Elite Maintenance Property Services News

SRS Contractor Spotlight

Elite Maintenance Featured in Repair Solutions Contractor Spotlight!

We’re thrilled to share that Elite Maintenance has been featured as the Repair Solutions Contractor Spotlight this month — a celebration of the incredible people behind our repairs.

This recognition highlights our consistent 5* customer feedback and the ongoing support we proudly provide to our clients every day.

A huge congratulations to our entire team — your dedication, professionalism, and hard work continue to set the standard for excellence. Keep up the tremendous work!

Contractor of the Month!

Contractor of the Month – July

We’re proud to share that we’ve been named Contractor of the Month for July by Sedgwick!

This recognition is a testament to the hard work, consistency, and dedication our team puts in every day to deliver exceptional service. We're grateful to Sedgwick for acknowledging our efforts and to our incredible staff whose commitment made this possible.

Stay tuned as we continue to raise the bar and set new standards across the industry.

Going for Gold!

Elite Maintenance has been selected as a top performing contractor across the Sedgwick SRS Network and have now been approved to become an NFU Gold Contractor.

This initiative was launched by the NFU to help drive improvements in both efficiency for contractors and improved customer service for NFU members.

This is excellent recognition for the service we are providing to NFU and the wider Sedgwick network.

Our director Andrew Orme added ''This is BRILLIANT news! I see how hard my managers and their teams work every day; I am incredibly happy that they have earnt such amazing recognition for their efforts.''

We look forward to meeting with many of the NFU members at their head office in Stratford upon Avon later this month.

Let's get ready to rumble....

For one night only, our very own Jack Warrilow is hanging up his drill and putting on his boxing gloves to take part in Stoke on Trent’s Ultra White Collar Boxing event on the 13^th July 2024.

Jack signed up to the event at the end of March to raise money for Breast Cancer UK, following his Stepmother, Paula’s, diagnosis. Having never boxed before, this is a huge step out of Jack’s comfort zone, but he is up for the challenge and is spurred on by the fast-accumulating donations. He has already smashed through is £500 target and has currently raised a whopping £580 in 1 month, including a generous £250 donation from Elite Maintenance.

To donate to this amazing cause, and show your support for Jack, please click the link below to his fundraising page.

Jack Warrilow is fundraising for Breast Cancer UK (justgiving.com)

In preparation for fight night, Jack will be completing an 8-week training camp at Stoke on Trent’s number 1 boxing facility, Impact Boxing. Having been established in 2014 by Scott Lawton, an English champion title holder, we are certain Jack will be in fighting form ready and for the ring on the 13^th July!

If you would like to get right at the fore front of the action, you can purchase tickets to the UWCB event using the link below. These are incredible events, offering an amazing night out, while assisting is raising incredible amounts of money for charity.

Ultra White Collar Boxing Stoke - 13-07-2024 - Ultra Tickets
ultratickets.co.uk

Elite Extinguishers!

A huge congratulations to our very own Oliver Orme who has now successfully passed his FIA Servicing & Maintenance of Fire Extinguishers Accreditation.

All our servicing and maintenance requirements will now be completed in house, with Oliver taking regular trips out to site to our operatives and ensuring their Fire Safety equipment is well maintained, serviced regularly and ready to use.

Well Done, Oliver!

Safety by Choice, not by Chance...

With another 100% Health & Safety audit under our belt, we thought we would share how much care we take in ensuring we continue to exceed requirements creating the safest environment for our employees in the field.

With our operatives working across the midlands and beyond, it is imperative that we have a system in place to ensure they are working safely.

Each van is stocked with PPE, Fire Extinguishers, Safety Equipment and First Aid Supplies, Elite have our very own Health & Safety Manager on hand completing risk assessments, method statements and Construction Phase Plans and visiting our operatives on site.

Each site is surveyed and equipped with our custom designed Health & Safety Stations, which include, First Aid, Biohazard, Eye Wash and a Burns Kit. Our stations also contain all the health & safety signage required,a fire extinguisher and signing in book.

There is also a site pack, this contains the risk assesments and a map giving directions to the nearest hospital and any other important contact details our operatives may require.

Of course, its all complete with our signature Elite logo!

Sign Written, Serviced, Delivered, They're Ours!

This week we welcomed an additional four Mercedes Vans to our fleet.

They have now received the Full Elite treatment and are stocked, racked and ready to hit the road along with the rest of our 42 strong fleet.

Be sure to keep a look out on a street near you!

Our Colour Changing Initiative - Elite Invests in Solar Energy

If you know us at Elite Maintenance, have seen our vans driving across the country or witnessed our operatives at work, you will have seen our recognisable 'Orange' logo, but just over 12 months ago, we began the process of looking at more ways to make Elite Maintenance ‘Green’.

Having started our sustainability journey several years ago by rolling out electric cars for several of our managers we also installed charging facilities at our head office.

Following on from the success of the electric cars, we then investigated converting our fleet of vans from fuel to electric. After a lot of research, test drives and demos we found the current range availability and charging infrastructure in the UK was just not workable for our fleet. We will continue to review this in the future.

Back to the drawing board…

Spurred further into action by the growing energy costs, we decided to look closer to home and monitor our energy usage at our head office. Making simple changes and being more conscious about the energy we were using had a very positive impact on our usage footprint; but could we do more?

After some deliberation, conducting research and meeting with several suppliers, we decided to make the jump to Solar Energy by also installing solar panels at our head office.

Our original electric vehicle charging point was removed and replaced with a Solar Powered Charger, along with our solar panels this now means we are Charging and Working via Solar Power.

We have been solar powered now for over a month, with amazing results! We are very nearly self-sufficient with all our energy needs which will have a huge impact on our energy costs along with a hugely positive impact on our carbon footprint. In our first month, we have planted the equivalent of 27 trees with the CO2 emissions saved.

What’s next…

The next stage of our ‘Green’ initiative is to investigate solar energy storage; this would allow us to store any residual solar energy harvested during the summer months and use this during the winter months when the daylight hours are reduced. We also plan to investigate the options to replace our gas boiler with an electric alternative, which would also then be solar powered.

https://vimeo.com/834058051

Stay tuned to follow Elite on their 'Green' Initiative

"Everyone Went Above & Beyond"

Our aim is to always ensure all customers are 100% satisfied & all property damage is resolved & make any stressful times are made easier by our works.

This November we received some incredible feedback from Mrs Andreakis that we're delighted to share with you.

Huge thanks to Mrs Andreakis for taking the time to provide the feedback and congratulations to all the team for such an amazing job and continued commitment to providing the best service.

Mrs Andreakis – November 2021

"We have had our works completed on our property today & I wanted to express my gratitude.

"The reception staff have always been polite, friendly & helpful. I always felt looked after by Carl since he first came to assess the property & felt he understood how difficult it is living in a damaged property & undergoing repair work with young children. John & (Theo I think) did a really good job with the floor boards & were very professional & Ian is the best painter/decorator I've ever met.

"Really felt everyone went above & beyond & made a stressful time easier, so thank you."

Elite's Emily Huthwaite Announced Customer Service Hero By Redrow Homes

We're proud to announce that Emily Huthwaite, one of our Customer Care Co-ordinators, has been awarded as a Customer Service Hero by Redrow Homes.

As part of National Customer Service Week, the award from Redrow and The Institute of Customer Service recognises Emily's hard work and dedication to ensuring our customers receive the best standards of service.

We're delighted to celebrate Emily's work to succeed through adversity and made a significant impact that has benefited our customers.

Thank you to Redrow Homes, The Institute of Customer Service and of course, huge congratulations to Emily!

"Extremely Happy with the Works Completed"

As a multi-trade property insurance repair contractor and house builder remediation specialist, we resolve customer care issues throughout the UK.

We have a 100% commitment to customer satisfaction which is why positive feedback means so much to us and this July, we've received more glowing feedback from our happy customers.

We're delighted to have made our customers so happy. Congratulations to Carl, Chris and all the Elite team for such incredible work.

Mr Bramall – July 2021

"Extremely happy with the works completed. I have contacted the NFU at a senior level to convey just how happy I am with the works completed by Elite. Carl managed the work exceptionally and the service provided by Elite all the way through the works was of the highest standard."

Ms Hemmings – July 2021

"Thank you for sending such professional, kind workers!

"The guys are all so professional, always on time, work hard and I was surprised that they don't even stop for a dinner break! Your whole team tidied up after themselves. Chris is a credit to you and especially the painting and decorating guys."

"Professional, Polite and Considerate At All Times"

As a multi-trade property insurance repair contractor, we strive to ensure all our work is completed to the highest standards by our courteous operatives. It's our mission to provide peace of mind for all our customers & ensure their homes are left fully repaired, clean, tidy & representation of our 100% commitment to customer satisfaction.

We recently received the following testimonial from Mr & Mrs Dean & we're delighted to share their feedback.

Thank you to Mr & Mrs Dean & congratulations to all the team for their hard work.

“I wanted to say how pleased we are with the work that's been done to repair the roof leak and bedroom ceiling.

"I wasn't looking forward to the work as I expected a lot of mess and disruption, but your team of guys were professional, polite and considerate at all times, taking care to ensure the house was protected throughout the repairs. The property was left perfectly clean and tidy at the end of the job both inside and out.

“Thanks for such a brilliant job and giving us peace of mind that it's been carried out to a very high standard.”

"Elite Are a Company in a League of Their Own"

We always strive to ensure our customers are happy & that all work is completed to the highest standards & delivered with professionalism by our courteous & friendly team of operatives.

We recently received the following testimonial from Mr & Mrs Genders & we're delighted to share their feedback.

Thank you to Mr & Mrs Genders & congratulations to all the team for their hard work.

"We had the misfortune to have our house badly flooded in both March 2018 and February 2020.

"We had the great good fortune to secure Elite Maintenance as the contractors to put our whole ground floor back together on both occasions.

"Our first meeting with Andy Orme, the owner of Elite, filled us with confidence at what was a very difficult time. The level of damage was significant, and basically entailed stripping out everything down to bare brick.

"There is naturally a degree of nervousness when you are dealing with the aftermath of a serious event and trusting your most expensive possession to someone else.

"We cannot recommend Elite more highly.

"From day 1 until the house was handed back to us, everything was done with the utmost consideration and professionalism. Every single trade that worked on our home took pride in their work, and the standard of finish was exemplary.

"Elite are a company in a league of their own. In the lane in which we live, there were numerous flooded houses and none of our neighbours came close to having the level of service that we got from Andy and his brilliant team at Elite.

"Thank you all."

Elite Maintenance's Lee Burton Fundraises For Prostate Cancer UK

Elite Maintenance’s Lee Burton recently took part in “Football to Amsterdam”, a two day, 145-mile bike ride to the Dutch capital.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. It’s a disease that kills one man every 45 minutes – that’s two men during a football match. But Prostate Cancer UK has a clear ambition - to stop men dying from prostate cancer and the annual sponsored-cycle to Amsterdam is an opportunity for participants to push themselves like never before to raise funds to stop prostate cancer.

Lee put in months of training including running & cycling (of course) to raise his fitness levels in preparation for the 145-mile ride to Amsterdam.

Despite awful weather, “Biblical” rain, storms, 50 mile-per-hour wind, (and no real interest in cycling), Lee saw this as a personal challenge & a great way to raise money for the Prostate Cancer UK.

Setting of from Barnsley and representing his favourite team Port Vale, Lee joined the hundreds of participants in the gruelling 72.7-mile road cycle through the Yorkshire hills facing several testing climbs to Hull. An overnight ferry took Lee to Holland. before embarking on day two’s final leg from Rotterdam to Amsterdam’s Johan Cruyff Arena.

£1,240 Raised & Counting

To help fund research to stop prostate cancer killing men, Lee set himself a target of raising £1,200. Currently Lee’s total is an incredible £1,240 towards Prostate Cancer UK’s target of £600,000.

Following the completion of this amazing fundraising effort Lee took the time to say, “Elite Maintenance, Helena (our Customer Care Manager), the team, office staff & guys on site have all chipped in and been fantastic.”

Lee added, “You can achieve anything if you put your mind to it & I’d do it again!”

Congratulations to Lee, everyone at Elite Maintenance is so proud of your amazing achievement.

If you’d like to show your support for Lee & his efforts to raise money for this amazing cause, you can still go to his JustGiving page here: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/c2amsterdam

For more information about Prostate Cancer UK, visit their website: https://prostatecanceruk.org/

Elite's Lee Burton to Cycle to Amsterdam for Prostate Cancer UK

This June, Elite Maintenance’s own Lee Burton will be taking part in ‘Football to Amsterdam 2019’, an arduous two day, 145-mile bike ride to the Dutch capital to raise money for Prostate Cancer UK.

Prostate cancer is the most common cancer in men. It’s a disease which kills one man every 45 minutes – that’s two men during a football match.

Prostate Cancer UK has a simple ambition - to stop men dying from prostate cancer. Through shifting the science over the next 10 years to focus on radical improvements in diagnosis, treatment, prevention, and support, we will stop prostate cancer being a killer.

We are very proud of Lee & we’ll be supporting him all the way as he takes part in this incredible challenge for such an amazing cause.

For more information and to support Lee as he raises money for Prostate Cancer UK please visit: https://www.justgiving.com/fundraising/c2amsterdam

What it takes to be a… Property Maintenance Supervisor

You’ve proven your multi-trade skills under pressure as an operative. You’ve demonstrated problem-solving abilities with a thorough and enthusiastic manner. You’ve paid your dues. And now you’re looking to take the next step and become a property maintenance supervisor.

So what does it take to move from being an operative to a supervisor?

What skills do I need?

As a supervisor, you’ll utilise your experience as an operative to understand and organise project requirements. This is in addition to scheduling and co-ordinating operatives’ daily tasks, ensuring projects are delivered to the highest standards.

Supervisors are often drawn from the operative team because of work ethic, positive company attitude, a commitment to quality, leadership skills and a proven track record within various environments, whether a new-build or site work.

But the difference between a good supervisor and a great supervisor is quality communication and people skills.

You will be delivering project instructions and direction, often to large groups and in potentially dangerous situations. Therefore, it is essential that you provide clear instructions, ensuring every operative understands their role and responsibilities.

What’s the job like?

A supervisors’ hours can be long and deadlines will require early starts and late finishes. However there will be the reward of leading a team to discover the solution to a problem ensuring a customer’s life gets back on track.

It goes without saying that you must be driven and a hard worker. As supervisor, you are an example to the operatives ensuring correct procedures are in place and that best practice is observed. You will have already demonstrated a dedication to perfection during your time as an operative and it is now your responsibility to ensure the team have the same eye for detail and commitment to excellence.

No two days are the same. Once one challenge has been overcome, there will be another around the corner ready to bring out the best in you. You will need to be proficient in strategic planning, leadership, managing budgets, troubleshooting, technical understanding, equipment maintenance, teamwork, job knowledge and of course, the obligatory health and safety.

You will monitor health & safety of all contractors and sub-contractors and conduct audits to ensure that all are working safely using the correct equipment in the correct manner in compliance with all legislation.

The role can be a challenging one. You may need to navigate the tricky transition from being one of the operative team to now becoming the individual responsible for guiding work and providing feedback, positive and negative, whilst liaising with the managerial team.

There is additional responsibility as a supervisor, but with this increased role, there are great benefits.

Benefits of becoming a supervisor

You have experience, you have the trade skills, but becoming a supervisor provides opportunities for personal progression like never before.

You will be under pressure and making hard decisions, and here’s the thing, not every decision will be 100% right. There will be bumps in the road along the way as you develop into the role. Whilst you may think that those days where things don’t go the way you’d hoped or planned are your worst – they can be your best as learning from a mistake will make you a better supervisor, and a provide real-life on-site experience and advise you can use to help improve the operative team.

Like a captain on the pitch, you will be required to know the job at hand inside out, leading operatives by example to get the best out of them and oversee a positive outcome to all the work being completed, resulting in a happy customer.

As the role of a supervisor has more managerial responsibility, there is more opportunity to pass on your knowledge to others. Beyond the incentive of increased financial reward, the role could also be the gateway to becoming an Assistant Manager or a higher managerial position.

Becoming a supervisor at Elite

Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, “At Elite, we reward and support all members of the team. We employ the right people and as an operative if you show the hard-working commitment to quality of work and excellence, you will have the chance to progress.

“Our entire team go above and beyond to provide the best, professionally delivered service to happy customers.

“The role of our supervisors is key to the continued progression and success of Elite!”

We’re always interested to hear from potential Property Maintenance Supervisors who have what it takes to supervise operatives and work at Elite, so why not check to see if we’re recruiting in your area?

Visit https://www.elitemaintenance.co.uk/careers and apply online today!

What it takes to be a… Property Maintenance Operative

If you’re a hands-on person with solid practical trade-based skills, who relishes the challenges of problem-solving and helping others then you’d likely make a great property maintenance operative.

The term ‘property maintenance operative’ is fairly broad, so for the purpose of this article, we’ll focus on repair and remediation work within the house building or insurance repair markets.

What skills do I need?

As a general rule, property maintenance operatives used to require little formal education, but that’s no longer always the case and there are now more courses available than ever, with some funded by local government.

Regardless of qualifications, the essential skills required include planning and organising, excellent customer service, the ability to perform under pressure, an aptitude for problem solving and a thorough and enthusiastic approach to your work.

What kind of qualifications could I get?

If you don’t have any formal qualifications but have already been doing the job for some time, you may want to consider a part-time course to certify your skills, such the NVQ Level 2 Diploma in Building Maintenance Multi-trade Repair and Refurbishment Operations. You can find out more information about City & Guild’s courses here. Alternatively if you’re aged between 16-21, an apprenticeship style arrangement may be a better fit for you. You can find out more here.

You may also wish to specialise in a specific trade and gain qualifications such as being Gas Safe registered or gain electrical certification, and whilst this guide will look at more general multi-trade skills, you should follow your passion.

What career progression opportunities are there?

There are lots! Elite is fortunate that we work for both the large national house builders and insurance repair companies, two of the most fast-paced growth areas in the UK right now! It’s an exciting place to be and, as such, trades are increasingly in demand.

For those that are just starting out, if you have the right attitude and aptitude, it’s easier than ever to get your foot on the ladder.

If you’ve acquired all the necessary multi-trade skills but you’re looking for your next step, why not consider becoming a property maintenance supervisor?

The job does change when you step up to the supervisor role as it requires strategic planning, leadership (if you’re managing others), managing budgets, troubleshooting, technical understanding, equipment maintenance, teamwork, job knowledge and, of course, the obligatory health and safety. But it also offers the opportunity to teach others – passing on your knowledge can be a hugely rewarding part of the job and naturally there’s the increased financial rewards that come with more responsibility.

What’s the job like?

It’s an early start because you’ll want to get to the address, be it a privately-owned home or construction site, on time – usually by 08:30 and that’s after hitting the rush hour traffic. Being reliable is important and something you should take great pride in.

You’d usually be supplied with your own van and tools if you’re a full-time member of staff on PAYE, whereas if you’re a sub-contractor you’d be expected to supply your own tools and transport.

Whilst you may have an inkling as to the type of job you’re about to walk into, when you arrive you’re expected to be a problem solver and bear in mind the job won’t always go to plan, so thinking on your feet is an essential skill. Experience does help and the more senior you become the better placed you’ll be at making decisions quickly and effectively.

Sometimes the initial pressure of managing a customer’s expectation (especially when they’re frustrated that there is a problem in the first place) can make you want to complete the job as quickly as possible. However, don’t succumb to this and never cut corners!

So, by now you may have guessed that customer service is key. You’re going to rely on empathy, generosity of spirit and a desire to ‘do the right thing by them’. Once you get into your stride, satisfying even the most irate customer becomes a rewarding challenge.

Of course, you’ll have days where you don’t feel like smiling, but it’s important that you never let your professional manner slip as this is how you earn your own credibility, and protect your company’s reputation.

Now comes the actual work!

You’ll be utilising your knowledge and understanding of carpentry, electrical, plumbing and decorating trades to complete repair and remediation work, same-day if possible, whilst also demonstrating you’re capable of working to the most up-to-date health and safety legislation, identifying hazards and reducing the risk of injury.

An eye for detail and a dedication to perfection is what’s required in your work! From an exact finish on a new build, to home owners requiring immediate repair work to get their lives back to normal as quickly as possible, you’ll want to earn the trust of your customers, regardless of the size of the job at hand.

Becoming an operative at Elite

Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, “It’s really quite simple to become one of our property maintenance operatives providing you share our values.

“We recruit good people.

“It’s funny how big businesses sometimes lose sight of the people they’re employing and just focus on scaling - that’s not us. It’s our people who have face-to-face contact with our customers. It’s our people who are the problem solvers - good people who we want to work with. And we do!”

We’re always interested in hearing from potential operatives who believe they have what it takes to work at Elite, so why not check to see if we’re recruiting in your area?

Visit https://www.elitemaintenance.co.uk/careers and apply online today!

An investment in knowledge pays the best interest

During May, the Elite team further demonstrated their ongoing commitment to increasing their knowledge and skills. 15 staff members successfully completed Asbestos Awareness training, with an additional 6 completing First Aid and 2 completing a Fire Marshal course.

Asbestos awareness

Asbestos is a naturally occurring mix of fibrous minerals. Due to its durability, it was once used for multiple products including roofing shingles, floor tiles, ceiling materials, cement compounds and more.

However it has since been discovered that asbestos can cause fatal and serious diseases. The material kills up to 5,000 workers each year and whilst it is no longer used within the house or commercial building industry, it can be present in any building built or refurbished before the year 2000.

Therefore, when working within homes as insurance repair contractors, it is essential our team can recognise asbestos-containing materials (ACMs) in order to avoid any action that may disturb or damage these materials, resulting in fibres being released into the air. These are the fibres that can cause serious disease.

During the month of May many of the Elite team undertook Asbestos Awareness training. To ensure the accredited training was completed efficiently and flexibly, it was completed through bSure’s video-based learning platform.

Once each staff member completed their modules, they received certificates to demonstrate their passing of the Asbestos Awareness course. The full list of team members that completed the course was as follows:

Lee Tunstall
Lee Burton
Darren Parton
John Holford
Aaron Green
Gareth Ward
Malcolm Roberts
Gareth Harrison
Richard Taylor
Luke Bradley
Phil Shergold
Carl Burgess
Paul Smith
Tina Godbold
Andrew Parton

Elite continues to ensure staff members are aware of asbestos to ensure the risks of exposure to the material are reduced, thereby increasing the safety of those living, or working, in the property.

First aid

An understanding of even the broadest first aid techniques can be the difference between life and death. First aid knowledge can provide the confidence to act and can be especially important when working on-site or in a damage property

Further demonstrating our ongoing commitment to providing a safe and healthy working environment during May the following operatives completed their First Aid course training:

Michael Barlow
Daniel Elks
Karl Paffett
Andrew Parton
Daniel Roberts
Steve Bloor

Each member received an Ofqual Regulated (QCF) approved certificate, valid for 3 years, demonstrating practical and theory first aid awareness.

The course was completed at Elite Maintenance HQ through A1 Training Solutions who provided the team with their 18+ years of first aid training knowledge and experience.

Fire Marshal

In addition to our efforts regarding asbestos and first aid, our Customer Care Supervisor, Helena Cox and Office Manager, Helen Kenyon recently completed their Fire Marshal training course.

The completion of the fire marshal training helps avoid preventable, potentially expensive, life-changing or even fatal fire injuries.

An essential part of Elite’s health and safety programme, Helena and Helen oversee fire safety of the Elite offices, understanding regulations, and maintaining precautions to reduce the risk of fire.

Congratulations

The completion of these courses is testament to our commitment to ensure team members can grow their individual skills, maintain safety, avoid potential life-threatening risks, whilst also ensuring our work completed within customer properties are of the highest standards.

Discussing the large number of the Elite team that completed courses during May, Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, ”I’d like to congratulate every member of the team for their achievements. As Benjamin Franklin said, ‘An investment in knowledge pays the best interest’.

"I’m very proud of our ongoing awareness of health and safety for all the team and our clients, whether on-site, in our offices, or our clients’ homes, its importance cannot be understated.

Keep up the great work!”

Bolstering our service fulfilment in Cannock, Stoke and Evesham

This past month, the Elite team has continued its growth and service offering with the recruitment of three new personnel.

In May we welcomed Craig Last, Adam Hicken and Neil Beardmore to the team. Adam and Neil are multi-trade operatives based in Cannock and Stoke respectively, whilst Craig is based in Evesham and will provide painting and decorating services.

Our recent recruitment follows Elite’s ongoing commitment to ensuring we can respond quickly to requests maintaining our exceptional service commitment to 100% customer satisfaction. By providing operatives that are close to customer locations, we can maximise speed of arrival and become even more operationally efficient.

This allows us to ensure no time is wasted arriving on-site and that any insurance repair work is completed to get our customers’ lives back to normal as quickly as possible.

Not only are we working more efficiently, we are actively ensuring that as a business we are environmentally aware and reducing our fuel-use.

Discussing the new team members, Managing Director Andrew Orme said, “Our recent growth is a testament to our great team.

It’s important to remember the growth we want is one that always brings real benefits to our customers, raising the quality and efficiency of our services. Bolstering our team in these key locations will really improve our service levels.

I’m very happy to welcome Craig, Adam and Neil aboard and they join us to help enhance our continued reputation amongst our residential clients and the UK’s largest house building companies.”

Should you require our services, don’t hesitate to contact our friendly office staff who are available to answer your calls, respond to your questions, needs and concerns immediately.

Elite Maintenance celebrate new working partnership

On average, life expectancy in the UK is increasing. There are currently 11.6 million people in the UK aged 65 or over and this number is expected to be over 16 million, an increase of nearly 40%, over the next 17 years.

Indeed the population of over-65s will grow four times faster than the general population over the next four years.

We are living longer and this has led to the increased demand for retirement properties and assisted living.

As the UK’s largest privately owned retirement property developers, McCarthy & Stone have built over 50,000 properties since 1977 and for a record breaking 12 years in a row have received the Five Star award for customer satisfaction from the House Builders Federation.

Moving home is one of the most stressful moments in a person’s life and moving into a retirement home is no different. In fact it’s even more important that when the decision is made to move into a retirement or assisted living property, there is the peace of mind that comes with choosing accommodation that has the highest standards.

Priding themselves of quality of design and build, McCarthy & Stone have recently utilised Elite Maintenance throughout Peterborough, Leicestershire and Northampton to apply the finishing touches to stock plots and ensure everything is perfect for the new owners.

The population of each of these locations has grown above the national average and it is this increased demand and build schedules for McCarthy & Stone properties that has led to this new partnership.

Combined with their expert design and build, our skilled operatives ensure that each property lives up to the exceptional standards of McCarthy & Stone and Elite.

Elite Maintenance Managing Director, Andrew Orme said,

“We are very happy to be working for such a well-renowned, award-winning company such as McCarthy & Stone, a company that like us have the highest standards of quality and a reputation for excellence.

Our recent recruitment drive for specialist operatives has ensured we have the extended capability to support our clients throughout wider locations and provide our services to the UK’s leading care home developers.

We appreciate the importance of applying the finishing touches for all of our clients and it is especially rewarding knowing these properties in particular will provide residents with security, independence and peace of mind.”

Elite’s continued equipment investment

As part of our continued commitment to increasing the location reach and efficiency of our service fulfilment, March saw Elite increase our vehicle fleet with the addition of 4 new Vauxhall Movano S vans.

Our recent recruitment drive and increased demand for our services throughout the Northern Home Counties area has lead to more talented operatives joining the Elite team. And therefore we needed to ensure we provided our operatives with vans that were not only practical, they looked great too.

Our house-building clients aim to work in partnership with the best contractors who share their commitment to exacting standards. Our services are well matched to our clients needs, but it is important that our vehicles display the same level of commitment to excellence that our operatives do.

First impressions count and when working with new house building or residential clients, it is of vital importance that our vehicles can visually demonstrate our professionalism, and assure first-time clients that they are in safe hands.

Discussing the new Elite vehicles, Managing Director Andrew Orme said, “We are delighted with the new vans and it was vital we ensured our operatives could travel efficiently.

Our commitment to providing the best service from our customer care team, to our operatives, to our equipment and vehicles, is something we are very proud of.

Stafford Signs completed the van livery and I would like to thank their Director, Andy, for a job well done!

The vans look superb!”

Should you require our services, don’t hesitate to contact our friendly office staff who are available to answer your calls, respond to your questions, needs and concerns immediately.

Further Recruitment To Satisfy Demand & Provide Extended Service

Continuing last month’s recruitment drive as a result of increased demand for Elite Maintenance’s customer care and house building remediation services, we are delighted to announce two new members of the team.

Daniel Ray has recently joined Elite in the office as a Customer Care Administrator and Kelly Tilly will join him to become part of the team in April.

In addition to our commitment to enhancing Elite’s customer care significant reputation, Daniel and Kelly’s arrival has also resulted in our ability to extend our hours of operation. Therefore, over the forthcoming months, Elite Maintenance will increase our office opening hours from 9am-5pm, to 8am-5.30pm.

This extended service has been designed with our clients at the forefront of our decision. Our increased customer care hours will ensure those on site will have more members of the Elite team available to them, and homeowners requiring our insurance repair services can contact us outside of their office hours.

Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, “Providing an exceptional service to meet increased demand as a result of rapid growth is reliant on everyone living up to Elite Maintenance’s exacting requirements and the necessity to provide 100% customer satisfaction.

Every member of the team plays a vital role in ensuring Elite Maintenance’s continued reputation with the UK’s largest house building companies and our residential clients.

Our recent recruitment efforts have attracted experienced operatives with excellent trade skills, but we also seek the best staff within our Customer Care team. And it is my pleasure to welcome Daniel and Kelly to Elite Maintenance and we look forward to increasing our service offering to our clients by increasing the hours we are available to those who need us.”

Keep your eyes peeled to our news for further updates on our increased opening hours.

Elite team donate to Comic Relief!

Every Friday, Managing Director Andrew Orme, generously provides the Elite Maintenance team with breakfast. It’s a brilliant way to start the day and get the team further ready for the day ahead.

However, last Friday was different. We are delighted to announce that last week (March 24, 2017), the breakfast fund was instead donated to Comic Relief. In addition, the team also contributed towards our £100+ donation and wore red to support Red Nose Day.

Since 1985, Comic Relief has helped tackle poverty and injustice in the UK and across the world and the Elite team pulled together to help support the cause.

Discussing the fundraising, Andrew said, “At Elite Maintenance, we believe in helping those in need and that it’s important to give something back and Comic Relief is the perfect opportunity to do our bit.

"I am proud of our efforts and would like to thank all of the Elite team for joining in, getting involved and taking part – and giving up their Friday breakfast!

"We hope the donation helps!”

For information about the Comic Relief appeal, visit: http://www.comicrelief.com

Getting your life back to normal is our top priority

Last week, the Met Office issued an amber weather warning throughout the UK advising of the need to “be prepared” for Storm Doris.

Storm Doris swept through the UK and took hold of the Midlands with winds over 90mph.

For some the results were devastating. Severe gusts of winds were the result of intense low pressure that “explodes” when it travels underneath a powerful jet stream, leading to thousands of homes and businesses being left with damages and the need for insurance repair.

The impact of adverse weather and its impact on homes and businesses can be significant and the emotional stress and damage to property distressing.

Elite recognise the need to return our customers’ lives back to normal as quickly and safely as possible, and it is our commitment to the highest standards and industry-leading equipment that has ensured we have been able to respond to the increased demand for insurance remediation services.

Roof damage incidents have particularly increases as a result of the recent weather and as part of our continued effort to improve our high property accessibility and the speed we fulfil our services, in October we purchased a truck-mounted, Isoli 21m access platform.

This platform comes equipped with dual pantograph boom configuration, enabling "up-and-over reach" allowing increased access for our operatives in addition to providing the ability to work at lower heights without dangerous tail projection into the path of passing traffic.

In addition, safety and responsibility is always at the forefront of any work we complete. Should any repairs require scaffolding, we will visit twice before any work commences. First to check the need for scaffolding and then again to ensure the scaffolding meets all safety standards.

Andrew Orme, Elite Maintenance’s Managing Director said, “We care about what we do and understand how upsetting any property damage can be.

The recent weather has demonstrated how vulnerable we all are to the elements, and we believe in providing the best service to ensure all repair needs are fully met quickly, efficiently and safely.”

Whether it's a residential or commercial loss, we appreciate the importance to return to day to day living within the quickest possible time frame. We work closely with the insured, as well as the insurance company to ensure situations and requirements of all are met.

Should you require our services, our helpful and friendly office staff is on hand between 9.00am and 5.00pm to answer your calls, responding to your questions, needs and concerns immediately.

Increased service demand leads to new recruitment

The UK’s largest house building companies have seen rapid growth within Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire, Hertfordshire and Northamptonshire, the Northern Home Counties.

Demand for new houses in this region has never been higher.

National house builders rely on their reputations to sell homes. The peace of mind that comes from a prospective homeowner choosing a company that builds the best homes in the UK is key to a successful sales strategy.

Priding themselves on their quality of high-specification build and design, our house building clients aim to work in partnership with only the best contractors who share the same commitment to exacting standards.

However, building new homes at the pace and scale of the current site schedules bring quality assurance challenges which, understandably, has led to an increased demand for customer care and house building remediation services.

Elite's customer care remediation services are well matched to the needs of the UK’s leading house builders. With a focus on providing the best service since 1990, we have consistently delivered high quality workmanship coupled with considerate customer focused operatives to safeguard our clients’ reputation.

The growing demand for our services presented an opportunity to recruit specialist operatives located in close proximity to, and within, Home Counties regions extends our capability to support clients and remain agile to their needs.

Our recent recruitment drive was both extensive and successful, attracting skilled operatives who enthused passion and attention to detail. We are delighted to welcome aboard Stuart Turley and Neil Sammels to the Elite team, both of whom combine years’ of experience, excellent trade skills and a proactive customer focused approach.

Managing Director, Andrew Orme said,

“I’m delighted to bring Stuart and Neil on board. They have settled in easily, producing quality work from day one. They each demonstrated the skill, passion and commitment towards 100% customer satisfaction that we look for and their years’ of experience has already proved to be beneficial to Elite Maintenance.”

Everyone at Elite welcomes Stuart and Neil to the team!

Elite donate toys to children this Christmas!

For the 3rd year running, Elite have taken part in the Salvation Army’s Christmas Present Appeal, donating a range of toys and gifts for children who would otherwise receiving little or nothing this Christmas.

All of the Elite team have taken the time to purchase toys we hope will bring a smile to a child’s face on Christmas morning.

So far we have donated scooters, doll’s houses, games and more, including a generous donation from Managing Director, Andrew Orme.

We are all delighted to help make Christmas a little happier for local children during this time of togetherness over the holiday season.

Discussing the appeal, Andrew Orme said “At Elite Maintenance, we believe it’s important to give something back to the community and to raise the happiness of children that would go without at Christmas.

This is the third year we have donated to this worthwhile appeal and I am proud of all the team for getting involved and I thank them all for taking part.

We hope the children like their Christmas presents!”

For information about the Salvation Army’s Christmas Toy appeal, visit:
https://www.salvationarmy.org.uk/christmas-present-appeal

Elite Maintenance – excited to announce new website!

Elite is an established, multi-trade property insurance repair contractor and house builder remediation specialist. The launch of our new website will increase our opportunity to work with the largest companies throughout the UK as well as directly with homeowners to liaise with insurance providers to restore their homes.

We understood there was a need to improve our website visually, but also to assist visitor experience and generate more leads.

Built in partnership with web development company Dusza, with a user-focused, responsive website design plus mobile and tablet compatibility, accessing and contacting Elite is now easier than ever.

In addition to service information and client testimonials demonstrating our level of service utilising our 20+ years of experience, the new website provides visitors with a downloadable brochure, contact and call back forms, easy to complete online vacancy forms for operatives and administrators, as well as the latest news about our team, services and client successes.

Discussing the new website, Andrew Orme, Director of Elite Maintenance said, “Having operated since 1990, Elite is a well established company that is known throughout England. We feel our new website demonstrates our professionalism, willingness to progress and the care we put into every job for every client.

The new website has significantly improved our online image and is a true representation of all the hard work put in by the whole Elite team.”
Dusza’s managing director, Stephen Clark, added, “In today’s competitive market place, having an out of date website presence is almost as damaging to a company as not having one at all.

A website is now the first point of contact with a new client, it is the public face of every company and if yours doesn’t quickly and concisely build rapport and credibility, then its likely reflected in the quantity and quality of leads being generated.

A common mistake from trade-focused companies, who are already successful, is simply that they don’t always recognise the need to continually invest in their brand image. I’m pleased to say that these concerns don’t apply to Elite, their management team resolutely understand that their website is the most powerful sales tool they have.

This latest generation responsive website perfectly communicates a compelling value proposition to their target audiences. Web development company Dusza and Digital Marketing experts

Hyperbrand worked collaboratively from design and tech to a digital marketing strategy that directly supports the company’s ambitious growth plans.
We're really proud to be working in partnership with Elite, they're a forward-looking company who have entrusted us with their online presence for the past 8 years.”

Everyone at Elite Maintenance hope you enjoy the website and should you require any of our services, please don’t hesitate to contact our team.

Annual Christmas Appeal Number 3!

For the 3rd year running Elite Maintenance have joined in with the Salvation Army's Christmas Appeal to collect donations and by gifts for Children in Stoke on Trent.

The office and operatives have managed to collect over £100 which has been used to buy a range of gifts for children and young people who would otherwise have nothing to open on Christmas Day.

Thank you to everyone who has donated and we would like to wish you all a Very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Delighted to promote from within...

Former operative Carl Burgess promoted to Elite's Assistant Manager.

Elite Maintenance is delighted to announce the promotion of Carl Burgess to the position of Assistant Manager.

We were looking for an individual that understood the challenges operatives face daily, whilst also able to supervise jobs from beginning through to completion, and successfully liaise with our General Manager.

Previously an operative, Carl has been with Elite Maintenance for over 12 years and has demonstrated commitment and attention to detail required for the role and was able to prove he was the best candidate for the job.

Years of experience a great asset.

Utilising his experience working with many of the UK's largest house builders, Carl's awareness of our operative's day-to-day tasks and jobs has allowed him to make the seamless transition to the Assistant Manager position and is providing excellent backup to our General Manager, Paul Smith.

With a keen eye for detail, Carl is able to apply his prior knowledge as an operative to problem solve and find solutions for any situation that arises. He can remotely provide advice or actively visit any site, understand the scope of the situation and allocate work to the most appropriate operative.

Elite's ongoing commitment to providing the best training and opportunities.

Each of our operatives is handpicked due to their passion and commitment towards 100% customer satisfaction. Carl's promotion from operative to Assistant Manager demonstrates his multi-skilled abilities and high standards (read our Testimonials for examples) and everyone at Elite Maintenance wishes him the best in his new role.

Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, "Carl has settled into the role very well, he is comfortable liaising with our operatives day to day, as you would expect with someone of his experience.

He has learned quickly the work that goes on behind the scenes ie allocating operatives for jobs, financial implications of jobs running over etc.

We will continue to support Carl's development in the future and wish him all the success going forward."

October has been a month of 'news' for Elite...

Elite Maintenance October News

NEW technology leading to increased efficiency.

During October, Elite Maintenance continued to invest in new technology and for the first time deployed a drone for roof inspections.

As no scaffolding was required, the productivity gained from mitigating scaffold erection and the associated Health & Safety considerations was unprecedented. The drone enabled Elite to acquire accurate aerial imagery of the roofs that previously would not have been accessible.

Reflecting Elite's commitment to providing efficient and innovative maintenance solutions, Managing Director, Andrew Orme said, "We have now used the drone on 3 separate occasions and they are ideal for roof inspections where time and space are at a premium. I can see this becoming a significant part of our business offering."

NEW equipment improving our service offering increasing accessibility.

As part of our continued effort to improve the speed of our service fulfilment, October saw Elite further increase our high-level property accessibility via the purchase of a truck-mounted, Isoli 21m access platform.

And finally, NEW operatives as a result of increased growth.

We are pleased to announce the appointment of 4 multi-trade qualified operatives to support our growing business and ensure our commitment to providing high service levels, even during growth, is unmatched.

October saw unprecedented growth for a single month as we welcome to our workforce Nino Bosckvic, Richard Taylor, Gary Morse and James Johnson; a ceramic tiler, plasterer, carpenter and painter and decorator.

Our new operatives have all settled in easily, producing quality work from day one. They were each handpicked due to their proven passion and commitment towards 100% customer satisfaction.

They're in good company.

How I improved my business & saved 24 hours a week. I love IT.

Since 1990, Elite has been recognised as one of the leading residential insurance repair and remediation companies throughout England. However, as the business grew it became increasingly obvious that the administrative processes required a dramatic change.

Administrative process crisis

In 2011 it had become obvious Elite had a workflow efficiency issue. Our multi-trade maintenance service would always reach the highest standards, however the administration side of the business was proving to be time-consuming and a poor use of our resources.

A multi-faceted admin process including emails, faxes, Sage software, printers, hand-written references, spreadsheets, more faxes, and many phone calls, all added up to a labour intensive process.

With an uncompromising desire to provide exceptional customer service, but with nearly 50 operatives, each with multiple jobs per day, it was an unsustainable system.

Managing Director, Andrew Orme, described how he sought to fix the admin crisis,

"My job was to find a solution. I really didn't know where to start so I spoke with friends who had some IT knowledge, and I also explored so-called off-the-shelf solutions."

"I then spoke to several companies who claimed they could solve all my issues without even visiting me."

Changing The Problem

Realising the need was an IT solution but not being satisfied with off-the-shelf options or suggestions from those who didn't truly understand Elite's situation, Andrew realised that bespoke software may be the solution to his work-flow problem.

Purely by chance Andrew was visiting a client's site and saw a construction contractor whose entire team were using tablets to manage their work. Following a conversation and recommendation, Andrew made contact with web-based software development agency Dusza and its managing director Stephen Clark.

Stephen proceeded to spend two days with Elite at our HQ to fully understand our systems and just how they weren't working.

Stephen said, "It's actually a common situation with trade based companies, like Elite, who have seen rapid client growth but haven't the insight as to how best improve their administration. I instantly recognised that Elite's success was due to their unique approach to business, they are genuinely customer focussed and intent on such a high standard of service. What they do is basically unmatched in quality.

Unfortunately, due to their unique approach they had created many equally unique processes, and these processes required lots of manual input.

To be blunt, the uniqueness of their processes would never be found replicated in any off-the-shelf solution. The lack of such a solution combined with their lack of knowledge (at the time) when it came to the benefits of bespoke software, led to Elite throwing admin at the problem. Elite's administration resources and overheads grew to ensure their quality of service was never at risk, as they got significantly busier.

I explained to Andy that we could build a solution that safeguarded how he liked to run his company and then amplify Elite's success by them becoming better, more efficient at what they did. Do more with less and leverage their ever-improving reputation.

We designed a solution that almost eliminated human error, increased accuracy, improved their admin team's consistency, improved their customer care KPIs, connected field operatives to the office and basically solved a large number of business issues all at once. The difference to the business was tremendous."

Benefits to Elite and our clients

Within weeks of the bespoke, mobile-enabled management system being implemented, Elite saw significant savings of approximately 24 hours per week in the office alone and had a direct impact upon business savings.

With the new system in place, immediately everyone was working to exactly the same processes. The administration team could allocate each other work, and via mobile device the field operatives received their work, completed time sheets, received updates, added photos, took their toolbox talks, and even customer signatures for quality assurance could be added. Elite were almost now entirely paper free.

As a result of Elite's management system investment, workflow and efficiency continues to improve and now provides a better system for our staff and offer a better service to our clients than our competition. Stephen concluded, "Since launch, we've worked with Elite to evolve their solution meaning it will never become obsolete and will always leverage the best out of the latest technology and techniques. As soon as their clients demand something 'more' or 'different', where their service offering adapts or the market changes, Elite is in an advantageous position - they are absolutely ahead of their game and I'm pleased to see them go from strength to strength."

When asked if the Dusza system had helped Elite improve, Andrew said, "The system has been in operation around 5 years now.

We would be unable to operate at current volumes whilst tracking projects and operatives in such detail that the Dusza system allows, for that reason I can honestly say we could not be without it."

2014 WNSA supplier awards

WNSA Contractor of the Year 2014

The Title of WNSA Contractor of the Year 2014 was awarded to ourselves Elite Maintenance, for consistency in the quality of the works completed and service delivery.

From Left: David Machin (Managing Director of WNS Assistance), Andrew Orme (Managing Director of Elite Maintenance) and his wife Angela Orme, Arthur Rackstraw (Senior Vice Present of WNS Assistance)

WNSA thanked the whole team at Elite Maintenance for their consistent hard work and effort.

Andrew Orme and his wife Angela attended the Awards, they enjoyed a fabulous night - "the highlight of the evening was collecting our award!"

The event started with a presentation and Q & A session in the afternoon with contractors having the opportunity to raise any concerns directly with the Senior Vice President and Managing Director of WNS Assistance. It also gave the contractors a chance to get to know one another.

The awards presentation evening kicked off with pre-dinner drinks in the bar and 'table magic provided by Magic Matt' before a lovely 3 course meal was served.

Entertainment this year was provided by Doc Brown who is a comedian and rapper and the guest band 'Hula Grove'.

Managing Director Andrew Orme commented "Our aim is to be top in our field again year on year."

Elite raise £1,775.00 for Cancer Research!

Congratulations to the Elite Maintenance girls for completing Pretty Muddy!!

After arriving at Clumber Park in Nottingham just after 10am the girls posed for a quick before picture!

The girls then headed off to take part in their pre-race warm up

Ready.......

Steady......

Go!!!!!!!!

The girls then completed 10 Muddy Obstacles on the way round the 5k course.

Below are a few images of the girls getting suitably muddy and arriving a the Finish Lineâ€¨.â€¨

Once the girls had been given a well deserved bottle of water and presented with their medal they posed for a good After shot!

So far the girls have raised a huge £1,675.00!! We are still taking donations, so if you haven't done so, its not too late to donate, just click through to our Just Giving page to make your donation.

https://www.justgiving.com/elite-maintenance/

We would like to say a big Congratulations to the girls for completing the course and for raising so much money for an amazing cause.

Over just that weekend the Pretty Muddy runners managed to raise a staggering £270,000 for Cancer Research.

Please keep a look out for some more pictures courtesy of Sports Cam who were there on the day to take some action shots of all the runners!

We would also like to say a big thank you to Elite's Suppliers and Clients who sponsored us, some of them are listed below.

Dusza Sage Repair Network

Bellway Homes All Seasons Conservatories

S & N Scaffolding Mark Taylor Plumbing

AMS Scaffolding Stone Van Hire

Colin Haywood Property Services Derbyshire Contracting Services

A & A Flooring Contractors

The girls would also like to say a huge thank you to Elite's Managing Director Andrew Orme for his very generous donation and also to the Elite Maintenance operatives and friends and family who helped them to raise so much money.

They are in the process of arranging the 2015 charity event so please keep a look out for more information on which challenge the girls will take on next!

Thank you!

Elite get a great big thank you for contributing to the "Give a Gift & Light Up A Life" toy appeal!

Chesterton
Salvation Army
Corps and Community Centre

To all of the schools, churches, individuals, businesses and organisations who have donated toys, gifts and funding or contributed in any way to our

"Give A Gift and Light Up A Life"!
2014 Toy Appeal

We send you our sincere thanks and congratulations!
With your help this year we raised a total of:

12,995 GIFTS!

We helped over 6,000 families in North Staffordshire at Christmas

We sincerely thank you for all your hard work in providing and collecting these gifts for us and making a difference to so many children & young people on Christmas Day.

We look forward to working with you again for Christmas 2015!

For further details contact Mrs Teresa Dunn
Telephone 01782 564529

Elite Girl's raise double their target!

Donations hit £1,260.00!

A huge congratulations goes out to the Ladies of the Elite Office for managing to raise more than double there initial target of £600.00.

They have sent emails, made phone calls and collared just about everyone who has set foot in the office, they have got their whole family's on board and also the entire Elite Maintenance Workforce to help raise as much money as possible for Cancer Research.

We asked the girls how they were feeling with only 2 days left until the big event:

"We are so excited now it's only 2 days away! We are so happy that we have managed to raise so much money for such a worthy cause, we really did push to get as many donations as possible and it worked!"

As the event fast approaches we would like to wish the girls the best of luck for Sunday and hope they also get in some more last minute donations.

We look forward to seeing the pictures!

Good luck girls!

We want to show cancer who's boss!

The Elite girls take on Pretty Muddy 5K

The Elite Maintenance girls are taking part in the Pretty Muddy 5k event on the 14th September 2014 in aid of Cancer Research.

Pretty Muddy is a 5k mud run with various obstacles along the way to ensure that you really do get muddy!

What the girls had to say:

"We all know someone close to us who has been affected by Cancer and how devastating it can be. We want to raise as much money as we can for Cancer Research. Every pound donated really counts, we really encourage everyone to donate to the cause."

If you would like to make a donation you can do so by visiting our Just Giving page, please click the link below

https://www.justgiving.com/elite-maintenance/

Or if you prefer, you can donate by Text:

Just Text ELIT55 along with your amount to 70071

Andrew Orme, Managing Director commented

"I am confident that the girls will reach their target, they are all very excited about the event and aware of the important work that Cancer Research does. If they reach their target of £600 I will personally make it £1000!

Good Luck Girls!"

Look out for updates and images from the event and most importantly the donation target!

Target Hit....And Some!!

Friday 5th September 2014

Donations Reach £1,054.00!

Thank you to everyone for your generous donations and support to date.

We have succeeded in beating our original target of £600.00 with a week still to go before the event.

Our aim is now to try and reach £1,200.00 double our original target.

Please click on the link below to visit our just giving page for more information or if you would like to donate.

https://www.justgiving.com/elite-maintenance/

Many thanks

Elite Maintenance Customer Care Team

Christmas is for Sharing

Elite show support for Stoke On Trent Christmas Appeal.

As we are now counting down to Christmas and most of us just have a few last bits to get for the big day we tend to forget that there will be a lot of people waking up to nothing on Christmas Day.

This year instead of getting our work colleagues Christmas Cards we have decided to all purchase a small gift for a child to open on Christmas morning.The deadline for the Christmas Gifts to be handed in is the 12th December so if you would like to participate then please drop off your unwrapped gift to our offices (address below) and these will be handed into the drop off points ready to be wrapped and handed out to underprivileged children.

We hope you are able to help us to try and make everyone's Christmas a happy one.
Merry Christmas & Happy New Year From Elite Maintenance.

A sack full of gifts.....

Well done to everyone that participated in the Stoke on Trent Christmas Appeal. Here at Elite we have managed to collect 30 gifts for local underprivileged children in the area. The gifts range from new baby to teenager and just about everything in between.

The gifts have been delivered to the Salvation Army Base at Chesterton this morning where they were gratefully received. The presents will now be wrapped with a specific child in mind and they will be delivered in time for Christmas Morning.

We would like to thank everyone that donated a gift and if you haven't yet done so you can still drop your gifts into the Salvation Army base at Chesterton until the 19th December.
We would like to Wish you all a Very Merry Christmas & A Happy New Year

Guide dogs for the blind - Meet our new recruit!

Meet our new sponsored puppy Chisel!

Chisel, a Golden Retriever, was born on the 25 June 2013. His mother is Zoe, his father Casper and his siblings Daisy, Darcy, Hartley, Millie, Ruby and Rusty.

Becoming a guide dog

0 to 6 weeks

Chisel is living with his mum and siblings in a Guide Dog volunteer's home. As well as playing, exploring and napping he is going to a state of the art breeding center where he receives health checks. At six weeks he will have his immunisations.

6 weeks to 3 months

Chisel has now moved to Margaret's home, his puppy walker. During these crucial months, he has started to learn good manners and basic commands, such as 'sit' and 'down' - as well as how to walk on the lead.

3 Month update

Margaret, Chisel's Puppy Walker has updated us on Chisel's progress at 12 weeks:

"Chisel has settled in very quickly and already weighs 11.2 Kilos. He has had his final vaccinations so he will be able to explore the outside world rather that being carried around.

Trips to the local shop and supermarket are already part of his regular routine. He has mastered several commands such as 'Sit' and 'Wait' and he is currently working on 'Down'.

Chisel has taken to his collar and lead with ease, he has already out gown his first collar! And when out for walks he takes in all his surroundings.

At the end of a busy day Chisel likes nothing more than playing with Dougal (my 10 year old dog) or one of his favorite teething toys"

6 Month update

Margaret has once again updated us on Chisels progress:

"Chisel has really grown into a bouncy character and gets on really well with everyone he meets. Chisel has grow an impressive amount and now weighs 22kg, he has a very healthy appetite and eats well.

He is a very social dog and loves getting out and about, he has been attending several assemblies at the local schools to raise awareness of the importance of Guide Dogs.

When Chisel isn't working he loves to practice and learn tricks at his puppy classes. He is very responsive and intelligent and loves a challenge."

10 Month update

Margaret has been in touch to update us on Chisel's progress:

"Chisel loves work and it's been suggested that he should head off to training school as soon as possible. The only thing that bothers Chisel is the lawn mower! Other than that he is pretty laid back.

Chisel has mastered all of his basic commands and never has to be asked twice. He is now walking in the correct guiding position, (on my left, slightly in front, and only light tension on the lead).

Chisel is pretty relaxed in most situations, when he visits restaurants he will lie quietly under the table. He even stayed calm and relaxed on a trip to Birmingham airport where the planes were landing very close."

Our Sponsored Guide Dog For The Blind is now One

Now that Chisel has reached his first birthday he is heading off to start formal guide dog training.

Once completed Chisel will move on to the National Training School to take his training to the next level.

Well Done Chisel!

2013 WNS supplier awards

Elite win prestigious award

On the evening of Friday 26th April 2013, WNS held their annual Supplier Awards Evening at the Crown Plaza Hotel in central Birmingham.

Elite's Managing Director Andrew Orme (pictured right) attended the evening with his wife Angela. Andrew was delighted to be presented with the Supplier Award ranking Elite Maintenance one of the top seven contractors nationally.

New contracts for Elite

Elite are proud to announce new client relationships

With Sage Repair Network and Mitie Property Solutions

Sage Repair Network is a collection of building contractors, disaster restoration specialists and suppliers serving the niche insurance market. Each one has been carefully selected for their commitment to exceeding expectation in customer service, professionalism and quality workmanship.

Mitie Property Solution specialise in outsourcing and working in close partnership with each and every client to provide everything from strategic consultancy to service delivery.

We look forward to providing both Mitie & Sage Repair Network with the Elite first class service.

Elite have also been rewarded NHBC remedial works to commence December 2012.

The large apartment block in Shardlow, Derbyshire has coping stones and parapet walls which are showing signs of movement, the works to secure these are projected to take Elite four weeks to complete.

Guide dogs for the blind - Eli just wants to be a dog!

On August 4th 2011 Elite's sponsored puppy Eli was born!

Eli is a black Labrador from a large litter of puppies, his mother and father are Cookie and Mason, his ten siblings are Buddy, Ernie, Eric, Spencer, Ron, Edward, Elliot, Gracie, Tasha and Evie.

How does Eli become a guide dog?

0 to 6 weeks

Eli will be living with his mum and siblings in a Guide Dog volunteer's home. As well as playing, exploring and napping, he will go to a state of the art breeding center where he will receive health checks and at six weeks his immunisations.

6 weeks to 4 months

Eli will move to his Puppy Walker's home. During these crucial months, he will start learning good manners and basic commands, such as 'sit' and 'down' - as well as how to walk on the lead.

12 Week update

Now that Eli is twelve weeks old we have had news on his progress from his puppy walker.

"From the day that Eli arrived he has been sleeping through the night and is already feeling at home. He has made a good start with his training and seems to enjoy being out and about exploring the world around him. He has visited shops, supermarkets and garden centers and has even been to the town center, he shows no concern about the crowds or loud sounds.

Eli is doing very well with his basic command work. Having mastered 'sit' and 'down' we are now working on 'wait' this is a big ask of a little puppy and it is something that he will learn in time. He has only just started lead work but this is going well. He was happy to have his collar and lead on and will stride out in front, if anything he is too enthusiastic! Again this is age related and something that will come with maturity and practice.

At home Eli's favorite toy is a bear that he loves to take everywhere and curls up with to sleep at night, he is adorable and I love having him"!

6 Month update

Now that Eli is six months old we have had more news on his progress from his puppy walker.

"Eli is a cheeky, playful, loving and social boy who is beginning to hit the teenage stage and push the boundaries.

Like most dogs, Eli loves his free runs and his recall is generally good, although sometimes other dogs can distract him from coming back to me as soon as he is called. The rest of his general obedience is good and he understands 'sit', 'wait' and 'stay'. He also knows 'down', but is not too keen to actually perform the command!

Eli does struggle when walking on the lead, he either pulls or he will sit and refuse to move. This is typical puppy behavior: he is easily distracted and needs to learn to focus on the task in hand.

In busy situations Eli can show some anxiety, he is not an overly confident puppy, however he is getting better with traffic and with perseverance I hope that his confidence will increase.

Eli is very good when travelling by car and okay when travelling on the bus, over the next few weeks I intend to take him on buses regularly. I have taken him to the train station to experience the sights, sounds and smells associated with trains. He wasn't too sure at first, but didn't show anxiety and after a few more visits he should be ready to try getting on and off a stationary train, before finally taking his first journey.

Stairs and lifts have been problematic for Eli, but he is starting to show great improvement with walking up and down stairs on the lead. The first time he travelled in a lift he was sick, but with lots of encouragement and a few treats he is now relaxed in lifts and is doing well.

I take Eli to the vets regularly to be weighed. He loves going to the vets, he pulls me in and much to the amusement of the other customers, he refuses to leave!

At home, Eli is quite a cheeky puppy, he follows me upstairs and steals my husband's slippers, then runs back downstairs with them. Another naughty habit is to go outside and pick up a pebble in his mouth. He comes back inside, lies down and chews on it. If I look at him he stares back innocently until I look away and then happily goes back to chewing his pebble.

Eli seems to enjoy all aspects of his training, especially anything that gets him a reward? Everything seems to slowly be clicking into place."

10 Month update

Now that Eli is ten months old we have had news on his progress from his puppy walker.

"Eli is a lively and excitable puppy, he has grown in confidence in some areas although I believe that there may be some underlying anxiety which is presenting itself in the form of low task focus.

Eli is able to walk nicely on the lead for short periods of time and will adopt the correct guiding position - on the left hand side just a little ahead with a light tension on the lead. However he is not able to maintain this for long as he wants to greet people and other dogs.

He shows a slight reluctance to work on occasion too, still hanging back. Due to a leg injury his training has been disrupted so we expected him to be slightly behind. He is now back getting out and about but has not resumed full training as health tests are still being carried out to ensure his suitability as a working dog.

Eli seems happier in town centers now and is traveling well on all forms of public transport. An additional area that is much improved is Eli's use of stairs and lifts.

Eli has come along way in the past ten months and I hope that your are as proud of him as I am. There is still a lot for him to learn and we hope that he will be able to continue on his journey to becoming a guide dog however we will have to wait and see the results of his health checks as we need to be sure that this is the right path for him."

14 Month update

After months of hard work and training we are sorry to announce that Eli has been removed from training.

"It has become apparent over the last few months that Eli was not going to meet the demanding standards that are required, it was explained to us quite simply Eli just wants to be a dog."

Rest assured that Eli will be found a very good home and we will keep you updated has he settles in his new home.

After the initial sadness and disappointment we have decided to name another puppy, we are now going through the process of choosing a name, we welcome your suggestions.

As always we will keep you updated on progress.

Health & Safety updates

Elite's Health & Safety Manager, Peter Goodwin provides a H&S update

Two construction companies have been fined following the death of a worker who fell from a cherry picker on a dual carriageway in Liverpool. The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) prosecuted following the incident on the A5036 Princess Way in Seaforth on 20 August 2006.

The 61-year-old, who was married with three children and three grandchildren, fell nearly eight metres and landed on the back of the vehicle. He died from his injuries in hospital later that day. Last year (2010/11), 38 people are killed in Great Britain as a result of a fall and more than 4,000 suffered major injuries.

Remember when using the cherry picker out and about it may be tedious and seem irrelevant to check all your equipment and PPE but these systems are put in place to try and eradicate hazards and proactively stop accidents like the above.

Thanks

Peter Goodwin

December 12th 2011

Staff training & development update

Elite invests in training & development

In order to continually improve the quality of service that we provide at Elite we recognise the importance of continued staff training and development!

Asbestos awareness

An Asbestos Awareness course was held at our Head Office on Saturday 5th, November 2011.

The Health & Safety Executive (HSE) require that Asbestos Awareness training is provided to all employees whose work activities could foreseeably expose them to asbestos. This is particularly critical for workers involved in refurbishment, maintenance, demolition and allied trades.

Andrew Orme, Managing Director would like to pass on his congratulations to the following personnel who successfully completed the course.

Luke Bradley, Carl Burgess, Lee Cooper, Samantha Durber, Mark Elkin, Anthony Gibbons, Iain Millward, Mark Seaton, Vincent Smith, Lee Tunstall & Colin Woodall

Well done to you all!

CSCS

As part of our on-going staff development and training plan, three of our Maintenance Operatives have renewed their CSCS cards during September 2012.

The CSCS Card, which is issued by Construction Skills Certification Scheme, is increasingly being demanded as proof of competence by major organizations and employers in the Construction Industry.

First aid at work

A further operative has attended St. Johns Ambulance and completed a course in Emergency First Aid at Work, demonstrating competence in accordance with the Health & Safety (First Aid) Regulations 1981Health & Safety Executive Approval No. 447/82

Large claim win with Merlin

Elite are pleased to announce our largest new contract win from Merlin Claims this week.

The project is an completely devastated four Bedroom detached property in Stoke - on -Trent which was severely damaged by fire last month.

Managing Director Andy Orme said "This really shows that our customer focused service is getting Elite noticed. This particular project needs to be turned around in 12 weeks and Merlin obviously have confidence in Elite completing the project within time scales and budget - they have faith in us because we deliver on their promises to their customers."

Thermal imaging cameras solve problem

Elite have now taken delivery of a thermal imaging camera

Elite have now taken delivery of a thermal imaging camera to aid investigation of building defects ranging from missing insulation, cold bridging or leaking pipes.

While thermal imaging technology has long been in use in specialised law enforcement and military applications, its availability in the commercial sector has been limited due to high cost. Over recent years thermal imaging units have fallen in price making them more commercially viable and as such some companies have found innovative applications for their use.

Elite have already used thermal imaging cameras over twenty separate projects, in one project alone the technology helped pin point three individual defects where conventional investigation techniques would have caused intrusive damage.

Managing Director Andy Orme said today "If there's a technology that will help either minimise the disruption caused to our client's homes or that allows us to find potential defects that if gone unnoticed will go on to create damage then we're always keen."

Elite invest in access platform!

Spider lift

Elite have recently taken delivery of a Teupen Leo 23GT otherwise known as a spider lift, with the main benefit of this machine being its weight to reach ratio.

It weighs 3T with a reach of some 23m, this allows it to be used in places like shopping centers, churches as well as for projects such as roof inspections, window cleaning etc.

The purchase of the spider lift will help us become more cost effective as it will eliminate the need for hiring expensive scaffolds and also broaden our scope of works.

Guide Dog Sponsorship

Guide dogs for the Blind Association

We're helping The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association keep their lifetime promise to every guide dog owner "Guide Dogs promises to supply every guide dog owner with a dog for as long as they need one."

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association provide mobility and freedom to blind and partially sighted people. They also campaign for the rights of people with visual impairment, educate the public about eye care and fund eye disease research.

Some people may need six or seven dogs in a lifetime! Each year, The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association need to raise over £40 million to maintain our services and develop new ways to improve the lives of blind and partially-sighted people and Elite have chosen to contribute to this very worthwhile organisation by sponsoring a Guide Dog puppy through their 'Name a Puppy programme'.

Naming a puppy is a unique and great way of getting involved with a worthwhile charity.

The Guide Dogs for the Blind Association breeds and trains over 1,200 puppies a year - and needs to increase this number in the future. It costs over £5,000 to breed and puppy-walk each guide dog puppy. The guide dog service receives no government funding so they need donations to survive. By naming a puppy, companies such as Elite can make a huge difference to the future of this organisation.

We will be keeping you updated on the progress of our Elite puppy, Eli!

Better efficiency better service

Continuous improvements

As part of Elite's continued commitment to Customer Service we are in the process of implementing an improved management system that will help us enhance our customer experience even further.

Recently deployed, our new management system is streamlining our operations allowing us for an even greater consistency than ever before.

This August marks an evolution in our offering to our private customers and corporate clients alike.