Meet the Team- Lucy Allsebrook

Name: Lucy Allsebrook

When did you join PPS? May 2013

What is your role at PPS? Sales Administrator

What was your first ever job? First Saturday job was a waitress. First full time job was lettings assistant.

How do you take your tea? No sugar, milk, couple of squeezes of the tea bag.

What is your favourite food? Cake and curry- maybe there’s an experiment in that.

What are your hobbies? I love socialising with friends and family over some good food and wine, running, baking and long walks with the dog. 

PPS Exhibits at Foodex 2014!

PPS are pleased to be exhibiting again at Foodex 2014 between 24th and 26th March at the NEC in Birmingham on stand K349.

This will be the second time that PPS Midlands and East are there to promote the benefits of Returnable Transit Packaging through The Complete Package and additional services including rental, management, washing, purchasing and repairs.

PPS will aim to highlight the environmental and cost saving benefits of RTP.

With two state of the art wash facilities accredited to BRC standards in storage and distribution, PPS are already involved heavily in the food industry through manufacturers, suppliers and end users supporting sectors such as poultry, meat, fish and bakery.

Joanne Moss, Sales and Marketing Director has reported 'We exhibited at the last show in 2012 and found that it provided us with an excellent platform to display our RTP services to the food industry. We are looking forward to meeting new and current customers at this year show.'

Movember!

PPS Complete Movember Challenge supporting Mens Health Causes

The PPS Mo Bro’s have successfully completed the Movember challenge raising awareness and funds for prostate and testicular cancer and mental health, with the aim to change the face of mens health.

What started off with a very small group from Melbourne, Australia back in 2003 with a team of 30 Mo Bro’s, the independent global charity now sees moustaches sprouting internationally every year during November.

Our Financial Controller Jeremy Tutt led the way to raising £125 so far for this great cause. “The hardest thing about growing a moustache is not to shave it off in the morning when in autopilot mode. Movember is a great cause however I must be honest, I couldn’t wait to shave the moustache off on the 1st December - kisses from the wife and children were reluctantly given during the month! Only 11 more months to go until it's time to do it all again.

For the love of cake

Here at PPS there is a definite love for cake, and even more so for our Sales Administrator Lucy Allsebrook.

At PPS Lucy is based within the sales team providing customers with a variety of returnable transit packaging options and assisting you with any queries regarding sales, crate rentals, washing and repairs, on hand to advise you the best equipment solutions.

Having made all the delicious cakes for our Macmillan coffee morning helping to raise over £150, Lucy also spends evenings and weekends preparing bespoke cupcakes, celebration cakes and wedding cakes.

As a registered home baker all cakes are designed to order for events such as birthdays, christenings and Christmas.

The PPS pool trays are an ideal alternative to cardboard for transporting the cakes.

Meet the team - Andy Moss

Andy Moss - PPS Plant Manager

Andy Moss - PPS Plant Manager

Name:
Andy Moss

When did you join PPS?
September 2007

What is your role at PPS?
Plant Manager. I am responsible for all the washing and equipment movements on site, that involves arranging the transport for our collections/delivery’s. I also plan all of the PPS Removals delivery’s and collections.

What was your first ever job?
I did the usual paper rounds and washing up in a pub kitchen but my first job where I was properly employed was at McDonalds.

How do you take your tea?
This depends what mood I’m in and who is making it. If I make it I will usually have it strong and milky, if somebody else is making it I tend to have a couple of sugars to mask the flavour.

What is your favourite food?
I think the most appropriate answer is Junk Food. However if pushed I don’t think I could survive much longer than a week without Bacon.

What are your hobbies?
Mountain Biking and Skiing. I like being outside and in the mountains, unfortunately we don’t have many of them in the Midlands.

For more information about Returnable Transit Packaging contact Joanne Moss or visit our Website

Improve Your Office Environment

How to improve your office environment

Most of us spend at least eight hours a day five days a week in our offices.  Spending all this time at work means the environment is very important. 

At PPS we know that happy workers are more productive so we have come up with some tips to improve your office environment.

1.    Seating Plan – Make sure that employees who work together are sat together to make them more productive.  For example department manages should be sat in easy reach of their employees

2.    Image – Your office represents your company to any visitors therefore you want it to create the right impression.  A tidy and organised workspace is important.

3.    Storage – Ensure that all staff has enough storage such as draws and filing cabinets to put all their paperwork away.  Not only does this encourage tidy desks it also improves efficiency

4.    Noise – Noise levels can be a real problem in busy offices particularly when staff have to spend a lot of time on the phone.  Installing partitions can make a big difference in preventing noise impacting on other people.

5.    Lighting – The availability of natural light in office can make a big difference to employee productivity.  Try and make the most of all the natural light that you can get and make sure areas without natural light are well lit.

6.    Heating – The temperature at work is a big factor in creating a comfortable working environment.

These are just some tips to create a comfortable and productive working environment.

Meet the Team - Kate Williamson

Kate Williamson - PPS MIDLANDS LTD

Kate Williamson - PPS East

Name:
Kate Williamson

When did you join PPS?
February 2011

What is your role at PPS?
Business Development at PPS East

What was your first ever job?
Saturday girl at The Body Shop!

How do you take your tea?
White, 1 sugar and preferably in a PPS mug!

What is your favourite food?
Hmmm… tough, but suppose I should say Fish!!

What are your hobbies?
Fishing (not really)... Most of my spare time is spent having lots of fun with my twin daughters.

Follow our blog to keep up to date with news about the returnable packaging  industry and to meet further members of the PPS Midlands Ltd team.

A New Face at PPS East

Following Peter Davey’s retirement from PPS East, we are pleased to announce that Lisa Stephenson has joined the company in July as Accounts Administrator.

“I am delighted to be a new addition to the team at PPS” said Lisa, who went on to say “I have previously worked in the fish industry for several years so I am quite used to the lovely smell of fish!” Lisa will look after the administration of the business supporting Kate Williamson (Business Development) and Paul Durrant (Operations). Outside of work, Lisa’s husband and two children keep her busy most of the time however she likes reading and going to the local theatre and cinema.

Jeremy Tutt (Financial Controller) said ”I am really pleased Lisa has joined PPS. Following Peter’s retirement, it was important to recruit someone who would fit in with the team and continue to support PPS East Limited as we continue to grow and develop.”

PPS East Limited (formerly TFA Box Company) was established in Grimsby over 25 years ago to service the local fishing industry. BRC accreditation in Storage and Distribution means the company also attracts major blue chip clients.

They operate out of their wash facility in Omega Business Park. This allows local fish and food production businesses to hire plastic returnable containers and pallets and also have them hygienically washed. Due to increased interest from fish merchants, suppliers and processors looking to purchase various reusable containers, PPS East Limited has recently started selling directly to customers plastic boxes and trays, pans, defrosting crates and pallets.

Why use PPS Crate Hire

At PPS Crate Hire we know moving is stressful but we are here to help providing our customers with an efficient and reliable crate hire service.

There are loads of reasons to use PPS Crate Hire so we have listed just a few keys one’s for you:

1.    Product range – We have a large range of rental crates to meet your needs.  To complement the standard removal crates we also provide flat screen computer crates, server crates and metre long crates.  Packaging and handling equipment is also available.

2.    Flexible Service – We are here to meet your requirements.  We can deliver crates at short notice straight to your door.  Rental periods can be extended an extra crates hired if required.  Whatever you need just call our customer service team who will be pleased to help.

3.    Expert Advice – If you are unsure about how many crates you need just call our customer service team.  They will be happy to advise you on your individual requirements.  We can also recommend local removal firms if needed.

4.    Good Value – Our crate rental prices are very competitive.  The economical rental costs make perfect sense when planning a move.

5.    Great Service – From the moment you contact us with an enquiry right to end of your move and beyond you can be guaranteed of great service from everyone at PPS.  We pride ourselves in our service orientated approach.

Those are just 5 reasons to use PPS Crate Hire, hire crates from us and I’m sure you will find many more!

Automotive RTP boxes, crates and washing services

The automotive industry in the UK has taken a beating over the last 2 decades, losing out to cheaper foreign production and labour rates, however with investment increasing in UK manufacturing and a higher than expected new vehicle registrations in March are we seeing a turn round for vehicle sales and manufacturing in the UK.

Emerging markets in China and India are seeing a large demand for British Marquees, like Bentley, Jaguar, Range Rover and Rolls Royce.

With an increase in production volume, comes an increase in the reliance on parts supply and the use of packaging materials.

Playing your part within this complex supply chain means you have to think carefully about generating waste for your customer, that’s where PPS Midlands can help.

As a business, PPS midlands has been involved with RTP (Returnable Transit Packaging) for over ten years, providing bespoke RTP solutions to all forms of industry including Food, Meat, Automotive and Electronics industries.

Our standard range of products are in regular use within the food industry, along with bespoke tailored solutions for both the automotive and electronics industries, catering for specialist needs such as ESD (Electro Static Discharge)

Specialist plastic crates, boxes and larger collapsible pallet boxes can all be controlled and managed from site to site by using our simple on-line tracking software “ENABLE”, which has be designed by PPS from the ground up to offer a simple and effective way of managing RTP.

PPS Midlands is seeing a steady growth with component manufacturers looking to take a greater responsibility for packaging waste and environmental issues created by using disposable packaging materials. Many manufacturers are still reliant on the use of cardboard to supply their customers and this in turn has an impact on the receiver of the components.

Attention to details can make the change to RTP simple, e.g. when approached by a manufacturer of component parts of electrical motors we discussed the ratio of one component to another to establish the best configuration for shipping, this ratio was 12:1. Then taking into account the weight of each of the components calculating the maximum permissible lifting weight under the health and safety guidelines for manual handling laid down by the supplier, we set about looking for the right sized RTP. As with most solutions it is best to keep it simple, understanding the weight limits, and the parts ratios, we are able to provide a solution that not only satisfies the requirements for the supplier it also reduces the costs associated with packaging, simply one box caters for both elements.

With so many suppliers manufacturing parts and components to the automotive industry, the use of disposable packaging materials needs to be reduced to aid the green credentials and reduce the CO2 attributed to production of finished vehicles.

The key question is; what is your business doing about it?

If your need is large or small, if you need a complete start to finish solution or just need help to manage or wash your existing RTP, contact Jonathan at PPS Midlands on 01530 515333 or 07896 430047 or email Jonathan here

PPS Midlands “RETURNABLE TRANSIT PACKAGING SOLUTIONS” an alternative to packaging waste

Make Returnable Packaging your Business New Year Resolution

2013 could be the Year for many Businesses to
make the switch to Returnable Packaging 

What are your New year resolutions for 2013?

We are now into the third week of January and our News Year Resolutions are starting to be a distant memory.  Whatever our good intentions were at the start of the year be it lose weight, stop smoking or save money most of us have probably gone back to our old ways by now.

The New Year is not just a time for personal resolutions it is a time where businesses can look at their practices and look at ways that they can improve.   Popular improvements for 2013 will surely be to make cost savings and become more sustainable.  Switching to returnable packaging can help many companies achieve these goals and PPS will be able to help and support along the way.

Here are 5 reasons that our customers have switched to returnable packaging:

1.    Reduced packaging waste – The disposal of cardboard or polystyrene boxes creates costs including the disposal fee and the extra labour required.
2.    Reduced packaging costs – Annual packaging costs can be significantly reduced by switching to returnable packaging.  Packaging costs can be reduced to pence per trip by renting returnable equipment.
3.    Increased product protection – All forms of returnable packaging including plastic crates and bulk bins are strong and durable providing added protection for the important goods inside.
4.    Hygienic – Returnable packing can be washed at our BRC accredited wash plant to food industry standards.
5.    Improves environmental impact – Returnable packaging typically lasts at least 5 years and it can then be recycled at the end of its useful life.  This is far more environmentally friendly than single use cardboard boxes that need to be disposed of.

Moving from single use cardboard or polystyrene boxes makes sound financial and economic sense but the thought of changing your systems can seem daunting.  At PPS we are experienced in helping our customers make that move and we will ensure that it runs smoothly.

PPS Reusable Plastic Trays are in Flavour at Dairy Fruit

Dairy Fruit, northern Europe's leading supplier of quality aseptic flavoured fruit preparations and liquid spice mixes for the food industry, recently introduce PPS food grade, reusable plastic trays into its logistics supply chain.

PPS Total Equipment Solutions Process

Crispin Gell - Sales Director of Dairy Fruit reported, “In reviewing our packaging and handling operations, it was decided to source a company who could provide a food grade rentable plastic tray system that offered stability and security when delivering our products.

We also had to give serious consideration to Heath & Safety regulations, taking into account maximum handling weights for operatives both within our facility and our customers. Plus we wanted a company that could supply a full service and minimise our handling involvement by collecting the empty trays from our customer’s facilities. These reusable plastic trays would then be washed before being returned to Dairy Fruit and into the supply chain loop. 

We also had to consider the cost of switching from the current cardboard packaging to the returnable tray system, as this was extremely important as we could not add this cost to our product.” 

Dairy Fruit engaged PPS Midlands in the review and they proposed a hygienic, cost effective and practical solution to this problem using bale arm trays, which are ideally suited for food applications.

PPS Business Development Manager Jonathan Issatt commented, “We opted for a durable, ventilated reusable plastic tray that has been specifically designed for transport and storage purposes and incorporates moveable swing bale arms to provide strong hand grips. When not in use, these containers can be stacked and nested in order to save space.

Supporting a full and comprehensive service, PPS Midlands BRC accredited factory in Measham is equipped with modern state-of-the-art high pressure wash facilities to clean all type and sizes of returnable transit packaging, including trays, crates, tote boxes, bulk bin containers and even houses a dedicated plastic pallet washing machine. The company also recently invested in a box drying facility, which is particularly important for PPS customers who need the containers to be dry before depositing product and to prevent damage and contamination.”

According to Crispin Gell of Dairy Fruit reported, “The new PPS returnable plastic tray, collection and wash service has allowed us to expand business within a number of new areas, with Dairy Fruit now able to fulfil some customers hygienic, reusable packaging and delivery criteria.

PPS has proven to be a very responsive company, professional in its approach and easy to deal with. We would have no hesitation in recommending them or their products”.

2012 A year of growth for PPS Midlands

2012 was an exciting year with the national pride and feel good factor created by the Olympics and the Queens Diamond Jubilee.  It made a wonderful change for the news to be full of positive and inspirational achievements as opposed to the normal doom and gloom.

At PPS Midlands we have a great deal to celebrate at the end of 2012.  We have seen continued growth in our main service area, with new customers signing up to our full service option where we rent, manage,  pool and wash all types of returnable equipment.  The main equipment on hire is our plastic crates, pallets and bulk bins which are very popular within the food processing and distribution sectors.  Not only have we added new customers but our existing clients have increased their volumes.  Returnable packaging is now well established within the food industry and we hope 2013 brings more customers making the switch from cardboard.

PPS Wash Plant Busier than ever

Our wash plant has been busier than ever, the amount of returnable equipment washed by our machine has increased greatly this year.  Alongside the extra washing for our full service customers we have experienced a growth in our wash only service.  For customers who own their own equipment PPS can provide a wash service at our state of the art BRC accredited wash plant.  This service has become very popular with our food, automotive and retail customers.  Our wash plant has also seen the addition of a wash bay designed to allow us to wash larger types of equipment such as Dolvas, bulk bins and pallet boxes.  The addition of this bay had enabled us to wash all types of returnable equipment.

The PPS Midlands repair facility is well established and has gone from strength to strength in 2012.  We are set up to repair all types of plastic and metal equipment and the service is becoming ever more popular.  Companies are increasingly looking at ways to cut their costs and it is often far more economical to have your equipment repaired than replace to it.

PPS Midlands

Most excitingly 2012 has seen PPS Midlands expand into a brand new sector.  We are now offering crate rental to the commercial moves industry.  PPS Midlands has invested in a pool of plastic removal crates that are available to hire to removal companies and individual companies conducting their own move.  2012 was spent setting up this new service with it launching towards the end of the year.  We will be able to bring all the experience that we have gained in the rental and management of returnable equipment over the past 10 years to this new sector and hope to see it expand in 2013.

Certainly, 2012 was an exciting year for PPS Midlands, which saw us, continue to grow our existing services and enter into a whole new industry sector.  We are now all ready and looking forward to the opportunities and challenges that 2013 will bring.  We hope to develop relationships with new businesses and continue to work closely with our existing customers.  Hopefully 2013 will be the year that even more companies realise the benefits of returnable packaging.

Happy New Year from everyone at PPS Midlands!

Returnable Transit Packaging - why use it

10 Reasons to use Returnable Transit Packaging

Returnable Packaging -
Lowering the cost and Carbon Emissions

Thousands of tonnes of packaging have to be disposed of in the UK every year! This includes cardboard and polystyrene boxes used within the supply chain to transport food.  As environmental issues are becoming more and more important within our society companies are considering switching to returnable Transit Packaging (RTP). 

When making this move there are many things that they need to consider including whether they should buy equipment or opt for rental.

When looking into their options a lot of companies have come to PPS, who for over 10 years have been providing clients throughout the UK and Europe with rental and pooling solutions from our comprehensive range of equipment including plastic pallets, trays, crates and boxes.

RTP pooled equipment solutions from PPS offer a simple and easy to manage solution, with controlled online management and predictable one-fee cost with no hidden extras. PPS take the responsibility for retrieving the packaging from third parties, ensuring it meets hygiene standards and return it to the pool.
At PPS we have put together what we believe to be the top 10 benefits of pooling RTP

1.    Financial – RTP is very easy to budget for with one price per product (crate/pallet) for the full service that includes rental, wash, transport and management.  There is no expensive capital outlay needed when equipment is purchased.

2.    Environmental Benefits – Renting and pooling RTP is a sustainable way of conducting business and works towards reducing a company’s carbon footprint.  RTP replaces one-trip disposable packaging that has negative environmental and economic impact. A reduction in waste and possible landfill charges has immediate cost savings and increases overall profitability.

3.    Savings in Transport & Handling - Returnable packaging is usually designed to be stacked or collapsible, reducing storage and transport space and the associated costs.

4.    Improved Protection - Returnable packaging is manufactured and designed to be more robust and durable, helping to reduce the risk of product damage during transit and therefore decreases customer returns. Secure and rigid RTP are ideal for the transportation of fresh, perishable and valuable goods requiring optimum protection – and these can be hygienically washed and returned in to the loop. 

5.    Bespoke Solutions - Where customers require, tailored solutions can be provided to meet specific materials handling needs in terms of size, distribution and with health and safety issues in mind.

6.    Conservation - More socially acceptable as the conservation of energy and raw materials throughout the supply chain has both environmental and economical benefits. Lower energy consumption for washing reusable RTP should be considered against higher energy costs for recycling cardboard and timber.

7.    Pooling Benefits - This enables clients to concentrate their efforts, energies and resources into their core business and allows a specialist business to handle their returnable packaging.

8.    Hygienically Clean Product - On delivery, used plastic pool rented products can be collected and washed to BRC approved standards before being retuned into the supply chain for re-use. Most businesses operating strict hygienic standards can take the stock direct to factory floor.  PPS have two modern and hygienic dedicated wash plants in the Midlands and Grimsby for washing of all its own returnable packaging and also extends this service to third parties on ad hoc or contract basis.

9.    Tracking Systems - The success of a pooled rental system depends not only on fit-for-purpose packaging but also on effective control and management of the closed loop system.  PPS customers can access and monitor the precise location of all transit equipment using ‘ENABLE’, which is a bespoke PPS web-based online tracking system for management of product and unit distribution. Input of data can be integrated with customers own software systems or can be input directly via the PPS website. Receiving locations can also monitor deliveries to assess for collection needs.

10.    Flexibility of Service - Products are available in large and small volumes for long or short term periods and therefore provides the maximum flexibility to cater for seasonal peaks and troughs. Customers no longer need to hold on to high levels of stock during seasonal lows.

PPS can assist customers investigate the feasibility of replacing current single use packaging with bespoke reusable packaging and projects have experience and been involved in many industrial sectors including food, fish, meat & poultry processing, retail, automotive, electronics, etc.   


For more information about Returnable Transit Packaging contact Joanne Moss or visit our Website

Reusable Pallet Boxes in Demand

Reusable Plastic Pallet Boxes a Winner with the Supply Chain

Increasing Demand for PPS Range of Reusable Plastic Pallet Boxes.

PPS have experienced an increase in demand over the past months for the rental, sale and washing of pallet boxes at both their Midlands and Grimsby facilities.

collapsible pallet boxes

The reusable pallet box is proving to be an increasingly flexible solution for the transportation and storage of goods for a variety applications and industrial sectors. Pallet boxes can be rigid or collapsible and where necessary an insulated double skin pallet box can be supplied where insulation and/or strength are key requirements.

PPS offers for sale both new and used pallet boxes and Dolavs. We also offer pallet box rental solutions for both ad hoc and long term rentals. In addition at both our sites in Grimsby and Measham where we have state of the art pallet box washing facilities for our own pool of plastic pallet boxes we also offer this wash service to customers that require a pallet box washing or a Dolav washing service for their own equipment fleet.

To highlight the versatility of our range of plastic pallet boxes we have detailed below some of the current applications:

•    A fleet of 2,000 collapsible pallet boxes are currently on hire to a supplier to the National Health Service to facilitate an equipment move between hospitals in different locations throughout the UK. The collapsible pallet box proved to be the most cost effective solution due the distances involved and the need to keep transport costs to a minimum.
•    We currently provide our full service reusable pallet box solution (rigid pallet box rental, pallet box washing & transport) to a food processor for the transportation of fish by-products for processing into fish meal prior to forwarding to the Far East.
•    We have been providing a pallet box rental and pallet box washing service to a food processor for a pool of rigid pallet boxes for use within their manufacturing facility that are used for the storage of oils and breadcrumbs within their value added process.

The recycling industry is another sector where PPS is receiving increasing enquiries for the rental and purchase of reusable pallet boxes. DEFRA statistics highlight that the UK generates approximately 300 million tonnes of waste each year. There is an increasing legal requirement being place on both manufacturers and users of products and packaging to ensure that a proportion of the materials is recovered and recycled.

The PPS range of reusable pallet boxes are particularly suited to pallet box loops set up to facilitate the recycling process and are suitable for a range of recovery operations including batteries, glass, paper, food waste, oils and fats.

Our plastic pallet boxes come in a variety of sizes and specifications, are durable and can withstand cleaning temperatures up to 100 degrees C. Our products are available in virgin and recycled food grade approved HDPE in both solid and perforated plastic pallet boxes. PPS can put in place a range of long term and short term packages to meet all customers’ needs including pallet box rental, pallet box washing and transportation if required.