Section 1 – Tom Ferncombe arrived in southwest London in the late 1960’s and started to build a labour supply and contracting services business in the utilities sector. The company was incorporated in 1973 and provided construction and materials services for local authorities and utility service providers. The success of the business however started long before this and was based on exceptional relationships, outstanding service and a good reputation. They are now into their third generation of family members but this success has only been possible because of the excellent team of industry professionals and the staff development that they have adopted along the way. Firm and reliable business partnerships have also been a critical factor and these programmes look set to continue for years to come.
Cappagh Group over many years have become a significant provider of services that everyone who enjoys living and working in London and the South has benefited from. They contribute to the fabric of society in a way that many would probably not even think of.
Section 2 – How and Why FORS?
“Initially we saw being accredited to the FORS standard as a way to demonstrate the high standards we set for ourselves. Now of course FORS Bronze and even Silver has become the minimum standard. We aimed higher than this”, explains Dave Fahey, Group Transport Manager. “Where at first it was our prerogative, we are now seeing that it is more of a licence to do business than it was.”
We first achieved Silver… accreditation in 2015. We may never know what business we win because of being accredited to Silver or Gold but we are aware that some operators don’t even get on “the list”, so to speak because they are not. Over the years we have seen improvements in our corporate performance in many areas, not least fuel, emissions, accident rates and even in penalty charge notices and that not easy to achieve without robust systems to manage them.
“Driver and staff engagement has improved too. People do prefer to work for progressive and considerate companies. We are not immune to the issues of the day such as staff shortages but our efforts to involve, consult and develop our staff definitely seem to be paying dividends.”
As for achieving Gold… a second time, this was a special moment and upon achieving reapproval last year Dave was quoted as saying, “This is another fantastic achievement and testament to all the hard work and commitment that the Team puts into the large fleet of vehicles that Cappagh operates”.
Section 3 – The initial FORS Bronze audit
Accreditation schemes and management systems are not new to Cappagh at all. They are used to the formalities of establishing a ‘Plan, Do, Check, Act’ system and processes and being audited against them. Cappagh are accredited for CHAS and Achilles and other bodies. FORS Bronze therefore was not a major task, the processes existed already. All we need to do was ensure that we were meeting all of the criteria set in the standard. We found that the best way to approach this was to embrace FORS as the ‘fleet management system’ rather than as a bolt on.
Section 4 – Progressing to Silver
Operating in London meant we were already operator vehicles that met the CLOCS standard and a higher level of direct vision and therefore the higher levels of achievement for FORS Silver were mostly in place in terms of the assets. When it came to the drivers, there was some additional training required which was a challenge. Having incorporated the On-Bike Safe Urban Driving CPC into our training programme we were on our way. 6 years later, “the rest as they say is history”.
“The big thing for us training and the eLearning provided by FORS is a real help”, said Jack Barnard who leads the training and compliance for the transport division. “Classroom eLearning has been very effective as these can be tailored somewhat to the needs of the individual and company, but we do also use the on-line modules too.” “Over the years the drivers and staff have become more used to these facilities and so it is definitely getting easier.”
Being part of the Gold FORS community has caused us to focus on suppliers who are either FORS accredited or at least on that journey. This give us confidence that whom we are using are at least achieving a higher standard and that their aims and values are similar to ours.
Section 6 – What improvements have we seen?
|
|
MPG |
Incidents |
CO2 |
NOx |
PM10 |
Number of PCNs |
| Year 1 | 7.3 | 20 | 2923 | 5445 | 82 | 62 |
| Year 2 | 7.6 | 17 | 2833 | 5439 | 81 | 20 |
| Year 3 | 7.7 | 17 | 2720 | 5380 | 80 | 20 |
| Year 4 | 7.7 | 21 | 3852 | 7139 | 107 | 19 |
| Percentage improvement NB. Fleet Increase 30% Year 4 | 6% |
-25% Adjusted |
-69% Unadjusted |
- Driver health and fitness review – The company conducts annual health reviews and fitness questionnaires and self-certification. These are used to identify early signs of safety and stress related issues. The company issues a Communications Calendar which outlines the various health campaigns due throughout the year. Recently the company conducted a programme of video toolbox talks one of which covered summer working which included driving in intense and extended periods of sunlight and keeping safe from exposure. Mental Health is an ongoing concern especially during the Covid-19 pandemic and the company has maintained 10% of its staff as Mental Health First Aiders.
- Recruitment of drivers – There have been 2 new recruits added with the last 2 years through the licence acquisition programme. It is planned that there will be an increase to this programme for the coming year. There has been an inevitable suspension to the programme due to Covid-19 and the lack of available driving tests. This will return to normal with perhaps an
increase in availability very shortly. The business is committed to inclusivity and is seeking to employ international, young and female workers and drivers where possible. Measures to increase staff retention have been implemented such as out of work social activities, support for charitable events etc. The company have recruited foreign language speakers into business critical disciplines such as health and safety and have also embarked on English language courses to help workers to assimilate into the UK working environment. - Noise assessment – The business is fully engaged working in urban and builtup environments. This means that we need to consider and accommodate others who live and work here. Noise and other emissions are a critical factor in people’s comfort, health and enjoyment of their surroundings and what we do inevitably impacts on that. We therefore have embarked on noise and emission monitoring and assessment to minimise our impact on our neighbours. The FORS toolkit has assisted with this.
- Modal shift and alternative vehicles – The company have now developed its rail division significantly over the last 2 years. From a standing start the company have now been able to move bulk aggregate materials equivalent to 30,000 longer haul lorry movements a year – more than 100 per working day. This has obvious advantages to the community, the environment and the economy. This has been made possible by the acquisition of DC Rail Ltd.
With a hub based at Wembley the business is now supplying sites and concrete plants in the area which otherwise would have had to be road fed. There are now plans to develop rail based outward business as well further improving the company’s credentials.
Other alternative vehicle shift initiative include transferring smaller vehicles such as vans and cars to full electric power. There are now 10 cars with either hybrid or full electric capability and this is set to increase with charging points installed and being installed. The company is ready to develop further initiative as technology improves to include large commercial and large goods vehicles. It’s coming, and we are ready.
Section 7 – What are your plans for the future?
The company is aiming to further develop the inter-modal and multi-modal capabilities, in particular where it involves rail and other parts of the south are being researched and worked up.
There will always be a requirement for fleet of lorries and so the need to develop drivers and staff will never stop. Recently there has been a need to recruit larger numbers of people as new contracts have been won and so streamlining and improving the recruitment, training and induction processes has been a key focus. This will continue.
Alternative modes of transport such as clean energy powered vehicles, greater use of public transport where possible, personal transport such as bicycles and healthier options like walking will be developed.
Communication and consultation with staff is a key factor in the success of the business over the years and this will remain a priority. The language support programme will be further developed over the coming years as we embrace differing cultures, backgrounds, experiences and lifestyles. Cappagh are an instigator of change.
Section 8 – A Champion for FORS
Promoting FORS
The company is giving suppliers and partners who are themselves FORS accredited preferred supplier status but will also consider those working towards FORS Bronze. This ensures that all of its activities remain compliant and that there is a confidence in a higher level of safety and legal compliance.
The Company promote the benefits of FORS membership in its in house company newsletter “Cappagh Connections” and this is circulated to staff and business partners. The FORS Logo is placed on vehicles, email communications and in Social Media and website communications. The Company is an active member of the Mineral Products Association and is therefore involved in a wide range of transport and industry related activities and initiatives.
Section 9 – FORS Gold, what does it mean to us
FORS Gold is not essential for the client base but what it does is prove to the clients, the industry and the staff that we are good and improving still. It matters to staff and drivers that they work for an industry leading business.
Section 10 – Social Media
Twitter @CappaghGroup
m.facebook.com CappaghGroup