News From TWB

A new face for an old favourite

TWB Ltd is proud to announce the appointment of a new Branch Manager.

Richard Thompson takes the reigns from April 1st and brings with him many years experience in the glazing industry.  Having personally experienced every aspect of the business from fabricating to installation, sales, marketing and finance, Richard is the ideal choice to head the team at TWB.

Today TWB is part of Camel Group and Camel Managing Director Steve Oakes told us; “I would like to welcome Richard to his new role as Branch Manager and look forward to the positive contributions he will make to our business in the coming years.  This is a fantastic opportunity for both TWB and Camel.   Richard’s appointment will enable TWB to move forward with confidence and his dynamic approach will be a great asset to everyone in the team”.

When asked for his response Richard told us; “TWB are different from your average double-glazing firm.  They are known throughout the region for their technical skills and customer service and I’m proud to be a part of that.  This is an exciting time to be asked to lead the team.  Our strengths are attention to detail, quality of workmanship and customer satisfaction.  That’s not going to change”.

To celebrate Richard’s appointment as Branch Manager TWB have announced plans to build a new showroom in Holsworthy for their expanding range of uPVC and aluminium products.  When complete this showroom, and a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility, will be opened to the public in a special ceremony - watch this space!

(01.04.08)

TWB = Top Environmental Performer

Thursday, March 13th saw Business Link's environemental consultant visiting TWB for a review of our green performance and we are very proud to announce his verdict;  TWB is among the top 5% of businesses, nationally, for environmental performance and awareness.  This performance is something we don't take for granted and we will continue to strive towards ever-greener performance.  After all, our business is all about saving the planet - good windows and doors save energy in the home, reduce costs for the home-owner and thus lessen the creation of greenhouse gasses over their lifetime.  And the better the windows, the better the environmental benefits, so TWB windows really do make a green difference.

TWB ENVIRONMENTAL POLICY

TWB Ltd strives to ensure that every aspect of its activities is conducted in accordance with sound environmental practices.  We achieve this by:

1. Minimising our consumption of natural resources and energy.
2. Reducing the creation of waste by recycling waste materials wherever practical.
3. Ensuring all non-recyclable waste is disposed of in a safely and responsibly.
4. Complying with environmental legislation.
5. Fostering among staff, suppliers and customers an understanding of the environmental issues that affect our business.

We recognise our responsibility towards the environment and this statement
is a commitment to minimising the environmental impact of our operations.

Each year TWB recycles;

- 60 tonnes of glass, 1.5 tonnes of lead, 1 tonne of aluminium, 4 tonnes of steel
and over 20 tonnes of wood.
- All our cardboard and plastic packaging waste, plus nearly 4,000 sheets of office paper waste, postage stamps, inkjet cartridges, mobile phones, plastic bottles and old I.T. equipment.

- Virgin (un-used) off-cuts of uPVC have been recycled for several years by our suppliers and we now recycle old (scrap) uPVC frames whenever we replace them.

- Our factory uses an inteligent lighting system to save energy and rainwater harvesting is used to flush the factory loo.

Example:

We recycle 2 cubic metres (that's 5 tonnes) of glass per month.  The energy saved by recycling this glass is the equivalent of 8,100 litres of crude oil or 994,320 hours of 'human work effort' (human work effort is a recognized figure of 0.1HP or 0.074KWH).

This is equivalent to over 113 years of work effort for one man, in energy saved every year!

(13.03.08)

It's good to talk

The following letter has been received by TWB, thanking our staff for their donations to the North Devon Hospice, Barnstaple.  This year TWB staff donated money to the Hospice rather than spending it on Christmas cards for colleagues and instead delivered their season's greetings verbally.

Bridget Knowles, from North Devon Hospice said;

"Every day we help 80 local people cope with the impact of life threatening illness completely free of charge.  We can only fundraise in the North Devon locality, rather than across the South West region and all our patients are based locally in North Devon.  Our running costs are now £2.8 million a year.   This is why we depend on the wonderful and continued support of organisations such as yourself to fund our essential work.  Once again, many many thanks, your support is truly appreciated."

(11.02.08)

Saving the world by shopping!

When the North Devon Journal published its article entitled “Tell us how you are cutting down on plastic bags” TWB Ltd stepped up to the mark with its offer to give away 1,000 eco-friendly cotton carrier bags to Christmas and new year shoppers.

Saturday January 19th saw the second of the free bag events, in the main square in Okehampton, and 500 eco-shopping-bags found new homes in just two hours (that’s one every 15 seconds).

When we gave out bags in Launceston before Christmas we were amazed by the response.  Following our pre-event publicity people actually sought us out, and when one lady missed her TWB bag she called the office in Holsworthy asking if one could be posted to her because she felt so strongly about the amount of plastic waste in her area.  We were only too happy to oblige.

If anything, the response in Okehampton has been even better.  We have been really impressed by the depth of people’s feelings about this issue.  We even had staff from the Waitrose supermarket coming out to make sure they got their own eco-bag from us.

(21.01.08)

The faces that fit

TWB window fitters have achieved yet another first in the industry.  As of today every single window fitter working for TWB is qualified to NVQ level 2 by FENSA, the fenestration industry assessment standard.  We know of no other window company in the south-west which can make the same claim (most have no qualified fitters at all) so hearty congratulations for all their hard work to (pictured right);

       Paul Evans                 Carl Timmins                 Adam Self

   Mark Stevenson               Andy Facey                 Ashley Cole

                                         Roger Mills

It says a lot about the pride these men take in their work that they all wanted to be put through the training and assessment process, thanks guys.

(14.01.08)

A window of opportunity

Camel Group of Wadebridge, have announced their acquisition of TWB Ltd.  Welcomed by management, staff and customers, the coming-together of these widely respected businesses brings real benefits for employees and customers of both companies.

TWB Sales Manager Richard Thompson told us “Becoming part of Camel Group is a great opportunity.  Combining production capacities, resources and customer bases will bring benefits in both domestic and commercial sectors.  The team at Camel Group have a wealth of knowledge and experience to ensure we fully realise the opportunities ahead and benefit from the combination of heritage, capability and expertise”.

Camel Group Director Steve Oakes, in welcoming TWB, said “This is a fantastic opportunity for both organisations to grow and develop.  We are confident that this will enable us to capitalise on our mutual strengths and open up new possibilities.  Our aim, as always, is to bring the best product range to our customers at the best price and to make dealing with Camel Group a positive experience for everyone”.  The acquisition of TWB gives Camel Group even greater purchasing power and the ability to drive down costs to customers whilst maintaining product quality and service.  For retail or commercial glazing across the region there really is only one choice - a Camel Group company!

As specialist glaziers and glass suppliers, Camel Group experts are known throughout the region for their technical competence and skill.  From glazing single windows to supplying and fitting glass for housing developments and large commercial premises or installing specialist glass where location, positioning, security or climate are paramount, every job gets the same attention to detail and quality of workmanship.  Camel Group also offer bespoke joinery services.  From individual period windows to doors, staircases, conservatories and kitchens, shop fronts and fittings.

(02.01.08)

Help us save the world!

At TWB we believe the best use for plastic is to improve your home and protect it from the elements for many years (before finally being recycled), not litter our streets or clog landfill sites.  When we first heard that 13 billion plastic carriers are thrown away every year in the UK (over 200 for every man, woman and child) we knew we had to do something.  We decided to help people reduce waste in their weekly shopping by handing out thousands of free re-useable cotton shopping bags.

TWB is no stranger to the recycling culture but free shopping bags are a departure for us.  We believe it’s the right thing to do.  We even got permission from the company MD to print our logo in green instead of the usual red, just this once, that’s how important it is to us.

TWB staff will be giving away re-usable 100% cotton shopping bags in the centre of Okehampton on Saturday, January 19th 2008.

TWB is deeply committed to preserving the environment we live in. We recycle all our card and plastic packaging waste, 60 tonnes of glass, 1.5 tonnes of lead, 1 tonne of aluminium, 4 tonnes of steel and over 20 tonnes of wood per year. We can now even recycle old (scrap) uPVC frames whenever we replace them (we even flush our factory loo with rainwater).

(02.01.08)

Skills Development Programme bears fruit

Congratulations to TWB builder 'TJ' who has been awarded the CITB / City & Guilds Level 2 Certificate in Trowel Occupations.

These Construction Industry Training Board qualifications focus on practical skills and knowledge. Developed and approved by people who work in the building industry, they develop new skills and knowledge and, through assessment of work-based competence, ensure that customers get industry best-practice at all levels of a job.

TJ’s qualification is just the first result from the Skills Development Programme at TWB.  Watch this space for further staff development stories.

(07.12.07)

A Lion in our midst (II)

As we told you last month, Holsworthy Lions Club, in conjunction with other S.W. Lions Clubs and Rowlands Fun Fairs, organized a Fun Day when disabled and handicapped children from all over the South West were given a day to remember at Rowlands Fun-Fair following the annual Holsworthy Carnival.  Holsworthy Lions President and Senior TWB Fabricator, Gary Smith reports that the event went off without a hitch and 500 children and their carers had a fantastic day at the fair (munching their way through 1,200 hot-dogs and burgers in the process).

Congratulations again to Gary and the Holsworthy Lions Club for their generous charitable work in our community.

(26.11.07)

Children in Need Winners

Congratulations to two lucky ladies who both won our "Win Dave for a day" prize draw.  The first winner, Mrs Pearce of Bude, was drawn from the hat at mid-day on Friday 16th at the offices of TWB.  Mrs Pearce graciously asked if the prize could be re-drawn as she didn't have any need of the day's work so on Monday 19th, at mid-day, the draw was held again and this time it was Mrs Jenkins of Barnstaple whose name was chosen by TWB administrator Sue Lawrence.

Our heartfelt thanks also go out to all the generous people, you know who you are - all 150 of you, who bought tickets for the prize draw.  TWB will donate every penny that has been raised to the Children in Need appeal and has also managed to collect eight un-needed mobile phones from staff members which will go to the appeal through Fonebak’s generous ‘£5.00 per recycled mobile’ offer.

(19.11.07)

You don't have to be clever to work here but it helps

It's an exclusive club but TWB has two staff members in it!  For some years now Pirate FM's breakfast presenter Bob McReady has been setting the good folk of the region some early morning mental gymnastics.  Never one to pass up the opportunity to excercise his little grey cells Marketing man David Stephens called in with an answer to a question about (appropriately enough) the invention of new words and found himself live on air from his bedroom.  Finance Manager Richard Rossiter-Stead has now joined him by answering a brainteaser about (appropriately enough) combination locks.  Both have now recieved their "I won Bob's Brainteaser" mugs and Richard even managed to get an on-air plug for TWB, well done that man!

(12.11.07)

Open Sesame!

Saturday, November 10th, saw the first of TWB's new Home Improvement Open Mornings. The first of these 'occasional' events was a free advice session for anyone planning or thinking about conservatory builds.  Strange as it may seem, the middle of the winter is the ideal time to plan a conservatory or sun-room build.  After all, why spend half your summer planning and building when you can spend the whole year enjoying the benefits of extra space and light in your home.

The event may be over but you can still get expert advice from TWB's conservatory specialist by calling the showroom and asking for Shaun, or by dropping in for a coffee and a chat, anytime.

(12.11.07)

Installer of the Year - again

TWB has been awarded Quantal’s prestigious ‘Regional Installer of the Year’ in the South-West for an amazing fourth year running!  TWB has been using the Quantal conservatory roof system for five years and being recognised as the premier installer in the south-west only stregthens our excellent reputation for quality products and service.

Pictured right are Quantal Sales Manager Jackie Sutton presenting the award certificate to TWB conservatory specialist Shaun Heard and Marketing Manager David Stephens.

(05.11.07)

Win a big man

The BBC's annual Children in Need appeal takes place on Friday, November 16th, and TWB is offering a unique prize to one lucky person.  TWB employee David Stephens is pledging himself, for a day, to the first ticket pulled from the hat on Friday November 16th.  David is no stranger to hard work so the winner of the prize will be able to put him to any use they can imagine (as long as it’s legal and decent!).  David will be selling £1.00 tickets for himself at Holsworthy Pannier Market on Wednesdays, between 10.00am and mid-day until the draw on the 16th.  All money collected will be donated to the Children in Need appeal 2007.

(22.10.07)

A Lion in our midst

Senior TWB Fabricator, and Health & Safety Officer, Gary Smith is Holsworthy Lions President this year.  Widely known for his community spirit, Gary doesn’t let a full time job and busy family life stop him from doing lots of charitable work through the Club.  In November the Holsworthy Lions Club, in conjunction with other S.W. Lions Clubs and Rowlands Fun Fairs, are organizing a Fun Day when disabled and handicapped children from all over the South West are given a day to remember at Rowlands Fun-Fair following the annual Holsworthy Carnival.  Congratulations Gary and well done to the Holsworthy Lions Club, who can be contacted for further information.

(15.10.07)