Andrews Excavations – Amazing Journey

My name is Daniel Andrews, the owner and Transport Manager for Andrews Excavations. We are a specialist waste management company dealing with Aggregate deliveries, Waste Recycling and Tipper operations in the East of London. Operating in the most congested area of the UK we are mindful of continuing to make a difference and setting ourselves apart from the rest.

In 2013 as we are a member of the FTA we took the opportunity to gain our FORS Bronze Accreditation, speaking with local companies it seemed a positive accreditation to aim for and certainly contained massive benefits to us, our customers and the public.

Our first FORS Bronze audit was an experience, the auditor was very thorough but supportive at the same time. We spent a lot of time preparing for this it is wise to point out to anyone considering FORS that they should give the task full respect and plan ahead.

Since our initial Bronze accreditation, all our drivers attended a Safe Urban Driving course with Fleet Source in London. The SUD course, free due to our initial accreditation had a huge impact, with every driver confirming that it was not only beneficial, but equally gave them a better understanding of the risks vulnerable road users faced every day. As a bolt-on to the SUD course, every driver has also completed an E-learning course in cycle safety.

Daniel Andrews Owner / TM said, “we are mindful of continuing to make a difference and setting ourselves apart from the rest.”

With vehicle data retrieval and utilisation being imperative, our management team expanded upon the FORS requirement and set in place our own vehicle data analysis programs that are updated weekly and are accessible by all managers.

Daniel Andrews Owner / TM also said, “ it seemed a positive accreditation to aim for and certainly contained massive benefits to us, our customers and the public.”

We have seen a large increase in companies requiring higher standards from hauliers, FORS Silver / Gold seemed a universal way of displaying our compliance. We have communicated the benefits of FORS and will continue to do so by offering support to our customers ensuring we only deal with FORS Accredited companies where possible.

*Annual improvement in MPG and Incidents per 100,000 Kms

• Due to our sturdy induction program and continued efforts toward developing our new and existing staff, we can monitor and improve their fitness levels.
• We are actively promoting FORS to the industry and therefor are able to attract drivers to our company, drivers will also come from internal staff recommendations.
• We have purchased a Noise Recording App which allows us the opportunity to monitor the noise levels protecting our staff.

We have been watching our preferred vehicle provider Scania’s progression toward Hybrid vehicles, but they are still in their infancy. Lease / purchase prices are too high and with the demand for competitive costings we could not pass this extra cost onto our customers. Andrews management team maintains strict adherence to managing every aspect of its business, operational compliance and the ongoing data monitoring of its vehicle fleet ensuring it performs as close to maximum efficiency as possible.

In conclusion our journey through FORS has allowed Andrews Excavations the opportunity to react quickly, effectively implement strategies beneficial to our business and ensuring that our fleet operates as safely as possible. We now have access to all the training, E-Learning, compliance tools and a network of compliant operators that have passed a rigid audit process allowing us to be confident in working with them. The journey has been a challenge, but we are glad we took it and will continue to benefit from being FORS accredited. Our clients know we are compliant, understand that all drivers on their sites are trained to the highest level possible and that the chance of non-conformity has been reduced.