Archive for the ‘Business Link’ Category

Totalpost plc Managing Director David Hymers received his MBE at Buckingham Palace from Her Majesty the Queen 8th December 2010

Thursday, December 9th, 2010

8th December 2010 at the Buckingham Palace

Congratulations from Tim & Kirsty Craig at Veridata

David Hymers has been awarded an MBE for “services to Industry and International Trade” in the 2010 Queen’s Birthday Honours List.  David is Chairman & Managing Director of Totalpost Services Plc, a well respected privately owned independent market leader specialising in mailroom solutions to Companies in over 18 countries around the world.  The award recognises David’s hard work and commitment in the field of business, & for working with Business Link in the North and also with the management & Vice Chairmanship of an Export Club for Cumbria via UK Trade & Investment.

A surprised, delighted and humbled David said “Whilst I have received the award, I feel it is a testimony to all the employees at Totalpost as I know that without such a great team, we would not be doing so well, so each and every one of the team – in UK/Europe and USA – deserves a share in this recognition and I said so in my acceptance call to Her Majesties representative.”

A spokesperson for Totalpost said “We are delighted for David; the award of MBE is extremely well deserved. David has made a significant contribution to Business and to International Trade and the wider community and he has developed Totalpost Services Plc to ensure it is a substantial force in the mailroom market.”

People whose names are published in The Queen’s Birthday Honours and New Year Honours lists usually receive their award from The Queen at an Investiture in Buckingham Palace. There are usually 20 Investitures held in the Ballroom at the Palace each year. Up to 150 recipients attend each ceremony, and each recipient can nominate three friends or relations to sit in the audience to witness the occasion. The Queen enters the room attended by two Gurkha Orderly Officers, a tradition begun by Queen Victoria in 1876. Also on duty are members of The Queen’s Body Guard of the Yeomen of the Guard, which was created by Henry VII in 1485.

Veridata returned & ‘gone away’ mail handling … a Totalpost Services plc company

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, 'gone aways', Business Link, Carbon Reduction Commitment scheme, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, PAS2020, Postal returns, Queen's Birthday Honours, Royal Mail, Sustainable Mail, TNT Post, Totalpost PLC | No Comments »

Home workers is this the way forward?

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

Mobile computing, phones, Internet access, text messaging, instant messaging and email

Collaboration software products such as Microsoft SharePoint and Exchange/Outlook
Home office programs
By deploying the types of technology-enabled solutions discussed above, businesses and governments are able to implement a broad range of scheduling and work location options for employees. Popular programs that take people off the roads and reduce commuting and related auto maintenance costs include:

Telecommuting from home one or more days per week

Full-time home-based employees who share temporary offices at the corporate site when required for meetings, eliminating the need for a permanently assigned corporate workspace

Working from remote or decentralized office facilities that are closer to the employees’ homes to reduce commute times and distances
The Canadian Teleworker Association (CTA) estimates that organizations can save, on average, one office per three teleworkers, at an average real estate cost of $2,000 per teleworker per year. As discussed in the power management cost reduction examples above, these numbers only become compelling when viewed in the context of their cumulative effect. From the larger perspective, real estate savings can rapidly add up. Sun Microsystems, for example, has recently estimated that their telecommuting programs have reduced their requirement for office space by about 6,000 office seats. Based on the CTA numbers, this would represent a real estate expense offset of $12 million annually.
By aggressively pursuing telecommuting, home office and other employee-focused programs, Sun estimates an overall cost reduction of approximately $63 million annually. Sun also reports through their website that employees are saving an average of 108 hours of commuting time per person annually and that these programs have cut employee gas and car repair costs significantly.
www.cgi.com  Emerging Trends in Green IT

Posted in Banking, Business Link, Carbon Footprint, Chester, Environmental responsibility, Home workers, IT Costs, Moral questions | No Comments »

Greener IT and Desk Top PCs

Tuesday, April 20th, 2010

A business with a network of 20,000 desktop systems running 24 x 7 drawing 200 watts will consume about 35 million kWh of electricity annually. Using the average U.S. cost of electricity at $.0855/kWh, this would cost this business approximately $3 million in utility charges annually.

Today we know that, depending on local utility rates, a computer and monitor left running 24 x 7 x 365 drawing 60 watts will consume about $50/year in electricity, while a higher-end 300 watt device will cost about $225/year (based on an average U.S. utility rate of $.0855/kWh).

On a base of 20,000 workstations, implementing power management policies and standards would represent an annual savings of between $900,000 on the lower-end 60 watt devices and up to $2.4 million on a base of higher-end devices annually.

Does anyone know, given our electricity tarrifs  how all this translates into UK pounds?

Posted in Business Link, Environmental responsibility, IT Costs | No Comments »

Good by March hello ‘Bacon Buttys’

Wednesday, March 31st, 2010

I can hear just fine!’
Three retirees, each with a hearing loss, were playing golf one fine March day. One remarked to the other, ‘Windy, isn’t it?’ ‘No,’ the second man replied, ‘it’s Thursday.’ And the third man chimed in, ‘So am I. Let’s have a beer.’
Don’t forget Chester Business Club & Chester Rotary Charity Walk
Sunday morning 25th April registration at the Chester Groves Bandstand from 10am
Walk with friends and colleagues to help support the little charities in and around Chester who do not get funding. Kids dogs and your best friends all welcome

Chocolate top – Stop – Fruit Juice stop – Bacon Butty stop – Gin Stop*
*Recommended at the end of walk not the beginning.
Venue for lunch, for those that want it, will be at The Hickory Smoke House, The Groves Chester. Contact: Duncan Falconer (who is providing Bacon Buttys)

Posted in Business Link, Charity Walk, Chester, Chester Charity Walk, Liverpool, Local information, Serendipity | No Comments »

Because ‘gone away’ mail matters……

Thursday, March 4th, 2010

With the changes in the world of direct mail increasing attention is being focussed on returned and Gone Away mail and its impact on the environment. For companies that send out large quantities of mail there is a ‘producer responsibility’ for the ‘end of life’ solution for their undelivered and returned mail.

Returned, unwanted and undelivered mail produces vast amounts of waste paper and 80% of the carbon footprint for direct mail pieces lies in the ‘end of life’ solution.

PAS2020, Royal Mail’s Sustainable Mail and the EU Directives on Landfill all require that the waste paper generated by returned mail is disposed of correctly. From 2015 the will be a complete embargo on dumping this kind of waste into landfill.

As a consequence the service that Veridata offers has never been more relevant. Setting the standards in returned mail management since 1996, we have developed bespoke solutions for our clients from international banks through to catalogue companies.

We provide a proven, specialist, automated and quick turn around service for processing Returned and Undelivered Mail from anywhere in the UK.

Our centralised service can helps achieve three key business goals…the essential ‘E’s

  • Efficiency… waste reduction minimises cost
  • Effectiveness…greater focus increases campaign performance
  • Environmental friendliness… social responsibility obligations

Posted in 'Gone away' mail, Business Link, Carbon Footprint, Catalogues, DMA, Direct Mail, Environmental responsibility, PAS2020, Recycling paper, Sustainable Mail | No Comments »

Banks and the EFG

Wednesday, March 3rd, 2010

I read this somewhere but cannot recall where so can not attribute but it makes sense to me

Just a quick comment on funding for all. Forget High St banks forget the EFG, what wasn’t made public knowledge is that the Government increased the “pot” but reduced the overall total threshold of funds that banks could lend under scheme. So if a banks overall lending under the scheme exceeds I think it’s 10% and they take a hit from one of the participants in the scheme they are then liable for the debt and the government can opt out.
Understandably many banks are highly suspicious of the scheme and not happy to lend via it.

Posted in Business Link, Finance for SMEs | No Comments »

Business Link & EFG

Tuesday, March 2nd, 2010

Real Help for real Businesses now a flyer from Business Link states:

‘The Government has helped hundreds of thousands of businesses get through the recession and get ready for recovery.’

‘Even businesses unable to get commercial credit have been helped, with more than £700m of new bank loans supported by the Government’s Enterprise Guarantee by December 2009.’

REALLY?

I’d like to meet one

Posted in Business Link, Finance for SMEs, Government and SMEs | No Comments »