Laundry and workwear specialist Giltbrook Workwear Rental wins food firm contract

Derbyshire-based Giltbrook Workwear Rental has won its largest contract in the food and drink sector after being appointed by cooked meat products manufacturer Loscoe Chilled Foods Ltd. 

The Ilkeston-based laundry and workwear specialist has been awarded a 36-month contract to supply and launder food trade white coats, boilersuits and other items for the company, which employs 230 staff at its Loscoe premises.

The contract involves dealing with 1,850 garments in circulation at any one time and the laundering of 300 items per day to ensure that Loscoe staff have clean garments at the start of every shift.

Giltbrook Workwear Rental, part of Giltbrook Cleaners, specialises in providing the highly regulated food grade cleaning, laundry and hygiene services that are demanded by the food and drink industry to comply with strict safety and hygiene legislation.

Two years ago the firm introduced an innovative system on its website to allow customers to log in and track garments in real time at any point of the day. All workwear supplied by the company is barcode labelled and holds a radio frequency identification chip which allows speedy tracking of workwear through the laundry plant from booking in to dispatch.

Both systems were supported by the Food and Drink iNet, which is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF), and Giltbrook CEO Chris Jackson believes these innovations have helped the firm to win a number of new contracts, including the Loscoe Chilled Foods Ltd appointment.

“We have invested in the latest technology which means that at a moment’s notice, clients can check what stage any garment is at and gather all the necessary information,” said Chris Jackson.

“The information is there, 24 hours a day. It represents a leap forward for us in terms of customer service, and is very beneficial to firms working in the food and drink industry, which need to have evidence of efficient cleaning and hygiene standards to comply with stringent laws governing their operation.

“We are very pleased to have secured the contract to supply and service workwear for Loscoe Chilled Foods. Like us, they are a business committed to their local area and we are proud that we are playing a part in keeping their operation running smoothly by maintaining the cleaning of the staff uniforms, on a quick turnaround, with flexible approach to react quickly to their changing needs in the food production process.” 

The uniforms are serviced at Giltbrook Cleaners’ unit at Mercian Close, Manners Industrial Estate, Ilkeston, which has a rainwater harvesting, water recycling and reusing system, a high-efficiency hot water generation boiler, and the latest garment conveyor systems and monitoring through barcode and high- frequency micro chip technology.

The unit also has specialist hygiene management systems. Giltbrook Cleaners is a family-run business, which has been operating for more than 65 years and employs 41 people. Its clients include companies working in a range of sectors such as food and drink, engineering, hospitality, pharmaceutical and transport.

The contract with Loscoe Chilled Foods Ltd is worth more than £30,000 a year to the company, which recently gained supplier approval status from the 3M Health Care division. It involves selecting appropriate uniforms for food environments, adding a corporate logo and introducing a laundry management programme which includes daily collection of used workwear from Loscoe’s two sites and delivery of clean uniforms, which in the case of high care items are sealed in polythene, to eight locker locations.

Regular microbiological swabbing of garments and allergen management systems are carried out by Giltbrook to test that hygiene security is being maintained and the results are uploaded to the web portal at www.giltbrookworkwear.co.uk

Loscoe Chilled Foods technical manager Mark Curry said: “We've been delighted with Giltbrook Cleaners and the seamless way they have taken on the contract and worked with our staff. The quality of the garments, cleanliness and the aftercare service has made a big difference to our staff and feedback has been excellent. We are a lot more confident going forward with the BRC audits knowing we have online access to our workwear management information at a click of a button.”

Giltbrook Cleaners, which is a leading supplier in workwear rental and cleaning, mat provision and cleaning, locker and washroom services across the East Midlands and beyond, is committed to supporting standards in the food industry and later this month hosts an event run by industry organisation The Food and Drink Forum.

BRC One Year On takes place on September 26th from 7.45am to 10am and will hear from companies that already have the BRC standard in place. It is aimed at firms considering implementing BRC or those who would like to understand more about it.

It will be chaired by Food and Drink Forum senior technical manager Richard Wigley.

www.giltbrookworkwear.co.uk

Press release issued by Nottingham PR company Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Food and Drink Forum to launch new services for the catering and hospitality trade

One of the East Midlands’ key business support organisations, The Food and Drink Forum, has revealed that it is to launch a new service aimed at helping firms in the catering and hospitality trade.

Announcing the move at its flagship AGM and members’ networking supper event, The Forum announced that it hoped to soon unveil a new package of support and a membership offer specifically for the catering and hospitality part of the sector.

Support available will include new training and technical services and supply chain support, which are designed to help businesses to grow and develop. 

“The Food and Drink Forum has supported organisations across the sector since it formed in 1998, particularly those in production or manufacture. Now we will be creating tailored support for those businesses that focus on hospitality, which we believe will be useful and will encourage more catering and hospitality outlets to join our organisation,” said managing director of The Food and Drink Forum, Fiona Anderson.

Around 100 guests attended the AGM and networking supper event, which was held at Kelham Hall, near Newark. The event attracted members and associates from across Nottinghamshire, Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire and Rutland.

This year’s supper was sponsored and supported by Campden BRI, the UK's largest independent membership-based organisation carrying out research and development and providing technical support for the food and drinks industry worldwide, Clegg Food Projects, a market leader in providing practical design, engineering and construction solutions for major food and drink operations, and the Food and Drink iNet, which is part-funded by the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and run by a consortium led by The Food and Drink Forum.

“Our AGM and members’ supper is our flagship event of the year, and once again it was greatly enjoyed by those who attended,” added Fiona Anderson.

Speakers at the event included James Pogson, director of Chesterfield-based Northern Tea Merchants, Kamal Dhutia, director at Leicester-based condiments portion control supplier B I (Europe) Limited, and Phil Ellis, from Attimo – an East Midlands online market place project which provides an easy and efficient opportunity for artisan producers and hotels, restaurants and caterers looking for high quality items to do business with each other.

For information about joining The Food and Drink Forum or the new service for the catering and hospitality trade please call 0115 9758810. 

www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk

Press release issued by Nottingham PR firm Perfect 10 PR www.perfect10pr.co.uk

Students discover the ingredients for a career in the food and drink sector at Food and Drink iNet events

Almost 100 students have so far discovered the recipe for a career in the food and drink industry as part of a programme of events organised by The Food and Drink iNet.

Undergraduates and postgraduates at the universities of Nottingham, Loughborough and Northampton have attended workshops designed to give students an insight into the breadth of career opportunities in the UK’s food and drink industry.

The next session is due to take place at the University of Derby on February 5th between 1pm and 3pm in room T204.

Experts from leading food and drink companies have been involved in the free workshops to give advice about careers in the sector. So far, 94 students have taken part.

“The continued success of the food and drink sector in the East Midlands and beyond depends upon talented individuals joining the industry,” said Peter Maycock, Food and Drink iNet project director. “The food and drink sector is a very varied and dynamic sector in which to work, and we hope that these workshops are encouraging undergraduates and postgraduates to look at taking careers in the food and drink sector when they leave university.”

The Food and Drink iNet aims to foster innovation in the region’s food and drink sector by encouraging businesses to turn new ideas into new business through the development of new technologies and products. It also hopes to stimulate new processes, services and ways of working in the industry to help boost the sector.

Funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda), the Food and Drink iNet is managed by a consortium, led by The Food and Drink Forum and including Food Processing Faraday, Nottingham Trent University, The University of Lincoln, and The University of Nottingham.

For more information about the Food and Drink iNet visit www.foodanddrink-inet.org.uk

Legal helpline launch for Food & Drink Forum members

Food and drink firms across the East Midlands are being offered free legal advice after the launch of a new helpline.

One of the region’s largest food business organisations The Food and Drink Forum has teamed up with Nottingham-based lawyers Roythornes to offer the service to its members.

The legal helpline will provide immediate access during office hours to specialist lawyers with experience of the food sector. It will offer half an hour’s advice free to Forum members, and guide them on the next steps.

Food and Drink Forum Operations Manager Briony Clarke said: “Some of the most common problems our members face are related to the law, whether it's about employing staff, chasing bad debts or contract negotiations.

“Having an experienced legal team on board, with specialised food sector knowledge will prove to be a great help. This is a great addition to our membership benefits."

Speaking about the launch, Roythornes Partner Peter Bennett said: "We're delighted to be joining with The Food and Drink Forum to offer the helpline.

“Roythornes has been involved with food businesses for over 75 years and has a wealth of experience which we can apply to help Forum members. I think people would be surprised at just how much of the food we eat has been grown, packed or processed in the region and the number of businesses that are involved in the sector. It is already a large part of our business and we hope that by helping Forum members we can further grow our presence."

The Food and Drink Forum has members in Derbyshire, Leicestershire, Lincolnshire, Northamptonshire, Nottinghamshire and Rutland, who work across the food and drink supply chain.

Roythornes is one of the largest law firms in the East of England, with offices in Nottingham, Spalding, Newmarket and Peterborough.

For more information about membership of the Forum to be eligible for the free legal advice call 0115 9758810, or visit www.foodanddrinkforum.co.uk