Lignacite Ltd (Brandon) Keeping FORS

For over 70 years Lignacite have been supplying the housing and construction market with a sustainable block range containing high levels of recycled material, producing dense, medium, lightweight blocks.

Architects and designers continue to create beautiful living spaces pushing the boundaries of the more traditional bricks and mortar. Lignacite’s Architectural Facing Masonry (AFM) offers an extensive range containing in excess of 100 permutations of size, colour and texture providing a comprehensive selection of value engineering solutions to the modern designer. These along with the Roman Brick have been used to create many stunning effects, providing cost effective alternatives to the design and build programme.

Our wide range of Cast Stone masonry can be incorporated, creating interesting and decorative features to windows and door surrounds. Matching quoins and cills are available as standard or bespoke items.

AFM has been used by Berkeley Homes in Woolwich Arsenal where our polished facing masonry features in the communal areas. The Royal Wharf in London also features Lignacite’s Snowstorm weathered blocks. These were used as the alternative to stone cladding originally specified in the build. This represented an excellent replacement alongside considerable savings as well as providing a sustainable alternative to stone.  Joanne Robinson – Head of Customer Services and Logistics is our elected Fuel and Emissions Champion and she explains how important FORS is to our Company.

Lignacite Ltd first became aware of FORs in 2015 from TFL’s promotion of the scheme. Lignacite Ltd was extremely keen to benefit from the standard laid out by FOR’s, such as road safety initiatives.  By joining the scheme, we were able to achieve “Best Practice”. We found that FORS dovetails our business principles and ethics. When we looked at the requirements and benefits of joining the scheme, we saw that they fit perfectly with our ethos of improving safety whilst complementing our drive to improve fuel efficiency and reduce our environmental impact.

We passed the initial Bronze audit first time and that encouraged us that we were on the right tracks and able to go even further. Progression to Silver and then Gold was our aim from the outset as we wanted to be a leader in providing a safe and productive fleet operation. To hold the Gold standard is seen as very prestigious and showed our customers that our operation is managed at the highest level possible.

The performance management toolkit really helped us set our targets for reducing our carbon footprint and improving our MPG. FORS has helped us improve our filing systems and procedures. Once we were Bronze we really made the most of the benefits on offer especially the toolkits.

‘FORS has helped us achieve compliance and safety.’ -Joanne Robinson – Head of Customer Services and Logistics

‘We have increased our MPG by1.85% since our baseline year.’ – Joanne Robinson – Head of Customer Services and Logistics

• We have implemented a few new policies in the past 12 months, we have implemented an Anti-Idling Policy to try and save any wasted fuel our drivers might use when they don’t need to be idling as well as a Fuel, Emissions and Air Quality Policy. We have also carried out toolbox talks regarding all these topics and got all our drivers to sign to say they also understand how important it is to stop our wasting any fuel. All our drivers have completed the FORS LoCity for Drivers E-Learning modules too.

• We get all my drivers to complete a comprehensive Medical Declaration on a annually basis even though the FORS Standard states once every 5 years. It’s also mentioned in the drivers handbook that if they at any point in time start suffering from a medical condition they need to notify the company ASAP as well as if they need to start taking medication prescribed by their GP or over the counter drugs. We will then investigate it to see if it’s still safe for the driver to be driving for the company and we may even ask the driver to get a letter from his doctor informing the company if he is still able to drive for the company. We will then start doing more driver assessments on the driver to make sure he isn’t a risk to the company or anyone on the road.
• In the past 12 months we have implemented a recruitment policy along with a redeployment and Equal Opportunity Policies. We never needed one before as we are a small company with only 4 Drivers and all 4 drivers have been with the company for a few years now. In our industry everyone knows each other and drivers always move about between companies. I have only ever employed qualified and trained drivers. All my drivers have been with me for a few years now and aren’t leaving anytime soon. By implementing our new recruitment policy I would look at employing a young driver and train him on our specialist equipment if any driver decides they want to leave or retire. But there is no plans for any drivers to do that anytime soon.
• We only have 1 Operating centre and all our servicing is done by main dealers at their sites not ours. The only noise generated is when my lorries are being loaded by our Diesel Fork lifts and when they are idling so we can carry out our defect checks. All my lorries have white noise reversing alarms fitted to them.
• We carry building blocks to construction sites across the whole country. As we rely on our customers asking us to deliver to various construction sites across the whole country, we never know where we are going until they need us. Therefore we can’t afford to try and move anything via barge or train as we collect all the equipment from building sites and there is no other method than using a lorry and we then asked to deliver anywhere in the country. So using a Lorry is the most cost effective way of moving our clients goods. We are replacing all our lorries with Euro 6 engines as and when they are due for replacement. We have looked at electric vehicles and because of the weights we carry and the fact that our lorries have specialist equipment fitted no manufacture have produced an alternative fuelled vehicle that can carry the weight we do and go over the same terrain we do. We tried running our products by train to other towns and cities, but that also worked out more expensive and added a lot more work than what is required, which meant it wasn’t cost effective for the company so we reverted back to using our lorries instead. In the past 12 months our MPG averaged 7.69 MPG. Our MPG has increased by 0.13% since last year (2017) and 1.85% since our baseline year in 2015, just by making sure our drivers don’t idle more than what they are required too and that they choose the most fuel-efficient way to our clients. The route might not always be the shortest but because of traffic it works out more cost effective.

We are replacing all our vehicles for Brand New Euro 6 lorries in the next 12 months and we will be looking at installing the lower passenger door window or Low Entry cabs. We will be carrying our more FORS Training and LoCity Driver CPC courses.

We promote FORS on our website, Company Letter Head, our Companys workwear, email signatures etc. We really believe in FORS and know if that all companies signed up and joined FORS it would reduce all accidents/ incidents with vulnerable road users across the whole country.

Gaining FORS Gold Accreditation shows how dedicated we are as a company to improving road safety and the safety of all vulnerable road users in London as well as nationally. We will continuously use what FORS has taught us to help reduce our carbon footprint and make the roads so safer for everyone that uses them. We have also managed to make a significant saving by reducing our fuel usage and improving our MPG.

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