Fire Risk Assessments
The Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order (2005)
40% of businesses never recover from the effects of a major fire with the loss of key staff due to temporary closure. The Regulatory Reform Fire Safety Order (2005) now requires you to manage the risk of fire in your organisation, but do you really know what is expected of you?  The first hurdle to overcome is to carry out a Fire Risk Assessment; without one, your insurance company will refuse cover in the event that you make a claim. But for many businesses carrying out their own Fire Risk Assessment isn’t practical unless they have dedicated Health and Safety teams.

COSHH 2004 (Control of Substances Hazardous to Health) Regulations
How the regulations affect your business
The COSHH Regulations require employers to manage the risk to staff and others who may be exposed to hazardous substances in the workplace.

CoSHH Regulations
There are a wide range of issues that employers are required to address. Without specialist, up-to-the-minute knowledge, it is very difficult to know where to start. Health and safety advisors will make sure your business ticks all the legal boxes, keeping your workplace secure and your workforce safe.

CoSHH Assessments
Health and safety advisors conduct COSHH compliant risk assessments, taking into account the hazardous properties of a substance and recommending working practices that ensure staff are protected against harmful exposure – before the inevitable ‘knock on the door’.
The Health and Safety at Work Act (1974)

Management of Health Safety at Work Regulations (1999)
The ramifications of non-compliance in your workplace can be significant, limiting business operations and having significant bottom line impact – not to mention the worse case scenario incumbent in the new Corporate Manslaughter and Homicide Act…

Risk Assessments 1999
An essential part of Risk Management
Risk Assessments are an integral part in the process of managing the risks incumbent in any business activity. Unfortunately, often because of a lack of time and resource, risk assessments in most businesses are inadequate. A good-quality risk assessment should form the basis of any safe work procedure; but if you are not a
Health and Safety specialist, where do you start?
Risk assessment training and review
A health and safety advisors training services can address this for you, bringing your staff up to speed with current legislation.
Health & Safety in your Workplace

The HSE website advises: “It is an employer’s duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of their employees, and other people who might be affected by their business”, and that “the employer must do whatever is reasonably practicable to achieve this.”
Good management of workplace safety represents not only good business practice, but also it can improve both performance of staff and the business in general. Unfortunately whilst complying and keeping pace with statutory change is extremely time consuming – especially given the growth of the compensation culture – it is essential to ensure you are not left exposed in the event of an accident or injury in your workplace.

Dredging is required for various reasons including environmental, commercial and industrial uses.

Environmentally, examples of the use of dredging are to clear waterways also to collect sand in order to repair coastal erosion. Industrial and commercial uses dredging are for example the collection of materials used in concrete production and the dredging for valuable trace substances.

Dredging has become an essential operation in process of flood prevention through increasing an area’s capacity for holding or carrying water away.
Dredging requires not only the correct craft but also the correct dredging equipment which is mainly the dredging bucket. Each type of dredging project requires a different type of bucket as each location and material required to be dredged is different.

Dredging buckets are made by the process of the fabrication of steel through welding. They are either constructed in a workshop or onsite depending on the nature of the usage and location. Dredging buckets can range from 3m3 to 25m3. The first process is to design the bucket using CAD software and then the drawing service. It is these critical initial stages that enable the bucket to be fabricated.

The materials used in the construction of dredge buckets, excavator buckets and mining buckets are highly sophisticated. The steel is high strength and abrasion resistant with tungsten or chromium carbide wear protection systems. Each bucket is ESCO wear resistant encompassing their protection systems and are bushed and line bored.

As mining, excavation and dredging buckets are often used in challenging and demanding situations, it is important to keep on top of refurbishment. A professional dredge bucket manufacturer should also offer the service of repair and refurbishment.

The refurbishment and repair of mining and dredging buckets is as skilled a job as manufacturing. The welding and fabrication processes are as complex and so a fully equipped workshop is required with a lifting capacity in the region of 15 tonnes. The welding should be to ASMA 9 standard or higher with a mobile line boring facility. Once the welding and fabrication has been completed the process of the abrasion resistant and steel plate coatings can be implemented.

Cable assembly is required in a variety of situations and for a variety of uses.

The modern world is completely a wired world. Various types of wires and cables are used to construct all the machines and heavy equipment which are considered as modern engineering marvels. Even the residential or commercial multistorey buildings rely heavily on the wiring and complex cable assemblies used in the access control, electricity supply and communication systems.

It is not wrong to say that the modern world is dependent on wires and cables for transporting the energy (electrical or electronic) and magnetic waves (sound and data) from one place to another. This is the backbone of the all-round development that we experience these days. Can people imagine how tough and complex the cabling system inside a multistory or a jumbo jet is? Of course not, most of them are unaware of the complexity involved in the process.

However, these tasks are performed with much ease and simplicity. Thanks to cable assembly and wiring harness providers, who make life easy by encapsulating the intricacies behind making of these innovative and most usable plug and play products. They just make the tough and complex task of all types of wiring as easy as nothing.

Cable assembly providers are among the major contributors in constructing a safer and more organized world. Without their help, the automation of anything was impossible. Most of the modern industries like automobiles, heavy engineering, and security mechanism is based on different types of custom made wiring harnesses and cable assemblies.

Apart from these complex examples, people can witness several applications of cable assemblies in their everyday life. They are almost everywhere. For example, some most common elements that we see every day in our modern life like Computers, Telephone, Power Supply, Batteries, Lifts, and Medical Equipment are strictly dependent on cable assemblies.

In summary, it is not possible for every common man to judge the complex engineering, tough quality processes, and series of manual and automatic checks performed during the manufacturing of different standard or custom cable assemblies and wiring harnesses, but everybody can understand their impact on modern lifestyle. It is almost impossible for anybody to imagine a comfortable and easy lifestyle without using any of the aforementioned equipment or automated systems.

A general law practice means nearly all sectors and aspects of law are covered allowing all legal services to be carried out under one roof through specialized departments and solicitors.

Company Law is complex and is constantly changing. If you own or run a business it can be impossible to keep up with developments within commercial or employment law. This is where specialists can be a huge asset, as it is their job to ensure that they are constantly keeping up to date with developments, so you don’t have to. Commercial specialists have a wealth of experience in dealing with any commercial legal issue, and are exceptionally respected within the legal community. With our existing clients ranging from national and international Companies to small companies or business startups, you can be assured that regardless of what legal advice you need, our commercial law team will be more than capable of ensuring you receive the advice and results you need.

All conveyance work undertaken is handled by experienced conveyancers, who ensure that throughout the entire conveyancing process, you are kept up-to-date, and that you always understand each step of the process in full. This allows us to guarantee that your move is as smooth and as stress free as possible, exactly as it should be.

Employment law is probably one the fastest moving areas of law, so an expert employment law team will ensure that their clients and themselves are always at the forefront of each development. This ensures that an employment law team is always able to offer the very best advice and representation, to both Business’ and Individuals alike.

By ensuring that personal injury specialists are continuously keeping up to date with the most recent developments in the field of injury claims, a solicitors practice are able to considerably maximise the compensation which you may be entitled to.

Hull solicitors operate on a completely no-win-no-fee basis, and are pleased to offer a first free interview to advise you on your claim and how it may be funded.
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Yarwoods Plant contractors services can be broken down into three key areas, as follows:

1. Machinery Centre
The Yarwoods machinery centre located in Inverness, not only offers our traditional excavator attachment Plant Hire, Sales & service business but also supplying Gardening and Ground-care Equipment to both domestic and professional customers. Their product range includes lawnmowers, Ride-on Mowers, hedge cutters, chainsaws and strimmers to tractors, Rough Terrain vehicles and safety clothing.

2. Welding & Fabrication:
With Yarwood’s taking care of your welding and fabrication work, you are drawing on years of experience gained from a broad range of projects. From construction equipment to fabrication and refurbishment of large excavator buckets and from steel structure fabrication to on-site welding.

3. Plant hire, Sales and Service:
Specialists in excavator attachment sales & hire from Augers and Arden Grabs to Hudco Compaction Plates, the renowned  Hydraulic Hammer only available in the UK from Yarwoods, plus the Hydraulic breaker.

All indoor and outdoor pools eventually need updating and renovating to return them to their former glory. The key is to find a pool refurbishment company that has the expertise to embrace new developments in the industry and the latest state of the art technology to deliver a renovation that will last for many years to come.

Swimming pool refurbishment is often a more involved and complex procedure than building the same swimming pool from scratch due to the nature of the original construction process and the type of filtration system that is currently installed. You should always choose a refurbishment company with many years experience.

There are many aspects of pool renovation ranging from basic cleaning to replacing  mosaic glass or ceramic tiles and grout through to a total redesign of the shape of the pool and steps. Beyond the pool itself you may like to alter or build other facilities such as changing rooms, spas, steam rooms, wet rooms and shower rooms.

There are really five main steps to successful pool refurbishment, as follows:

1. Initial Consultation – You can either do this over the telephone or ask a representative to come and meet you at your site. A follow up site visit is essential for measurements and photographs ready for the preliminary proposal of your renovation.

2. Clean – Having chosen your preferred renovation specialist the next step is to empty the water out of the pool and remove the old coping stones, tiles and loose plaster before preparing the area ready to tile.

3.  Screed / Render – The area should be fully waterproofed using epoxy resin and chemical resistant paints.

4. Tiling – This is when the whole process really starts to take shape. Once all the tiles are in place the whole area should be acid washed and grouted.

5. Water – Now you can add the water and it is ready for use.

Even the most simple of DIY job around the house can call for a variety of tools which can be very costly. These tools are often only used once or twice and either lent out never to be seen again or get added to the clutter in the back of a garage or shed.

By hiring tools such as welders, drills and plant machinery you gain greatly from various benefits available from a hire shop.

Some tools and machinery can be bought at a very cheap price but you really do get what you pay for. When hiring tools from a hire company, you are sure to get a top quality piece of machinery as these tools have to withstand a lot of use and adhere to the highest of health and safety regulations. They also achieve the best possible finish or job.

Health and safety is paramount when using tools and machinery and hire company staff are usually fully trained in servicing, pat testing and repairing all their equipment. By hiring tools, you are saving on servicing and repairing costs which you would otherwise have to pay for should you own the tool.

Most local hire shops such as tool hire Yorkshire companies can deliver the equipment to your location which is a really good point to look for when choosing a hire company. For DIY customers is also important to make sure they can deliver or can pick up the equipment on a weekend as this is when DIY work tends to be carried out.
A plant and tool hire company often stock a huge range of equipment to hire from access, lifting and cutting equipment to garden, cleaning and welding machinery.

Other benefits of using a Yorkshire plant hire company is that many also do servicing and repairs of tools and machinery you may own. These servicing and repairs can either be done at the plant hire premises or some companies do on site repairs and servicing which can often be far more convenient for the customer.

Audio visual or AV installations are on the rise with both the business and domestic market realising the benefits of bespoke AV systems. Standard systems can be installed but a bespoke system is completely tailored to the specific requirements of the customer. For domestic customers alone there are many different reasons a bespoke AV system is required such as one which is geared towards movie and film watching, focusing on music or for home office requirements.

The first stage in any project is to establish a brief with the client, including what functionality is expected from the system and any budgetary constraints that may exist. From there the audio visual installation consultant will draw up a system specification and layout diagrams if necessary, along with a detailed quotation setting out all of the costs involved. It is very important to instruct a company that will liaise with architects/building contractors as well as electricians and any other on site contractors. Communication and co-operation with building trades during installations is essential in order to achieve the best possible installation. The range of equipment and systems available is vast in today’s market.

Audio visual systems are installed in a wide variety of situations. A few examples are: museums, schools, conferencing and meeting rooms, exhibitions, events, bars, clubs, film festivals and even mobile AV installations in vans. Each situation listed has a different specification and requirement. Bars and clubs will require a system quite different to that of a museum installation for example. For businesses, the latest technology that comes with bespoke audio visual systems greatly improves working conditions, professionalism and productivity.

Domestic environments are also places where there is a need for design and installation of bespoke AV systems, from a simple plasma screen on the wall through to whole-house audio and video. Home cinema systems are becoming very popular and with today’s technology can be discretely installed to complement the surrounding decor, with exciting features such as concealed projectors and screens, touchscreen remote controls and in-wall speakers. The home cinema projector market is definitely heating up with growing interest in high definition and larger displays. These days, especially with the onset of luxury city apartment living, the big challenge for manufacturers lies in combining cinematic performance with aesthetic looks. Where home cinema projectors are being installed in living rooms there is now the possibility of having a screen that can be hidden away in the ceiling or you could look to get a nicely designed screen that can be wall mounted. Design is rapidly becoming the most important decision factor when it comes to the screen.

When searching for an av installation contractor it is important to check that a full Health & Safety policy is available to view and that the policy is adhered to by the installation engineers. Method statements and Risk Assessments should be produced for every job which requires work off-site. Engineers should be PASMA qualified for work at height using scaffold towers and that any electrical work carried out is done so in accordance with BS7671 and NICEIC certificated.

Most companies today manufacturing equipment or vehicles containing a large number of electrical wires or cables realise that to be competitive they have to create a wiring loom as a separate sub-assembly rather than assemble it wire by wire on the product. Many firms still chose to do this work in house but increasingly they choose to sub-contract it to a specialist company. A specialist company have the expertise and equipment to make the looms efficiently and to a consistently high standard providing you with a plug and play solution. This gives customers the benefit of fixing the cost of a significant part of their product and vastly reducing the final assembly times.

The manufacture of wiring loom harnesses can be found within the following products:

* Digital Photo Booths
* Naval Radar Systems
* Petrol Pumps
* Access Control Equipment
* Control Panels
* Industrial Battery Chargers
* Printing machines
* Lighting Equipment
* Mobile Phone transmitters

Expert specialist wiring looms and control panel assembly to form a complete automotive wiring system can be found in the following vehicles:

* Ambulance Wiring Looms
* Police Car Looms
* Police Van Looms
* Double Decker Bus Looms
* Mini-Bus Wiring Looms
* Commercial Vehicle Wiring Looms
* Domestic Trailer Wiring Looms
* Commercial Trailer Wiring Looms
* Utility Vehicle looms

Using professional house or office clearance companies to conduct clearances has many benefits.

Why should I use a professional home or office clearance service?
You should use one if you want a highly professional, reliable, and swift service that is very competitive on price whilst most importantly, being fully licensed, insured and compliant with EU and UK legislation. You may also appreciate a professional’s commitment to delivering the most environmentally friendly clearance service available.

How is the price worked out for a clearance?
There are three factors that influence the cost. 1. The labour required. ?2. The cost of disposal and recycling of the items cleared. ?3. The resale value of the items to be cleared. Once the house clearance company have assessed the job they then calculate the price. There should be no hidden extra costs.

Why can’t I get an exact price over the phone?
Until the house or office clearance company can asses exactly how long the job will take, what if any residual value there is, and what our recycling / disposal costs are going to be a precise quote cannot be given.
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Modern fire extinguishers are highly sophisticated items of equipment and strict regulations are in force in the manufacture and maintenance of each appliance.

The Construction and Operation of Modern Fire Extinguishers

Modern portable fire extinguishers are typically Stored Pressure or Cartridge Operated Fire Extinguishers. Manufacturers of fire extinguishers tend to produce both types of fire extinguisher with stored pressure fire extinguishers being the most common.
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Portable Building Sales recently won a contract to supply two modular buildings to the Coventry Primary Care Trust.

The first modular building we installed as a temporary walk in centre, was a used 6 bay modular building.

Prior to arrival on site, jackpad foundations were used to erect the building instead of traditional concrete foundations.

Portable Building Sales have agreed to purchase the building back after the Primary Care Trust no longer have a use for the building and in addition will also purchase the jackpad foundations leaving a clear and clean car park area once again.

The Portable Building Sales “buy back” scheme ensures that the building is removed safely, professionally and to the current Health & Safety and CDM regulations. They ensure that the Primary Care Trust has no disposal problems and receives payment for the building before it is removed.

Portable Building Sales Ltd is one of the few companies in the UK to provide this type of service.

The used steel framed modular building that was supplied consists of six plastic coated steel modules which have white Upvc double glazed windows. The building also has a plasterboard lined ceiling and walls and a double thickness plywood floor.

This used modular building was decorated internally, cleaned externally and reinstated electrically to the latest regulations.

This temporary modular walk in centre building complies with the current Part L2A 2006 building regulations and is extremely environmentally friendly as it only uses 3% of the energy required to manufacture an equivalent new modular building. This is because the embodied energy is transportable and therefore can be relocated to a new site.

Also there are significant cost savings to the client and in this instance the tax payer as well, as this building was approximately a third of the cost of an equivalent new manufactured modular buildings.

Portable Building Sales completed the installation of this building within four weeks from the date of order and to the client’s complete satisfaction.
Even though this modular building is pre-owned, Portable Building Sales still provide a 12 months guarantee with the building.

Portable Building Sales provided the Coventry Primary Care Trust with complete peace of mind throughout the process of attending meetings, submission of our Health & Safety plans, supply and installation of the used modular building, arrangement of the crane, to even organising the transportation and temporary traffic management to enable the building to be off loaded from a road adjacent to the site.

For more information please visit http://www.portablebuildingsales.co.uk or telephone 01482 656590

Installing artificial grass can be carried out by most able bodied DIY enthusiast; however, consideration should be given to the weight of some of the materials required. This article details some essential hints and tips.

Measuring
When measuring the quantity of artificial grass required it is essential to incorporate an overlap of 100mm over each edge for coverage of the timber perimeter.
Survey

Undertake a ground survey to ascertain whether or not the terrain is subject to poor drainage, thereby retaining surface water. In such cases, in order to ensure a satisfactory base for EverLawn® artificial grass, measures should be taken to install appropriate and adequate below surface, drainage. We would advise the crushed aggregate followed by a sand infill method.

Installation Guide
Installing artificial turf can be carried out by most able bodied DIY enthusiast; however, consideration should be given to the weight of some of the materials required. Either remove the existing turf manually or hire a turf cutter to save time and labour.
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WinMan, the ERP software company, are pleased to announce the launch of their WinMan Mobile system.

WinMan Mobile allows the easy extension of your WinMan ERP software system to the shop floor or warehouse. Using a wireless network, the go-anywhere features of WinMan Mobile mean operators can transact in WinMan without going back to their PC or recording information manually for later entry.

WinMan Mobile can streamline and automate any aspect of your warehouse or shop floor processing though an intuitive, flexible interface running on mobile computers.
The software, installed on the handheld device, guides the user through the relevant process before committing the transaction to the server for real-time processing. Communication between the unit and WinMan ERP software is handled using standard wireless networking. Barcode scanning can be utilised to ensure maximum speed and accuracy and the user interface is designed to be intuitive so minimal training is required.

WinMan utilises the very latest Microsoft .NET technology and is developed to n-tier standards using 100% .NET managed code. In tandem with the Microsoft SQL Server database environment and all associated Microsoft tools, WinMan provides a very powerful and leading-edge solution. Originally developed in 1993, WinMan was one of the world’s first Windows-based ERP software. Our recent redevelopment and subsequent release in .NET reinforce our position as technological pioneers and prove our dedication to keeping our customers competitive with the latest advances in business systems.

Please visit http://www.winman.com if you need any further information or a product demonstration of WinMan Mobile.

Tow Master manufacture a range of standard and custom made catering trailers. With our extensive experience in the mobile food and trailer manufacturing industry we can provide you with the mobile catering trailer you need to succeed. Our aim is to provide each of our customers with the highest level of service, durability and finish build quality available giving them a catering trailer to be proud of.

The Standard Road Runner is our entry level catering trailer, available in a range of sizes from 2.4mt up to 4.2mt, each is 2mt wide and 2mt tall internally. They may be an entry level trailer but there is no compromise on the finish build quality as all our trailers are built with the same basic materials and to the same high standards. These catering trailers are built on a robust steel chassis that is fully painted. The sides are of 14mm GRP dry freight panels which provide a smooth, easy to clean surface that can be painted or sign written, and are finished with anodised aluminium cappings. The roof is of opaque fibreglass supported by welded aluminium frame.
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Royal Mail has announced 1st and 2nd class standard mail price increases which will take effect from 6 April 2010.

The price of 1st class standard mail (weighing up to 100g) will increase by 2p to 41p and 2nd class mail by the same margin to 32p. Postage price increases are nothing new but what does differ with this price increase is that of ordinary meter and account mail, i.e. mail franked by franking machines. The prices for franked mail are to be kept at the old rate.

This is great news for businesses and organisations that send out high volumes of mail but such a saving, typically 7p* on 2nd class franked mail, is now making franking machines an attractive option for even smaller mail outputs, for example, 25-50 items per day.
Using a franking machine means stamps never run out and mail can be organised and posted 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Integrated scales give you the correct postal tariff for all mail ensuring complete accuracy. Increased brand awareness and the ability to send messages on franking labels are other advantages of using franking machines.

Efficiency in business is the key in today’s climate both in the form of money and time saving. Franking machines create savings on both for a business or organisation. For example, if you had an employee on a salary of £14k per annum, and they made one 30 minute trip to the post office every week you could save an additional £14.60 a week by using franked mail. So not only with the price freeze on franked mail from April 6 but with more efficiency in time management, franking machines should be the way forward for thousands of businesses.

The Mailing Room is a leading supplier of mailroom equipment and consumables including franking machines. Visit http://www.themailingroom.com for more information.

Forty-eight installers have signed up instantly to the new Double Glazing and Conservatory Ombudsman Scheme. Trialled for two years, The Ombudsman Scheme was officially launched in January to protect homeowners against rogue installers, and professional installers against customers who refuse to pay.

“The benefits of the Ombudsman Scheme are four-fold,” explains the Founder, Tony Pickup. “Firstly, it will help restore the industry’s reputation and help professional installers differentiate themselves from incompetent cowboys”

“Secondly, every customer is covered for deposit protection insurance, work-in-progress insurance and an insurance-backed guarantee to give homeowners real security – not just a promise of peace of mind.”

“Thirdly, if anything goes wrong, members and their customers get free access to professional mediators, independent inspectors and – uniquely – a compulsory and legally binding dispute resolution service via the Ombudsman himself, an experienced industry arbitrator.

“Fourthly, DGCOS offers installers effective protection against customers who withhold payment or make unjustified complaints. In a first for the industry, members can also claim for unpaid contracts if the Ombudsman has found in favour of the installer and the customer refuses to pay. The DGCOS Compensation Fund will pay out all bona fide claims to installers. This fund is also available to compensate homeowners and make good on installer promises.

“And finally,” Tony Pickup explains, “the Ombudsman Scheme delivers real business benefits to installers, with national TV advertising and radio commercials, plus ‘Peace of Mind’ packs, consumer brochures and DVDs to generate sales leads. Nick Ross, of Crimewatch and Watchdog fame, is spokesman and ambassador for DGCOS. The Ombudsman Scheme offers unique consumer and installer protection – and the speed of take-up suggests it’s much needed!”

The beauty of non slip flooring and grip tapes are their ease of application but the removal of the tape is also a requirement.

“How do I remove grip tape?” is a very popular question for grip tapes and non slip flooring tape manufacturers.

For obvious reasons the anti skid tape is designed to be permanent, the whole ethos with it is focused on creating the most durable and effective safety flooring tape.  Processes and constituent materials should be constantly reviewed, as in all industries new and improved components are developed.  Progressively and consistently follows or creates best practise to ensure that the customer receives the most advanced product available; HOWEVER, all this helps to create problems for those who wish to remove it.

If one tries to simply remove the safety flooring or grip tapes it will be difficult; you will either struggle to remove it or the plastic film will fragment into smaller pieces.  There are two recommended methods;

1).  With some form of flat tool (something like a scraper) remove one of the corners; you need to ensure you remove enough to create a thumb grip.  Slowly peel back the material touching surface-to-surface, this part is critical, it is called a ‘low energy pull’.  All self adhesive materials have an inherent weakness; their adhesive is composed of thin strands, once these thin strands are bent back and forced into an acute angle they snap.  You must ensure that the material is taken back, surface-to-surface, this is the critical part.

2).  Heat does help with removal, as our adhesives are initially liquid based heat will go some way to reverting it back to its original liquid state.  Ideally heat guns are better than hair dryers; they dissipate the heat better over the surface.  A surface temperature around 60~70ºC is ideal.

There is no guarantee for easy removal, as mentioned above the material is designed to be permanent, some removals are easy, some are very frustrating!  Once removed you can apply material straight onto the surface, you would not need to re-prime but would need to edge fix again if this is required.

Once the non slip flooring tape has been successfully removed there should not be much adhesive residue left behind, if however you want to remove any remnants we recommend the use of white spirit or a harsher solvent such as MEK or toluene.  Please test the surface prior to using these; they can sometimes react with delicate substrates.

Non slip tape can provide combined uses for example safety in the dark or areas of low level lighting. Tapes are available with photo luminescent coatings as well as the non slip element. Waterproof tapes are also available for areas where there is a lot of water for example on a pool side. These waterproof tapes are effective for walking on with shoes or barefoot. Finally safety flooring tapes which are combined with hazard warning strips. Of course, due to changes in room use, moving round of goods or furniture and simply when moving premises, the ability to be able to swap, move or replace non slip flooring and grip tapes is essential.

Slipping over on floors or down stairs are common forms of accidents in the workplace and in the home. Slip and falls can result in serious injury. Prevention of such accidents is very easy with care, attention and by using easy to apply anti slip and non slip tape.

Yellow Coarse Traction Tape
Snow, ice and mud easily clog and restrict the grip capability of most traction tapes surfaces. Yellow coarse traction tape is coated with a deep aluminium oxide mineral to help prevent clogging. Ideal for use in ski resorts and any area that suffers from icy or muddy conditions.

Black Standard Anti Slip Tape
Black standard anti slip tape is the most common and widely used of all the anti slip tapes as it is ideal for any general non slip requirement. This material has a permanent self adhesive, plastic base and is coated with extremely tough, diamond hard aluminium oxide.  The anti slip capability (coefficient of friction) exceeds all legal requirements.  It prevents slips and trips on stairs, internal walkways and external areas. For muddy or icy areas, a coarse tape should be used.

Conformable Anti Skid Tape
Conformable anti skid tape is a must for all irregular surfaces such as diamond tread plate, 5 bar tread etc.  The foil backing of conformable anti skid tape easily conforms to the peaks and valleys turning a previously slippery surface (diamond tread plate can be lethal in wet conditions) into one achieving the highest grip rating. Due to the nature of its purpose, conformable tape is mainly used in the form of highly visible black and yellow stripes to highlight potentially risky areas.

Transparent Non Slip Tape
A clear grip tape is perfect for applying when you need an unobtrusive yet extremely effective anti slip surface.  Most grip tapes use aluminium oxide which is naturally opaque, so to produce perfect clarity, a translucent S2 coating ensures a truly transparent grip tape.  Perfect for applications on marble, company logos (create that amazing 3D effect!), terrazzo and all aesthetically appealing areas.

Black Yellow Hazard Non Slip Flooring
The black and yellow hazard non slip flooring and tape has a high grip non slip surface but with high visibility stripes.  Great for applying onto RVs, trucks, nosings and all safety critical areas.  It can often be obtained in different shapes and sizes for should there be a special requirement.

Glow In The Dark Plain Colour Anti Skid Tape
Photoluminescent anti slip tape combines a high grip surface yet also possesses a bright glow in the dark capability.  The photoluminescent anti skid tape is charged by natural or incandescent lights; they store the energy and slowly release it when the lighting dims.  Ideal for stair nosings, walkways and other potentially hazardous areas, will emit a glow in time of power failure.  A must for any organization which wants to fulfil all requirements, this material does not contain any radioactive materials.

Red White Hazard Sandpaper Tape
Red and white hazard sandpaper tape helps to minimize insurance and liability risks through its warning capabilities as well as its grip. This kind of sandpaper tape product is perfect for all industrial and commercial applications.

Aqua Non Slip Tape
Aqua non slip tape has a multitude of uses from baths and showers to boats, hot tubs and swimming pools.  Aqua floor tapes are completely non-abrasive yet still allows great grip as many uses of this tape are where bare feet are present.  These tapes can be found in cut sizes or rolls and it is recommended for baths and wet rooms to apply the aqua floor tape in strips to create a ladder type effect.  The material does not contain any grit so will not harbor any dirt or bacteria.

In these days the early radio or wireless fire alarm systems began to gain a poor reputation for reliability, mainly related to the radio transmissions and battery life of the devices.  However over time the technology involved in these systems has steadily advanced to where we are today.  Today’s Radio or Wireless Fire Alarm Systems are light years ahead of their early 80’s ancestors.  Interestingly the advance in technology with the radio fire alarm systems has occurred as a bi-product of major advances in technology in the computer, battery and mobile phone industries.  Radio Fire Alarm System designers and engineers have embraced and harnessed this technology to create a new generation of radio fire alarm systems that are much more sophisticated in terms of performance, fault monitoring and reliability.  These new fire alarm systems are fully compliant to BS5839 and EN54 and are fully monitored.
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There is a lot of confusion as to exactly how sealed lead acid batteries are constructed.

The construction of sealed lead acid batteries is in actual fact it is not as complicated as people may let you believe.  The following is a short piece on exactly how these batteries are constructed.

The whole ethos of how the battery construction is designed is basically to eliminate the loss of electrolyte through evaporation, gassing or spillage.  The basic premise that the batteries are sealed leads to a longer battery life and also reduces the amount of maintenance needed compared to other varieties of batteries.  Other types of batteries have simple valve caps to let gas escape from the batteries, whereas sealed lead acid batteries are constructed using pressure valves which open in extreme conditions.  To reduce the release of oxygen and hydrogen in the air by galvanic action as the sealed lead acid battery is charging the electrolyte needs to have an adapted design.  The electrolyte is designed in sealed lead acid batteries in such a way that it triggers the oxygen and hydrogen to re-amalgamate into water and is often known as a recombinant technique.  Because of the reasons given above and the sealed nature of the batteries, sealed lead acid batteries are much safer than other variants of batteries and are used as a mobility scooter battery.

There are many different reasons why shipping is now required to the United Arab and Emirates to areas such as Abu Dhabi and Sharjah for example.

The property boom over there has been a huge lure for UK investment property buyers. It has also become a hot destination for UK residents wishing to relocate on a permanent basis. This has been coupled with many large international companies setting up offices. They have either relocated or require the need to be visible in the UAE for business purposes. These include UK banks, property consultancies and large international corporate organisations.

Migrants, emigrants, ex-pats, overseas students and corporate movers to the United Arab Emirates will all required shipping to United Arab Emirates. A professional and reliable international moving and shipping company can take away all the worry often experienced with a large relocation.

•    excess baggage shipping and forwarding by sea freight, airfreight, road, worldwide
•    cartons, boxes and packing materials should always be supplied by the shipping company for self packed consignments
•    international household removals/ international relocations/ overseas removals by shared or exclusive containers
•    antiques and fine art packing and overseas shipping
•    motor vehicle shippers (autos, cars, motor bikes etc) containerised , roll on / roll off, over crating and case packed.
•    long and short term storage facilities
•    international freight forwarding

It is quite evident from the examples above the people and situations requiring shipping to Sharjah and United Arab Emirates are very varied. It also shows how popular shipping to these areas has become.

Grip tape and non slip tape are often thought as exactly the same product but there are differences.

Grip tape is the same as non slip tape, isn’t it?
Put simply, yes and no!  Modern skateboards have their origins in the late 1950s, when grip tape started appearing in the 1970s the most commonly available mineral in the US was silicon carbide (also known as carborundum tape).  From the 1980s onwards throughout western industry aluminium oxide became more prevalent as an abrasive mineral and began replacing silicon carbide; it was more readily available, more quality consistent, had the same level of hardness and was cheaper.  Grip tape can be produced with either, with some non slip tape only produced using aluminium oxide or S2 (a form of silica).

I have heard that silicon carbide is better and tougher?
Completely untrue.  As mentioned above silicon carbide was the original grip material however from the 1980s onwards moves were made towards production using aluminium oxide.  Mineral hardness is measured by the MOHS scale, both aluminium oxide and silicon carbide register the same mineral hardness, 9.  1 is talc and 10 being diamond.  Silicon carbide retains its place in grip tape usage mainly as an ‘old school’ remnant, reminding boarders of its vintage 1970s roots, in performance there is little difference with aluminium oxide offering better quality output.

What about the adhesive?
Most grip tapes have a lower level of adhesion compared to non slip tape.  A skateboard is an easy substrate to adhere onto, in the worst case it might have a lacquer coat.  Anti slip tape might be applied onto extremely low energy substrates, the most difficult materials include PP, PUR and siliconised powder coat.  Non slip tapes have to possess an adhesive capable of permanently and instantly bonding to these surfaces, this can only be achieved with modern, advanced and often application specific adhesives.  The old system of simply applying a higher coat weight is no longer seen as an effective approach.
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Robert Hyde Greg was an economist, successful industrialist and the founder of Manchester’s Quarry Bank Mill. He was elected Member of Parliament for Manchester in 1839, was a member of the Manchester Literary and Philosophical Society and a founder member of the Mechanic’s Institute. Set in huge rolling grounds he built Norcliffe Hall, which has fishing rights to the River Bollin, as his family home in 1815. A Grade II Listed Building situated within the Styal Conservation Area, Norcliffe Hall is an important local example of early Victorian architecture.

Recently having undergone a complete restoration, Tradewoods are delighted to have supplied over 1000m² of flooring for this important project: Norcliffe’s new underfloor heating system has been covered with Tradewoods Super 6 engineered hardwood flooring unfinished rustic French Oak 21 x 180mm. The featured apartment first received a coat of mahogany oil to add a deep, period look to the floor, this mahogany oil was then over-coated with two coats of clear oil to finish. A stunning restoration.

Protective workwear and PPE Equipment (Personal Protective Equipment) can be used for commercial, industrial, trade and home use. The correct protective workwear provides comfortable, high quality personal protection that meets recognised international standards. The correct protective workwear is so important in meeting health and safety standards and initiatives in the workplace.

Saftey clothing can come in the form of protection but also when high visibility is required or workwear that alerts colleagues and the general public that a particular job or process is being carried out.

Many building sites will not let a workman on even a subcontractor, without the correct safety boots and clothing. Should they not have the correct protective workwear then they will be told to leave and come back. This can delay the job and loose a subcontractor the money for that day.

Saftey workwear is anthing from a high visibility vest to protective earwear, boots and jackets.