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We value all our staff here at Signum and are always looking to support them in their careers with a variety of training and development opportunities. Here, our heating engineer, Matthew Johnson, gives us an insight into a diploma he has recently started in customer service.

Doing the work I do as a heating engineer, I have to learn and research new things almost daily but it generally revolves around my skill which is hands on and I was keen to demonstrate that my skills extended further than that.

So, I decided to embark on a diploma in customer service which is an online course with The Growth Company that involves worksheets and self research tasks and regular zoom calls to catch up. I am really looking forward to getting stuck into it because it is important to me that I prove that I still have the ability to better myself academically.

Wide ranging topics

The core modules cover a range of topics including personal development, customer service principles, customers, feedback, complaint, teamwork, understanding business and legislation so it’s quite wide ranging.

I have also had to choose two topics and complete a short course on each. I chose awareness of mental health, well-being and mental ill health because I have suffered with my own mental health issues before and whilst I have worked hard to better myself I feel there is always room to improve myself and my knowledge of others.

I also selected the appraisals topic because I know this will help me with my performance in my work, enhancing my ability to analyse, review and alter what I may be doing wrong but ultimately to help other people with improvement.

Understanding our customers

Overall, I expect to gain a better outlook on business from the perspective of the customer which will in turn help me to provide a better service and build stronger relationships with the team around me. I also hope that I can change myself and my own outlook due to the nature of the course and what it covers.

Being able to work on and develop myself with the future in mind is imperative. Having a goal or target to aim for gives me a sense of purpose and the drive to want more from myself.

Learning new skills and ways of thinking also helps me to view the world from a different standpoint and ultimately do better in my career.
I’m really pleased Signum have supported me to do this diploma as I think it will help me enhance my skills and improve my current work with the company and the service we provide.

Jill Wood, managing director of Signum Facilities Management, explains how businesses can ensure the safe return of workers.

With the removal of some Covid-19 restrictions, employers across the country are getting ready to welcome workers back into the office.

What do businesses need to do?

It’s important to remember the virus has not gone away and there are some essential steps businesses must take to ensure safety in the workplace.

The UK Government’s Health and Safety Executive (HSE) recommends businesses review and update their risk assessment. The workplace controls of adequate ventilation, sufficient cleaning and good hand hygiene remain in place.

Checking the workplace is ventilation compliant is a key task for employers.

Legally, employers must guarantee an adequate supply of fresh air in the workplace and clean air has long been recognised as aiding the health, wellbeing and productivity of workers.

During the pandemic, it is more important than ever to have a good level of ventilation to minimise the risk of spreading the virus.

How to improve ventilation

As employees return to a physical workplace, companies should focus on increasing the supply of fresh air and improving outside circulation.

Natural ventilation can be improved with something as simple as opening windows and doors.

Mechanical ventilation, which includes air conditioning, can also help, providing you understand how the system operates and make sure it is supplying fresh air.

The HSE’s guidance on ventilation and air conditioning includes advice on:

• Identifying poorly ventilated areas and using CO2 monitors
• Assessment of fresh air (ventilation)
• Improving natural ventilation
• How to improve mechanical ventilation
• Balancing ventilation with keeping workplace temperatures comfortable
• Air cleaning and filtration units
• Ventilation in vehicles

How can we help?

If you’re looking for advice on how to get ready to safely welcome back employees or improve ventilation in your workplace, our experienced team are happy to help.

For more information, please call us on 01302 340 695.

For the third year running, we have secured a vital accreditation here at Signum which demonstrates our commitment to health and safety compliance including strong Covid secure measures.

Following a comprehensive audit, we have regained SafeContractor status.

SafeContractor aims to build a better and safer working world for everyone. Approved companies are clearly demonstrating their commitment to sustainable and ethical practices and ensuring that all health and safety paperwork is compliant with current legislation.

It looks at vital areas of businesses including risk assessments, staff training, working at height procedures, PPE and tool safety and accident statistics for the past three years.

Importantly, recent assessments have also included a detailed check of the measures organisations are taking to ensure they are Covid secure.

Jill Wood, manging director at Signum FM, said: “It’s great news that we have achieved SafeContractor accreditation for the third year running. We always take health and safety seriously but it has been even more vital over the course of the pandemic to ensure we are doing all we can to keep our staff and customers safe when out on site visits. This mark helps provide our clients with assurances that we always work safely with their staff and ours in mind.

“I’d like to thank the hard work of the entire Signum FM team who have worked so hard in helping us achieve this accreditation.”

After what can only be described as one of the most difficult years to date for many businesses, we are thrilled to be in the position to report some really promising news for Signum.

The education sector continues to be a growing specialism for us and we have recently started work with a number of new school and education providers across South Yorkshire. This includes High Green Primary School in Sheffield, Hoylandswaine Primary School in Barnsley and the new University Technical College (UTC) in Doncaster.

All are planned preventative and reactive maintenance service contracts which involve ensuring compliance for statutory testing as well as scheduling our visits around term times to reduce disruption.

We are also providing facilities management support service to the client and tenants of Doncaster Business Innovation Centre ensuring compliance with all health and safety legislation and statutory building management requirements. We will be managing service contracts and providing maintenance services to ensure the smooth operation of the building.

In addition, we have extended the work we do with Parker Hannifin to include their site in Warwick.

We are providing an extensive facilities support service which involves monitoring the day-to-day maintenance of the premise, supporting the delivery of requests and reports of reactive incidents, quality assurance and delivery of SLA’s and KPI’s set out within the contract and the provision of a helpdesk. We have also undertaken a full asset survey and all site health and safety risk assessment, developing internal processes for multi team working across site to meet health and safety requirements and developing, delivering and monitoring PPM schedules. So, lots to keep us busy!

But not only have we been working hard on the client front providing the best possible service to customers old and new, we have also been giving our own brand some care and attention. We now have a sparkly new website which aims to bring be a one-stop-shop for everything Signum Facilities Management. Its navigation is simpler and the fresh new look reflects how we are moving forward as a company. You may also notice our newly branded vans out and about across the region, too.

It really is an exciting time for the team here and we are thankful to everyone who is on the journey with us. We couldn’t do it without you! The future is most definitely looking bright as we continue to provide the best service we can alongside developing our company growth plans. Watch this space!