News Industry Comment BITA launches scheme to find apprentices
Following on from the success of the IMHX at the NEC, Birmingham in November last year, the recent CeMAT exhibition in Hannover, Germany proved to be yet another successful trade event for the materials handling and logistics sector. Held under the slogan of ‘Sustainability in Logistics’, the five- day show featured a broad range of innovative new products and was an excellent showcase for the materials handling and logistics industry and produced further evidence that it is continuing to recover from the effects of the recession. CeMAT 2011 attracted 1,084 companies from 38 different countries, including 548 – roughly half of all exhibitors – from abroad. A comprehensive display portfolio included hybrid-drive, automated guided transport systems, series- produced industrial trucks with lithium ion batteries, space and energy-saving packaging machines and new cloud computing software. Exhibitors at CeMAT were said to be delighted at the highly international mix of the approximately 58,000 visitors in attendance, some 35 per cent of whom came from abroad. More than 75 per cent of these foreign visitors were from other parts of Europe, while 11 per cent were from Asia and seven percent from the USA. The next event on the materials handling calendar is Logistics Link Live in June. Let’s hope this positive industry trend continues. Neil Mead - Managing Editor
Events
Logistics Link Live 8-9 June, NEC, Birmingham
www.logisticslink.co.uk
United Kingdom Warehousing Association (UKWA) Awards 6 July, Dorchester Hotel, London
www.ukwa.org.uk
S4
An initiative to attract new blood into the forklift truck market, through better opportunities and apprenticeships, was announced at the British Industrial Truck Association (BITA) this month. BITA has committed to fund an Industry Apprentice Manager to work with colleges and trade associations to attract applicants to apprenticeship schemes. The announcement comes at a time when the economic forecast for the industry is strong, but the age profile of the engineering sector continues to increase.
Bita board member and sales director at Jungheinrich UK Bill
Goodwin (pictured), is heading up BITA’s Materials Handling Equipment Apprenticeship Scheme. He said: “Bita recog- nises the importance of attracting young people into our industry and we are committed to working with schools, colleges and the whole industry to improve the opportunities available. Our
FLTA nominated for safety award
The Fork Lift Truck Association (FLTA) has been nominated for a national award from the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (RoSPA).
The new SME category of the awards
recognises “the most outstanding contri- bution made by a trade association or similar body to providing health and safety assistance to small and medium- sized enterprises”.
The majority of the FLTA’s members
are SMEs and for 40 years the FLTA’s main aim has been to ensure its mem- bers operate to a high standard with safe- ty being paramount. Considered the most dangerous of work- ing environment vehicles, forklift trucks account for more than double the number of workplace accidents involving cars. However, since the introduction FLTA’s Safety Week, a safety awareness cam- paign, accidents have fallen year-on-year.
FLTA also publishes a wide range of safety literature specifically for SMEs who may need assistance. A dedicated Safe User Group also gives safety-aware firms access to high quality, up-to-the- minute advice.
Forklift truck injuries fell over the last
year, leaving it 13 per cent below that in 2001/02. Most strikingly, forklift truck- related deaths and injuries among mem- bers of the public plummeted to 59 per cent below the average; a statistic the FLTA hopes is a reflection upon the broad targeting of its safety message. FLTA chief executive David Ellison said:
“We share as much free safety guidance as possible, and offer our Safe User Group for just a few pounds a month so it’s grat- ifying our efforts are not going unnoticed.” The RoSPA SME Award winner will be
revealed in mid-May.
www.fork-truck.org.uk
Apprentice course
A campaign by the FLTA has resulted in the creation of an apprenticeship quali- fication for forklift truck engineers. Responding to the worsening short- age of budding service engineers enter- ing the industry, the FLTA has spent a decade developing an apprenticeship scheme that meets the engineering challenges of working on a forklift truck. The FLTA worked with Retail Motor Industry Training (ReMIT) and North Warwickshire & Hinckley College, to develop the Vehicle Maintenance & Repairs (Lift Trucks) course, accredited by the Institute of Motor Industries.
Firm turns stand into visitors’ centre Contract to supply loading bay range
As a company committed to the environment and to minimising costs, Hoppecke Industrial Batteries has relocated its stand from a recent engineering exhibi- tion in Birmingham. Rather than dismantle its stand, the firm decided to transfer the structure to its offices in Newcastle-under- Lyme. This involved several fork- lift trucks powered by Hoppecke batteries and a police escort up the M6.
The stand is being used as a visitor centre where customers can see a showcase of Hoppecke’s equipment and systems. Centre- stage is the company’s ‘trak air’ system for battery recharging. Hoppecke’s non-executive
Based in Northhampton, Stertil Stokvis has secured a three-year contract to supply products from its loading bay equipment range to Royal Mail Group.
director, Bernard Molloy said: “We’d always planned to re-cycle our exhibition stand in this way because it is a very cost-effective solution. These structures are expensive and would normally be thrown away so re-using this and extending its life makes financial and environmental sense.”
www.hoppecke.co.uk
The ‘sole supplier’ contract between Stertil Stokvis and Royal Mail Group will run for a three years followed by an optional two-year extension. Andy Georgiou, general man- ager of the company’s loading bay division, said: “Stertil Stokvis has worked in partner- ship with the Royal Mail Group for a number of years and we are delighted to continue that rela- tionship into the future.
www.stertiluk.com
MAY 2011 Materials Handling & Logistics
objective is to provide support and a point of contact between apprentices and operating com- panies to increase the number of applicants. “We need to see significant numbers of apprentices joining our sector to replace retiring employees if we want to reverse our current ageing profile. We believe BITA can help by creating a management link, which does not currently exist, between the large companies and colleges to ensure they are well enough informed and properly resourced to offer appropriate courses.”
www.bita.org.uk
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