

looking at ways to support our members’ businesses;

therefore, if this initiative proves to be a success, we

will develop the Professional Advisers Panel even further

into other relevant areas such as Health & Safety and

Environmental services.

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


BAR New sM emberships

Registered:The following Members haveregistered:

National & European Group

Brycelands Removals Services Ltd

Memb No: B059Jacks HillGreat North RoadGraveleyHertfordshireSG4 7EQTel: 01462 675555Web: www.brycelands.co.uk

Dunbar Removals & Storage LtdMemb No: D062The Depository Gilmerton EstateNorth BerwickEast LothianEH39 5LQTel: 01620 880213

Squab LLP t /a Britannia Squab GroupMemb No: S094Squab HallHarbury LaneBishops TachbrookLeamington SpaWarwickshireCV33 9QBTel: 01926 882282Web: www.squabremovals.co.uk

Internat ional Associate

Biddulphs Removals & StorageMemb No: B40915 Craster RoadSouthertonPO BOX ST 292

Harare, ZimbabweTel: 002634 620753/9002637 772147 607/10Web: www.biddulphs.co.za

Applications:BAR has received the followingapplications for:


Alexanders Removals & Storage LtdUnit 1 Chase Road Trading Estate51 Chase RoadLondonNW10 6LG

Tel: 0333 800 2323Web:www.alexandersremovals.co.uk

G W Twilley & Son Ltd71 Coburg RoadWood GreenLondon, MiddlesexN22 6UBTel: 0208 888 5156Web: www.twilleys.com

Clarification:BAR are pleased to advise thatScotts of Somerset (Memb No: S115)remain in membership.

Resignations:BAR is sorry to lose the membership

of the following companies whilstthanking them for their support:


E & A Wates LtdMemb No: W013

JB Carlton & Co LtdMemb No: C049

Internat ional Associate

Movements International MoversPty Ltd, AustraliaMemb No: M406

Termination:

Liquidation:


Olympic Ltd & ATNOlympic RemovalsMemb No: O011

BAR M emberships December 2011

Any member wishing t o

make any comment

regarding an application

should do so in w riting to

BAR Head Offi ce within

21 days of receipt of th is

notifi cation. Details of

membership applications

in process may also be

found on the BAR

website: www.bar.co.uk

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


BAR New s

Don’t delay! Send in your answers now

to [email protected]

There were a number of correct entries to last month’s Rugby World Cup quiz. Congratulations toCarl Lewis, Project Manager at Xpress Relocation who was the first name to be pulled out of the hat.

Carl will get a free quarter-page advert for his company in the next issue of R&S. Quizmaster: SJS

The answers to last month’s Rugby World Cup quiz were: 1) 20 2) Russia 3) Australia 4) 30 5)Wales 6) B 7) Leonardo Ghiraldini 8) Simon Culhane (45 points, New Zealand vs. Japan, 1995)

• Adam Werritty is the close friend of which ex-Cabinet Minister?

• How much money will the Bank of England spend on the 2nd round of

Quantitative Easing?• Which large southern European nation held general elections on Nov 20th?

• Who is the new President-elect of Ireland?

• Which large Commonwealth country is introducing a carbon tax?

• Where was David Cameron when the riots broke out in August 2011?

• What currency did Greece use before joining the euro?

Remember 2011? With a turbulent yearcoming to a close, see how much attentionyou were paying to affairs in 2011!

R&S CompetitionR&S Competition

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


North West Area

Cont act: Annett e Harris

0161 6534455

annette.harr is@anglopacifi c.co.uk

December 8 – Quiz Night

January 19

Northern Ireland Area

Cont act: Dominic Murray

02890 748588

Dominicmurray@coastways

-storage.com

Scotland Area

Cont act : Georg ina Berry

0151 502220

georginaberry@bt int ernet.com

Southern Area

Cont act : Peter Doman

01372 385985

pet erd@basil f ry.co.uk

South Wales Area

Cont act: Andrew Robbins

01792 584229

amr@bri tanniarobb ins.co.uk

South Western Area

Contact: Sue Christophers

01637 872529

[email protected]

Sussex Area

Contact: Miranda Hyder

01342 870087

[email protected] 8

Removals & Storage December 201162

Diary Dates

Diary Dates

BOARD, COUNCIL ANDCOM M ITTEE MEETINGS 2011-12

Board of Directors

December 7 - 10.00am-15.00pm

Nat ional Council

February 7, 2012

Overseas Group Council

February 8, 2012

CMG Council

February 9, 2012

BAR AREA M EETINGS 2011/12

East Anglia Area

Cont act : Andrew Pearson

01362 853777

andrew @apakmove.co.uk

January 10 – 12.00pm

The Flying Fort ress

East Met Area

Contact : Paul Freeman0800 413335

nealesremovals@bt connect.com

East M idlands Area

Contact: Andy Wade

01476 579210

andy@fnw orldw ide.com

Kent Area

Cont act : Tom Bourne01797 228000

tomb@ut s-bournes.co.uk

New M et Area

Contact: Julie Thompson

01932 410100

Jul [email protected]

Northern Area

Contact: Alan Hoggin0191 5491194

[email protected]

Western Area

Contact: Ria Russell

01278 447099

ria@brit annialanesof somerset .co.uk

January 10

West Midlands AreaContact : Sarah Pargeter

01384 377786

sparget [email protected]

Yorkshire Area

Cont act : Graham Puddephat t

0845 6021775

GrahamPuddephat t@reason-

insurance.com

January 19

Do you have any diary dates?E-mail them to: [email protected]

To view diary dates/events, please log into ‘MyBAR’ and click on the Calendar/Events

and BAR Calendar tabs where you can view full details including time, date, location and

agendas (when available).

To view area minutes, please log into ‘MyBAR’ and click on the BAR Areas tab and

then one of the 16 areas listed. Minutes from past 2011 area meetings can be viewed and

downloaded (where available).

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


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www.tradestorage.co.ukWe are not a removal company or

your competitor, you are our clients

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They say that imitation is a form of

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Trailer Hire

Warehouse Cont ainers

TRAILER HIREFrom car trailers to 3200 cubic feet

stepframes, 8 container

curtainsiders unsignwritten haulage

available too. (UK and Europe).

www.tradestorage.co.uk/trailers

020 8795 4838 or 01793 731696

Trade StoragePiano Specialists

Training


£33 per month

Driver CPC Training - Industry Specifi c

BARTS Courses

BAR Training Services train you at the following

locations at specially discounted member rates:

• At your premises

• In the BAR areas

• BAR in Watford

Flexible training the w ay you want it !

Book your places NOWor for further information contact BARTS on 01923 699484

JAUPT APPROVED CENTRE AC00191


£33 per month

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Classifi eds


Opportunities

Please contactBARTS on

01923 699484

or email

[email protected]

Vehicles For Sale

TRAILERFOR SALE

Fantastic opportunity to purchase a quality East Midlands

removals company with a great reputation.

Long established in a strategic position near one of the

fastest growing residential areas in the country.

Only 1 local competitor. Excellent staff, 5 vehicles, substantial

storage depot with self store. Turnover @200k

Genuine reason for sale. Replies to box no.4074

Are You Look ing To Sell?

We are looking to buy good quality household moving

and storage compnies in London and the home counties.

Please call 07933 123 123 in full confidence

for a quick decision.

Removal Business w ithStorage in Spain for SaleSituated Estepona, Malaga. 2 warehouses for sale in prime location on

industrial estate. Corner site with maximum exposure. The properties arefreehold and a genuine investment opportunity comprising of the fo llowing:

Warehouse 1; Prime location offices, new steel containers for long termstorage, bathrooms and showers. Mezzanine floor with luxury 3 bedroom

apartment.

Warehouse 2; Purpose built self storage rooms. 2 lifts, bathrooms etc.

Both warehouses have new roofs and are well maintained.

The business is well known and very well established.It is sensibly priced at 1.5 million euros negotiable depending.

Email: inf [email protected]

OFFICE BASED SALES

AN D CUSTOM ER SERVICES

BAR Services is seeking an experienced office based sales/ customer services advisor to work full time at our East

Grinstead office. You will need a minimum of 3 years

experience in a telesales/customer service position and having a

proven track record of your success.

Essent ial Requirements:

• Confident

• Self motivated

• Able to work in a team

• Target driven

Knowledge of the packaging industry is beneficial but not

essential.

Please send your CV to:

M rs M iranda Hyder, General Manager,BAR Services, Moor Hall, Sandhaw es Hill,

East Grinstead, West Sussex RH19 3NR

Full job spec available on application.

w w w.barservices.co.uk

FOR SALE

2002 ScaniaP94D euro 3

• Marsden Vanplan

2500 ft3 body

• Spacious CLEAN pod

• 5 + space

container doors

• Drop-down rear door

including ramp

• Oil changed every

30,000kms

• £15,500 OVNO

Call Chris07779 232 566

Classifi edAdvertisingCharges

All classified advertisements should be booked no later than the 10th

and received no later than the 15th of the month preceding publication.

For all advertising enquiries please contact:

Sandra Zealand at Rubicon Marketing

on: 0117 957 5400 or e-mail: [email protected]

RatesSituations Vacant £2.15 per word (min 15 words)

For Sale and Wanted ads £2.15 per word (min 10 words)

Boxed Ad (Semi-Display) £30 per single column centimetre(Please note all lineage & semi-display ads are set by R&S in house style)

Half Page Mono £510

Half Page Colour £615

Quarter Page Mono £425

Quarter Page Colour £500

Box Number +£30

All charges are plus VAT.

Box NumbersReplies to Box Number advertisements should be sent to:

The Advertiser

Box no. (XYZ)

The British Association of Removers

Tangent House, 62 Exchange Road, Watford, Herts WD18 0TG

Situations Vacant

In line with the Sex Discrimination Act, all positions are open to maleand female applicants.

VehiclesPurchasers of a vehicle advertised in Removals & Storage should

satisfy themselves that the payload/volume is suitable for the purpose

for which they intend to use it.

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Industry N ew s

70

Send your letters to:

The Editor, Andy Stern,

At [email protected]

I am writing to you to comment on the excellent

service received from the BAR Removers

Benevolent Association.

It was peak season this year and we had a

crew unloading, unpacking and unwrapping a

consignment having just docked from South

Africa. The crew were undertaking their third

and final day on site, having unloaded a 40ft

and a 20ft container, they were finishing the

unpacking and reinstatement service for the

client.

The work had gone extremely well up until

the point where the crew were attempting to re-

assemble a large trampoline. One of the crew

members was tensioning the trampoline bed

when the hooked tool that he was using slipped

from the spring and consequently the tool

slipped and severely injured his wrist. He was

rushed to hospital and taken for immediate

reconstructive surgery to re-attach his 2 severed

tendons in his wrist.

Following this ordeal, our crew member had

his arm put in plaster and was told by the

consultant that he had to rest it for at least 4

weeks to ensure that the wound and tendons

heal effectively. Consequently, this meant that

he was unable to work for this period. With it

being peak season, our crew member was

especially disheartened by the thought of not

bringing in any money for the coming weeks.

His obvious concerns were how he was going to

meet his financial commitments.Based on our contract of employment, our

employee was only entitled to receive statutory

sick pay during this period of recovery. This

was quite obviously an industrial injury and as

his employer we felt a responsibility to try and

find a means of reimbursing our employee for

some of his loss of earnings. Whilst speaking to

a fellow BAR member company, we were

advised that the BAR has a special division that

may be able to assist our employee financially,

to help with his loss of earnings and his need to

continue to meet his financial commitments.

This division is called the Removers Benevolent

Association (RBA). I had never quite

understood what the RBA were about, however

I had an inkling that they only dealt with BAR

companies in receivership, oh how wrong I

was!

I contacted Tracey Britten at the BAR who

put me in touch with the chairman of the RBA.

Between them they advised that they are at

liberty as a registered charity to offer a lump

sum payment to assist our employee in this hard

time. It was quite simple, we completed a claim

form indicating his role within the company and

some financial details allowing the RBA to

assess his loss of earnings and on-going

commitments.

Within one week, we had received a telephone

call from the chairman of the RBA who advised

us that the board had met and concluded the

meeting with a unanimous decision to award

our employee with a lump sum payment, which

I understand is one of the highest ever paid out

by the RBA. I was very impressed by their

service.

It was 4.5 weeks before our crew member was

in any way fit for a phased return to work. This

payment made by the RBA was a ‘life saver’ for

our employee and his partner.

My experience when dealing with the RBA

was excellent and it just goes to show that the

BAR is out there to help members get through

tough times, whether it be the member companyneeding the help or an employee. The RBA has

managed to put a smile on the face of a very

despondent employee. From a company

perspective, this intervention has provided our

employee with the motivation to get back into

work and help to keep a very experienced

removal man happy in his job.

Thanks RBA.

David Smith,F Smith & Son (Croydon) LtdDirector

Praise for the RBA

At our latest Yorkshire area meeting, one ofthe Pickfords team indicated that the nextseries of TV programmes for Channel 5 are inthe planning. From my point of view, this isgood news for Pickfords and the industry ingeneral. Having read comments in the mediaand listened to various comments from theremovals industry, our peers have a mixedperception as to the value.

Before criticising the programmes, content

and general presentation, you should putyourself in the chair of the viewer. I haveheard comments such as, “the estimatorsdidn’t do a good job on that move” and “thereweren’t enough vehicles for the job.” Theviewer only sees that Pickfords respondedquickly, politely and in a friendly manner;

calling up an additional vehicle, nothing wastoo much trouble.

I watched the programmes with my wife,and she commented on what a friendly bunchthe removals industry seems to be; she couldsee why I enjoy my job. The moral of mystory is, in the main, the general public arenot removals experts, they want a friendlyefficient service delivered in a professionalmanner; that is precisely how Pickfords and

by association our industry was portrayed.These programmes were not designed to be aremovals training video, we leave that toBARTS. I understand there was a significantspike in hits on the Pickfords web site afterthe programmes, this goes a long way todemonstrate they were well received.

Lastly, at the Yorkshire meeting I alluded to,the speaker was a representative from ‘Helpfor Heroes’, as we met he commented he hadseen the series. He and his family reallyenjoyed them; he said “It really shows youshould use a professional mover at such astressful time.” I have also had commentsfrom members at my local golf club whoenjoyed the series. It’s about time we hadsome positive news about our industry.

Well done Lyndsey Daykin and thePickfords team.

Graham Puddephatt,Reason Global

Promoting the positive

8/3/2019 R&S Dec 11 WEB


Speak to Ria Compton or Peter Doman

Tel: 01372 385985


www.basilfry.co.uk B ASIL FRY & COMPANY

Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority

B ASIL FRY & COMPANY

Authorised and Regulated by the Financial Services Authority

Close links with

the industry

since 1970.

Choose the Removers Broker, Choose Basil Fry.

Now’s a good

time to call Basil

Fry for a quote.

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