Member News

Students receiving their results from further education courses today are being congratulated for their efforts. The first students to sit A level exams since 2019 and those receiving AS Level and Level 3 Vocational Technical Qualifications and the first T-Levels are all being praised for their determination, with the educational settings which have supported them also being recognised. Cllr John Fisher, Cabinet Member for Children’s Services at Norfolk County Council said, “We know students receiving their exam results have faced some challenging and uncertain times over the last two and a half years of unprecedented disruption to their education. “With the support of their schools, colleges, and families, the resilience and perseverance of these young people, many of whom have sat major exams for the first time, has shone through and I hope every single one of them is very proud of what they have achieved. “I wish them all the very best as take their next steps whether that is to university, an apprenticeship or entering into the workplace.” Every year sees students facing decisions over what to do next with a growing variety of options available for young people at 18.

• Norfolk County Council’s Help You Choose website offers a wide range of help and support on different options and advice on next steps whatever their results, support with CV writing, apprenticeship vacancies, and information about different careers. It also has a space for parents or carers to help them understand the different options for their child.
• UCAS offers guidance to support students through the process of securing a university place with information about insurance choices and clearing. Anyone who has just missed out on the grades they need they should contact the admissions team at their preferred university, as they may still be able to offer them a place. There are already nearly 30,000 courses available in clearing this year so there will be plenty of high-quality choices available.
• Students can find out more about education and training choices by visiting the ‘Get the Jump’ Skills for Life content hub on the National Careers Service website. During the exam results period, the hub will also have key information on resits, clearing, appeals and more. Students can also chat directly to an expert adviser via webchat or by calling the National Careers Service exam results helpline on 0800 100 900 from Thursday 18 August until Friday 2 September open weekday between 8am and 8pm and Saturday 10am to 5pm.
• Norfolk and Waveney’s Children and Young People’s Health Services Just One Norfolk website offers mental health support and helpful advice on managing anxiety.

We will be taking a trip to the Caribbean this Christmas with our themed Christmas party nights for 2022. Think tiki bars and coconuts as you soak up the Caribbean atmosphere right here at Carrow Road. Tickets are £45 per person and include an arrival drink, table nibbles, 2-course buffet and evening entertainment. You can reserve your date now with a non-refundable £10 deposit per ticket by contacting us on 01603 218724 and speaking to our special events team. These events are over 18’s only. Available Dates: Fri 2nd, Sat 3rd, Thurs 8th, Fri 9th, Sat 10th, Thurs 15th and Fri 16th December 2022 https://www.deliascanarycatering.co.uk/PagesPublic/UserControlled/UserDefined.aspx?page=theme Image provided by Norwich City Football Club

Our popular party nights featuring Delia’s Traditional Christmas recipes are back for 2022, bringing you all together for the festive period. With stunning views over the floodlit pitch, the evening includes a welcome glass of prosecco on arrival, a 3-course dinner followed by coffee with homemade chocolates and mince pies. Then dancing til the early hours to our resident DJ. Tickets are priced at £49.50. You can reserve your date now with a £10 non-refundable deposit per ticket by contacting us on 01603 218724 and speaking to our special events team. These events are over 18’s only. Available Dates: Fri 2nd, Sat 3rd, Thurs 8th, Fri 9th, Sat 10th, Thurs 15th and Sat 17th December 2022 Image provided by Norwich City Football Club

For the fourth year running, Howes Percival’s Private Client team has been ranked for Private Wealth Law in the Chambers High Net Worth guide for Norwich and Surrounds. One of only three firms ranked in the region for this practice area, the guide describes the team as “strong and intellectually bright” and goes on to say “there is a good mix of experience and relevant qualifications to assist in the specialist area.” Partners Tom Lawrence and Stuart Maggs, Head of Private Client and Head of Tax respectively, are listed as notable practitioners. An interviewee said of Tom Lawrence, “In my opinion, there is no other private client lawyer I would want to be representing me,” whilst another went on to comment “Stuart continues to be the go-to person for top-end, high net worth individual tax and legal advice in Norwich.” The guide is published annually by Chambers and Partners and is based on in-depth analysis provided by a team of experienced researchers. Chambers High Net Worth is aimed at the international private wealth market. The guide researches and ranks the world’s best lawyers and provides objective guidance for high net worth individuals, family offices and professional advisers. Information is sourced through comprehensive market research and interviews with firms’ clients as well as industry contacts. The guide is one of the most respected and trusted within the industry. Tom Lawrence, Partner and Head of Private Client at Howes Percival said:

“The high ranking secured in this year’s Chambers High Net Worth guide accurately reflects the quality and commitment of our talented team of lawyers to delivering leading advice to clients both in the UK and beyond. I am extremely proud of what we have achieved together so far and have exciting plans to further develop our current offering in an area of key growth for the firm going forwards.”

View Howes Percival’s ranking in the Chambers High Net Worth guide here. To find out more about the services offered by the Private Client team click here. Image owned by Howes Percival

Howes Percival has been ranked in the top 15 planning law firms in the UK for the second year running, with the firm’s Jay Mehta highlighted as the tenth highest-rated planning solicitor in the country. Planning magazine’s prestigious 2022 Planning Law Survey, highlights the solicitors, law firms, and barristers considered to be the leading planning law specialists in the UK. The rankings are based on peer-led interviews with consultants, developers and local authorities who were asked to identify individuals and firms they regard as exemplifying best practice in planning law. Howes Percival is again one of the highest rated regional firms in this year’s rankings, which are traditionally dominated by national and London-based firms. The firm’s planning team act for major housebuilders, land promoters, developers, and local authorities. At the end of 2021, Howes Percival was appointed to the Crown Commercial Services Legal Panel which led to the firm advising on and settling complex planning obligations for Sizewell C. The team is also involved in the development of a new garden village in Leicestershire, an £80 to £100m student scheme in Nottingham and Sustainable Urban Extensions in Leicester, Thanet, Towcester and Newark. In addition, the team has advised in connection with the delivery of three large urban extensions in Norfolk totalling 12,000 dwellings, advising Turnstone Estates on two £50 million leisure developments in Colchester and Southend and advising the University of East Anglia in connection with Phase 1 of the Lasdun Wall refurbishment project on campus. Tessa Haskey, Head of Property at Howes Percival, commented,

“We are absolutely delighted to be recognised as one of the top planning law firms in the UK, again and thrilled that Jay’s skills and expertise have once again been acknowledged with his ranking as one of the UK’s highest rated planning solicitors. I think we are flying the flag for the regions and demonstrating that the best quality planning lawyers don’t need to be based in London or Birmingham. Working as a single, cohesive team, we offer developers a comprehensive ‘cradle to grave’ commercial property proposition. In addition to securing repeat instructions from existing clients, thanks to the strength of our reputation in the market, we also receive a lot of referrals from planning consultants.”

Planning Partner Jay Mehta, commented.

“This is a fantastic endorsement for the team. The rankings are based on the views of those in the industry who are well experienced in using planning solicitors. The quality, strength and breadth of our expertise as a team is now well recognised through the work that we do, as we continue to advise on some of the largest development projects in the country. Our size also enables us to be more agile and attentive, allowing us to build strong relationships with our clients and understand their needs. We can therefore offer a much more personal service alongside our depth and quality, and this is something that we have been commended on by many of our largest clients.”

Howes Percival’s property experts act for major housebuilders, retailers, construction companies, landowners, housing associations, developers, and public authorities as well as private individuals and businesses. The firm’s comprehensive commercial property service covers planning and environmental law, minerals and waste, compulsory purchase, village greens, development including strategic land acquisitions, the management of real estate portfolios, property finance, leases and other landlord and tenant matters, property litigation and construction contracts and disputes. Howes Percival is ranked as a top-tier firm for Planning and Environment in the UK’s leading guide to law firms, the Legal 500. For more information on our planning team click here. Image owned by Howes Percival

Young bookworms have the chance to treat themselves to a new summer holiday read as part of an initiative run by East Anglia’s Children’s Hospices (EACH). The charity, which supports families and cares for children and young people with life-threatening conditions, has 44 Retail shops across East Anglia. All are running a campaign throughout the school holidays whereby children can pop in and pick up a free book. EACH Head of Retail Central Operations Sarah Throssell said: “We’re thrilled to be running this fabulous initiative again. “It’s a regular school holiday event for us and, as ever, we hope it encourages and entertains young readers throughout the summer. “It’s always popular and well-received, particularly during the school holidays when families may be struggling for low-cost ideas to keep children entertained. “A few of our shops have even organised afternoon story-telling sessions, where children can enjoy a piece of fruit and free stories. “It’s lovely to see and then to watch the children go and pick their book from the shelf.” EACH has three hospices – The Nook, in Framingham Earl, near Norwich, The Treehouse, in Ipswich, and at Milton, near Cambridge. To find out where your nearest shop is, head here. Image credit – EACH

Your Business and Google Reviews The short answer…yes! Google reviews are definitely worth having for your business. There are many reasons for this, which we have detailed below, but nowadays with all businesses moving online it is crucial to have a credible online presence, which is what Google reviews can give you if done the right way. Google reviews can be found via your businesses Google Business Profile page, located on Google’s search result page when searching for the company in Google. If you don’t have one it is easy enough to set up! Think of it like this, with products on Amazon you would always check the reviews before purchasing a product, right? I know we do! Think of Google reviews as the equivalent of these product reviews but it’s just for businesses. They Help Boost Your Marketing Even if you are not yet appearing at the top of Google’s search results page your Google Business Profile can still appear at the top of the Google Maps listing if you keep it active, this includes getting regular reviews and replying to them. For services such as Trott Rentals, a van and car rental company and Burton Waters, a boat broker, appearing at the top of a map listing is essential for two reasons. Local searches – Many people who are looking to hire or buy a vehicle will search into their search engine to find the closest place to them, for convenience more than anything. So appearing on the map listings is crucial to get in front of these customers. Competition – Appearing on your local map listings is an easy way to get ahead of your competition. Most people will click on the first map listing they see, which could be your business if you keep your Google Business Profile up to date! It’s The Honest Truth The good (or in some cases bad) thing about Google reviews is that they are the honest truth. Even if you’re not using your reviews for anything else you can use them to analyse your services and diagnose what you need to improve on. With the permission of the reviewer, you can also use Google reviews on your website as a testimonial. This is a great way to share some of the reviews you are really proud of, it will help your potential customers trust your services. The More The Better We all know that we put more trust in a company that has more reviews than others. A company with 40+ good Google reviews comes across more trustworthy than a business with only 5 good reviews. Of course we understand that it is going to take a while to build up your bank of reviews, but trust us when we say that when you do you will see a nice increase in flow of traffic! How Do I Get Google Reviews? Anyone can leave a review on your Google Business Profile, but not everybody will. Don’t be afraid to ask a customer to leave you a Google review, especially if you know they were pleased with your amazing service! But don’t go asking willy-nilly, make sure to pick and choose the right time to ask a client or customer to leave a review. Asking too prematurely or coming across too forcefully can put a potential reviewer off leaving a review and could potentially push them into changing their positive mindset on your service. If you are looking to build up your local business then we would 100% recommend starting with building your Google Business Profile and reviews. Once this is all optimised and you feel you would still like some more business it might be time to think about starting some digital marketing. If you find you are at this stage, or would like some Google Business Profile advice, give us a call on 01603 859007 or an email via hello@nuimage.co.uk and a member of our friendly team will be in touch. Image provided by nuimage, credit – Unsplash

Hi and welcome to our weekly newsletter, which aims to share our knowledge at Bigfork in creating successful websites. If you haven’t already subscribed to the Web Insights newsletter then please click the ‘Join the Conversation’ button at the end. How to create a successful landing page. A great landing page can make the difference between a potential customer converting to a lead or bouncing away. If you want to know how to create an effective, easy-to-navigate page that takes users where they need to go, you’re in the right place. We’ll cover the basics of what makes up a solid landing page, that ensures your content gets seen—and understood—by the people who land there. What is a landing page? A landing page is a single web page that is optimised to convert visitors into leads and customers. These might be pages that people find in search engines, or you might direct them from a paid ad or offline promotion. There are two main types of landing page: Natural landing pages Your website may have “natural” landing pages such as product pages on an ecommerce website, or “services” pages on a professional service website. Every website has at least one natural landing page, which is the home page. You should treat these natural landing pages as such and make sure you follow the tips below when creating them. Curated landing pages Curated landing pages are designed specifically as landing pages that are extra to your core website content. A curated page might be based on something very specific that you’re promoting through Google Ads, or a promotion with a unique design that forms part of a social campaign. The main difference is that natural pages are already in your website to solve an existing need, you just need to identify and optimise them. Curated pages are for a need you’ve identified but need to be created especially for that purpose. Think about what you want your landing page to do The first step in creating a successful landing page is to define its purpose. What are you trying to achieve with it? What is the goal of this page, and how does it fit into the overall strategy of your website?

• Are you trying to direct someone to another page on your website
• Do you want to capture their email address to send newsletters,
• Maybe you want them to buy a product online.

Answering these questions will help you determine what content should be included on your landing page, as well as how best to convey that information Create great content Writing great content is one of the most important parts of a landing page—without it, you won’t have a compelling reason for your visitors to act. Focus on benefits, not features. A benefit is what your product or service does for the customer; a feature is how it works. When you write about benefits, people will be more likely to notice that you understand their problems and have solutions.

Remember: People don’t buy drills, they buy holes.

Use persuasive words and phrases in your headlines and body copy, make sure you “sell”, and don’t just “tell”. And remember content goes beyond words – images and video are content too. These should be high quality and relevant to make your landing page impactful. Use a powerful call to action Your call-to-action (CTA) is the button or link that your visitors click to continue their journey. It’s a critical part of a landing page, so make sure you choose wisely. CTAs need to be clear and unambiguous They should be written so that the user knows exactly what action they need to take on your site. If you want them to sign up for your email newsletter, say it – “Sign up for our email newsletter”. Use a button that stands out on your page design Visual tricks such as 3D borders, icons and contrasting colours will help. If it doesn’t stand out enough, users can easily miss it. Make sure it’s easy to find The worst thing that can happen with CTAs is having them hidden away or obscured by clutter. That’s why it’s important that CTAs are placed in locations where users will naturally look. Add trust indicators to your landing page Quite often a landing page is the first point of contact a potential customer will have with your business and one of the best ways to build trust quickly is through the use of trust indicators. A trust indicator can be a logo, an endorsement, or simply testimonials from customers that have been impressed by your product or service. Ensure the design and look is consistent with your branding It’s important that your landing page is consistent with the rest of your website and brand, otherwise it can feel forced. Keep landing pages relevant to what you are promoting. The goal is for people to focus on what you’re saying and not get distracted by lots of things going on in the background. Test your landing pages to maximise conversions After you’ve created your landing page, it’s important to test and keep testing. You should continually monitor your landing pages for any conversions problems or issues that need to be addressed, including:

• People leaving the page too quickly.
• Visitors not clicking on the calls to action.
• Users leaving the site without taking any action (like downloading a document or watching a video).

You can use Google Analytics, heat maps and A/B testing to measure how people interact with your website’s landing pages, so you can adjust accordingly. If your website has natural landing pages, all the above still applies. You can always improve product descriptions, add more / better images, a clearer “Buy now” button. It is safe to say that landing pages are one of the best ways to increase your conversion rates and make your website more successful. They allow you to customise your message for a specific audience, while also providing them with a streamlined process where they can complete any type of action without having to navigate away from the page. Getting started If you’re unsure where to start with landing pages, try your home page first. Home pages can always benefit from being optimised, for most websites you can do this by making it clear:

• Who you are
• What you offer
• What the customer should do next

Make sure you add tracking to your calls to action so you can see if they’re working. For other landing pages, look at your site and see if you have natural landing pages. Or review your website objectives to see if you should be creating curated landing pages to help your website achieve these. Or if you’re stuck, feel free to ask us about landing pages or anything else, we’ll be happy to help Mark Ellaway, Bigfork PS – You can find more great successful website insights on the Bigfork website Images provided by Bigfork

It has not been an easy road for independent agencies over the past 20 years, with uncertainties such as a recession and the more recent Covid-19 pandemic. Online presence has become the new normal and many businesses have had to transition the way they do business over the past two decades. Coming out stronger than ever is Naked Marketing, proudly celebrating their 20th anniversary this July 2022. With a purpose of helping organisations be the very best they can be by exposing their greatness through on and offline, branding, design, and marketing, Naked, a creative marketing agency, has transitioned with the developments in technology to incorporate the rise of social media and digital platforms. A key value of Naked’s is ‘Once naked, stay naked’; more than 50% of their clients have been with them for over five years and 20% have been naked for nearly the full duration. Here, Managing Director David Lloyd shares his 20 lessons over 20 years, for other aspiring marketing and creative design agencies and professionals to reach their Naked potential.

1. Always ask why

This question will help you to uncover the answers you really need. If you want to do a good job, you need to understand a company’s mission to help them on their path to meet it.

1. Set clear goals

Without these, you will have no clear direction of your marketing

1. Brochures can’t sell themselves

There is no point printing brochures to not use them left in a box.

1. Nothing will ever be 100% perfect

Chasing perfection will stifle your opportunity for growth

1. Don’t be afraid to fail

Not everything in marketing will work. The key is to learn from the mistakes, and adapt for next time. And be upfront about your mistakes – if we make a mistake, we put our hands up! Being upfront about our mistakes will help us learn in the future and our clients know we will put in the time to make it right.

1. What turns your customers on

Understand what excites your customers and turns them on?

1. Are you always having to explain yourself?

Make sure it’s obvious what you actually do

1. Stay positive

Don’t use your energy to worry, use it to grow, create and basically be amazing

1. Help people shine

Enable people or organisations to be the best that they can be

1. What’s the big idea?

Creativity will help your brand and ideas shine. The less complicated the better. In the right hands design brings together creativity and craft using your words and images, to get the attention of your audience.

1. Find the f*****g emotion

As human beings we buy from emotion, if your marketing doesn’t do this, you’ll struggle to sell. Tell a story. A story that can linger for longer in the mind than maybe the product it was initially intending to promote.

1. Google analytics should be one of your best friends

As a marketeer, it’s your tool to prove success and to provide ongoing learning.

1. Your brand is what they say about you…

when you are not in the room. Create campaigns which reinforce a company’s culture.

1. If your business says it puts customers first…

…don’t have director car parking spaces closest to the entrance

1. Talking b*ll*cks

When communicating to your audience be clear and concise, don’t baffle your audience with jargon

1. Don’t do too much

Small incremental improvements make a very big difference

1. It’s okay to say no

Committing to too much will negatively impact you

1. Don’t burnout

Time away from the desk is as important as time at it, so many great ideas happen when you’re not chained to your desk, your mind works better and absorbs more thoughts, it’s clinically proven

1. Listen, learn, read, chat

At Naked we have incorporated new digital platforms into our offering over the past 20 years, tailoring as we go. Never stop learning, it helps you grow as a human.

1. A shoulder to lean on

Find a great coach or mentor who helps and challenges you. Also hire the right people. Here at Naked we have developed a small but senior team of honest, unfussy and down to earth people who, most importantly, care! Photo credit: Naked Marketing

Greater Anglia is advising people to avoid travelling on its trains on Thursday 18 and Saturday 20 August when very few services will be running due to rail strikes. People travelling to major events including West Ham’s Europa Conference League qualifying match against Viborg on Thursday, Coldplay at Wembley Stadium and the All Points East festival at Victoria Park on Saturday, plus football fixtures on Saturday including Tottenham Hotspur v Wolves are advised to make other travel arrangements. The RMT union has called a national rail strike for Thursday and Saturday, which includes Network Rail signalling and maintenance staff as well as Greater Anglia station teams, conductors, train cleaners and catering staff. Greater Anglia, including Stansted Express, will run a heavily reduced service with first trains from 7.30am and all last trains finishing their journeys between 6-6.30pm. There will be no services on any regional and branch lines, apart from the Cambridge to Stansted Airport service which will run on Saturday 20 August, but not on Thursday 18 August. A heavily reduced service will run on lines into London Liverpool Street from Norwich, Colchester, and Southend Victoria, and on the Stansted Express service between London and Stansted Airport. A reduced service between Cambridge and London Liverpool Street will run on Thursday 18 August, but not on Saturday 20 August. There will be no rail replacement bus service operating instead of any of the trains which are not running because of the strikes. In addition, there are engineering works on Saturday and Sunday which will further affect Stansted Express services. First train times will be later than usual on Friday 19 and Sunday 21 August, as a knock-on effect of the 24-hour strikes. Passengers should check before they travel. On Sunday 21 August there will be no direct trains between Cambridge and Liverpool Street and on the Stansted Express service due to engineering works. Jamie Burles, Greater Anglia managing director said: “We’re very sorry that once again we must advise people to avoid travelling on our trains, but we can only operate a very limited service – with a later start time and last trains running much earlier than normal. “We continue to work hard as an industry to end these disputes as soon as we can, so that people can once again enjoy reliable and punctual rail services without disruption.” Anyone who has pre-booked tickets to travel on 18 or 20 August can change them, use them to travel on either the day before or up to and include Tuesday 23 August, or apply for a refund by going back to their original retailer. Passenger assistance will be available at all stations which are staffed. Greater Anglia will provide alternative transport for people needing passenger assistance from stations which are unstaffed but still served by trains. There will be no alternative transport from stations where no trains are running on strike days. Travellers needing passenger assistance are strongly advised to contact Greater Anglia’s passenger assist service if travel is absolutely necessary on strike days. Timetables for Thursday’s strike are now available on the Greater Anglia website. Timetables for Saturday will be published later in the week. No more strike dates have been announced, although there is a strike affecting London Underground on Friday 19 August. Unions have to give two weeks’ notice of any industrial action. More information about the strikes is available from greateranglia.co.uk/strikes. Services on Thursday 18 August

• Intercity service between Norwich and London Liverpool Street: one train an hour, with first and last trains from Norwich at 08.00 and 16.00, and from Liverpool Street at 08.30 and 16.30
• Stopping service between Colchester and London Liverpool Street:  one train an hour, with first and last trains from Colchester at 07.30 and 16.25, and from Liverpool Street at 08.00 and 17.00 stopping service, 17.25 stopping at Chelmsford and Colchester
• Service between Southend Victoria and London Liverpool Street:  two trains an hour, with first and last trains from Southend Victoria at 07.30 and 17.13, and from Liverpool Street at 07.47 and 17.30
• Service between Cambridge and London Liverpool Street: one train an hour, with first and last trains from Cambridge at 08.20 and 16.19, and from Liverpool Street at 08.25 and 16.25.
• Stansted Express service between London and Stansted Airport: two trains an hour, with first and last trains from Stansted Airport at 07.42 and 17.12, and from Liverpool Street at 08.10 and 17.40

Services on Saturday 20 August

• Intercity service between Norwich and London Liverpool Street: one train an hour, with first and last trains from Norwich at 08.00 and 16.00, and from Liverpool Street at 08.30 and 16.30
• Stopping service between Colchester and London Liverpool Street: one train an hour, with first and last trains from Colchester at 07.30 and 16.25, and from Liverpool Street at 08.00 and 17.25
• Service between Southend Victoria and London Liverpool Street: two trains an hour, with first and last trains from Southend Victoria at 07.30 and 17.13, and from Liverpool Street at 07.47 and 17.30
• No direct Stansted Express service – airport travellers are advised to make alternative arrangements. Very limited rail replacement bus service between Waltham Cross and Harlow Mill (not calling at Harlow Town), connecting with trains which are operating with two trains per hour with first and last trains from Liverpool Street at  07.30 and 16.28 and from Stansted Airport at 07.47 and 16.17. Buses are expected to be very busy with long queues all day.
• Cambridge to Stansted Airport service, one train an hour with first and last trains from Cambridge at 07.41 and 17.41 and from Stansted Airport at 07.39 and 17.39.

Photo Credit: Greater Anglia

As the plastic industry, along with all industries, focusses on improvements to sustainability it is worth considering the fact that a solution to improving sustainability of plastic products has been available for many years, yet remains underutilised. Imagine a treatment that provides abrasion resistances to protect the surface of plastic products from scuffs and scratches caused by general wear and tear, a treatment that provides exceptional chemical resistance to plastic surfaces that otherwise could be easily damaged by solvents and chemicals they are exposed to during use. Furthermore, a treatment that can offer additional surface properties such as UV resistance, anti-fog, anti-static, anti-glare to name a few. Such surface treatments significantly extend the life span of plastic products, ensuring they are fit for purpose, made to last and potentially eliminates the need for replacement during the products life span. All of these properties which extend the useful life of plastic products can be granted to the surface with the application of UV Hard Coatings. Hard coatings are applied to: • Flat sheet materials, used for construction, glazing and canopies. • Injection moulded parts used for automotive lighting and interior components. Advances in plastic production and ensuring materials are recycled in recent years, have and will continue to make a difference, but less focus has been placed on ensuring materials last longer and therefore need to be replaced/recycled less often. The automotive industry has incorporated hard coatings on front head lamps for many years, understanding that Polycarbonate injection moulded lenses offer excellent optical clarity together with impact resistance, because at the front of the vehicle, headlamps are exposed to significant wear and tear. It is not necessary to replace these head lamps even after many years as they have been hard coated to ensure they are fit for purpose. The use of hard coatings in many other applications would reduce the need for replacement/recycling, ultimately reducing the carbon footprint and improving the sustainability of said product. Once a hard coated plastic product comes to the end of its useful life, it can be recycled just the same as the uncoated product would have. The Requirement As more industries start to utilise hard coatings on their products, they understand the benefits offered, improving sustainability but also ultimately reducing costs associated with replacements. One such company is AirClad [x] who state that “If it cannot be reduced, reused, repaired, rebuilt, refurbished, refinished, resold, recycled, or composted, then it should be restricted, re-designed, or removed from production.” The Solution AirClad[x] approached Peerless Plastics & Coatings in 2020 looking for a more durable, longer lasting Polycarbonate sheet solution for their range of sustainable architectural systems for premium outdoor events. “We found that whilst Polycarbonate is a great product for our glazing due to its impact resistance it scratches easily, meaning that we often had to replace panels following events. We researched various solutions and found that Peerless offer a cost-effective alternative to expensive branded hard coated sheets. Having switched from uncoated to hard coated Polycarbonate we have reduced our material usage by 42% making our product more sustainable and reducing our overall spend on material. Additionally, we are able to offer our customers a superior product as a result. Peerless have also been able to offer a range of unique material solutions such as Pink Polycarbonate and Grey Tinted hard coat Polycarbonate to give our customers the bespoke finish they required.” – Simon Coulter, Director of Communications, AirClad[x]. Hard coatings are one of an array of solutions to further improve the sustainability of plastics in industry. It’s an old fashioned principle, but fit for purpose and built to last has and always will be, the best option when looking to reduce usage! Peerless-CASE STUDY – SUSTAINABILITY – AIRCLAD[x] – A4 Image provided by Peerless Coatings

Greater Anglia is using a new hi-tech software tool which helps get trains fixed quickly if faults occur during journeys to reduce delays to customers. The software – a decision support tool – is used by technicians in the company’s control centre in Romford if a driver rings in to say there is a fault on their train and describes the problem. The technicians use the intuitive software to click through to a set of questions relating to the symptoms of the problem that is being described to them. The software then identifies, in an easy step-by-step way, the actions to get the train on the move again. A countdown timer within the software automatically starts running – counting down from ten minutes to zero, giving a clear indication of when further action needs to begin, such as isolating systems to get the train on the move again. The software, developed by IQM Software, receives information from both Greater Anglia and the Stadler team who look after the company’s Intercity, Stansted Express and regional bi-mode trains, about any new issues or faults which develop to get services on the move even quicker in the future. Martin Beable, Greater Anglia’s engineering director, said: “This software has been key in ensuring that if issues do occur on our trains, the myriad key actions and steps that need to be taken can be completed as quickly as possible to try and get the train on the move. “We’ve worked with our Stadler colleagues in ensuring all the relevant information is captured after each incident and that is put into the decision support tool, so it’s as effective and useful as possible. Soon we’ll be introducing it for our Alstom-built commuter fleet of new trains too. “We are proud that our team have been able to use this tool to help reduce our delays per technical incident to levels that most train operators only aspire to achieve.” “Our new trains are improving our punctuality and reliability. They travel between 120,000 to 200,000 miles a year and like any machine with moving parts they do sometimes develop faults, but this software is helping us to keep delays to customers to a minimum.” Thibaut Decré, IQM Software’s head of strategy, said: “It has been great to work with Greater Anglia in their effort to double down on improving essential software to their operation, including our system: TEAM. “Working with a team with such a clear vision and quick decision making allows us to quickly achieve great results, and we’re looking forward to remaining a strategic partner for Greater Anglia’s digital strategy.” Greater Anglia is in the final stages of replacing its old trains with brand new state-of-the-art trains. There are new Stadler-built Stansted Express, Intercity and regional trains along with 75 Alstom-built commuter trains already in operation on all of its routes. All of the company’s old trains will be removed from service by summer 2023.   Photo: A Greater Anglia train. Credit: Greater Anglia