News
Wednesday 20 June 2007
Nottingham Trent University produce success for veg company
Nottingham Trent University is helping a company to break down the barriers of new technology and take vegetable production into the 21st Century.
AB Produce, who prepare and pack potatoes and vegetables, are using unique technology and training to help keep their award winning status and safeguard the local environment.
By linking up with Nottingham Trent University and the East Midlands New Technology Initiative (NTI), AB Produce are training supervisors and team leaders in an innovative new scheme, and have been given a grant towards their half million pound investment programme to safely dispose of waste water.
AB Produce supply vegetables for the retail, wholesale, food service and food producing sectors. They are based on a 14 acre site in Derbyshire in an area of Special Scientific Interest and have set environmental sustainability high on their agenda. They have previously won awards for their commitment to staff development and environment.
Until recently, the large quantities of water, containing vegetable starch and soil from the vegetable cleaning process, were supplied to local farmers to irrigate their crops.
Instead, the company is now installing a unique waste water recycling system. Soil and vegetable waste will be separated off and sold, and the remaining water piped to on-site lagoons, with a special aeration process to encourage bacteria to dissolve the starch. By re-using the water, AB Produce is able to reduce its cost base further, thus increasing its competitiveness, as well as enhancing its green credentials.
AB Produce operations director, Martin McQuaide, said: “We have challenged the experts to find a suitable system to cope with our requirements.
“We were taken to one of Europe’s major chip making factories to see a system that is regarded as ‘best practice’ but our requirements are even more stringent, and the equipment manufacturers have created a hybrid system for us. We hope that in the near future we will be able to clean the waste water sufficiently to enable it to be reused in the factory. What we are doing is unique in our industry.”
The fresh produce industry has traditionally been staffed by low skilled employees, requiring little in the way of formal qualifications or training. But with the increasing competitiveness of this market sector, AB Produce spotted that new technology, requiring skilled staff, was vital.
AB Produce enrolled 10 staff on a pioneering training scheme being delivered on site by the NTI’s university network. Staff turnover is almost non-existent and they receive a regular flow of enquiries from people wanting to join the firm.
Martin added: “We have fitted in the training by asking employees to finish their shifts late and starting other shifts earlier so the teams overlap and we can release staff. If the training wasn’t in this flexible format we simply wouldn’t be able to do it.
“This level of training is vital to make things happen and to ensure we have well trained and motivated staff. The NTI people have been absolutely charming and a joy to work with. I have been involved with universities through my own family but was not aware of workplace delivery.”
Mike Dixon of Nottingham Trent University, says: “AB Produce is a very successful and progressive business and immediately recognised the university’s approach to Manager, Supervisor and Team Leader Development that enables Senior Management to set the style and standards for managing the business. They can then develop the knowledge and skills of supervisors to enable them to operate effectively in the daily management of the enterprise.
“This training is in modules, delivered in the workplace by CD or tutorials, with support from a university coach and Company Senior Managers. It can also be made available for on-line access. It is aimed at improving individual and business performance and is accredited and certificated by a national awarding body."
East Midlands NTI is an initiative backed by leading universities and colleges and is funded by East Midlands Development Agency (emda) and the Higher Education Funding Council for England (HEFCE). Businesses can apply for match funded grants of up to £10,000 to invest in capital equipment and enrol staff on NTI approved courses to gain advanced technology skills.
To find out more about East Midlands NTI Food and Drink Network go to www.eastmidlandsnti.co.uk or telephone 01636 817043.
ENDS
For further press information call Lyn Churcher or Sarah Braund, East Midlands NTI Press Office on 01949 850010 or mobile 07050 089852 (also out of hours) email lyn@churcher-associates.co.uk or sarah@churcher-associates.co.uk
For further information on Nottingham Trent University please contact: Dave Rogers, Press Officer, on Tel: 0115 848 8782, or via email: dave.rogers@ntu.ac.uk
Or Therese Easom, Press and Media Relations Manager, on Tel: 0115 848 8774, or via email: therese.easom@ntu.ac.uk
