19 minute read
From Phantoms to Plastics
Phantoms & Plastics
Q&A with Neil Gates, Managing Director of Seevent Plastics
When was the company founded?
Seevent Plastics was started by Ken Fisher in June 1987 at a single unit in Peter Road in Lancing. In those days Seevent Plastics were manufacturing a bomb carrying device for the MOD which fitted under the wing of the Phantom Jet. We certainly don’t do that anymore but we do have units 2-9 on the same Peter Road site. Ken retired and sold me the business in January 2014.
What sector does the company now trade in?
Over the last six years, we have developed the business in Pharmaceutical, Animal Feed, Solid Fuel and Aggregate packaging and by continued research and development, have enabled our customers to reduce their packing costs by up to 25%. In 2016, we wrote and had published a parliamentary review on sustainability and the environment well before the Blue Planet programme some years later.
What are you doing about sustainability within your industry?
The challenge for all manufacturers in Plastic is creating the closed loop supply chain. At Seevent, we are already successfully using a minimum of 30% post-consumer waste in many of our products and making all our products 100% recyclable. This
is ahead of Government legalisation which is currently proposed for 2022. Nearly all our factory waste is recycled and we have less than 1% going to Landfill. What sector is your largest customer? Our largest market sector is now Pharmaceuticals and we have recently been appointed Global Supply Chain partner to GSK and we have a lot of product development going on for this particular market sector. This is being developed by our sister company, Polyplus Packaging in Reading who now specialise in Antistatic and Pharmaceutical markets. How has the global pandemic affected your sector? The current Pandemic crisis has affected us like nearly all businesses in the UK. Many of our customers in the retail sector have had to close and we have had to diversify as quickly as possible. We are now heavily involved in the supply of aprons to hospitals and nursing homes. Unfortunately, body bags are another product we are now turning our skills to due to the demand. We have had to furlough a number of staff but hope that we can open for business as usual very soon without losing any staff. How has your bank assisted during these difficult times? Natwest Bank have been one of the great partners to Seevent over the years and their continued support at this time has been truly magnificent. When we started on our expansion “We are now heavily involved in the supply of aprons to hospitals and nursing homes.” plan in 2015, Natwest put together a package enabling us to increase our production by 30%. They believed in us and it paid off. They have allowed us to develop and experiment without onerous restrictions and have been a true supporter in everything we have done. When the pandemic hit, Natwest were the first to get in touch and secure a CBIL loan for us.
Seevent Plastics Ltd 2-7 Peter Road, Lancing, West Sussex, BN15 8TH Tel: 01903 755877 Email: 07740 411056 Web: seevent.co.uk
Survive & Thrive with Sussex Innovation
In light of the current crisis, business support organisations are putting all their efforts into helping businesses navigate the pandemic. Since lockdown began, the Sussex Innovation team has had all hands on deck providing advice and support, helping members source funding and understand the government support available.
Sussex Innovation has seen its community come together during this pandemic, and are helping them respond in agile, creative and sustainable ways to survive the crisis and thrive in its aftermath – the theme of their new series of weekly webinars.
‘Survive & Thrive’ webinars, in collaboration with Gatwick Diamond Business, focus on a different business-critical topic each week. A member of the team hosts a panel of subject matter experts for discussion followed by Q&A.
The first webinar on 8th April focused on crisis management, led by Chief Executive, Nigel Lambe. The panel included: • Peter Davies, founder and CEO at Airline Management Group
• Gary Fee, international finance director at Bright Horizons • Tim Cobb, founder and managing director at Cobb PR
It was an incredibly insightful discussion of all four participants’ experiences and insights leading businesses through crisis. Tim Cobb gave communication advice, reminding businesses not to neglect clear internal and external communications, including any furloughed staff.
“Wherever you can, try to give your team as up-to-date information as possible,” he commented. “There are some areas you won’t want to touch upon because they’re too delicate or you’re still trying to get your head around it yourself - and that’s fine. But as soon as you have proper plans, talk to the people. Once you start communicating to the team, it’ll ease up your stress levels.”
For part of the discussion, Nigel took the panel back to previous crises including 9/11 and the 2008 recession. Gary spoke about how while this crisis is worse because it’s continuous rather than one disastrous event, the approach has got to be similar; “Keep it simple, move quickly, be agile and
decisive, and focus on what the key things are.”
The panel discussed the difficulty of chasing customers and clients for invoices but emphasised that entrepreneurs must remember the whole world is in this situation; you should manage it delicately but it’s sensible to keep chasing. Gary added, “this can’t be a strategy on its own, you must look at reducing your costs as well as recovery. Furlough schemes and other government support are all part of the puzzle of fixing your cashflow alongside collecting from existing customers.”
Peter added that given the traumatic nature of this crisis, managers need to see a way through and take the opportunity to learn about themselves; “what’s important is coming out of this with revenue and as a better manager.”
The following week’s webinar examined pivoting to a direct to consumer model and was hosted by Helena Jevons, Sussex Innovation’s Head of Sales and Marketing. The panel included: • David Santineer and Alvaro Bravo Cole, founders of Proactive by Design • Saikat Chatterjee, enterprise solution architect at Simplex Services • Claire Kentish Barnes, founder and distiller at Generation Distillers • Ellen Hedges, marketing, innovation and strategic consultant at Eh-Consulting
The panel discussed how to approach a pivot, with David and Alvaro outlining some of the principles of design thinking and Ellen highlighting that the businesses who respond compassionately and helpfully to the crisis will be remembered long afterwards.
Saikat spoke about his new platform ShopSimple, a less complex delivery platform option for small local businesses – a perfect example of how to not only pivot for your business but to help your community during these uncertain times.
Claire shared her story whereby a week before lockdown they began to panic as orders from retailers came to a halt. Her team had seen other breweries making hand sanitiser, but she wasn’t sure if there was enough demand and so posed the question on social media. She received a huge response from carers, police workers, families and nurses proving how high demand was!
“I spent two weeks with help from Sussex Innovation working through the process to get my first deliveries out. Luckily, we’re small so can be very agile. We worked through with HMRC how we can get the alcohol denatured so we don’t have to pay duty on it. We had to buy hundreds of plastic bottles, most of our usual product is locally-sourced glass so this wasn’t our brand but needs must! Cashflow was a concern, but because we did the market research and saw there was demand, we went for it.”
If you’re interested in attending future Survive & Thrive webinars, search for Sussex Innovation on Eventbrite for more information and to book your spot. And whether you’re facing opportunities or threats at this time – if you need support to reposition your business, Sussex Innovation has launched a programme of EU funded Task Forces with senior consultants to help business owners tackle their most pressing business issues.
The team will pre-review your business documents to understand your business inside out before a two-hour collaborative consultancy session to help you identify and answer your key business needs and key strategic decisions. We dig deep into your organisation to understand what needs to be developed and bolstered to help you achieve your ambitions. You will then receive a written report of recommendations within three days to help move your business forward.
Find out more by enquiring at info. sinc.co.uk/enquiries.
In addition to this we will be offering one business who signs up from this article the opportunity to have a 1 on 1 consultancy session with the Centre’s Chief Executive.
Cleaning & Sanitising Services Molly Maid Brighton & Hove
Offering a two pronged approach to clean and sanitise your home or office.
We clean using our specialist eco-friendly, nontoxic disinfectant XtraProtect which has passed independent laboratory tests proving it is effective against all enveloped viruses including all Coronaviruses (to BS EN 14476 standards). As an added layer of sanitisation, we’ll use UVC Germicidal Light. Used for over 40 years in hospitals aiding in disinfecting air and surfaces killing fungi, bacteria, superbugs, SARS, MERS and other coronaviruses and safe to use for domestic use.
Our highly trained and friendly maids are here to help keep you, your family and loved ones safe.
Our HomeSafe cleaning system allows us to clean and sanitise your home whilst keeping you, your family and our staff’s health our priority.
For more information on our HomeSafe Cleaning procedures and sanitation service please email tessa.deklerk@mollymaid.co.uk or call 01273 289878
UVC GERMICIDAL LIGHT
DEADLY TO PATHOGENS BUT SAFE FOR USE IN YOUR HOME & OFFICE
Ultra-violet germicidal light has been used extensively in hospitals and laboratories for over 40 years. It destroys fungi, mould, bacteria, and viruses & is now available for use in your home & office. Germicidal light disinfects air and surfaces outright!
What is UVC Germicidal Light and how does it work?
Ultraviolet technology is a non-chemical approach to disinfection. UVC light is part of the light spectrum with wavelengths from 100 nanometers (nm) to 280 nm. The light works by deactivating the DNA of bacteria, viruses and other pathogens thus destroying their ability to multiply & cause disease. In fact, when the organism tries to replicate, it dies. This means that germicidal devices can be placed in rooms to illuminate floors, surfaces, walls, ceilings and the air in between. The device will be left to run whilst killing all pathogens illuminated by the UVC light. Unlike ‘fogging’ which may damage art, wood, furniture etc, this technology can be used on all porous and non-porous materials. Although Germicidal light is a non-chemical sanitation method, it is important to note that the devices emit powerful UV light which can severely damage skin & eyesight when in operation. Therefore it is best to leave the UVC disinfection to professionals, trained in its usage
For more information on the UVC Germicidial Light sanitation process, please email tess.deklerk@mollymaid.co.uk or call 01273 289878
Crisis Appeal
Chestnut Tree House has launched a Crisis Appeal, asking the local community for support to ensure they can continue providing hospice care for children and families – now and in the future
For the last 17 years, Chestnut Tree House has been there for local children with life-shortening conditions and their families, both at the hospice near Arundel and in their own homes across Sussex.
No one is ever charged for the care they receive at Chestnut Tree House, but less than 6% of the funding comes from the government. They rely heavily on the support of the local community, through donations and fundraising.
But the coronavirus crisis is having a devastating impact on fundraising, with charity shops closed and events postponed or cancelled. This is threatening the future of the children’s hospice and the care and support they provide for local children and families.
The maths are simple… It costs £400,000 a month to run Chestnut Tree House, most of which comes from fundraising. Right now, the hospice is losing 70% of their monthly fundraising income. It is only a matter of time before they run out of money.
Rosemarie Finley, CEO Chestnut Tree House said: “Now, more than ever, the hospice and the people who depend on it, need your help. Community support is vital. We appreciate that this is a difficult time for everyone, but if you can afford to, we’d be very grateful for any help you can offer – to keep our services running and bring some desperately needed support to children and families facing some very dark times.”
Your support will help children like Lilly. Seven-year-old Lilly is profoundly deaf, cannot walk and has very complex needs. Now her family are in lockdown and finding life a huge challenge, as Lilly’s mum Paula said on the phone: “I am just waiting for the phone call from Chestnut to let me know when someone can visit. That couple of
hours will be lovely, it will just mean that I don’t have to worry about her for a little while. I can relax knowing someone else is with her to give her everything she needs.” Confined to her home, Lilly and her family are struggling to cope. Your gift could fund a visit from one of the Chestnut Tree House team and give them a few hours of relief and joy. Now more than ever, the children and families who depend on Chestnut Tree House need the help of friends like you.
To help to save your local children’s hospice, visit www.chestnut-treehouse.org.uk/SOS
Rockinghorse Rainbow
A consortium of Sussex businesses have voluntarily pooled their skills to sell unique ‘NHS rainbow’ t-shirts in a bid to replenish vital funds for children’s hospitals.
COVID-19 has meant that Rockinghorse Children’s Charity has lost £50,000 in fundraising opportunities, whilst demands on its hospitals’ equipment and care have never been higher. Families are now able to preserve their children’s rainbow drawings, printed on t-shirts, to raise vital funds. In just ten days, an e-commerce website and full digital marketing campaign has come to life alongside a t-shirt print and delivery service. It’s all in aid of helping the official charity arm of Royal Alexandra Children’s Hospital as it has found itself spending its emergency funding during these exceptional circumstances.
Led by Freedom Works, a community workspace group, professionals have donated time, expertise, ad spend and equipment to the project that supports NHS services. Jon Trigg of Freedom Works said, “When we heard about the dire situation Rockinghorse are in, we felt compelled to help. We are a group of people that may not be equipped to help on the front line, but we sure know how to get people on a website!”. Children and adult sized t-shirts printed with a special “I’m a Rockinghorse Hero” message and rainbows of hope can now be ordered at shop.rockinghorse.org.uk, with 100% profit going directly to Rockinghorse Children’s Charity. The project has the full backing of Ryan Heal, CEO of Rockinghorse Children’s Charity which also helps fund special care baby units in Brighton and Haywards Heath. “We’ve been inspired by the energy and passion shown by this wonderful group of business leaders, led by Jon Trigg of Freedom Works, who have come together for the greater good. It just shows that the gift of human kindness is alive and kicking in Sussex as these business heroes have decided to help Rockinghorse at such a critical time for the charity, a time we’ve never witnessed before. “We are truly grateful and urge as many people as possible to get their hands on a t-shirt, not just for the support of the charity and the NHS, but
as a keepsake from a time in our lives that we will all look back upon and say; ‘we did our bit!’”
As the web shop launches, the businesses involved are spreading the word and would welcome your support. If you are able to share the story on your company social media or newsletter, please do so as soon as possible, using the campaign hashtag
#NHSRainbowTee
Available in a range of sizes, custom design t-shirts are £25 and a standard design is £20. T-shirts can be ordered at https://shop.rockinghorse.org.uk/
Distilling the ethos of Community Spirit
How Generation Distillers switched their gin making skills to produce essential hand sanitisers
TThere has been so much written about two specific types of business during the last few weeks. Those that are on the edge, support for which may or may not be enough to keep them afloat; and businesses that are thriving, those that fit well into the #stayhome lifestyle – conferencing apps as an example. But some businesses are doing something completely different and using their vision and their capability to try something very different from the norm, and being hugely successful.
Claire Kentish Barnes and her husband Ed launched their distillery near Lewes two years ago. Their vision: to create a portfolio of drinks that are beautifully made, transparent in their making and marketing and made using locally sourced ingredients. Their business also supports other local enterprises by sourcing as much as they can from other local independents.
Usually at this time of year, the pair
would be preparing stocks for summer trade, showing the gin at events and trade shows and developing new business; but they are not doing any of that – they are making hand sanitiser in their distillery instead.
‘The week before lockdown, orders dropped off a cliff,’ says Ed, ‘we were lucky that we are not hugely exposed in on-trade businesses (pubs, restaurants and hotels), but all of our customers were anxious, unsure of what the next weeks would bring and understandably reluctant to tie up capital in stock that they may not be able to sell.’
‘I had heard of some of the bigger distilleries making hand sanitiser from the alcohol that we have stored and make in our distilleries’ says Claire. ‘We thought that this was something we could do, but were unsure of the need for it in our local community’. Claire posted on a few local social media sites that they have the capability and wanted to gauge whether there was a need for the product - the response was overwhelming! ‘We didn’t even think about making an alternative choice after that, we were straight into planning mode – how are we going to make this happen’?
With a background in product sales and marketing, Claire was experienced in managing projects and getting product to market, and Ed’s experience as a master brewer and FMCG consultant gave them operational expertise; but the pace of this project and what this small distillery have achieved in the time is what sets them apart.
Claire and Ed delivered their first batch of hand sanitiser two weeks after receiving the online response. There were a number of very important aspects to this project that we needed to get through before we could launch the product. We needed to protect ourselves and our existing business, but alongside this we wanted to get the product to market as soon as we could. We engaged with HMRC, HSE and trading standards initially to ensure that we were working within the guidelines. ‘There was confusion as to whether
PHOTO BY PHOTOGRAPHY FIRM
we could denature the alcohol ourselves, thus removing the duty liability on the product. Spirit duty is £28.74 a litre and needs to be paid on everything leaving our bonded warehouse. To make hand sanitiser, we need to denature the alcohol, but we didn’t have a licence for that.
Being part of a trade association meant that we had a direct communication link with HMRC and via the lobbying of the British Distillers Alliance, we soon had the news that we were after, that those with a bonded warehouse were able to effectively denature the alcohol and make hand sanitiser without the duty liability’. This came with a number of caveats, in particular the use of the World Health Organisation formulation for alcohol based hand sanitiser. This was great news, and gave them a very clear focus – the recipe and methods were prescribed. frontline workers. For every 1L that they sell to the public, they give the same away in donations. At the time of writing, they have made and sold/donated 500L and we have another 800L on order.
But moving from being a distiller to being a biocide producer threw up lots more questions - did they need to be registered as a producer to bring the product to market? Did they need to have the product independently laboratory tested in order to launch? Would anyone buy it from them if they just followed the formula and didn’t get it tested?
Other more practical issues almost halted their ability to press on – plastic is scarce at the moment, mostly coming from China, plastic bottles and containers were near impossible to source on the open market. A call to a local warehouse and a call from a company who had bottles in stock and were looking to free up some warehouse space meant that they had their first and second consignments covered.
One of the main drivers for delivery is to make hand sanitiser at an affordable price so that it is comparable to the standard cost per unit that organisations have become accustomed to paying. The pair also decided to sell the hand sanitiser to the public as well as producing bulk for care homes, and Although Ed and Claire have worked tirelessly and continue to do so to get the hand sanitiser to those that need it, the project has a real community feel about it. ‘Right from the start we involved our own community in this project by asking them about their needs. We have had so much contact from local councils, NHS trusts, care homes, schools, charities, volunteer groups, food banks and individuals all congratulating us on our efforts and supporting us to ensure that the product gets to where it is needed most.
We have had great support from the Sussex Innovation Centre, and had exposure through local press and local business forums, there is a real community spirit from the local business community as we come together at this time of crisis and it is humbling to be able to be a small part of that’.
