The colour of money - is green!

Around 150 delegates gathered at the impressive JCB headquarters on 15 November to discuss 'the colour of money' at the annual May Gurney Supply Chain Conference.

The key message that delegates would have taken away at the end of the day was simple and stark: doing business with an environmentally responsible attitude is the way forward, and waste as we know it will become a thing of the past.

"Green businesses are the ones that other companies will aspire to partner with"

Amanda Black, May Gurney

The conference was organised by Amanda Black, May Gurney's Supply Chain Manager, who says: "We chose the theme to reinforce the message that the colour of money going forward will be 'green'. Green businesses are the ones that other companies will aspire to partner with, the ones that will retain and increase their market share and profitability."

Delegates were challenged to adjust their mind sets and think of 'waste' as 'by products' - almost all of which can be used by other companies to make other products or improve processes.

One of the speakers, Rob Bresler from NISP (National Industrial Symbiosis Programme) told delegates that they might be throwing away profit through waste. He went on to outline several hypothetical examples of how 'waste' can be recycled by other businesses. Click here to download Rob Bresler's presentation.

Another speaker, Dr Miles Watkins, Director Environment & CSR at Aggregate Industries, spoke about the growth of sustainable construction. He asked delegates to consider whether they were in front or behind the line, whether they are a driver or a passenger? Click here to download Dr Watkins' presentation.

As always, the annual Supplier Integration Awards ceremony was one of the conference highlights. Nominations come from within May Gurney for suppliers who partner in innovation and/or product design, or offer support on a specific project or projects that is over and above the norm.

The top award went to Parker Merchanting and Oxford Plastics for their work in partnership with May Gurney to develop an improved safety barrier for use at roadworks. Click here to read more about this initiative.

The other finalists were:
Fairfield Mabey - for their commitment and support during the A11 Attleborough Bypass Project, which was successfully completed within budget and ahead of schedule earlier this year.

Malcolm Hoskins & Acland Plant - for investing in an innovative rotating filter bucket to enable on site processing of excavated material into pipeline bedding (thus avoiding removal of excavated material, and delivery of bedding material).

Trek Highway Services - for providing effective traffic management support across a range of projects, which helped make life easier for road users and enhanced May Gurney's customers' reputations.

Walkers Tree & Land Management - for the way they handled the felling of 80' trees close to the carriageway to create access to the A1074 Longwater Lane Junction scheme.

Click here to download the Integration Awards presentation with details of all finalists.

At the end of the day, Tina Dobson, May Gurney Business Improvement Manager, asked delegates how they will use the knowledge they gained at the conference?

"Think of it as a packet of seeds," she said. "Will you go and scatter the seeds and spread the knowledge far and wide - or will you leave the seeds in the packet in your drawer? It's your choice."

For further information about the Conference contact Amanda Black on 01603 727379, or ablack@maygurney.co.uk.

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