Fortis IBA achieves Certification to Industry Recognised Standards

Fortis has recently been through successful external audits for three of the industry’s best-known qualification schemes by assessment body, Exova BM Trada.

Following a three day audit, Fortis’ compliance management system was confirmed as meeting these high standards with zero concerns raised for safety, quality and environmental management standards.

OHSAS 18001 sets out the criteria health and safety management system standards. It demonstrates an organisation’s commitment to continual improvement in health and safety performance and to compliance with legislation through maintenance of an Occupational Health and Management System (OHSMS).

ISO 14001 sets out the criteria for an environmental management system and can be certified to. It provides assurance to company management and employees as well as external stakeholders that environmental impact is being measured and improved.

ISO 9001 addresses various aspects of quality management. The standards provide guidance and tools for companies and organizations who want to ensure that their products and services consistently meet customer’s requirements, and that quality is consistently improved.

Ben Jacobs, HSQE Manager commented: “This achievement is very exciting for Fortis IBA and is testament to the teams involved with the compliance management system and the way we work.

We undertake regular audits of our processes and procedures to ensure continual improvement and these certifications really demonstrate our commitment to best practice and that we have the right frameworks in place to manage them.”

Children from Fairisle Junior School visit Nursling Recycling Facility

Children from the local Fairisle School were invited by Raymond Brown to visit our Nursling Recycling Facility to learn about the site and how recycling affects the environment. The 94 children were split into four groups and taken around our site by coach learning about how the site recycles the material received and also given a classroom lesson on recycling.

Each coach was driven onto the weighbridge and two volunteers from each group were taken into the weighbridge office to sign for and receive a ticket to show their total weight, our Operations Director Tim O’Leary compared the weights to African Elephants to give the children an idea on scale.

The children in the classroom were given a recycling lesson and provided with cut out paper hands in several colours to write recycling messages on, they were then invited to stick them onto their own Recycling Tree to form a leaf effect which is on display in the site offices.

Tim O’Leary, Operations Director commented: “It was great to see the enthusiasm from the pupils taking part. It is so important to help the children understand the pressures on the environment, the world’s resources and the part that they can play in improving things for the future. It is also good to see them having fun whilst learning!”

Investment in new Fines Clean Up Plant whilst striving to achieve zero to landfill

Raymond Brown Waste Solutions have invested in a Fines Processing Plant for our A303 Materials Recovery Facility in Barton Stacey.

The new plant will ensure that we can recover the 10-25mm stone, metal and light material such as wood and polystyrene from our trommel fines material.

This plant investment will result in a reduction of c6,000 tonnes of material being sent to landfill over the next year.

The fines will be loaded into the Proflow DST which incorporates a 10mm screen, magnet and an air separator.

The 10 – 25mm materials will pass through air separation unit technology to separate the light and heavy materials.  The heavies will be recycled into 6F5 crushed with the light material recycled for use as solid recovered fuel.  The magnet will recover over 200 tonnes of ferrous metals per year.

The smaller fines, that are under 10mm in size, will now be the only fines sent to landfill, significantly improving recycling rates for the business.

Fairisle Junior School Cycling Safety Lorry Visit

Accompanied by Sustrans, we took one of our HGV tipper lorries into Fairisle Junior School in Southampton, to increase knowledge of cycling, scooting and walking participation in the local area and to demonstrate ‘Blind spots’ etc as part of road safety for the children.

The children were invited to walk around the Raymond Brown lorry, pick out/spot any warning signs displayed on the lorry and to sit in the lorry cab to make them aware of what HGV drivers are able to view when driving.

‘Sustrans’ talked to the children in great depth about road safety, riding of cycles on the roads and what to be generally aware of when out and about. They also made them aware of the importance of reducing congestion and pollution around the school and the beneficial effects it would have on the children’s mental and physical health.

The children really enjoyed the visit and Headteacher, Peter Howard commented: “Thank you so much for coming to us today, it was brilliant to see the children’s faces especially when they were in the cab. I think we taught everyone a very valuable and potentially lifesaving lesson this morning.’’

Christmas Party for Raymond Brown Group Employees at new Solent Spark Building

Over 170 employees and guests across our businesses joined us for our 2017 Christmas Party at the new Solent University Spark Building in Southampton, which was decorated in an Enchanted Forest theme, with snowflakes floating down the walls, green lighting and wintery props and accessories, including a giant white unicorn surrounded by Christmas trees in the centre of the room.

The party started off with a speech by Chief Operating Officer, Steve Clasby, as he provided an overview of the business successes in 2017 and thanked employees, past and present over the past year.  Four individuals were also recognised for exemplifying our core values (Passion.  Responsibility.  Engagement.) within the workplace, having been nominated by their teams and colleagues and they received a John Lewis gift voucher and wooden plaque.  They were:

Passion – Tom Weeks, Customer Service Supervisor (Raymond Brown Distribution)

Responsibility – Vanessa Smith, Shift Manager (Raymond Brown Waste Solutions)

Engagement – Stephen Hall, Driver (Raymond Brown Waste Solutions)

One individual, Karl Reed, stood out across all three areas, with some outstanding nominations for his efforts at the A303 IBA Processing Facility:  Karl Reed, Site Supervisor (Fortis IBA)

All employees were given the opportunity to win a day of paid annual leave in our infamous ‘Heads and Tails’ game and congratulations to Justin Ebbutt (Site Manager at Nursling Recycling Facility), whose wife, Rebecca, won it on his behalf.

Attendees received favours in the form of an antler bottle opener for the men and a snowflake bottle stop for the women, along with an array of Hotel Chocolat treats in crackers on the tables.

After a three course meal of chicken terrine or soup, beef or vegetable wellington and a chocolate tart or cheese and biscuits, the teas and coffees with chocolate-covered turkish delight treats were served up on top of the red pod that sits suspended in the venue above the atrium.

Throughout the evening, employees and their guests were able to explore the impressive venue, wager with their funny money at the three casino tables, have their photos taken in the inflatable LED Photo Booth (on the following pages), snap  themselves in the Enchanted Selfie Area and dance the night away to the DJ.

Thank you to all who attended for a brilliant evening.

Employees Recognised in Core Value Awards

Last year, we introduced three Core Values to the business: Passion, Responsibility and Engagement.  As part of the Employee Satisfaction Surveys this year, we asked employees to nominate their colleagues under each of the core value categories.

As a result of these nominations, four individuals were recognised at the Raymond Brown Christmas Party earlier this month for exemplifying our core values within the workplace.  The four employees who were nominated repeatedly by their teams and colleagues were each presented with a John Lewis voucher and an engraved wooden plaque by Chief Operating Officer, Steve Clasby:

Passion – Tom Weeks, Customer Service Supervisor (Raymond Brown Distribution)

(4 years with the business)

Tom was commended on his passion for the business and his “solid enthusiasm and dedication to achieve” by fellow colleagues and that he is “always willing to assist”.

Responsibility – Vanessa Smith, Shift Manager (Raymond Brown Waste Solutions)

(1 year with the business)

Vanessa (pictured) stood out under responsibility.  She was described as “always helpful” and that she “always sorts things which need to be fixed, always worries about H&S and never ignores hazards”.

Engagement – Stephen Hall, Driver (Raymond Brown Waste Solutions)

(16 years with the business)

Steve was nominated for his engagement.  Colleagues stated that Steve is “always willing to help” and that he “believes in being honest to management if he can see a better course of action to implement”.

One individual, Karl Reed, stood out across all three areas, with some outstanding nominations for his efforts at the A303 IBA Processing Facility:

All Three Core Values – Karl Reed, Site Supervisor (Fortis IBA)

(21 years with the business)

Karl was one individual who stood out significantly and who was nominated repeatedly for all three values, his colleagues described him as; “committed and he cares a great deal about his team” and that he is “enthusiastic, driving the business forward.”  Other comments included that Karl is constantly “feeding back lots of ideas and coming up with brilliant solutions to issues affecting the operational areas of the business” and that he “makes you feel like part of the team and is looking out for your safety”.

Communications and Marketing Manager, Kerry Smith wins the 2017 Venus Hampshire Marketing and PR Award

Raymond Brown are celebrating as Kerry Smith, Communications and Marketing Manager was announced winner of the Venus Hampshire Marketing and PR Award on Saturday 11th November in front of over 350 guests at the Venus Hampshire Gala Dinner, held at Solent University’s new Spark Building.

The Venus Awards – dubbed by Channel 4 as “The Working Women’s Oscars” – celebrate the vital contribution that women in business make to the local, regional, and national economy.Competition was strong across the region with over 1,500 nominations and applications received across the 15 categories.  Commencing in April this year, participants were  whittled down to the Winners stage through a combination of sponsorship and judging.

Kerry, who celebrated her 10-year anniversary with Raymond Brown in the summer, progressed from Marketing Assistant to her current role within the business and has been supported on a day release basis whilst at university.

The award category, which was sponsored by Agency, bandv included a number of talented women but it was Kerry’s career progression, passion, enthusiasm and commitment to the business which caught the bandv judging panel’s attention.

bandv’s Chairman, Colin Breckenridge commented: “We are delighted that Kerry is the winner of this year’s Hampshire Venus Awards in the Marketing & PR category and would like to offer our heartfelt congratulations.

Kerry’s progression through the Raymond Brown Group from Marketing Assistant to Marketing Manager and the story of her journey really caught our attention.  Her enthusiasm and passion for her role and the company is clear, and Kerry’s commitment to Raymond Brown’s community projects really impressed us.

It has been an honour to be a sponsor of the Venus Awards for the second year running as bandv are proud to help promote the role of women in ‘Marketing & PR’. This year the category was once again full of some extraordinary individuals and tremendous talent but for us Kerry shone that little bit brighter and stood out as a clear winner. Huge congratulations Kerry!”

Kerry commented: “I am absolutely thrilled and so proud to be the 2017 Venus Hampshire Marketing and PR Winner, sponsored by bandv.  To be recognised for working hard and doing what I love and feel so passionate about feels incredible.  Behind me is the most amazing company who have been very supportive of my determination to progress and I am very fortunate to have worked with some very inspirational people over the last 10 years at Raymond Brown.

This award has given me more confidence to believe in myself within such a male dominated industry.”

Kerry will progress to the Venus Awards National Finals to be held in the summer of 2018.

 

 

Top photo of Winners – Image Credits to Jack Valpy of Fingerprint Media.

Brickworth Quarry wins prestigious Biodiversity Achievement Award

The Mineral Products Association (MPA) ‘Quarries & Nature 2017 – Appreciating Assets’ event took place on Thursday 19th October at The Royal Society, London and was presented by BBC Radio 4’s Farming Today presenter, Sybil Ruscoe.

Expert speakers included a number of current issues related to nature conservation. They were Stephanie Hilborne OBE, Chief Executive of the Wildlife Trusts, Professor Steve Ormerod, Cardiff Professor of Ecology and until recently Chairman of RSPB and Tom Butterworth Associate Director of WSP.

The MPA’s 46th Awards recognised exceptional practice and showcased some of the best examples of quarry restoration and wildlife conservation anywhere in Europe.

Raymond Brown were presented as winners of the Biodiversity – Planned Restoration category by Sir Desmond Swayne MP who praised the restoration work and entrepreneurial spirit of the business.

The award was for Brickworth Quarry, where Raymond Brown recently gained permission for an extension to an existing operation. The area to be quarried is currently commercial coniferous plantation, but it was originally broadleaved woodland and the soil carries a rich seed bank. A robust handling strategy has been designed which relies on moving soils only once, using direct placement to the area of restoration.

The judges were impressed with the carefully planned removal of the conifer plantation, the management and conservation of ancient woodland soils and the planting of native trees to deliver a net gain in broadleaved woodland habitat.

In words of the County Ecologist who considered the planning application, “The total area of woodland within the restored site will be substantially increased.  Areas of habitat creation will benefit species like bats, dormice, great crested newts, birds and reptiles.”

Commenting, Nigel Jackson, Chief Executive of the MPA said: “Once again MPA members’ have demonstrated what an environmentally responsible industry can do to both protect existing and create new habitats. We could not be more proud to showcase what can be achieved by an industry that is uniquely placed to make a net gain to biodiversity.”

Rob Westell, Estates & Planning Director at Raymond Brown commented: “We are extremely proud to win this award which is testament to the hard work of a small group of people and it is a great achievement for Raymond Brown to be on the same stage as the big multinational extraction companies in the UK. The new planning permission at Brickworth Quarry will ensure transformation of a conifer plantation to broadleaved woodland, providing enhanced habitat for a wide range of species, while protecting a valuable soil resource.”

Raymond Brown Group’s Communications & Marketing Manager, Kerry Smith has been selected as a finalist in the Marketing & PR category of the 2017 Hampshire Venus Awards.

The Venus Awards, dubbed by Channel 4 as “The Working Women’s Oscars” were created in 2009 to recognise, reward and celebrate local working women in business across regions within the UK.

Kerry Smith has been with the company for over 10 years and has progressed from Marketing Assistant up to Communications and Marketing Manager. She leads the Raymond Brown Group’s brand and reputation management and all marketing and communications activities across the businesses.

Kerry commented: “I could not be prouder to be a Finalist for the Hampshire Venus Awards. To be recognised for what I am so passionate about (both the importance of Marketing and PR as a profession and raising awareness of women in business) and working for a company which I love is just incredible.”

bandv Marketing, based in Southampton are the sponsors of the 2017 Marketing and PR Award category and their panel judged a number of Marketing Managers from a variety of local businesses, across a wide range of sectors.

Kerry and her two fellow finalists were selected for their outstanding achievements and their influence within the industry, they will now go through to the Venus Hampshire Awards Gala Dinner at the Solent Spark Building on 11 November 2017, where a winner will be announced.

Colin Breckenridge, Chairman of bandv commented: “We are delighted to be sponsoring the Venus Awards for the second year running. bandv are proud to help promote the role of women in ‘Marketing and PR’ throughout Hampshire and we would like to say a huge congratulations to this year’s talented finalists.

This year the Marketing & PR category was once again full of some extraordinary individuals and the three finalists we have chosen are an outstanding example of the talent amongst women who work in Marketing and PR throughout Hampshire.”

Fortis’ A303 IBA Processing Facility is granted a 50% increase in throughput

Due to the success of the A303 IBA Processing Facility, Fortis are continuing to investigate options to increase the IBA throughput by processing similar material from outside the county.  In turn, this will significantly benefit Hampshire as the recycled aggregate will be made available to the local construction market, replacing primary aggregates.

Earlier this year, Fortis submitted a variation to the planning permission at the A303 Processing Facility.  The application included a variation to three conditions as shown below:

Condition 14  To increase the permitted annual limit on IBA processing from 120,000 tonnes to 180,000 tonnes

Condition 17  To vary the approved plans of the processing plant to include mobile pre-screening plant

Condition 2    To allow plant operation from 6.00am and HGV movements from 7.00am on Monday – Saturday.   The previous limitation was 7.30am for both plant operation and lorry movements.

The inclusion of the mobile pre-screening unit was to increase the efficiency of the IBA recycling plant, provide flexibility and improve the quality of the aggregate.  The addition in hours of working in the morning resulted from a review of Fortis staff working patterns, as well as to meet demand for the recycled aggregate more efficiently.

Following detailed assessments with regard to traffic, noise, dust and odour, engagement with the local community and the success of the site open day last year, permission was granted for the variation in the spring.

Rob Westell, Estates and Planning Director, commented: “We were delighted to assist the Fortis team in achieving a planning permission which allows a 50% increase in throughput, extended working hours and a new screen to remove the finer fraction of the material before the main plant process.

The throughput increase, together with operational efficiencies arising from the reduction in fines through the process, provides the platform for the Longparish plant to secure new contracts and improve profitability.”