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Contents Editors note...............................................................................4
Goodyear South Africa.....................................................46
Glampinghub.com..................................................................6
TSSN Carriers.......................................................................50
Glampsan................................................................................ 14
ABAX: Telematics. UK.......................................................54
Red Sky Tent Company..................................................... 18
Norwich to Edinburgh in a Skoda Kodiaq VRS.......60
Crown and Canopy.............................................................22
What will the E-Golf mean for the business traveller.................................................................................... 62
British Renewable Fuels................................................... 24
Ten Ways Magna Is Reimagining the Future...........66
Hustyns Glamping Village, Cornwall...........................28
Lighting the way in airport runway safety................70
Nomad Africa Adventure Tours....................................34
AeRomao................................................................................. 74
Bayview Lodge......................................................................39
Bodegas Estefania Tilenus.............................................. 78
Wild Gaze Safaris................................................................42
Ke Nako Biltong going from strength to strength.80
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Editors note
Safe travel is on everyone’s mind at the moment. The industry has rallied around the importance of travelling safe in the “new normal�, with tour companies looking at ways to encourage social distancing while at the same time actively promoting the wearing of face masks and washing hands. Hospitality destinations in the meantime are establishing new levels of hygiene standards and cleanliness with rooms being equipped with the latest in PPE and cleaning products. At the same time travellers themselves are taking the importance of being responsible to heart, taking it upon themselves to determine their own standard of self-protection. The new norm for travel will affect the industry in many ways, many of which we have neither calculated or guessed. But it will only strengthen it. It is down to the businesses and the travellers themselves to help guide the current situation to one where the new normal fits with our travel plans. When faced with great adversity the greatest ideas come about and travellers are known for their ability to innovate. What must be stressed is that as long as you travel safe, you can travel well and when the world opens up her borders again, we will be able to continue to explore and enjoy. After all, travel is in our blood.
Stay safe, stay healthy, wash your hands and never stop looking to the horizon.
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The Team Published by The Lost Executive LTD Co-founder and Creative and Editorial Director Don Campbell Head Writer Donnie Rust Copy proofreader Daemon Sands Magazine Designer Louise Smith
The TLE team are comprised of the most skilled remote workers and digital nomads in the world.
Working with Glampinghub.com
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GLAMPINGHUB.COM The journey from blog to leading industry website Listing everything from Mom and Pop enterprises to management company rentals, Glamping Hub is the world’s leading portal for unique outdoor accommodations across the globe.
Ruben explains that Glamping Hub started with David Troya from Sevilla Spain and himself, from Albuquerque New Mexico. Two friends who met in Spain years before.
With a reputation for offering one-of-a-kind accommodations and experiences and with over 30,000 accommodations in 120 countries, they are proving that there is a glamping site perfect for each and every traveller. As Co-Founder Ruben Martinez says, “It’s all about collecting memories, not things.”
While they both were obtaining MBAs, David at University of San Francisco and Ruben at Regis University in Colorado, David first heard the term glamping in one of his classes and knew this was something he wanted us to explore. “After discussing the potential, we started putting together ideas and brought on another friend, and third Co-Founder, Talal Benjelloun,” he says, “Glamping Hub was built on the foundation of friendship, and some of the very first investors were close friends and family.”
BLOG SITE TO INDUSTRY MOVER For those bloggers with big dreams, it’s inspiring to know that Glamping Hub was founded in 2013, primarily as a blog. The following year it launched as a booking platform with 200 accommodations listed.
THE EARLY SITE In the early stages, Ruben explains that after they relaunched their blog into a booking platform, Glamping Hub was a listing service, where hosts would pay to have their glamping site listed.
Today what separates Glampinghub.com from other listing websites is that all represented accommodations must be unique in their offerings and structure, offer a-one-of-a-kind experience and hotel-quality comfort, as well as be located in the outdoors.
“Since then Glamping Hub has become fully transactional with a global focus,” Ruben says, “Working with growing markets in the industry that have great potential like Australia, New Zealand and Canada as well as others.”
“We work with hosts to curate and create handwritten listings that perfectly and accurately describe their site and offerings, and with guests to be able to have the experience of a lifetime at their desired glamping site,” Ruben says.
Right from the start relationships have been very important to Glamping Hub. Some of their hosts are very small business owners who have incredible pride for the businesses they have created. Pouring their hearts and souls and often their life savings into their properties, creating
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their businesses and getting them off the ground into a territory and industry that is still quite young and is not fully understood.
as a whole, travel and other peripherals. Reading the newspaper from front to back each night before bed is a ritual that he is committed to. However, self-education aside, he admits that the biggest lessons often come from unexpected and painful sources.
The properties and their businesses are very personal to them, and for Glamping Hub it is very important to cultivate the relationships with these hosts and these small business owners because they are hopefully providing them with a stream of revenue that they may not otherwise receive.
“We really try to learn from past failures,” he says, “Things we thought were going to take off and do really well that did not. We also set up early indicators so that we go down a path that is really working. Sometimes pivoting away from the projects and ideas that are not working can be very painful and hard to do, but we strive to do a good job at keeping close to the data and understanding what is working. We make those tough decisions when we have to so we can focus on what comes next and part of what we did to future proof was to get in super early and be these early adapters.”
“This allows them to carry on their dream of having a successful business and site,” he says, “You cannot do this without having successful relationships, so it is very important for us to continue to build these relationships with the hosts on our site.”
A HUMAN COMPANY Glamping Hub is very much a human company, offering 24 hour 7 days a week support, so that when someone needs to contact them, they are provided with human interaction and assistance. It is very important to Ruben and his co-founders that every individual with their own needs can come to them and have those needs met and supported.
A CULTURE OF LEARNING Ruben reveals that he keeps up to date by trying to read as much as possible. Consuming information on business, the glamping and hospitality industry
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2020
Even though they defied expectations by entering the glamping market super early and reaching their current position as a market leading voice of the industry, Ruben still believes they’ve scarcely scratched the surface.
Even with their global presence, Ruben says that they feel very excited about the potential of other global markets. They now have a fully functioning Spanish website, so are very excited about working with additional regions, languages and markets.
CHALLENGES SOCIALS
One of the main challenges Ruben reveals, is wearing all the hats. When you do not have a team of people that specialize in all of the departments, you really need to do everything all at once. In that challenge comes the challenge of staying focused on what matters and what is important.
Leveraging the strength of social media is something Ruben credits much of their success with. Creating and curating compelling content is an absolute priority, as it’s their objective to deliver what their audience loves to see and where they would like to stay. He says that being able to
“It is easy to get distracted and turn your attention to something else when something looks like it’s going well,” he says, “It becomes dangerous to focus on too many things at once.” To overcome these sorts of negative mindsets, they have a very strong mentor network and are fortunate to work with extremely talented individuals. Thanks to this Ruben believes that as a business they’re are smart enough to know that they do not know everything, and that it is extremely beneficial to bring on those incredibly intelligent and smart individuals to help them overcome these big challenges. “Because at the end of the day we cannot overcome these challenges on our own and need the help of our team to do so,” he says.
BUSINESS PHILOSOPHY You can’t be afraid to make waves or take a risk, Ruben says. For businesses to be successful in the long haul you cannot be doing what everybody else is doing. You have to reinvent, you have to innovate, you have to try new things, and more importantly, you have to fail. “One of our business philosophies is having a high level of comfort with failure,” he says, “Not continuous failure but taking a risk and trying something new and if it fails being able to understand why and then move forward in the right direction, quickly.” For long term business strategy if you are not innovating and taking risks or not hiring the right set of people and taking the time to set them up on the right course, then your strategy will fail. Your business strategy has to be built on those principles.
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provide their audience and guests with real life glamping sites that are both bucket-list-worthy and attainable contributes to their core principles of being a human company and providing their guests with the best of the best.
“By engaging in different collaborations and partnerships we are also able to connect with our audience on a deeper level and further add to our community,” he says.
With a highly active presence on Facebook, Instagram, Pinterest and Twitter, they partner with a number of incredible brands and influencers to expand their audience and attain new potential customers and glampers. Whether they are there to learn more about the industry or to book accommodations, their digital platforms are crucial and necessary in order to give their guests an idea of who they are and what they offer.
THE SECRET TO SUCCESS In one of the first phone calls Ruben had with David about embarking on this journey, he said ‘Well hey, even if this fails, at least we get to talk to each other every day.’ Ruben remembers this and says, that Glamping Hub is truly a business built off of friendship. www.glampinghub.com
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You are running out of time to see the world
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Industry
GLAMPSAN The ‘Flattest’ Tanks available for waste storage and collection Eliminating this fear by providing robustly tested products that have endured some of the most peculiar challenges that glamping has thrown at them, is what Glampsan does.
THE RANGE Glampsan specialises foremost in the provision of tanks from 160 to 1000-gallons and more, both for above and below ground. They also provide a range of complementary products and these include sewage lifting stations, waste pumps, rainwater harvesting tanks, sewage treatment plants, septic tanks and water pressurisation and pumping solutions.
Regular exhibitors at the annual Glamping Show, Glampsan is a leading UK manufacturer of plastic tanks for the capture and holding of toilet waste from outdoor structures. While this includes toilet blocks and site welfare facilities, it is the company’s involvement in the glamping industry, especially glamping pods, shepherd huts and log cabins that is gaining a lot of attention.
Effectively they are a “one stop shop” opportunity for dealing with effluent waste that has proven very popular with glamping and hospitality site business owners seeking and straightforward waste sanitation solutions for their unique set up.
While glamping can be a very personal and bespoke enterprise, one of the challenges, where standards cannot be lowered, is how a site handles effluent waste. Not every site is able to lay down reliable sewage mains to and from the individual glamping units. So, one solution is to rely on waste collection tanks. Such collection tanks need to be completely reliable and also discrete as to not disrupt the “atmosphere” promised by glamping.
“One of our major product lines is the marketleading Flat Tank,” Jonathan says, “This is an above ground, flat, low-profile waste holding tank that is perfectly suited to the glamping environment. It is easy to use and durable with a low environmental impact. It can also be easily located under or nearby any glamping unit.”
We spoke with Glampsan’s General Manager, Jonathan Trelfa, regarding how his business has provided solutions to this essential and delicate matter.
THE MOST ROBUSTLY TESTED TANKS IN THE UNIVERSE (PROBABLY) The glamping industry is driven by unique experiences in unique locations. Every site is striving to offer something ‘bespoke and different’ that other sites do not.
“Our niche is operating in a particular area of hospitality that owners and hosts want to work efficiently, reliably and most importantly, discreetly in the background,” he says, “They are not looking for reviews on how good their waste management is, they’re looking instead for solutions that will mean it’s never mentioned at all.”
“At Glampsan,” Jonathan says, “We believe that the challenges site owners will be facing in the future in terms of their waste management infrastructure are only going to get more interesting and more complex. In no uncertain terms we are encouraging this, and perhaps even laying down a challenge with our innovative Flat Tank.”
Whether it is a five star hotel or a unique cliffsidetreehouse-glamping site there is never a time when an owner wants to hear that somethings gone wrong with this part of their business.
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Now on the fourth generation, Flat Tanks are ideal to meet the ever-changing needs of portable sanitation suppliers, caravanners, campers and glampers. They are a more reliable, easier-to-move and cost-effective alternative to old-fashioned steel waste tanks. Contrary to steel, this product will not corrode and will always appear fresh and hygienic. In addition, Jonathan says, “Our Flat Tanks feature inbuilt lifting handles, access hatches and ports, all of which are fully sealable against odours and spillage.”
Jonathan goes on to point out, “Considering that the Flat Tank originally started its life in the construction industry. Collecting waste from toilet blocks, showers and sinks for a high number of construction sites where no permanent sewage facilities are available, when we say it’s been ‘robustly’ tested… we really do mean it.”
THE LATEST PRODUCTS Flat Tanks are an effective and simple solution to dealing with effluent waste for start-up glamping sites and many hospitality venues too. Earlier, Jonathan talked about future needs becoming more complex, “One of the problems that glamping owners sometimes have to overcome is how to deal with and remove waste from glamping units located in remote fields. Sometimes perhaps a hundred metres or more from any vehicle access point and an additional problem, “ he adds, “Is how to deal with collecting and removing waste that has to go uphill. The solution to both of these problems is a lifting station.”
TUFFEST VS FLATTEST The big-brother company, Plastic Solutions (Aldridge) Ltd, supplies this sector in particular and here the tanks are appropriately known as Tuff Tanks. They’re similar products to those offered through the Glampsan division, but with subtly different applications. Ultimately, whether you have a building site toilet or a glamping hut with an inbuilt toilet and shower, the same ‘waste product’ is produced and needs to be controlled and collected effectively.
Due to demand, they have recently added lifting stations which are plastic tank structures with in-built pumping units and a 240v electric supply to their range. This not only extends the usefulness of their products but enables them to offer a more sophisticated option for their glamping customers.
And, for glamping and hospitality there is the Flat Tank. This 500, 750 and 1000-gallon plastic effluent holding tank and its smaller counterpart, the Mini Tuff Tank (160 gallons) are constructed from robust and recyclable polyethylene and are easy to deliver and position. Their flexible, low profile and lightweight design means they are ideally suited to the changing needs of the leisure sector. As sites grow and units are moved the Flat Tank can be easily transported with them without risk of damage, for example, when empty four men can easily move one.
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successfully today. The company was one of my favourite customers up to the point I left that industry in 2008. When the owners were looking to fill the GM role, they asked me to come along for a cup of coffee and a chat: I was looking to do something different at that time and it seemed like a very good fit for both sides.” They started in 2010 and made steady progress until 2014 at which point, they developed a range of new products and brought in a focussed business and marketing plan. Since then they have tripled their turnover in the construction industry. It was soon after that they recognized that there are a wide range of industries and sectors that
With regards to innovation, Jonathan continues, “Some of our glamping customers want to install environmentally sustainable composting toilets. Whilst this option is not for everyone, they are growing in popularity and acceptance and we are able to supply composting toilets of the same reliability.”
FUTUREPROOFING Jonathan predicts that in the long term, the glamping industry will of course inevitably mature. With it, even more sophisticated solutions will become more and more popular. “For example, we think that more underground septic tanks and soak-away systems will be an obvious solution for maturing glamping sites,” he says, “For these sites another option could also be to invest in a complete mini sewage treatment system. However, these are substantial investments.”
could benefit from their services and products. In 2017, as they were outgrowing their old site, they purchased new premises outright and after some essential refurbishment moved in early 2018. According to Jonathan their growth plans have also meant the laying on of extra production tooling to keep up with demand and the employment of further staff in sales and warehousing.
Long term, Glampsan will most likely add these to their product portfolio. But in the meantime, Jonathan believes that there is sufficient ‘growing room’ to supply their customers with simpler and hence more cost effective solutions.
Two years ago Jonathan started the Glampsan brand, which, as was already mentioned, is a division of Plastic Solutions. From 2019 the the Glampsan strategy has been to grow by making use of all available tools. This included heavy investment into the website as well as the development of a strong social media strategy.
LEADING BY EXPERIENCE Jonathan Trelfa is a veteran of the portable sanitation industry and has over 25 yearsexperience under his belt. He was the Managing Director of Europe for a toilet manufacturing company between 1991-2008, and from 20112014 was the MD for a manufacturer of ground and surface water monitoring equipment. It was March 2014 when he decided to take up the challenge of driving forward Plastic Solutions (Aldridge) Ltd.
On the technology front Plastic Solutions have invested heavily over the last year and a half in software to aid their sales and customer support staff. Jonathan explains that throughout his working life he’s always been agitated if a ringing phone wasn’t picked up within three rings. To make this possible he created tools and the environment so that their staff don’t get bogged down by too much cumbersome tech.
“I’ve known the business owners since I advised and helped them start their toilet rental business in 1994,” he says, “That business is still running
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THE REAL DEAL BEHIND GLAMPSAN Jonathan says, that even though they sell stacks of their Flat Tanks and ancillary products, what really defines both Glampsan and Plastic Solutions (Aldridge) Ltd is their focus on core service excellence for which they have become very well known. “It takes four things,” he explains, “Our strong customer service, our complete understanding of the industry, excellent business ethics and always going the extra mile for our customers.” Glamping guests are spending their hard-earned money to stay “off grid” but expect to have the same comforts as they would at home. Any site owner knows the value of hot and cold running water, a shower and working toilets. Also, they are acutely aware of how important it is that guests be completely oblivious to where things go afterwards.
“Glampsan may only cover a few of the solutions needed for the overall glamping experience,” Jonathan admits, “But, they are the most important parts and hosts are no doubt relieved that we apply ourselves fully to this job.” COMPANY ADDRESS: Merchant’s Way, Aldridge, West Midlands WS9 8SW TELEPHONE: 0800 334 5742 +44 (0)1922 716725 WEBSITE: w ww.plasticsol.com www.glampsan.com EMAIL: sales@plasticsol.com info@glampsan.com
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RED SKY TENT COMPANY At heart, a festival obsessed family business Interview with Brendan Fitzpatrick, mayor of the Boutique Camping Village at a festival near you.
THE BUSINESS
A business born out of a love of UK festivals, Red Sky Tent Company was founded by Lou Fitzpatrick in 2009 to provide comfortable and convenient boutique camping villages at festivals. The concept and business were then developed further by Brendan Fitzpatrick and this father and daughter duo added weddings, sporting events and special occasions to its repertoire of high quality luxury camping offerings.
The company was envisioned and created in a field in Pilton and came to life in 2009, at Glastonbury Festival, and has since grown steadily every year. What started as a small charity venture is now, after a decade, a simultaneous multi event capable organization. And yet they have not lost their personal and family friendly approach.
“My daughter saw a real niche for offering unique accommodation that was reliable and comfortable,” he says, “Especially at festivals, but then we also moved into weddings and sporting events where either accommodation is nonexistent or booked up in advance.” By providing comfortable, glamping accommodation to guests such as these, Brendan reveals that his clients have seen a greater overall success of their events thanks to an increase in local overnight capacity. This is especially convenient for weddings where they provide on-site accommodation so guests can safely enjoy themselves and not worry about the logistics of getting home after the festivities have ended.
Working with event and festival organisers, brides and grooms, sporting ventures, as well as corporate and special events there are a wide range of clients that they’re regularly in touch with. But at their heart is a philosophy of treating everyone the same.
“For the same reasons music festivals that offer onsite accommodation find that guests stay later to support more music acts, spend more money and ultimately appreciate the experience more,” he adds.
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AT THEIR ROOTS
different areas of the industry to ensure they stay informed and on top of their game.
Red Sky is a proudly family owned festival organization who are very much a ‘friends and family” venture and the same goes for the six “Red Sky people” that work there.
“This is a constant and ongoing process and everyone on the team plays a part in keeping Red Sky up-to-date,” he says, “Each member of the team owns their own piece of this puzzle.”
“Irrespective of whether it’s a major festival costing millions or a local wedding,” Brendan says, “At the end of the day you’re dealing with people and expectations, you’re building relationships and gaining friends.”
Everyone involved in Red Sky has either been an avid festival goer, crew member or organizer, and some tick all of those boxes. Brendan says that UK festivals are ingrained in their hearts and simply put, they just listen to what their clients and guests have to say.
To Brendan, when you consider a client as a friend rather than just a customer, it creates a different level of relationship. One that lasts longer and is based on trust and this has worked very well for them.
“We have successfully implemented changes based on guest and partner feedback and truly feel our ability to look, listen and act is what sets us apart from competitors,” he says, “An example of this would be our switch from a more manual booking approach to a fully customised online booking system, which has streamlined our processes and provided guests with a more efficient and online booking experience.”
For example, they help connect the audiences of different events that attract the same kinds of people. IOM TT and Silverstone, Goodwood Festival of Speed (2020), Goodwood Revival, and the Bristol Balloon Fiesta have client bases that are similar, and they work closely with the organisers to promote the unique events.
THE FIRST PITCH
Red Sky Tent Company help build relationships with previous and future guests and social media followers by providing current event photos that help paint a clear picture of who they are, as well as running multiple event-specific online competitions to increase awareness, build excitement and also to help share their unique story.
Brendan reveals that initially; Red Sky was not set up with the intention of being the prominent business it is today and that its growth has been entirely organic. At the start, it was created to raise funds for a charity that was close to their hearts, the Malawi Education Project (MEP), in Africa. The money raised was used to send books and school materials over to Malawi and also helped to build a library. The charity was created to provide these vital initial resources and to educate a group of locals to continue the work on the ground, and MEP is now self-sustaining.
“There are many glamping companies out there, but few have the reputation and strong industry relationships that we do,” Brendan says, “And we have worked very hard to make it that way.”
However, straight from inception, interest grew and the increasing need for such a service became very evident and it has been an enjoyable ride ever since. He adds that as dedicated festival goers and glampers themselves they know what is required because they’ve had first-hand experience. They’ve schlepped through the British fields with their tents, worn the same clothes for entire weekends, slept on the ground and then wearily faced the office on the following Monday.
KEEPING UP-TO-DATE Brendan and the Red Sky People make sure that they are up to date with current trends and industry developments so that their clients don’t have to be. This includes attending exhibitions and making use of family members who are working in
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“We’ve been there, loved every minute of it but knew we could make the experience even better,” Brendan says, “When you stay with Red Sky, you bring your fun-loving self and we provide the rest, a complete glamping solution including real beds.”
real beds, suitable flooring and the other elements that turn a tent into a glamping site, all come at a price. “Eventually, after the first few years of slow growth at a slow pace, we were able to secure some funding through personal contacts,” Brendan says, “Those first few years were all about compromise and organizing. We would receive requests at the end of each season from industry contacts to provide our camping villages for new summer events and had to choose which to do, based on tent and equipment numbers and availability. Then, as we added selected events each year from our growing waiting list, we slowly but steadily grew and were able to continue to add equipment, thus adding events.”
PHILOSOPHY Looking back, Brendan says he realizes that their philosophy has always been about providing the best possible experience. Not only in terms of guest experience, but also the manner in which they work with clients. “Our crew go above and beyond on-site and we are continuously commended on this,” he says, “Our behind the scenes team refuse to settle for just a satisfactory-standard and we are a tight group and truly enjoy what we do.”
Furthermore, they never leave their tents behind. So, choosing Red Sky, is choosing to leave no trace. The green initiative and low environmental impact have always been important to them and whenever possible they choose environmentally friendly products and are always looking for ways to increase the green in their footprint. For example, in response to this year’s epic Glastonbury ban on disposable plastic, they created and provided all of their Boutique Camping Village guests with their very own Red Sky branded reusable water bottle.
He also admits that it’s easy to have a philosophy based on something you love doing and their own business allows them to combine their love of family, festivals and a more personal glamping experience. “We are a have your cake and eat it too kind of company!” he says.
CHALLENGES NEWEST DEVELOPMENTS
According to Brendan, like any business overcoming their challenges has helped propel them forward and one of the main issues was business expansion. Purchasing high quality tents,
In 2019, Red Sky added five new events for this year and secured a further seven new ones for 2020 and are continuously handling new requests
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that come in from organic views to their website and through their highly engaged social media. To ensure that they are able to handle the demand over the upcoming year they have purchased another 100 tents allowing them to run multiple events simultaneously. “Next year, we will be purchasing some marquees so that we can provide a large group space as well as provide a year-round business,” he adds, “As for the rest of this summer, we have three new events yet to take place. The Bristol Balloon Fiesta has had a tremendous response and is almost sold out and we have the Product Earth Expo in August and the Goodwood Revival in September. Interest is building for both of the latter events and we are predicting to sell out for those inaugural ventures as well.”
WHERE CAN CUSTOMERS GET INTOUCH? Red Sky are very busy on Facebook which is their most common place for information, glamping events and picture sharing, they are also contactable on their website and have a presence on Instagram, Twitter and Linked IN. WEBSITE: www.redskytentco.org PRICE: £60-140 per night TELEPHONE: 07932 641808 EMAIL: pere@redskytentco.org
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REVIEW
CROWN AND CANOPY The Essential Glamping Business Manual
THE GLAMPING INDUSTRY
A fantastic guide on how to survive the fast paced glamping world. The Essential Glamping Business Manual was first published and sold to the public in summer 2018. However, it was originally commissioned and created earlier in the year for The National Trust as a ‘how to’ guide for their farm and estate managers across the UK who were interested in glamping as a viable opportunity.
To prepare each manual, each year Crown and Canopy undertake a serious round of market research, this included researching over 700 glamping sites in the UK. And, for their own interest they also researched the sister industries such as the holiday cottage industry and holiday parks industry. These two sectors are very similar by nature as they are engaged in hosting UK and international tourists and provide accommodation and related experiences. However, the main difference is that these industries have been established over many years in the UK and consequently have gone through a recent phase of re-investment in recent years.
According to co-author Edward Busby, a number of people were consulted whilst creating the manual. These included The National trust consultant involved in the project, Crown and Canopy’s own business advisor and the MD of Canopy and Stars prior to publishing. Once it was published Davies & Co planning consultancy looked over and approved the planning section and of course their own partners and various glamping site owners that Edward and the team have worked with and know personally.
This investment has been to capitalise on the newfound trend of holidaying in the UK after many years of British tourists venturing into Europe rather than choosing to stay in the UK. The main
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difference is that unlike the holiday cottage and parks industries, the glamping industry is still really in its infancy. It is believed there are under 4000 unique glamping sites in the UK, compared to the 365,000 caravan holiday homes and an estimated 55,000 holiday cottages. This makes it pretty clear how far the industry still has to grow. Another telling element is the size of the agencies supporting these industries. If you look at the three largest holiday cottage agencies in the UK, they have over 10,000 properties on each of their books. If you compare this to the largest UK glamping agency Canopy and Stars, they have just over 700 units including their European portfolio.
this information and knowledge, the other intention is that it will drive growth as it informs people and enables them to commit to an idea that they already have. There’s a lot more to the book than FAQ’s though!
THE VALUE OF THE MANUAL Glamping site owners are traditionally hands on people, approaching the industry with the determination of creating something uniquely theirs. According to Edward that’s exactly who the manual was created for, it’s a complete guide from start to finish and is the perfect tool and handbook when developing your own successful sites and navigating every obstacle.
IMPORTANT REFERENCE MATERIAL
The aim of the manual is to cover all the unknown elements for landowners including turnover potential, design, planning and much more. Enabling them to make informed decisions and to judge whether this form of diversification is right for them and has the income potential that they want to see from their land.
Also, Edward points out that it was the fact they had originally gone through the process of setting up their own sites and running them for six years that was the springboard that created the consultancy services and led them to creating the book for The National Trust.
The other objective of the manual is to enable its buyers to create high quality and unique sites that will be futureproofed and successful in an increasingly competitive marketplace. By providing
WHERE IS THE MANUAL AVAILABLE?
Edward explains that it now comprises nearly 70 pages covering every area you should need to know when developing a site from the outset to completion. It’s more like taking a full course in glamping than an FAQ system and the great thing is you can constantly refer back to it rather than a one-time experience.
You can purchase the manual on the Crown and Canopy website at: www.crownandcanopy.co.uk/ glamping-manual PRICE: There are two options available when purchasing the manual. You can pay £95 for the most recent edition oryou can pay £125 and subsequently receive each new edition when published for free. TELEPHONE: 0044 (0) 7837162452 EMAIL: info@crownandcanopy.co.uk WEBSITE: www.crownandcanopy.co.uk
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BRITISH RENEWABLE FUELS Keeping the home fires going it is one that happens entirely within Britain. First, the timber is purchased from UK forests and delivered to their yard. Depending on the size of the timber the wood is then cut and split into 8-10 inch slats before being placed in a kiln and dried for a period of 7-10 days. At this stage they test the moisture content with an aim to get it down to a reasonable level of 12-14% moisture. The slats are then put through the shredding process where the wood is broken down into particles of 10mm sizes. It is also during this stage where the pulped wood can dry further. From here the pulp is transferred to the briquette presses where it is hydraulically pressed into either long or round briquettes. These are then bagged and stacked on a pallet.
British businesses are being called upon to do their part to lighten the UK’s carbon footprint and bring the country to a new era of sustainability. To effectively achieve this goal, these businesses are scrutinising the operations and philosophies of their supply chain. This has provided the perfect opportunity for new businesses with a real understanding of the requirements, to establish themselves and make a real change for the better. Founded in 2017 by managing director Paul Gibbon, British Renewable Fuels is a proudly British supplier of wooden based fire fuels to the UK market. Producing a range which includes kiln dried logs, briquettes, eco logs and natural firelighters as well as a range of renewable energy focussed consultancy services, the business plays an important role in keeping this fuel as green as possible.
HOW DO THEY DO IT? Far from being just chopped wood, the process of manufacturing briquettes and eco logs is one of patience and care and for British Renewable Fuels
British Renewable Fuels works with a staff contingent of seven employees and are responsible for managing the process at all the key points. As a small business their production capacity is around 7-10 metric tons a day which accounts for roughly 1% of the country’s overall output. “Quality counts for a great deal,” he says, “Like good timber, businesses should be given enough time to mature properly.” Once the various products are packaged and prepared, be them briquettes, eco logs or fire starters they are palletised and shipped out to the various customers and retailers via outsourced fleet.
THE APPROACHING CHANGE Expected to come into force in February 2021, the upcoming government legislation will put restrictions on burning house coal or wet wood in stoves, open flames and wood burners. This stands to affect over two and a half million people in the UK who use such fuels either for warmth during the winter or as an important part of their business.
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“Mistral Energy is another business component of mine through which I consult on renewable energy projects around the UK,” he says, “We’ve built over sixty three wind turbines in Scotland, created biomass generators and consulted on local businesses on how they can increase their own sustainability.” Paul goes on to explain that being a small business they are incredibly flexible with meeting their customer’s needs. This relationship building has allowed Paul the opportunity to help their clients drastically change their carbon footprint. Not only by using the most sustainable wooden fuel created under the best conditions but also to become sustainable with their energy.
According to Paul, wood with a moisture factor of over twenty percent creates more contamination and smoke. This includes logs sold in DIY stores, garden centres and outside petrol-stations or wood stored outside instead of in a shed.
“Many farms may have the land available to erect a wind turbine or the roof space on a barn or farmhouse for solar panels,” he says, “This gives them a great opportunity to make themselves entirely sustainable and self-efficient.”
Wood-consuming stoves and coal fires are the biggest wellspring of the fine particulate issue (PM2.5), these are little particles of air contamination which can find their way into the body’s lungs and blood. Twenty eight times smaller than the width of human hair they can aggravate or even cause asthma, strokes, lung cancer and coronary illness.
RENEWABLE RECEPTION Paul has been involved with some very interesting renewable endeavours, including megawatt projects in East Anglia in England and micro generation projects. He has noticed that there is a marked difference in reception to renewable energy depending on where you go in the UK.
As indicated by the UK government figures, the burning of these types of wet logs is responsible for 38% of the complete PM2.5 contamination in the UK which is more than street transport and industry joined! So, in line with their goals to lower the country’s carbon footprint the government has started cinching down on this harmful producer of air contamination. This, however, puts a number of people and business owners in a difficult position. “Wood is still a major source of heat for the British public,” Paul explains, “As well as playing an important role in many businesses ranging from restaurants, leather tanning and metal working, to boutique hospitality such as camping and glamping. These restrictions could impact them all.”
RENEWABLE ENERGY IN BRITAIN With a prominent background in renewable industry and a very clear view of the sector’s landscape, Paul began British Renewable Fuels to provide the products that businesses would need. Additionally, he also offers consultancy services to help them make the best of what renewable energy has to offer.
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“Scotland’s natural stance for renewable projects is to accept and not reject. So they are very advanced in things like wind farms, on and offshore,” he says, “But in England these same projects are met with scepticism and an initial refusal. Renewable energy and sustainability are keywords at the moment, but you can see the real dedication in how governments act.” Fortunately, people and businesses are free and able to make use of the renewable energy resources themselves. And, standing in their corner, British Renewable Fuels has already proved that even during crisis like Covid 19, they are up for the challenge and keeping their customers supplied. “We did not slow down production during Lockdown,” he explains, “Our yard is large enough that there is roughly five metres if not more between each of our staff. This was fortunate because during spring and summer time we process and stockpile so that we have the supply for the winter months where the requirement often doubles. Also, during the Lockdown period a lot of our clients still required their fuel for their home heating or their small businesses.”
Boutique hospitality, like glamping, relies on offering all the benefits of camping while matching these with the luxuries of a hotel room. What says camping more than an open fire?
And, Post Lockdown, the glamping industry has seen a massive worldwide thrust as these destinations also offer privacy and so social distancing is easily achieved. The industry is set to continue to grow with more sites opening up but irrespective of whether the glamping sites consists of dozens of tents, domes and wigwams or just a single tipi, they are all going to be subject to the new law regarding what sort of wood is burnt. “Industries need to take these changes seriously,” Paul says, “And understand that laws like this open more doors than they close. Glamping site owners may not be aware of what their land is capable of producing in terms of sustainable, economic energy which is very trendy in hospitality and travel at the moment.”
2020/2021
WHAT DOES RENEWABLE MEAN TO YOUR INDUSTRY? As mentioned earlier, fire still plays a crucial role in many businesses. As an example, in hospitality, glamping continues to grow not only in popularity but diversity and there is definite need for more economic and sustainable means of fuelling fires.
in the outdoors that the majority of sites offer firepits, wood burners, barbecues and wood fired hottubs as part of their packages.
Paul reveals that he aims to reach an output level of 5000 tons this coming winter. Once this has been achieved, they will know that they can aim for 10,000 tons next year. This will mean a doubling of staff and production to meet and exceed this target.
“We have an important role to play, so we are building our business one briquette at a time,” he says.
Open fires, for cooking, for warmth and ambiance are such a quintessential part of camping and being
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07932 641808 www.redskytentco.org
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REVIEW
HUSTYNS GLAMPING VILLAGE, CORNWALL
With forty locally employed staff, the glamping village enjoys a rural setting, miles from civilization, in the peaceful tranquillity of the Cornish countryside. With four bell tents, decorated in a woodland theme which can accommodate up to four people each, this first step into glamping has proven very popular and comes highly recommended.
each tent, as well as access to a microwave, TV and DVD player, with a selection of movies to watch should you desire…there are also a collection of board games as well as a couple of crochet sets. There is a small kitchenette with electric camping stove and washing up facilities as well as a women’s, men’s and disabled toilets with soap and hand towels provided. Our glamping guests have the advantage of being able to use the leisure facilities onsite, which allows them to utilise the leisure facilities showers but most importantly it includes the use of our 20m indoor heated pool, jacuzzi, sauna, steam room, fitness suite and Health & Beauty Spa. The outdoor facilities include crazy golf, tennis courts and an abundance of woodland walks with spectacular scenery.
THE TENTS
CUSTOMER SERVICE
Hustyns Glamping Village opened in March 2018 and was Aston Management International’s entry into the glamping industry. With another hotel in Cambridge, they purchased Hustyns Hotel & Spa in January 2018 and added the glamping pods to further expand their services to the public.
THE LOCATION
Hustyns aim to build trust with our guests as well as the locals, to encourage growth as well as future visits and improved sense of community, whether it be the use of our locally sourced produce for the restaurant or building relationships with guests and greeting them with a warm welcome, we strive to ensure all their needs are met, going the extra mile to make certain they have an enjoyable stay.
Each 5m tent can sleep up to four people and comes with the basic amenities including electrical sockets, tea and coffee making facilities and a BBQ, although coals and food are not included. Other available features are a sizeable communal room and amenities block, which are situated next to the glamping village. There is a small fridge for
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THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND Hustyns Hotel & Spa is situated in the middle of the idyllic St Breock Downs, 3 miles from Wadebridge and therefore has no public transport routes, so it is advised that you bring your own transport. Relying on taxi’s is often very expensive and can be unreliable due to our very rural location. PRICE: £99 - £129 per night (varies during high season) WEBSITE: www.hustyns.co.uk COMPANY ADDRESS: Hustyns Hotel & Spa, St Breock, Wadebridge, Cornwall, PL27 7LG. TELEPHONE: 0044 (0) 1208 893700 EMAIL: enquiries@hustyns.co.uk
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NOMAD AFRICA ADVENTURE TOURS “Return to Africa”
As a child, Alex Rutherford didn’t get the chance to explore Africa. During the 90s there was a trend for South Africans to travel to Great Britain after they finished university in search of adventure and travel. For countless saffas, the UK was the default option for these young adults. This was an option that Alex found himself taking but it wasn’t long before he made the decision to step off the wellworn-trail followed by everyone else and cut his own.
“I desperately wanted to see Africa,” he reflects, “And so I decided that the way to do it would be to drive from London to Cape Town.” After a couple of false starts to his journey, which taught Alex a great deal about vehicle maintenance,
he was finally underway along with two other adventurers. Together they’d raised £3000 for the trip which would see them travel across the entire length of the African continent. Alex admits that in comparison to the research that can be done today, they really were stepping into the unknown. This was in the early 90s, a period where GPS guidance and internet maps were toys for film characters and the super-rich. Alex and his friends were delving into deepest, darkest Africa with a car, some supplies and a general direction (south) for which to aim. The adventurer now admits that it was actually a pretty grim experience at the time which soon became less about enjoyment and more about completion. However, looking back, he reveals that it set the scene for his entire career and established certain characteristics that he values. Such as self-reliance, optimism, solution-finding and the importance of being unflappable.
“When your vehicle breaks down in the middle of nowhere you have two options,” he says, “You either sit and wait for a miracle or you make one happen yourself. I learnt that there is always a solution as long as you know where you need to go and there are always people willing to help you along the way, irrespective of which country you are in…. Or think you’re in at the time.” It was also during this period that Alex was introduced to the safari business. Having grown up in South Africa, safaris and bush tours was an industry that was instantly recognisable and always on the periphery, but he was appalled at the quality of the tours available. “I was frankly mortified at the way that some of the old-style companies were doing these trips,” he explains, “It was an absolute free-for-all where businesses would rip off foreign travellers and provide them with safari tours with next to no standards under the guise of offering them an “authentic” experience.”
Nomad Adventure Tours and Holidays was the original name. This mouthful was chosen because they didn’t want to pigeon-hole themselves and they were aware the market may change down the line. Since then the name has changed over time because they’ve become known more as Nomad Tours or Nomad Africa.
At the time as well, he reveals, the guests would also be in charge of the food budget so often they would end up literally going hungry during their tour. “There was a lack of standards and a lack of accountability,” Alex says, “I thought that there had to be a better way of doing this.” At the time, Alex had studied psychology and economics, two subjects he had chosen almost purely for the benefit of passing exams. So, to launch his safari business he had to fall onto his skills as an entrepreneur. His first business idea was purchasing non-shelf shoes from large shoe manufacturers and selling them in town ships at a massive discount for those people who needed them. And, his initial trip from SA to UK was funded by another venture with his best friend called Maverick Enterprises where they purchased items from auction and sold them off for a profit. He fondly remembers those days of trading everything from grand pianos to mousepads! Business was certainly something that he took naturally to and their first official safari was in 1997. They started as they would continue, by setting a pioneering example of what would make the guest-experience better and this included launching a new vehicle that had steel sides and provided additional security for the guest.
“All of the safaris were at the same level at the time,” he reflects, “To stand out from the crowd we just offered a better service to start with and partnered with businesses that cared about their guests and clients.”
Today the company has different safari departments offering select kinds of tours. For scheduled tours they have their Nomad branded dated departures. These are very popular, and they run around seven hundred a year, which include fixed itineraries and fixed prices for those newcomers to safaris who want the best experience at the fairest rate. In addition, they have a charter departure, where they run trips for companies outside SA that want to run tours in Southern or Eastern Africa. These are then branded for these companies and run for them.
ACCCOMMODATION Accommodation during the safaris are ranked in stars. Two stars covers your good old fashioned basic tent and sleeping bag camping. Three stars covers basic rustic lodges varying from a bed under a roof and variations of that including chalets, rondovals and lodges. They also do a small group department for a maximum of fourteen and those are in the better quality lodges with more reliable facilities. Then they do the private individual tours with 5-6 star accommodation and these can include resorts, stand-alone high luxury safari tented camps and boutique accommodations with full WIFI and hotel amenities.
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“No two trips to Africa will ever be the same,” Alex explains, “Even if you grew up here you always feel that there is something more to see. Something just beyond the horizon that you’ll have to come back to look at.” And, Nomad Africa has been built on value. Alex’s whole mission is to have no one ever say that it wasn’t worth the money spent. He doesn’t believe in low volume high cost tourism and in his experience, catering to the five star market is way more detrimental than having a lot of feet through the door.
And not all of the tours are purely focussed on safaris in the wild, they also do trips focussed on speciality fishing, cycling and hiking. “People are often drawn to Africa to explore their passions,” he explains, “For these kinds of tours we always partner with experienced professionals that offer the highest standard and can also keep the guest safe.” While keeping his business up-to-date is important, Alex does think it is unfortunate that some styles of safari are on the decline. Camping for example. Modern media and the influence of so called “travellers” on social media have changed the attitudes of many who come to Africa automatically expecting to see the continent’s wild side while still enjoying hot running water for their showers, a comfortable mattress and WIFI. “Of course, the industry today has moved with these expectations,” he says, “But the average tourist today is a bit soft. Camping is on the decline across the board. Anything that isn’t predictable is a problem and they don’t want to camp because they don’t like bugs and they don’t like the wet and they stress out over the small details. Camping is all about the small details though and some of the best and most memorable experiences to be had are when things are unpredictable.”
“Very rich people require ridiculous resources, what you need for one client and the mess that goes with it is quite high,” he says, “It’s not about how people travel through space it’s how they are managed. The more people who visit the better, for awareness and to fall in love with the place as long as these people are managed well.” Alex has seen first-hand the infrastructure required to ensure aircons in the middle of nowhere, to transport luxury food products and drinks and to haul wardrobes of clothes for those “perfect Instagram pictures”. It is wasteful of resources and can be easily damaging to the locations visited. “We’re more for the mid-market people,” he says, “For the people who have dreamt of coming to Africa and want to be able to visit and see things. Accessibility to Africa should be managed but open to everyone.”
LOOK AFTER YOUR FAMILY
BITTEN BY THE BUG Speaking of getting bitten by bugs, a big part of Nomad Africa’s success is their return visitors. Many of the guests return. They have people who have travelled with them for over a decade. One lady has enjoyed seventeen trips with them and has never had the same experience twice.
Alex believes in staff loyalty and in particular, being loyal to your staff. Nomad to him is his family. The Covid-19 Lockdown struck the travel and tourism industry the hardest and he reveals that they shut down on March 15th and have not run a tour since. However, their story has been interesting, as he explains. “We sat around for a week or two to see where things were going and realised that this was not going to be a short haul thing,” he says.
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He then spent his time gathering data and reading papers from both sides of the line to form as comprehensive an understanding as possible. Then, as a company Nomad Africa sat down and had some seriously long meetings on the position they were going to take.
“We are optimistic,” he says, “But there is no doubt that it has been brutal and from my point of view I don’t think we will be running a tour for the remainder of this year. What we had to decide was how do we survive as a family.”
“We have to protect our staff,” he says, “That is what we decided. We have to protect our family.” During a time of crisis, the choices that a business makes will always define them. According to Alex, several of Nomad’s biggest competitors just laid off their staff with no work and no pay, cancelling on thousands of clients and guides together. Refusing refunds and generally approaching the crisis with a big shrug. “While some of our clients were happy to reschedule their bookings with us, we have not fought refunding other clients their money in full,” he says, “And we will continue doing so and we are one of the only businesses in our industry that have done that.”
With over a hundred and fifty people employed by Nomad Africa and thousands of clients to consider, Alex and his team spent as long as needed to gather as much information on how to handle the situation. Liaising with dozens of companies, scrutinising as much data as was available from both sides of the line and discussing it with themselves they came to a decision that will define them as a company.
As far as staff is concerned, Alex relates how they paid everyone right up through March, April and May while the Lockdown continued. Then they took out a GoFundMe project for funding, which they matched, and this enable them to continue paying the guides who rely on Nomad entirely for their income. Nomad Africa employs 85 guides that they have continued to support, even if it’s with a food voucher system so everyone will get the minimum requirement of food. “Food is the big thing for a third world country,” Alex says, “And we are supporting 150 families.
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We have no money coming in, so I’ve accessed personal funds, bonds, properties and loans to keep the wheels turning and I’ve factored working throughout this year with no revenue. Then going in the first and second quarter of 2021 we’re looking at having 50% usual revenue. For now, until business comes back, our priority is to look after our people in South Africa, Kenya, Botswana and Zimbabwe.”
POST LOCKDOWN Like many other businesses, they had big plans for 2020 and were just in the process of starting them when everything stopped. This enforced quiet period has given them the chance to refine plans for the remainder of this year and 2021, come up with new ideas, innovations and make sure that everything is in the right position for when things open again. “Our data says that people aren’t really interested in new stuff at the moment,” Alex tells us, “Everyone is going for our stock-standard itineraries and that is what people are interested in. People come to Africa to see Africa, to experience the safaris, the culture, the food and the sights. So as far as the actual safaris are concerned, we just need to make sure the vehicles and equipment are well maintained, the guides are well trained, and our partners are up to spec.” fice point of view development is ongoing. They make sure to keep themselves abreast of the best developments for booking and convenience, they are regularly expanding their reach to offer new and interesting locations to their clients. They are investigating new private safari style travels which could be useful post Covid tours and are also looking into developing camping. “We are on a mission for the camping tours, the reason is because it’s been in decline and funnily enough the current vibe of people is not wanting to be in cities,” he says, “People have been cooped up for a long time and want to have a change of perspective. Imagine how liberating it could be to be in the Namibian desert, on a sand dune and surrounded by an endless ocean of sand. That’s a solid way to get over your lockdown cabin fever.”
selling. Alex reveals that there is a Field of Dreams misconception in tourism that “if you build it, they will come”, but this isn’t the case at all. His experience has taught him that sales is in everything and he has had to learn how to sell for the sake of his business.
“Just because you run a good show doesn’t mean you’ll have guests,” he says, “You have to know how to sell it.” Admitting that he is an operator and a doer, a quintessential Jack of All Trades but not a natural salesman, Alex reveals that he has had to overcome this and align himself with the strength of selling. Not just products and packages but ideas and the story. Leadership is largely down to selling your team on an idea and a vision.
“A great deal of work is going on in the background to protect everyone, but it only works if your whole team believes in what you are doing,” he says, “They have to trust your leadership and have faith in the vision that you are sharing. My family is my business and I have no kids, instead I have guides, office staff and trucks.” Price: Per day 2-60 days. Daily rate: £70/day camping side. Up to £120 mid-range. £170.00 That will get you up to four stars. EMAIL: alex@nomadtours.co.za
THE BEHIND THE SCENES TRIUMPHS One of the strengths of Nomad Africa is that they are light on their feet and active in their
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REVIEW
BAYVIEW LODGE Beautiful Mozambican Bay views growing. Care has been taken to protect the environment and this has encouraged birds as well as all kinds of small animal life to make their home here and are flourishing. At Bay View Lodge the aim is to work with nature, and therefore all garden refuse is composted while the bigger branches and palm leaves are used for dune stabilisation. Bayview Lodge is a refuge, accessible by a single access road, away from traffic and crowds, surrounded by peace and quiet broken only by the sounds of ocean waves reaching up the endless sandy beach of the estuary behind the lodge. This is a place of natural beauty and serenity. A picturesque piece of land on the Barra Peninsula, Mozambique. Close enough to amenities to keep guests connected to the world while being only steps away from the beach, Bayview Lodge opened its doors in 2009 and has been a popular destination ever since.
THE FOUNDERS As quintessentially African as the Lodge is, so are its founders. John is a building contractor who has been associated with Mozambique since the 1980’s and also built and operated Coral Island Lodge on Benguerra Island in 1992, which he sold a few years later. Gunther, an Austrian citizen, has travelled extensively through Africa in a Volkswagen Kombi in 1963/4. He is an electrical engineer and still running an electrical engineering company in South Africa.
Founded by John Bishop and Gunther Wilfinger, Bayview Lodge has a total of eighteen rooms and can accommodate up to thirty-nine guests at a time. Available are four one-bedroom units, three two-bedroom units and the Group House which consists of eight rooms. The overall design style can be described as ‘beachside simplicity’.
What these gentlemen have in common is a love of Africa and a love of good hospitality. This is one of the many reasons why Bay View Lodge is a favoured destination for many safari tour providers such as Nomad Africa Adventure Tours. They elevate the African experience of anyone staying there.
Interestingly, the furniture was manufactured on the premises and the soft furnishings, such as chair cushions, lamp shades etc., have been made by the local crafts people. This has given the benefit that each unit is individually furnished with its own unique flavour.
THE EXPERIENCE
The thatched roofs keep the units cool during the day and all the bedrooms are air-conditioned making sleep easy in the sub-tropical climate that the region is known for.
The aim is to offer most of the amenities that a guest has at home combined with a beautiful setting. The decision was taken to not have television in the units, as they want families and friends talking to each other, playing games, enjoying the singular view from the patios and watching the stars at night with a drink in hand.
INSPIRATIONAL DESIGN All the houses have been designed to face the beach and spaced apart to give each unit privacy. The houses also incorporate existing vegetation, particularly indigenous ilala palms which are slow
Free WIFI is available at the reception area and the onsite restaurant provides added luxury to folks
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CUSTOMER SERVICE
that do not want to self-cater. The restaurant, run by the aforementioned French husband and wife team is considered the Number 1 restaurant in Mozambique according to TripAdvisor - https:// www.tripadvisor.co.za/Restaurants-g293818Mozambique.html
Building relationships is vital for the business. According to management, without relationships, a business is doomed to stagnate. Furthermore, building customer relationships requires knowing about a client’s needs and ‘likes-to-have’s’. Once these are known it is easier to satisfy expectations even if it means going out of your way to do so.
PARTNERSHIPS Since January 2015, Bay View Lodge Mozambique have worked with Nomad Africa Adventure Tours. Providing not only comfortable lodgings for tourists but the kind of hospitality that any country would be proud of.
THINGS TO KEEP IN MIND This is a mild malaria area. This means that for stays less of two weeks no malaria tablets are needed but precautions are advised. This includes wearing light cotton long sleeve blouses/shirts and pants when sitting outside in the evening and using insect repellent during the day and evenings. All beds have proper mosquito nets.
‘These relationships are very important as they ensure guaranteed guests on a regular basis, forming the backbone of the lodge’s business.”
POST COVID 19 PRECAUTIONS All units and reception area are properly sanitized daily during and after stays and all staff wear
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masks when on duty. With units being spacious and spaced well apart from each other there is no need for guests to wear masks while on the lodge premises. The restaurant is also properly sanitized daily and only accepts guests through bookings. Once things improves, they will start to accept walk-ins but until then safety is most important. Currently everybody needs to wear a mask when in public places such as towns, shops and markets. PRICE/NIGHT: Average price R600/person/night (South African Rand - ZAR) - accommodation only COMPANY ADDRESS: Barra Road, Praia da Barra, Inhambane Province, Mozambique TELEPHONE: +27 82 902 4628 EMAIL: info@bayviewlodgemoz.com WEBSITE: www.bayviewlodgemoz.com
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WILD GAZE SAFARIS More than just a safari
When Ernest Lugalla founded Wild Gaze Safaris in 2018, it wasn’t just to share the magnificent beauty of his country with travellers and adventure loving tourists. He wanted to give back to his community and Wild Gaze Safaris has been the perfect vehicle for doing this and for raising awareness for a number of important projects. Built on the foundation of over a decade of experience and wild life conservation which Ernest acquired as a professional Game Warden in the area. This period was an exciting time that saw him working as a protection officer at Wamimbiki Wildlife Management Area, the Kilombero District Council and working with the Selous Game Reserve. He also worked as a safari guide and driver for over ten years.
WHAT MAKES WILD GAZE SAFARIS UNIQUE? Wild Gaze Safaris makes full use of the beauty of their country and the diversity of their communities. Their tours focus on the southern
circuit of Tanzania, which offers a vast endowment of tourism assets such as national parks and reserves. These areas suit wildlife safaris, photographic safaris, walking safaris, night game drives and boat tours. The Southern Tanzania is also home to a number of ethnic tribes that participated in the historic African liberation. These include the Hehe tribe and Ngoni who participated in the famous MajiMaji war 1905-1907. Also, large portions of this area are relatively underdeveloped with most of the population relying on subsistence farming. These communities exist in close proximity to the parks and game reserves sharing resources such as water with the animal population.
GIVING BACK “Soon after founding Wild Gaze Safaris, we managed to establish Wild Gaze Charity Foundation, with the motto: don’t just wave hands, stop and make an impact”,” Ernest explains, “With this we give ten percent of our gross sales to local
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“We can’t operate in this industry alone,” he says, “So to achieve our business goals we have developed many local and regional relationships. These partnerships in turn make us much stronger.” Some of these relationships include being recognised members of the ITA (Iringa Tourism Association), the Karibu Kusini Tourism Trade Fair, Tanzania Tourist Board, (TTB) Tanzania’s Tours Operators Organisation (TATO) and the Tanzania revenue authority. International partnerships include working with the likes of booking.com, TripAdvisor, The Lost Executive and more.
communities for the building of schools, provisions of meals and water wells and implementing a project entitled Empower Heroes of Tomorrow Project.” This is aimed at helping children recover from the covid19 break which took them more than three months off school. Wild Gaze Safari will provide them with safety materials such as masks, install water facilities and provide soaps and sanitizers. They will also provide motivational education, because most of students are still in fear as the local government has opened all public schools from June 29th 2020, ahead of a proper vaccine.
Then of course, there are the business relationships with the destinations and accommodations that the safaris visit. They’ve partnered with a number of tent camp operators and hotels and lodges. Including Mwabusi Safari Camp, Ruaha Hill Lodge, Ruaha River Lodge and Iringa Sunset Hotel to name a few.
BUILDING A UNIQUE SAFARI
“These relationships are very important to us because at the end of a day of safari adventures, guests want to be able to enjoy a hot shower and a good meal,” he says, “And fall into a deep and comfortable sleep.”
Ernest reveals that the journey to build up his business can be traced back to 2003 when he started working to champion wildlife conservation in Kilombero Morogoro. It took a long time to set up his own business and he believes that business development and set up is ongoing. “Businesses grow and develop,” he points out, “Our development is continuous, as we aim to be adaptive to changes and flexible with industry movements as we strive to achieve the vision of a sustainable wild life business, conservation and a poverty free community.”
RELATIONSHIPS There are many aspects that go into building a fundamentally solid safari business. None more important than relationships, which can help you not only offer guests the best experience but at the same time set a high standard for other businesses in the field to follow. Ernest explains:
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building and acquiring our own accommodations facility that will fit the class of our services and the needs of our clients. So, we have founded Tanzania Mivumo Camps as our accommodation brand.”
ACCOMMODATION
KEEPING UP TO DATE Making sure that he is up to date with all of the industry trends and dynamics is a continuous part of the daily routines for the business. According to Ernest you can never know too much about the state of your industry and the more you know the better experience you can offer to your guests. “We are one of the few safari operators that have a research and development department,” Ernest reveals, “And it is their full time task to follow up on the tourism industry and keep us abreast of the associated industry trends. This enables us as a company to remain up to date and they are also responsible for managing the digital platforms such as our website and mobile app developments.”
WHAT DOES IT TAKE TO KEEP A SAFARI OPERATION ALIVE? Ernest has been involved in safaris and tours long enough to know that many companies do not last the test of time. The Covid 19 global lockdown is a fine example of how some businesses are not flexible and light on their feet. The fact is, he says, is that you have to keep forward facing and always developing and offering something new.
Safaris last several days up to a couple of weeks, along the Southern Circuit of Tanzania where there is a lot to see and an array of lodges and hotels. As clients inevitably associate the quality of these accommodations with the safaris provided, Ernest has always been very careful to select only the finest. Units in their safaris are classified as single, double, triple, and family units. All of them are beautifully decorated with cultural hand drawings and décor pictures that describe the rich Tanzanian art and culture. The unit’s designs are purely of local engineering methods. The entertainment doesn’t end with the safari and the locations all offer something special for their guests. As the southern circuit parks and tourist centres are surrounded by communities, the stays can include local dances, meals and other practises to be enjoyed. Guests can also visit the Maasiai Boma and the Viassai which is the local tribe. “Each location has something unique going for them, for example the bird watching in most of the locations is incredible as Tanzania is well known for its exotic and glorious birds,” he says, “And for those who wish, guests can also contribute to our important community projects and charities if they want.”
Ernest’s team are developing an associated mobile app and are planning to offer virtual reality tourism through artificial intelligence in the future. Opening up the realms of customer experience exponentially. They have also begun investing in their own accommodation facility. “Since we started one of the biggest challenges to us, has been getting the accommodations that fit the needs of our clients from the third party operators,” Ernest says, “We decided to invest in
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CHALLENGES Some of the challenges that young safari businesses face are identical to any start-up business and some are not. For example, raising capital to invest in safari cars and recruiting staff and guides has to come from somewhere and this can be challenging in Tanzania where bank loans have high interest rates. In addition, getting safari licenses in Tanzania can be expensive and this is one of the reasons many local safaris are owned and operated by external overseas investors. The biggest challenge however is learning how to deal with natural disasters such as floods and pandemics. The rain season lasts from October to December, and in 2019 Tanzania experienced a record breaking flood of the Great Ruaha River. Some of the local bridges and tourist ways were blocked, and it imposed the challenge to the safari operators as the government didn’t give the companies tax incentives so as to survive. This coupled with the Covid 19 Lockdown had an extremely negative effect on the tourism industry, and some safari companies have been completely shut down. As far as challenges go this was a big one because there was no business coming in and the government was still expecting the annual tax. However, Ernest explains that the only way around these sorts of challenges is to foster strong relationships based on communication and transparency with partnered businesses, clients and staff.
2021 For the remainder of this year and for 2021, the following are part of their major development plan. Increasing the engagement of their international markets and to continue promoting their company. There will be a reduction of prices to mitigate the effects of the pandemic. There is also the aim to support their charity work by raising at least $100,000 USD for the various activities of the Wild Gaze Charity Foundation. This will be used to help with community reparations after Covid 19. WEBSITE: https://wildgazesafaris.com FACEBOOK: fb.me/wildgazesafaris TWITTER: @gazeworld INSTAGRAM: @wildgazesafaris_tanzania LINKEDIN: Wild Gaze Safaris
“You also have to keep moving forward,” he says, “There will always be obstacles, but everything put in our way can be navigated around. Sometimes you find a map and follow it, sometimes you make your own map. But there is always a way around it. You just need to know how to lead and work as a team.”
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GOODYEAR SOUTH AFRICA Two years behind the wheel To celebrate two years behind the wheel of one of the pioneering tyre brands in the world, we got the chance to catch up with Darren HayesPowell, who’s been Group Managing Director of Goodyear South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa since November 2017. Goodyear South Africa have had a presence in the country since before the last century was in its teenage years. From as early as 1912 they were importing tyres and in 1945, they opened their own manufacturing plant to keep up with the demand for safe and reliable tyres. Over a century later the business is still a pioneer in its industry, a powerful and respected name and a keen market innovator.
KEEPING THE PACE South Africa’s automotive market is an all-out race of intense competition, where businesses are having to implement new technologies, formulate new strategies, assimilate new market analytic data and make decisions while keeping the accelerator pedal pressed hard. This was the exact environment that Darren Hayes-Powell, Group Managing Director of Goodyear South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa, entered into when he took over the steering wheel in November 2017 and planted his foot firmly on that pedal. “It was an exhilarating time to take the role,” he reveals, “But I was confident in my local team’s ability to meet the tasks ahead and I was fully prepared to start at a sprint.” In all fairness, he was already accustomed to the blistering pace of Goodyear’s managerial circle. Having spent twenty-five years working with Rolls Royce, he entered Goodyear in 2008 as Finance and IT Director for the United Kingdom. He then became Vice President of Finance for Asia, then Vice President of Operations and Technology Finance before taking on his current assignment almost exactly two years ago.
Darren Hayes-Powell
“My international experience and thorough understanding of Goodyear’s strategy and culture put me in a good position to deliver the strategies for South Africa and Sub-Saharan Africa. But even then, it was still a learning curve.” THE MAN FOR THE JOB However, in the same way that Goodyear’s reputation for keeping all four tyres on the road (innovations involving flying cars aside), Darren has a reputation for being sure footed and always having a plan. For
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his entire career, Darren has consistently been an allrounder. He studied to be a Mechanical Engineer and an accountant before going on to complete a Master’s in Business Administration. This, coupled with a great passion for business turnaround strategies, has equipped him with the great ability to see the situation for what it is, the clear headedness to gain a clear understanding of what needs to be done, and the charisma and leadership qualities to motivate a team to do it. As an example, when Darren joined Goodyear in 2008, the UK operating company was operating at a loss and he responded, undauntedly by supporting turning things around. After which he was tested again with a transfer to Asia with its fast pace market development, initially to support the new factory build in Pulandian which has become one of the best performing plants within the Goodyear organisation. Darren was later called upon to do this again with another new manufacturing plant in Mexico in 2015.
The custom creation of bespoke solutions for different markets is written into Goodyear’s DNA, however it was epitomised shortly after Darren joined with the upgraded and state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in Uitenhage. Goodyear invested close to 1 billion Rand (£52M) in the Eastern Cape facility to improve the ability to produce high technology capable passenger tyres to meet the market’s demands.
It would seem that Darren’s career has been defined by leading through example, often managing several high responsibility roles simultaneously, motivating entire teams and taking in large amounts of coffee to aid his out of the box thinking. He explains his successes quite simply: “Goodyear is a great international family, comprised of fantastic teams working together and working hard. I don’t believe there is such a thing as a one-man success story.”
TWO YEARS IN So, now almost two years to the date since Darren joined the Goodyear South Africa team, what are his thoughts about the industry so far? According to him, the South African tyre manufacturing sector in general is of a high standard with local producers all focusing their efforts on meeting the growing demands of the high-paced vehicle manufacturing sector. With this in mind, he believes that Goodyear does possess an edge over their competitors because their tyres are specifically designed for South African conditions, such as the swift dispersion of water in wet weather, efficient low rolling resistance technology and off-the-road performance.
“South Africa and Sub Saharan Africa are known for their intense climates,” Darren says, “And our tyres are manufactured to take into account all the variables of weather and road conditions.”
“The investment equipped the plant with the latest technologies and processes, as well as increased local production capacity for high complex, technical tyres,” he says. “It positioned Goodyear as a leader in the creation of low rolling resistant tyres that promote fuel economy in vehicles together with the latest technology SUV and 4x4 tyres,” Darren explained. It has also made Goodyear capable of implementing new technologies and strategies over the proceeding years and into the future. Yet again, putting their customers first. The move followed similar investment in Goodyear’s new production facilities in China and Mexico, with all three plants now sporting the same high-technology equipment aimed at producing premium tyres to a uniform world standard. Such as when it comes to wheel balancing and uniformity, which with the rising number of larger tyre sizes and more intricate vehicles is a critical market factor.
THE ROAD AHEAD Goodyear tyres are prepared to meet obstacles on the road ahead, likewise, over his many years in the company, Darren has identified some areas in the industry that may have gone overlooked in the past.
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It is evident that South Africa is a great market that is continuously benefitting from a well-developed infrastructure and a progressive local tyre industry operating on global standards. The retail edge of the market is exciting, modern and stylish and helps make potential buyers far more aware of the importance of fitting reputable tyres. Combining this with an equally developed commercial market has created an energetic environment to operate as a manufacturer of premium tyres. However, despite this, Darren has seen a distressing trend of unsafe second-hand tyres being sold into the market. Historically, South Africa has a high road accident rate which is a result of a number of different factors, but sub-standard tyres fitted to vehicles is only making things worse. Also, most drivers probably don’t realise the problem as they’ve purchased these tyres from an unlicensed dealer who they probably trust.
“The more the consumer knows about the importance of their tyres, the safer our roads will be,” Darren says, “Educating all drivers on the perils of using worn-unsafe tyres will only improve the situation and reduce fatalities on our roads. Frankly, this is not only a South African concern.”
EDUCATION AND ENTERTAINMENT Of course, educating consumers is no simple matter. The importance of explaining to drivers they should buy quality and safe tyres is not a simple one, the trick is bringing innovative, exciting products to the market that offer clear and longterm benefits to both their status and safety. “For example, the new Wrangler, All Terrain Adventure tyre is produced with Kevlar and designed specifically for South African and Sub Saharan roads, protecting the tyres against side wall damage but also off road travelling and potholes. Creating a universal capable tyre.” He goes onto explain that these sorts of developments enable the majority of consumers to appreciate the long-term value of purchasing premium tyres. It is a strategy that enables them to innovate for their current customers and introduce their products to potential ones. Darren points out, that while most people probably buy tyres because they are told their cars need them, others are probably more concerned about how cool the tyres look rather than how safe they are. “So, it is therefore our responsibility to make sure that the tyres are both,” concludes Darren. COMPANY ADDRESS: Algoa Road, Uitenhage, 6229, South Africa TELEPHONE: 0027419946911 EMAIL: gyfeedback@goodyear.co.za WEBSITE: www.goodyear.co.za
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EMAIL:
info@tssn.co.za
TELEPHONE: 0027 (0) 83 222 7412 WEBSITE: www.tssncarriers.co.za
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TSSN CARRIERS People Orientated Construction
BUSINESS
“Now we handle turnkey projects, with solutions for design, architecture, feasibility studies, civil engineering and actual construction as an integrated value chain,” he explains, “We have also diversified into property development.”
TSSN Carriers was founded in 2008 by businessman and entrepreneur Themba Dukes Nyathi. After earning a BA in Law from Wits University, and an MBA from Business School Netherlands in Europe, he was instrumental in the growth of MTN South Africa, one of the largest communications companies in Africa, where he worked for seventeen years as a senior Executive before building his own business.
CLIENTS
Specializing in services involved in the realm of civil, electrical engineering including plant hire, general building and manufacturing, water infrastructure provisionandtheconsultationofengineeringprojects, TSSN Carriers has established itself as a reliable all-inone solution provider to the industry.
Their main clients are primarily from rural social infrastructure projects that cater for the poor. As these include vital projects such as the building of schools, roads, water projects and social housing, it includesworkingandliaisingwithmanyruralandurban industrialisedcommunities,unionsandhighlypoliticized groups.
“Over the last fourteen years since I founded the business,”Thembasays,“Wehavebeencommissioned by and completed work for both the private and the public sector.” He goes on to mention that despite the range of business services that his business offers today, that it all began with him working as a specialist general builder in the early 2000s and has grown organically from there.
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“Communication is the number one priority,” Themba explains, “All relationships and ideas begin from there and it is the best way to handle people.”
not just money. We also take over failed community projects and fully fund them from our balance sheet.”
RELATIONSHIP MANAGEMENT
STAFF With over 840 members directly and indirectly employed through subcontracted contracts Themba’s company provides a much needed source of employment and work for many communities. Enabling his staff to gain important skills through accredited competencies in bricklaying, roofing, paving, electrical services, project management, plastering and more. According to Themba, working with the right people with the right skill sets and experience has helped the company expand greatly. With this growth has come the ability to offer more in the way of services as well as being able to take on increasingly challenging projects. “In 2008 our order book was under R20 million a year, today in 2019 alone our order book has grown substantially, exceeding R840 million,” he says, “And much of this can be attributed to our focus being on quality and sustainable growth and
Themba explains that one of his philosophies is to be very particular with hiring and will only hire self -motivated goal orientated individuals. Choosing not to hire those traditional employees who see the company as just an opportunity to draw a salary, he prefers those who have the same perspective as he. “Our key staff on projects must be self-made business people who consider TSSN as a training ground for their own future businesses,” he says, “With a strong entrepreneurial mindset and a determination to succeed and complete targets.” He goes on to add, “I see it as a sign of a strong company that highly trained and professional staff members choose to stay rather than set up themselves.”
INNOVATION A big believer in ABT, Alternative Building Technologies, Themba is an ambassador for innovation and change in his industry and has spent much time convincing and guiding his customers to use the latest cutting edge technologies and methodologies.
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“Our processes are automated and supported by the latest data processing technologies such as CCS,” he says, “And our approach follows the same commitment.”
This has resulted in a number of community hurdles that had to be carefully handled, but even so there was still political interference from community structures, continuous striking over allocation of houses and political pressure from upon high.
He goes on to explain that in Cape Town they are building social housing flats using ABT and that this project doesn’t involve any bricks. The flats are environmentally friendly, using moulds and a special patented mixture instead of bricks and mortar. In winter the units absorb heat efficiently and in summer it is discharged evenly, offering all the standards of a brick house but with limited environmental impact.
“It was a frustrating time,” Themba recalls, “However it was understandable as we had to demolish a shack and build a house in its place and this causes a lot of inconvenience and concern for the community. The other contractors had left them in such a state that there were times when the community seemed to be actively against the project.”
COMMUNITY FOCUSSED Themba recalls one of the projects that TSSN were involved in that he considers to be a triumph for the business. The project consisted of demolishing an informal settlement at Empumelweni, Witbank Mpumalanga and designing, planning and constructing over three thousand formal dignified houses to accommodate over twenty thousand people who could not have otherwise afforded such accommodation. This was not a straight forward process, as he explains, “The community had unfortunately been taken advantage of by other contractors,” he says, “They had not delivered and this poor service and failure to complete the project had left them hopeless and without any trust.”
With dogged determination however, the project was completed, and the community finally had a neighbourhood they could be proud of. The overall quality of life of the residence improved and TSSN were acknowledged by the community. It took three years to complete and it won them one of the Contractor of The Year status by the Mpumalanga government.
FUTUREPROOFING Themba has been in the industry for long enough to know the importance of taking on diverse challenges such as the Empumelweni project, and the importance of keeping up with the latest technologies, techniques and developments in the industry. In fact, he reveals that he likes to expose himself to as many varied techniques from as many different sources as possible. “I keep abreast of all the construction benchmarks and travel the world to see the latest construction and engineering trends,” he reveals, “I find that different countries manage challenges and problems in different ways. This reminds me to keep an open mind and to explore different solutions whenever my business comes up against one.”
INDUSTRY HURDLES AND SOLUTIONS Exceeding a client’s expectations is a target that Themba drives his business to aim for. Not only because the only way to stand out against the competition is to be better in all aspects than them, but also because clients deserve to be happily surprised.
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To create a company that can consistently do this is not a simple thing, Themba reveals that one of the biggest challenges facing the industry at the moment is a lack of skills not only in the hands-on building industry but in financial analysts, project managers, process and civil engineers and specialist technicians. “South Africa suffers from a skills exodus,” he admits, “Graduates leave school and head abroad for better opportunities, but the issue is endemic of the schooling and educational system and not just because people think the grass is greener overseas.” Themba’s response is to provide vocational, experiential learnerships and graduate programs that allow them to train up new staff members while they work and earn. Allowing the business to tap into the rich resource of those who learn better on the job. A man with his eye always on the future for his business, community and country, Themba believes that the educational system in South Africa could do with a revamp. “I think the system needs to change to focus on real skills that are required by industries like they do in Japan and East Asia,” he says, “These areas are seeing economic growth on an exponential factor
while our more traditional educational systems today produce irrelevant skills, creating a gap between what is needed and what is known which graduates have to jump across.”
2020 The new year is going to be an exciting one for TSSN Carriers with a number of promising projects in the Western Cape and Kwa Zulu Natal. These include building one of the biggest education facilities in deep rural KZN Pongola through private public partnerships. For the first time the black rural villagers will have an educational facility complete with swimming pools, tennis courts, laboratories, computer centres etc. The facility will also service the whole community and provide a high standard of education for everyone. “By doing our part to build up the communities we set the platform for them to do great things in the future,” he says. COMPANY ADDRESS: 222 Rivonia Rd, Sandton TELEPHONE: 0027 (0) 83 222 7412 EMAIL: info@tssn.co.za WEBSITE: www.tssncarriers.co.za
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ABAX: TELEMATICS. UK How to really look after your customers
Founded in Norway in 2003, ABAX has since opened offices across Europe and the UK and is now present in seven different countries. With products and services reaching clear across the globe, their technology is an essential tool for today’s data-driven vehicle fleet industry. While originally focussed on GPS, over the years they have evolved and expanded into a solutions provider for asset tracking. Generating data on the real-time position and activity of assets and helping clients find ways to make this data work for them. We spoke with Craig Allan, who is based in the UK and is in charge of the all-important and somewhat polymathic field of strategic partnerships. Craig explains that his role is all about the creation and ongoing development of business eco-systems and interestingly his background has not been in telematics.
“As one of the leaders in the industry ABAX know everything there is to know about this technology,” he explains, “So they really don’t need new
experts on that, instead they are always on the lookout for fresh skills and fresh ideas that may come from professionals from different industries.” THE IMPORTANCE OF ADDING VALUE Craig’s role, essentially, is creating the network of relationships upon which the whole can be greater than the sum of the parts. Uniting businesses together to work for the benefit of the customers and in doing so adding significant value to this overall, multi-way relationship. This is one of the reasons that he attributes to ABAX continuing to be busy throughout the Lockdown period. According to him, this is due to the company always striving to create value rather than just sell a product. He says that same added value becomes part of the customer’s value chain and an essential component to their success. “Like a keystone in a roman arch within a grand cathedral, we serve a fundamental purpose beyond just providing items and products,” he says.
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Accessing this data conveniently is one of ABAX’s key products. A user can login to the system and from a single point see all aspects of their vehicles:trips, travel time, location, driving behaviour and more. It is a self-install system to keep up-to-date with one of the most essential components of business: your assets.
THE VALUE Accurate data is more important for businesses than ever. When it comes to broad challenges like climate change, fleet reliant businesses have been tasked with lowering their carbon emissions. Clearly, knowing fuel usage and the driving habits of drivers provides a perfect chance to make real meaningful improvements. And when it comes to combating more specific challenges such as preventing the spread of airborne viruses, being able to map and trace the route of a vehicle allows them to monitor and stop contagions.
Obviously, the Holy Grail of any business is to be considered irreplaceable by your customers. So how have ABAX been able to create this situation? It is easy to give lip service to the importance of adding value to a business’ products and services. But the proof is in the pudding. Ongoing research, planning and development are the differentiating factors between those businesses that say they do and those that genuinely commit. “Some businesses may look at their products and services and ask, ‘How can we develop this?’. They then concentrate on what their product is and see what improvements can be made,” Craig says, “However, adding value isn’t about bolting on extra things to what you already have. Adding real value requires identifying the major problems that your customers are facing. To understand the details of their industry and business even better than they do. What are they trying to achieve? What are their biggest goals? What is standing in their way?” Once you have this information, he says, you then know what your product or service needs to do to help their business grow. And, this approach is ongoing; a continuous process of research, updating and learning that never ends. During the global crisis of Covid-19 and the resultant Lockdown, ABAX’s operations hardly slowed. With some furloughs, and the majority of staff being easily able to work remotely, their range of value-added services were a perfect fit for their customers during this period.
Craig has seen this in action in in Larvik, in Norway where ABAX’s technology was directly used to trace the Corona Virus. This has allowed the municipality to create safety zones around nursing
homes and keep track of who is moving in and out them. It has also meant that telematics can be installed on critical equipment inside the car and monitored on a digital map. All of which has helped in bringing Norway out of Lockdown and reaching the new normal faster.
“With people not being able to go outside or travel, the use of delivery vehicles and fleets increased dramatically,” he says, “From Amazon, Deliveroo, to medical services to essential worker transport and even public transport all of these sectors use fleets and there was an unprecedented need for vehicle tracking and data.”
Particularly with insurance provider Zego entering into their thriving eco-system. All vehicles require insurance by law, but the traditional means of insurance is to pigeon-hole businesses and vehicle owners into certain categories, and charge rates according by category. This may have been the most reasonable approach at the turn of the
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century, but today it is possible to know with absolute accuracy the exact amount of time a vehicle is moving on the road. So, with this kind of data, why are traditional insurers keeping clients paying for their insurance when the vehicle is not on the road?
Examples of this would be GDPR or post Brexit changes. “We are always getting ready to release new training,” he says, “Also, individuals can request to take on more modules to increase their expertise in certain areas and for their own learning and development. Everyone has a login so you can easily see what sort of courses are available.”
Zego chose ABAX out of a pool of 164 telematics companies that they could have worked with. And, once this selection was made, it took only 78 working days to go from decision to implementation. By combining the most accurate vehicle usage data with the most appropriate insurance policies they are now able to offer the chance for fleet customers to pay a rate appropriate to their usage and driving style.
Unsurprisingly, ABAX values data regarding their staff’s development and their happiness. Wherever possible promotions happen from within and there is a strong Scandinavian influence seen in the work-life balance. Surveys are conducted as well as the use of the airport style red-buttongreen-button displays to measure the employee happiness and monthly PFUS (personal follow ups) are conducted. With 80% of the staff being fully happy and engaged Craig says that it makes good business sense to look after your staff because they are the ones looking after your customers.
“Now,” Craig says, “A customer can not only monitor the exact data of their vans, trucks or cars, be them part of a fleet or not. But they can also have insurance cover which reflects their usage and how their drivers drive. In times of crisis like what we’ve found ourselves in, this is what customers want the most. Control.”
RELATIONSHIP. THE REAL VALUE. Even more than some, Craig knows the value of relationships. His entire career has developed around being able to forge new relationships with people and strengthen those already in place. No matter what the industry or the size of a business, in order to create a strong eco-system, it’s all about building trust. He explains that this is why Zego chose to work with them over the 164 telematics providers that they looked at.
STAFF Great ideas and technology doesn’t just pop into existence. It has to be created, nurtured and grown by passionate people who believe they’re working for something important. With this in mind it’s no surprise that ABAX considers its staff to be their most valuable asset. The company head office is in Norway and 350 staff work across the multiple international offices with thirty of these working in the UK. Each country has its own laws and regulations to follow which makes each office unique, but all of the staff are trained within the same ethos that has made ABAX the company it is. The ABAX School is a learning portal that all staff must progress through. This helps get them on the same page, highlights what makes them unique in the industry and making sure that they understand the essential focusses of the business. Craig reveals that there are two main stages, global learning and then country learning. Training lasts for around six weeks for new employees and is a combination of classroom and field based activities and programmes. Further to this, modules are released throughout the year to keep up with legislation changes and developments.
“We came out as a top provider because we were open and honest and wanted to forge a relationship based on that trust,” he says, “We asked questions and established exactly what it was that they wanted to achieve. Others were able to provide solutions, but we were interested in what the long term goal was and how we could help them reach it.”
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“All of the required information can come out of the telematic systems,” Craig says, “Auditors need to be able to sign it off so it has to be formatted correctly and calculated in the same way each year to accurately demonstrate a reduction in carbon emissions.” He adds that they were all over this long before customers were even affected by it, highlighting the trigger points for each client and putting themselves in the position to produce that data and enabling auditors to sign off on it. The issue was that many clients didn’t know that it was going to affect them.
Building relationships with likeminded businesses is everything. And the two companies matched on their ability to think, be agile and their approach to business. Zego’s head office is in London and is similar to the ABAX headquarters in Norway. Including slides in the offices, branded T-shirts and active staff that are engaged, creative and excited.
“And if clients don’t know it’s a problem, they don’t ask for the solution,” he says, “It’s our job to highlight these things on their roadmap and show them where they are going and what to expect. This is looking after them, this is value adding. Identify the problem, explain it and give them a credible solution that can be actioned.”
2021 Discussing future plans is a big ask for ABAX. The company owns their entire value chain, including hardware and software and there is an entire contingent of tech guys whose job it is to analyse industry trends as they relate to clients and establish the direction of new developments. They ask the question of what is coming next and then the business puts together what products will actually sell. “It doesn’t matter what product or innovation you invent if nobody buys it,” Craig says, “And for a person to pay for something they must need it. The solution has to be useful.” This could include physical things like dashcams or the ability to combine timesheet and vehicle data. It could also include services such as conducting the research on legislation that could affect the industry and digest it for their customers. For example, the aforementioned current and upcoming legislation on energy carbon. Businesses need to report energy usage of all vehicles and machines. Up until now managers only had to report their kilowatt hours for a building. Now they are faced with having to do a similar thing with vehicles.
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Cars
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NORWICH TO EDINBURGH IN A SKODA KODIAQ VRS Review by Donnie Rust fingertips. Skoda uses an intelligent design when it comes to the basic controls of a car. Everything is where you’d expect them to be, the start button is on the side of the steering column, the windscreen wipers, the indicators, the lights, the basic controls are all in the locations where your hands naturally expect to find them.
It’s 3am and I’m driving. My girlfriend, who kindly promised to stay awake to help me keep alert and on the road is curled up like a squirrel in the passenger seat and fast asleep. For the record, she does not snore as quietly as a squirrel. The eight hour drive from Norfolk England to Scotland has only just begun and the roads are quiet and endless. In the prevailing darkness vehicles drift across the road like deep sea fish at the bottom of the ocean. There is a solemn courtesy of the road at this time of night, if you see lights ahead you dim your bright beams, you don’t act like an idiot, you drive carefully. At the Witching Hour every driver knows that every other driver would rather be in their bed than behind the wheel.
And, during these times of non-ideal driving conditions, a vehicle can really demonstrate it’s true worth and value. It is during these times that a driver appreciates the actual thinking time that designers have taken to consider what it means to be a safe and reliable car. Thank god I was in a Skoda Kodiaq vRS2.0!
COMFORTABLE STYLISH DRIVING The Skoda Kodiaq is quite a handsome car. It has the heft that you would expect from a 4x4 and the interior space that suggests it can carry anything. It also has a very quick kick for a diesel that could match a petrol engine for its take-off speed. The driving position is very comfortable with everything being within easy reach of the driver’s
These standardised controls mean that when you climb behind the wheel you don’t need a map on how to operate the system. The onboard computer is highly intuitive and assumes that the driver doesn’t have time to pull over to the side of the road to work out how to switch from radio to sat nav or how to connect your phone! So your eyes and your brain are never distracted from the road. I will be honest and say that the sport style bucket seats were a bit uncomfortable after several hours of driving, however I think this is more a case of functionality over design. Or it could be because there are surprisingly few cars made for a man of my size and height… or that I should have taken more stops to stretch along the way.
FUEL AND ECONOMY It cost us £65 to full the tank and that got us close to 700 miles. Keeping in mind most of the driving was not in cities and we stuck to the motorway as much as possible. We did get a chance to test out the performance on a variety of roads because you don’t get to Scotland without going through some snake bend lanes.
Also, when a hairpin turn appears out of nowhere and you’re travelling at sixty miles an hour I can assure you that this car grips the asphalt as if it were on rails.
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FUNCTIONALITY More of a city 4x4 than a heavy duty truck, the Kodiaq vRS does offer quite a spacious boot area with the furtherest back seats pushed down. But it wouldn’t suit a builder or labourer and while it would probably be strong enough to handle a dirty job, it’s not really suited for it. I would imagine this is a great car for an executive travelling for work or for hauling people around. I was using it to collect an apartment’s worth of clothes, bedding and boxes and boxes of books from a container in Norwich so it’s definitely strong enough for that.
THE SPECS As you’ve probably guessed, I was impressed by how safe this vehicle made me feel while I was driving with only a couple of hours sleep. Cruise control, seven airbags, progressive steering, full LED headlights with an adaptive front light system and LED daytime running lights made me feel like we could survive almost anything.
Combined with a Columbus satnav system that was reliable to the letter, even to avoiding the recently put up road works on the A1 and A17.
PERSONAL TASTE I am just under two metres tall and as a big guy I don’t fit into small cars. At all. Naturally, I prefer large and spacious cars that are reliable and intuitive and don’t require a great deal of skill to drive. This is one of the reasons I tend to enjoy Skodas and also why I would recommend the Kodiaq vRS. It doesn’t take a great deal of skill to drive but it will still make you look like you know what you’re doing, and most importantly, it is a joy to drive. Seriously though, she doesn’t snore like a squirrel at all. See more about this great vehicle at: https://www.skoda.co.uk/new-cars/kodiaq/vrs
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WHAT WILL THE E-GOLF MEAN FOR THE BUSINESS TRAVELLER
The E-Golf is VW’s first entry into all-electric vehicles, powered by a 24.2kW lithium-ion battery that generates 114bhp and produces zero emissions. VW is rolling out an entire fleet of cars that will be similarly powered and if the presentation at the VW Drive Day is anything to go by, these will be exciting and disruptive.
What does the E-Golf mean to us? 1. E-GOLF = CARBON EMISSION REDUCTION There were whispers in 2013, from the Financial Times, regarding businesses being taxed more for their carbon footprints generated by the long employee trips. If this sort of tax returns (if it is not already being implemented) a reliable electric alternative is the perfect mode of transport when in the city and running around.
Always conscious of the intrinsic styling, the E-Golf is small and stylish with its own brand of class. This is a city car, capable of reliably driving 120 urban miles per charge (180 in testing conditions), so it’s good for a family school and shop run. This being said, it is a little dangerous if you’re planning on going for a long drive in the country. Because of this, it looks like a city car; small, compact, easy to park and easy to manoeuvre. Technical specifications can be found here on VW’s website.
Charging stations are becoming all the more abundant. Rental companies with fleets made up entirely of electric vehicles are springing up everywhere. So, business travellers will be able to actively lower their carbon footprint
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trucks. Cars that puff out smoke will be next. Out of sheer necessity, most of us will all end up driving electric cars in our lifetime and the generation being born today is going to learn how to drive in them too.
3. SIMPLER DRIVING FOR SIMPLER DRIVERS Learning to drive is comparable to learning how to play an instrument. You learn pedal control, gear control and learn the different sounds and vibrations of the engine. Driving is one of the most challenging milestones for many of us to get through because it’s a case of learning something completely new and multitasking at a phenomenal rate. However, getting into a bumper-car at the funfair requires no licence at all.
Did I just accidentally compare the E-Golf to a bumper car? and businesses will be able to jump on the ‘go green’ bandwagon by highlighting this usage in marketing materials. The potential tax relief isn’t an unattractive incentive either.
2. CLEANER CITIES TO LIVE AND WORK IN Pollution adds to physical stress and in bigger cities, there is a lot of pollution about. For a long time, if a business were able to, it would base its business headquarters outside of a city, to improve on transport accessibility, parking and breathability. The only problem is that when one big company does this, others follow suit and gradually this expands the boundaries of the city. London has grown this way; pulled out wider by the businesses trying to escape it. There will be a time, in the future, but within our lifetimes, when electric cars will become the norm. The tax on carbon emissions and general pollutants will continue to rise, especially as alternatives become more widely available. Leaded petrol vehicles are no longer on the roads and sooner than we think, petrol and diesel cars will follow. Major cities across the board could, feasibly, replace public transport vehicles with zeroemission electronic vehicles or alternatives, then transport companies will do the same with fleet
The E-Golf requires no gears, so no clutch control is necessary and there’s no shifting. Your full attention can be on steering, speed and the road around you. The E-Golf lives in an era where vehicle AI Assistance is standard for its class. Because it is battery powered, efficiency is a priority in the creation of its systems, and every important detail is right in front of the driver. It does not feel like a normal car; there is no rumble, no engine rattle, no engine noise at all. And assuming that auto-driving cars don’t make driving completely redundant within the next decade, the generation that learns to drive in E-cars will only be able to drive in E-cars.
4. A NEW ERA OF SOPHISTICATION Which are the most famous cars in the world? The cars that are on screen heroes drive! The Ford Mustang, Impala and 1964 Thunderbird, to name a few, are all heavy engines and greedy fuel guzzlers. Consider formula one racing- the engine noise is louder than jet engines- and it’s clear that we are part of a generation where loud vehicles represent a level of freedom, strength, vitality and power. That is all going to change and quickly. Right now, having an electric car is the smart option. No road tax, no emissions and no noise. It’s easier to hold a conversation in the car and of course, you’re cleaner than most other cars out
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there. It just isn’t as fun as you might like it to be, yet. Also, freewheeling road trips are out because the driver can’t walk to the nearest pump to get a can of fuel. This constraint flies in the face of what cars represent and doesn’t feel natural to us. Electric cars still feel gimmicky. But…
…Electronic cars will inevitably travel further with less cost than petrol/diesel engines and eventually will offer even greater freedom and comfort. The sensibilities of drivers will change. From the ‘muscle car mentality’ representing masculinity, speed and vigour to something a whole lot more sensible. The days of the muscle car may be passing, but let’s see if the new engines are strong enough to keep up. The E-Golf retails at around: £33,000, excluding cashback deals.
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TEN WAYS MAGNA IS REIMAGINING THE FUTURE
Magna’s company of entrepreneurs and openfor-business mentality are helping to drive change in nearly every part of a vehicle, from seating to lighting to powertrain. As a technology company backed by more than 60 years of experience in the global auto industry, Magna is at the forefront of a dramatic transformation in mobility. “Magna’s mission is to make the impossible possible by solving some of the auto industry’s most complex problems,” said Swamy Kotagiri, Magna chief technology officer.
It is fascinating to imagine what the future will bring with the growth of electrified, autonomous and smart mobility. To better envision the coming shift in the way we move people and goods, Magna has compiled a list of the company’s top ten innovations that are a force for change. They are:
48-VOLT ELECTRICAL COMPONENTS With its focus toward vehicle electrification, Magna is offering an array of modular and scalable electrified powertrain products designed to help automakers meet increasingly stringent tailpipe emissions regulations around the world. These modular and scalable products include both 48volt (mild hybrid) and high voltage (full / plug-in
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hybrids and electric vehicles) variants. Magna’s ever-expanding portfolio of electrified products begins with a family of modular and scalable high voltage electric propulsion systems, where the company has been awarded a production contract for a high voltage secondary axle for an electric vehicle to be produced in China for VW.
ICON scans its surroundings 50 times faster than it takes a human to blink. It will be used in the near term in autonomous emergency braking – and on self-driving cars in the new era of mobility.
Magna is also focused on electrified transmission systems and is now industrializing an innovative solution for BMW that packages a modular and scalable 48-volt traction motor inside a DCT automatic transmission. This innovative new product allows automakers to offer a mild hybrid option within the same engine compartment for their front wheel drive vehicles, thus reducing CO2 emissions and increasing functionality.
RECONFIGURABLE SEATS
ADAS FEATURES Today, more than 100 vehicle models on the road have Magna ADAS features as Magna continues to deliver new autonomous features including 3D Surround View systems, Advanced trailering features and Autonomous Valet, which meet the growing demand from automakers seeking to integrate automated driving technologies into their vehicles. With Magna’s lidar solution with Innoviz coming to market with BMW, the company is also close to production of its ICON radar. Military-grade ICON radar system is a new generation of solid-state automotive radar that moves a step closer towards an autonomous future. Industry-first ICON radar is about seeing the things you can’t see and giving drivers and the car plenty of time to react by scanning the environment and creating a high-definition, fourdimensional view.
Whether it’s cameras, lidar or radar, with Magna’s expertise, the company can also seamlessly integrate these ADAS features in vehicle exteriors without sacrificing design.
Magna’s seating experts are designing flexible vehicle interiors that can be reconfigured with the touch of a smartphone screen. The company’s reconfigurable seating solution is designed to dramatically reshape the vehicle cabin based on actual usage. This solution is in response to the rapid growth in car-sharing and ridesharing and builds on Magna’s reputation for such innovations as the Stow ‘n Go seats in the Chrysler minivans. From a base configuration in a three-row vehicle, the innovative seats transform in a seamlessly choreographed dance into three modes: Cargo Space, Road Trip and Mobile Meeting. Two of the modes could be ready to enter production as early as 2022.
FLEXIBLE LIGHTING Magna is sparking the revolution in automotive lighting through a joint venture with Rohinni, an Idaho startup that has come up with ways to create “endless possibilities” with light that go far beyond conventional LEDs or light-emitting diodes.
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When paired with Magna’s worldclass electronics manufacturing expertise, the combination is expected to produce modern lighting magic. By using thin-film micro and mini LEDs – as thin as a piece of paper – Magna Rohinni Automotive provides highperformance, flexible lighting that opens up new possibilities for design and product differentiation.
HAPTIC TECHNOLOGY
COMPOSITE SPACE FRAME
Haptic technology, which relies on motion and the sense of touch inside and outside of the car, is rapidly being adopted by the auto industry as a way to give drivers a more intuitive experience.
Increasingly stringent vehicle emissions requirements demand that manufacturers find new materials and innovative applications to dramatically reduce mass and weight.
To continue developing these advanced technologies for the automotive market, Magna acquired Haptronik, further investing in advanced motion-control software and adding to Magna’s leadership in mechatronics products. In addition, this technology is part of the company’s building block approach to their SmartAccess power door platform.
Magna’s composite space frame is 10 percent lighter than conventional steel and can be used on liftgate and side door modules, as well as windshield headers. An affordable solution for automakers, the composite space frame debuted on the 2020 Toyota Supra.
VIRTUAL AND AUGMENTED REALITY
COMPLETE VEHICLE MANUFACTURING Magna is the only automotive supplier that also engineers and assembles complete vehicles – and automakers including Daimler, BMW and Jaguar contract the company to do so. Magna is the first contract manufacturer to produce an electric vehicle with the Jaguar I-PACE, and the company produces multiple vehicles with different powertrains (BHEVs, EVs and traditional powertrains) from one plant, with two different powertrains in one shared production line for the I-PACE and Jaguar E-PACE. Through a joint venture, Magna is now also the first contract manufacturer for electric vehicles in China, the leading market for e-mobility.
Magna is using augmented reality technology to make navigation systems more intuitive and accurate with its bi-focal Augmented Reality Camera. The first-to-market Magna technology for General Motors in North America and Daimler in Europe enhances what the driver sees by providing an actual image of the road ahead with information superimposed onto the image. But that’s not the only way Magna is bringing new technology to real product development. At Magna’s Virtual Reality Center in Graz, Austria, engineers wearing VR goggles are revolutionizing the way cars are designed, developed and manufactured. And virtual-reality headsets are helping the team at Magna’s Dortec Industries boost efficiency and productivity.
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FACTORY OF THE FUTURE
relationships with universities around the globe, including MIT and Cambridge University, to connect with the best and brightest minds in the business.
For Magna, innovating is not isolated to just product. The company innovates in how it manufactures as well. With the advancements in machine learning and artificial intelligence, Magna is able to bring more smart factory concepts into their operations.
Magna experts are mentoring students from the MIT Driverless team to develop self-driving racecars for the new Formula Student Driverless competition. And the company is exploring the potential for new technology with MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory, the center for autonomous and robotics development.
A key part of the equation in these high-tech facilities will be humans – or what some are calling the “Industry 4.0 workforce.” The goal is to improve flexibility and efficiency between humans and machines, as the two work in harmony. These advanced manufacturing plants may feature advanced robotic systems, drones that fly above assembly lines to check inventory and maintenance needs, and predictive analytics that will be used to schedule repairs.
This combination of strategic partnerships, world-class manufacturing, process innovation and a product portfolio bursting with innovative technology is enabling Magna to reimagine the vehicle experience and be prepared for the profound changes in the automotive industry.
PARTNERSHIPS In addition to product innovations, Magna is partnering with startup companies to help speed up the commercialization of new mobility solutions. Devolving self-driving technologies with Lyft, integrating self-driving systems with Waymo, and retrofitting and scaling up May Mobility’s unique fleet of autonomous shuttles are just a few examples. In addition to working with startups on new technology, Magna also is building closer working
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LIGHTING THE WAY IN AIRPORT RUNWAY SAFETY reins three years ago. “My father strongly believed in the value of his ideas which revolved around the latest optic fibre technology,” Maurizio explains, “Today, these product innovations play an important role in airport runway safety and our business continues to provide revolutionary ideas for every sector we are involved with. ”
THE TEAM
THE BUSINESS Passion shaped MC Solutions from the beginning. An Italian company based in Monza, about twenty kilometres from Milan, it was founded nineteen years ago by inventor Umberto Cazzani under a different name. Working with a team of young and motivated people seeking to apply new technologies to various fields in industrial electronics, the company changed to its current name when Umberto’s son Maurizio took over the
MC Solutions embodies the spirit of ongoing development and technology, possessing the energy and motivation throughout the team to keep up with the dizzying pace of this sector. It is a commitment that requires continuous updates and new designs that keep their products at the forefront of their respective fields. Maurizio explains that the plurality and global application of their services are supported and developed by the different professional skillsets includedwithintheteam.Thisallowsthemtomaintaina reliable service while embracing all operational areas.
“The MC Solutions Team is constantly growing and exceeding their objectives within the group,” he says, “Allowing us to expand into different fields and accept new challenges.”
southern Italy. The most complete system has been successfully working since 2018 at Marco Polo International Airport in Venice, which has provided a busy and challenging environment to put the system to the test.
LIGHTING THE WAY IN AIRPORT RUNWAY SAFETY
The pulsing heart of the MIA System is the worldwide patent pending product, the Monitor Control Lamp Optical (MCLO). The one thousand MCLO modules installed in the airfield can control about two thousand lights on a runway with greater reliability and easier management.
The team’s fibre optic technology innovations have shown tremendous success in the use in runway lights management, providing automatic surface guidance control and the prevention of runway incursions.
“Our team provide a complete solution in this area,” Maurizio explains, “Providing revolutionary ideas in cable and circuit separation, optic fibre data transmission and safety, speed and efficiency.” The MIA System, which stands for Modular Intelligence Airport, has been installed at different integration levels in nine airports from northern to
“Having tested the MCLO product in such an active and high demand environment we see it as being time to invite airports around the world to embrace the optic fibre technology,” Maurizio declares, “Not only has this technology proved to get the job done better but it also paves the road for future development and upgrades.” Safe and efficient, optical fibre technology doesn’t use powerlinecommunicationormicrowaves.Itismodular and interference-free and has a high fault tolerance with burn lamp detection on a runway taking less than a second to complete.
THE IMMEDIATE ADVANTAGES OF MCLO In a sector that can sometimes feel monopolised, it
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falls to the smaller and more flexible businesses to innovate and integrate new ideas focussed on the essential factors that are important to clients. For example, Maurizio understands that like all busy organisations, airports are looking for reliability and efficiency. So, to achieve these two essential qualities the MCLO have had several advantages built into them. • The system works on a low voltage (48/60V) net and is otherwise very low consumption. For 1000 light module 1000 watts are used, much like a domestic microwave oven, whereas the nearest’ competitors offer 15 watt each, so 15000 watts to power 1000 modules. When one imagines the power required in an aerodrome where around a thousand modules are needed the cost efficiency speaks for itself. • Maintenance and upgrading can be scheduled efficiently since the system is able to pinpoint the exact position, type and ID of any malfunctioning lamp. • Upgrades and software improvements are uploaded remotely, with software credentials and hardware keys. The software is also available on portable devices for the maintenance operators that are far from the substation during intervention. The software is customized, and the real layout and programme is used as a simulation tool for the training courses to the Tower and maintenance operators. • All of the devices are IP68, together with their special connectors they offer a plug and play product. This makes them adapt to stressing environments, such as in Venice where they operate in brackish immersion most of the time. As a turnkey product, maintenance operations are quick and easy, taking a fraction of the time they used to. • The MIA System is modular so it can be integrated step by step over a period of time. It can also fit to all kinds of lights and all kinds of CCR (Constant Current Regulator) with multiwire connection (compulsory by FAA regulation)
Preventing runway incursions. The CDU uses magnetic loops to identify the metal parts of vehicles and Aircrafts such as the landing gear and engine so that interference and false alarms caused by atmospheric agents or wave interreference. In 2001, there was an accident in Linate (Milan City Airport) where a tragic accident occurred because the runway incursion alarm was switched off due to continuous false alarms. A tragic but important example of the value of a better system. “Itisallaboutachangeinmindset,”Mauriziosays,“From a maintenance oriented behaviour to a safety oriented one; from spending-review to cost-efficiency; from emergency maintenance intervention and congested airports, to scheduling and punctuality.”
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Additionally, Maurizio explains that MCLO encourages a shift of attitude from diagnosis to prognosis. Since their modules and software collect all the life data about the lamp, they are able to collect real-time performance data, including position, model, how long it has been switched on and at what level of brilliance. “Which allows us to calculate the expected lifespan,” he says, “And potentially troubleshoot issues before they occur.” Thanks to the above advantages as well as a reputation for putting their clients first, MC Solutions was a smash hit at the recent 2019 Inter Airport Europe exhibition in Germany. Ready to offer its expertise to the entire world they will next be exhibiting at The AIRPORT SHOW in Dubai from 22nd to 24th June 2020 www.theairportshow.com, which is one of the most important aviation and airport events in the Northern Hemisphere.
RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT MC Solutions is not a company that would settle for being pigeon-holed into a single industry and are continuously developing high-tech products in other branches for many different applications. Allowing themselves very few boundaries, they have research and development taking place for hardware and software solutions for a host of industries. These include, and are by no means limited to, smart home applications, video surveillance, smart data management in gas distribution and a multitude of audio and visual service applications. They even digital video distribution for car racing circuits, such as for the world famous Monza car circuit! “This is further proof that Italian creativity still has a great deal to offer,” Maurizio says, “And is a classic story of a family company that has become a well-known and well respected brand around the world. It is also proof that if you strongly believe in the value of your team, of your projects and know-how you can bring about positive innovation in any industry you set your eyes on.” COMPANY ADDRESS: Via Val d’Ossola 12/14, 20871 Vimercate - MB - Italy WEBSITE: www.mc-solutions.it
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AEROMAO range of expertise in robotics, manufacturing, CAD, prototyping, flying and avionics, communications, computing and innovative thinking. Above all is their commitment to quality and dedication to their products which undergo rigorous testing in the field.
Founded in 2004, it is their drive for innovation that has propelled Aeromao into the position as the leading Canadian manufacturer of UAVs and developer of fixed wing, unmanned survey grade aerial vehicles. Based in Ontario Canada, their high commercial grade drones are optimized to carry a range of video surveillance equipment and have been extensively used for mapping, surveying, precision agriculture and remote sensing to name a few.
NEW DEVELOPMENT. AMPHIBIOUS FIX WING DRONE. Aeromao’s latest development is unique in the unmanned world and has already been used successfully in a number of expeditions including searching for megafauna such as turtles, dolphins and sharks and surveillance of illegal fishing activity.
INNOVATIVE STRENGTHS With their systems proven in the field, and two hundred clients across fifty countries, Aeromao’s power is in their ability to innovate on their feet and meet market demands and client requirements quickly and reliably.
During a set of trials in the beautiful Turneffe Atoll in Belize, in a work lead by the Zoological Society of London and the Turneffe Atoll Sustainability Association. The drones were used to detect and document illegal fishing activities and ecology research toward ongoing conservation efforts. Delineated in 2012, the Turneffe marine protected area is a challenge to manage effectively due to its remote location.
Their aim is to expand their client’s abilities to collect and analyse data, enabling them to make better decisions based on accurate information. They achieve this by using the latest technologies and relying on their strengths, which lie in their
All in all, the Amphibious Fixed Wing Drone is a remarkable fete of engineering and has provided an essential and accurate tool with far reaching uses.
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THE PROBLEM AND THE SOLUTION
EMAIL: info@aeromao.com
This represents a huge potential advantage in the fight against this sort of illegal exploitation as the current enforcement strategy on the Turneffe atoll involves patrols around the atoll in small boats. Due to the time constraints and the nature of the work, systematic surveys for megafauna aren’t regularly carried out. Instead, the conservation officers tend to document animals they happen across while on their patrol. Added to this, boat fuel is very costly, and this further inhibits the amount of area the conservation officers can patrol and dramatically reduces the potential sighting of animals.
TELEPHONE: +1 (647) 484–9966 COMPANY ADDRESS: 6033 Shawson Drive, Unit 27, Mississauga, L5T1H8, Ontario, Canada
On the other hand, the drones proved to be an exceptional low-cost solution to these challenges. Furthermore, as part of the flight trials, two senior conservation officers were trained on site in how to prepare and deploy the drone. They were also trained in planning missions and monitoring flights and how to ensure a safe water landing. Demonstrating how easily this could be fitted into a new, more effective strategy that would guarantee better results all round. WEBSITE: www.aeromao.com
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REVIEW
BODEGAS ESTEFANIA TILENUS
In 1999, the FRIAS family made the decision to refurbish an old creamery located in the village of Dehesas in Ponferrada (León), and this led to the establishment of a very special winery, Bodegas Estefanía.
the Médulas. A lesser known period which largely shaped the history of the area. Moreover, the wine depicts a Roman coin that was found in one of the vineyards.
Fifteen years later in 2014, the winery became part of the MGWines Group, which was a boost for the winery’s main brand Tilenus, named after Teleno, the Roman god of war.
PRESENT DAY Today, this era has been exemplified upon the wine labels with a roman coin that was found in one of the vineyards. All this has led to a winery that produces exclusive wines in a traditional way where each grape is carefully selected by hand.
Equivalent to the Roman war god Mars, the brand was named this to pay tribute to the golden years of the Roman era in the Bierzo, which was when the empire began to exploit the rich gold mines of
PRODUCTION Unveiling the secrets of winemaking Bodegas Estefanía has a production winery that was built combining materials such as slate, stone and wood, following the area’s traditional architecture. Each production phase has to be specifically prepared and monitored for temperature, moisture and light. In the case of the barrel room, this has around one thousand Bordeaux barrels, manufactured by the most prestigious barrel-making cooperage firms and are mostly made of French oak.
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The continental climate keeps a balance of moisture due to the influence of the Atlantic climate from Galicia and the dry air coming from Castile. The blending of these climatic elements with the minerally, clayey soils of the landscape produce a very special grape of excellent quality called Mencía.
the history of the Bierzo and the native variety Mencía, as well as visit the facilities of the winery and its vineyards.
WINE TOURISM
TELEPHONE: +34 965 928 857
PRICE: 10€. to 22€ per person depending on tour. EMAIL: info@tilenus.com
For those wine lovers seeking a deeper appreciation of how this land an history has shaped the flavor of Tilenus, Bodegas Estefanía offers different types of activities where the visitor gets involved with the charm of the winery, its wines and can discover the magical secrets that await their land. In it, you will be able to know a little bit about
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REVIEW
KE NAKO BILTONG GOING FROM STRENGTH TO STRENGTH Since its creation in 2012 by Alanagh Chipperfield and her partner, former Ireland internationalist Ilse Van Staden, Ke Nako Biltong has grown into a market leader in the UK. Alanagh spoke to The Logbook to explain more about the business’ beginnings some eight years ago, its growth and their plans for the future.
“Ilse is South African and biltong in South Africa is a staple, there’s no other way of describing it, in the same way here you have Starbucks on every corner, in South Africa there’s biltong shops on every corner, so it’s a huge part of the national diet.
Alanagh’s dad that they began to take things more seriously. “The biltong was wiping its nose but it wasn’t really doing anything and we were putting a decent amount of time into it but not really getting anything back from it and it was my dad who said ‘what are you going to do about this?’. “We decided we would keep at it and then we got an absolutely golden opportunity because the BBC were doing a show called Top of the Shop with Tom Kerridge – we entered and didn’t get selected but they had somebody drop out, so we were in.
“When Ilse got over here, we couldn’t find anyone in Ireland making Biltong and we could have bought it in from London, but instead we started making our own at home.
“We were in a category – we were the meat week and everybody in the meat week competed against each other and then you went into a Grand Final against the winners from the other categories.”
“We gravitated towards other South African people here and it culminated in us buying in a big drier in from South Africa in about 2013 and dehydrating properly.”
Victory in that show has propelled the business to new levels, said Alanagh, who has also represented Ulster in her own rugby career.
In the early days, making biltong was just a side for the couple, and it wasn’t until a conversation with
She added: “We went from making 40kg of biltong
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staff to help out, and in the longer term, Alanagh would like to invest in a food truck to make their presence well and truly known at the shows they do attend in the future.
every two weeks we suddenly had a nine-week waiting list for biltong and the biltong takes five days to make and we only had one box so can churn out 45kg a week, so that gives you an idea of how many orders we had.
“You’ve got these taxis in South African and it’s an old former VW, their white taxis with the South African flag in ribbons down them, so we thought about doing one of those because it’s very typically South African.”
“It just went mental.” Where does all this happen? On a farm in Ballyclare, about 20 minutes from Belfast – in a converted shipping container, as Alanagh explained.
Alanagh explained that the inspiration for the name comes from Ilse’s homeland, where, in the Pretoria region she is from, Ke Nako translates to ‘it’s time’.
“It’s been making a little bit of profit each year but we’ve “We were going with this idea been putting that back into equipment and things,” she told that it’s time for biltong and it’s time for biltong to become a SCRUM. thing over here,” she said. “We bought a second drying cabinet and we now work in a kitchen, we bought a shipping container and outfitted it as a kitchen, so that’s our biltong making factory.
And as the business continues to grow, an ever increasing number of people will have the name on their minds. That can, at times, provide some entertainment for the couple.
“We’ve been going from strength to strength.” When the Coronavirus lockdown came into effect earlier this year, Alanagh and Ilse feared the worst for the business, with shows – including the Royal Highland Show in Edinburgh – cancelled or postponed.
“It’s always good when you have someone phoning up for a sales pitch and they’re struggling to pronounce it,” Alanagh said. For more information: www.kenakobiltong.co.uk
However, that has not been the case. “We were booked in this summer to do the Royal Highland Show because we missed out on that last year, we were meant to be at London Borough Market, Balmoral Show and obviously that’s all been cancelled, so I was anticipating that this would be the end of us, but people have instead gone online and we haven’t stopped. “It’s been mad, like the orders are nearly at the level they were when we’ve gone to a show though obviously we’re much better equipped to deal with it.” Moving forward, they are looking to employ a member of
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