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Facilities Show to feature FMA Village

Posted on by Sally

The UK’s largest FM event, the Facilities Show, will this year feature a new showcase area for the Facilities Management Association and a selection of its leading members.

The show takes place at the NEC Birmingham from 15 -17 May. As a new highlight, the FMA Village will include representation from Compass, MITIE, Iron Mountain, Norland Managed Services, ETDE and SGP Property & Facilities Management – as well, of course, as the FMA itself.

Chief Executive Chris Hoar explained: “The FM industry in the UK is the most mature and therefore we should take the opportunity to showcase the level of excellence and innovation that exists within the industry as well as the contribution that it makes to the UK economy.

“We have always considered the Facilities Show to be an extremely valuable event. We are hoping that the FMA Village will be a vibrant new area, in which visitors can find out more about what we do, as well as the work of our members.”

20th UK Bottled Water Industry Conference in Bath this year

Posted on by nigel

With the theme ‘Healthy body, healthy planet,’ the 20th UK Bottled Water Industry Conference is to be held at the Bath Spa Hotel in Bath, UK, on 9–10 November 2011.

The programme aims to provide a complete overview of current trends and opportunities for continued market growth.

The main day opens with an industry leadership panel of Coca-​Cola, Nestlé and Princes Gate, followed by an expert panel of Food & Drink Federation, Natural Hydration Council and Recoup.

Delegates will then hear:

  • views on the environment from Highland Spring, AMI and Danone
  • perspectives on global standards from Zenith International and European Federation of Bottled Waters
  • marketing insights from Global Ethics, Willow Water and SymphonyIRI.

Zenith will also present briefings on global and UK market trends.

“With contributions from such a wide range of industry representatives and opinion formers, this year’s event will provide an excellent platform for discussion about how companies can ensure future growth,” said Richard Hall, chairman of organiser Zenith International. “A healthy body and a healthy planet are vital to a healthy sector.”

Allianz may be dispensing of Selecta business

Posted on by nigel

Selecta, which Allianz bought from Compass Group in 2007 for £772m, employs 1,100 of its 6,000 staff in the UK and runs over 35,000 vending machines across the country.

Across Europe, Selecta has more than 150,000 vending machines catering to 6m customers every day, who buy chocolates, energy drinks, water, and coffee.

Allianz owns the company through its private equity arm, Allianz Capital Partners, which has drafted in investments banks for a beauty parade.

Consumer demand for on-the-go drinks and snacks has turned vending into a €26bn-a-year industry, according to the European Vending Association. But vending is a hugely fragmented sector, with about 3.7m vending machines run by around 10,000 companies in Europe. Most are small-to-medium enterprises and family businesses.

Despite the long tail of small companies, the vending machine model lends itself more readily to being run by much bigger companies. This is because the more machines are on one route, the higher the efficiencies and the larger the margins.

With the economic downturn squeezing many of the smaller businesses, insiders say the market is now ripe for consolidation.

Last year, CVC bought rival vending business Autobar for €1.2bn, with a plan to kick start industry consolidation.

CVC along with other private equity groups such as Terra Firma, Apax, Advent and Carlyle are expected to be potential bidders.

Red Bull gives Every Can Counts Wings!

Posted on by nigel

Energy drink brand leader Red Bull has become a funding partner of Every Can Counts.   The news marks a major step forward for the drinks can recycling programme, as Red Bull is the first drinks brand to become actively involved.

Red Bull and Every Can Counts will work together to explore new ways of encouraging consumers to recycle drinks cans; this will include actively encouraging recycling at Red Bull’s own events.  This element of the relationship is already well underway:  the Every Can Counts events recycling team encouraged visitors  at  Roundhay Park in Leeds on July 17th, to recycle the drinks cans they used at the event.

“To say that we are excited about the prospect of working with Red Bull is an understatement,” says Alupro Executive Director Rick Hindley.  “Red Bull have a reputation for leading from the front, being creative and innovative in their approach to everything from events to retail, so we are really looking forward to working with their teams to give an edge to our promotion of recycling in workplaces, universities and ‘on the go’ .

Red Bull UK Managing Director Nigel Trood adds:  “Joining Every Can Counts gives us the opportunity to directly support and encourage drinks can recycling among our consumers and a wider audience.  We hope to develop an exciting, dynamic relationship with the programme and its users.”

Red Bull Flugtag is one of the largest events in the drinks brand’s events programme, with an estimated 20,000 spectators expected over the day of the competition.  At this year’s event Every Can Counts will be encouraging visitors to contribute empty cans to the creation of a recycled can artwork, which will be built on site during the event.

Total Workplace Management 11-12 October 2011

Posted on by nigel

 

Total Workplace Management, October 11-12, London Olympia

 Organised in association with the BIFM, and partner event to the award winning Facilities Show, Total Workplace Management is the ideal place to meet face-to-face with leading professionals from across the industry.

Taking place on 11-12 October at London Olympia, this UK exhibition for facilities managers will offer all visitors a great opportunity to network face to face and engage with suppliers on projects and requirements.

With the workload of facilities managers ever increasing, TWM is ideally placed for London based managers within the industry to minimise their time out of the office.

Visiting Total Workplace Management for even a few hours could provide you with the tools and resources you need to achieve your yearly goals.

BIFM are exhibiting, so come along and learn more about the Institute, network with other members and meet some of the BIFM staff.

For more information about Total Workplace Management and to register free visit www.twmexpo.com.

‘Greening Government 2011: Mainstreaming Sustainable Development’ Conference and Exhibition

Posted on by nigel

GovToday presents ‘Greening Government 2011: Mainstreaming Sustainable Development’ Conference and Exhibition, which will be held on the 12th October 2011, at The Brewery Conference Centre, the City of London.

As part of their successful ‘Securing the Future’ series of events, this is their Third Annual National Conference examining progress within the Public Sector and by Central Government in particular, relating to performance in achieving Sustainable Development, which incorporates attaining both our national and international carbon reduction targets of a 34 per cent reduction in emissions by 2020, and 80 per cent by 2050.

Delegates will be invited to attend from across all areas of central government and the wider public sector to share best practice.

The team at Thirst Link will be attending this important conference as industry experts in the vending and water supply industries.  Our vast experience and knowledge of these market places helps our clients to gain a clearer understanding of the key players, new products and innovations and their environmental impact.

Waterlogic floats on London Stock Exchange

Posted on by nigel

Waterlogic is to start trading on London’s Alternative Investment Market (AIM), a market of the London Stock Exchange. The company is expected to have a market value of just over £112m when its shares begin trading later in July.

Waterlogic expects to raise gross proceeds of £41m in aggregate by way of a placing of 33,427,588 Ordinary Shares to institutional investors at £1.45 per share.

The company intends to use the proceeds of the Placing to fund future acquisitions of companies, businesses and distributors, as well as its Firewall UV technology, and expand its manufacturing facilities and invest in additional systems and infrastructure.