Business streams here at WES offer a range of exciting career progression options and routes. A perfect example of this comes with our latest Repair & Maintenance player profile from our Production Manager Simon Ralph.

Tell us about yourself

My name is Simon Ralph – I started my working career as an apprentice at PCI Membranes who became a customer of WES – I then joined WES in 2005 as a fabricator/assembler in the workshop. Since then I have progressed from the workshop floor to my latest role of production manager for the workshop & external works teams. In nearly 18 years here at WES, I have learned a vast range of skills and expertise, and know the WES products inside out. I’m married & live in Andover –enjoying both watching and playing sport in my spare time. In particular, I still play cricket competitively.

What is your role in the WES R&M team?

My role within the wider WES business is to make sure that both the workshop and external teams have all of the necessary information to complete the job on time, including reviewing drawings, writing RAMS, preparing job packs, ordering materials, & sourcing other relevant information.

I also attend design reviews, sign off mechanical drawings, and host our job wash-up meetings. I am also responsible for the WES stores and procurement team.

As part of my professional development, I am becoming more involved in the commercial aspects of our work, learning about estimating & quoting, cost reporting & understanding margins, as well as more exposure to direct line management.

What do you enjoy most about working at WES?

The most enjoyable aspect of working at WES is being part of the team. We all bounce off each other with ideas, we share resource to get jobs finished, and have a pragmatic way of overcoming any difficulties that may arise. There is a very engaging culture here at WES – the humour & team camaraderie is excellent and certainly makes the day more enjoyable. I’m really grateful for the opportunity to develop my career further with WES as part of business-wide succession plan –which hopefully will present me with further opportunities in the future.

What does a typical day look like for you?

My days can vary from ensuring that the workshop is fully prepared for all size jobs to making sure the field teams are ready to start an installation. I help our dosing product team with enquires as well as working with project managers on the design of equipment. I’m responsible for performance reporting & invoicing for refurbishment work, and still occasionally get the tools out & show others how it used to be done!

What are your most & least favourite parts of working for WES?

What is my favourite part of working at WES: Problem-solving, being part of the WES team and learning new skills.

What is my least favourite part of working at WES: Sitting next to a Chelsea fan in the office when Southampton have lost (again)!

WES has donated workwear for a humanitarian aid appeal.

Thanks to Martin Svec for organising the donation of all of our old branded workwear to go to Ukraine for such a worthy cause. Following our rebrand, we have kindly donated discontinued uniforms to a group of volunteers, who have now sent them to those in desperate need of warm clothing in war-torn regions of Ukraine.

We are so pleased to recycle our old workwear (charity shops don’t usually accept branded clothing in the UK). #ukrainecrisis #recycling #rebranding

Over the next few months, the team here at WES will look to introduce themselves, discussing their roles in the company and the industry. Stay tuned for more profiles as the year progresses.

To get the ball rolling, Jordan Davis – Senior Service Engineer from the Repair & Maintenance business stream kicks us off.

Tell us about yourself

My name is Jordan Davis and I joined WES in 2020. I live near Basingstoke and enjoy spending my free time with my family, friends and my whippet! My career in engineering started in the Royal Armoured Corps of The British Army where among other things I completed a mechanical engineering apprenticeship. Upon leaving the Army in 2018, I applied the skills and experience I gained to develop a new career in the water industry. In this time, I’ve worked on a wide range of chemical dosing plant & equipment, gaining knowledge & experience whilst continuing to develop new skills & competencies.

What is your role in the WES R&M team?

My role is primarily as a field-based service engineer, which includes maintenance, repairs and emergency callout work on a wide variety of chemical dosing equipment. It definitely keeps me busy, and I enjoy the pace and diversity this brings. I recently successfully completed an SMSTS qualification as part of my development which brings additional responsibility when I’m helping manage larger jobs on-site.

WES are supporting my development towards a supervisory role – part of which is being involved with different aspects of the business. I also support both the field engineers and the managerial team with job planning, training, administration and site supervision.

What do you enjoy most about working at WES?

The most enjoyable part of working at WES is the culture within the business. Everyone “mucks in” together to help each other out and get the job done. I also enjoy the freedom that I’m allowed to make my own decisions on how best to deal with situations and run jobs. There is a great bunch of people here at WES who know when to have a laugh but also when to “knuckle down” & deliver. In the field I enjoy being able to think outside the box in order to get the customer back online and dosing, and as part of my development, learning new skills & experiences that are required of a supervisor or manager. I’m very lucky to have a supportive team around me which makes coming to work so much more enjoyable.

What does a typical day look like for you?

No two days are the same – sometimes I could be out on site working on a critical breakdown, maintaining new or old equipment, running a refurbishment job, coaching engineers within our team or spending time with my manager learning aspects of his role. As we work nationwide I’m often in a different location every day – I really enjoy the variety and travel this brings me. However sometimes I’m in our newly refurbished workshop in Basingstoke either servicing or refurbishing clients’ plant or equipment that is here for its maintenance program.

What are your most & least favourite parts of working for WES?

My favourite part: The flexibility I have for my work-life balance. I also like “double pie Thursday” at WES!

My least favourite part: Wearing full chemical PPE in the summer…

Last week we held a WES Team Talk and combined it with a Macmillan Coffee Morning, raising £300 for the Macmillan Cancer Support.

The morning was a great success and was a great way to settle into our new office, which provides enough space to comfortably host the event.

We would like to say a big thank you to all of our staff who made cakes and for all their donations.

As part of our ongoing growth & expansion, the team at WES have started to move into our purpose designed facility in Basingstoke this week.

This phase of our move sees all office & administrative functions now operating from the new facility, known as Unit 1 – which will become our primary operational & HQ site.

The next phase of the move, which will take place in November, will see our manufacturing operations move into the new purpose designed facility.

To accommodate growth & increased workload, we have retained our existing site, now known as Unit 2 – and as both units are next door to each other, we now have one combined site!

This is an exciting time for our business, where the office move will support WES’ long-term goals.

We want to say a massive thank you to all of our staff and contractors who helped make the phase of the move go without a hitch!

WES were very pleased to have hosted SOCOTEC over the last 3 days for our ISO 9001, ISO 14001, ISO 45001 and Safety Schemes in Procurement (SSIP) audits.

“We are especially delighted with the positive feedback we received for our culture of continuous improvement. It is something we strive to build at all levels of the organisation, so to have our staff recognised for it is a source of pride.” Matt Haines, Business Assurance Manager

Last week, workshop and site staff attended a PASMA training course with UTN Training in Winchester.

PASMA training is designed to ensure safe assembly, movement, and disassembly of mobile access towers used when working at height. PASMA training also covers people who wish to inspect mobile access towers for safety purposes.

We recognise the importance of staff H&S training and in recent weeks our colleagues have undertaken Abrasive Wheels, Water Hygiene, Spill Management, Manual Handling and First Aid training courses.

At WES, we have developed a training app which identifies gaps in training for every role/person and it ensures that no training expires without re-training being booked.

Sam joined us in June 2021 as our ‘Year in Industry/Placement’ student, working in our Capital Projects Business Stream. His attitude, work ethic and general ability has been exemplary. Sam is currently doing a master’s degree in chemical engineering at Birmingham University and will return for his final year in the autumn. Sam’s progress has been outstanding, so we have awarded him a sponsorship (for his final year at university) and have offered him a position as Junior Project Manager for when he graduates next year.

“Sam has become an invaluable team member during his time here, turning his hand to all aspects of the project cycle, bringing a real boost to the team. It was an easy decision to offer a package for his final year of university and a position within the team on completion” (Patrick Fisher, Projects Director).

Why Investing in Young Talent is important to our business

Ensuring our business invests money, time and training into young, upcoming talent is essential for business growth and success. We believe injecting our workforce with younger employees offers a variety of benefits. Young talent can offer fresh ideas, spirit, and motivation. We can plan for our business future by contributing to the development of new talent – they could be the future leaders in our industry.

Investing in young talent can ensure that our business commits to the potential of having long-standing staff in the future. Young talent often brings diverse qualities to the table that experienced employees may not be able to access.

“Working at WES has been thoroughly enjoyable. Joining an SME has been invaluable in broadening my experiences throughout my placement year, enabling me to jump between commissioning, project management, mechanical drawing, and sales in any given work week! Exposure to business development meetings and looking at various project’s earned value/cash flow has been particularly engaging, and something not-yet covered in my engineering degree.

A highlight of my year was the recent despatch and successful commissioning of WES’ latest chlorination dosing system, a project I have managed all the way from the proposal & tender stage, which is now operational on a very high profile site. Watching it leave the yard was a fantastic milestone to have achieved towards the end of my placement, hopefully the first of many dosing systems I will deliver with WES upon commencement of my graduate role.

There’s a lot to look forward to in 2023; our new office building will be complete, the company will have had a further year integrating with the wider RSE Group, and who knows, I might win the WES fantasy football league again too.” (Sam Anderson, Placement Engineer)

Kevin Wheeler, Managing Director, commented:

“Introducing an undergraduate student to our projects team for a placement year was something WES had not favoured in the past. Fears over the time needed to manage and train an “inexperienced” young person and for no guaranteed return during or after the placement year, meant we had concentrated on the more traditional apprentice route to introduce young talent. 

However, Sam has completely dispelled those fears, his focus, enthusiasm, engagement and, most impressively his underlying leadership abilities in managing a particular project for a very prestigious client have been a joy to behold. 

I hope too that WES have given Sam the motivation to finish his masters degree in the knowledge that he will make a very valued contribution to the business upon his return.

I look forward to having more “young Sams” in the business”

We are currently looking for our next Year in Industry/Placement student for 2022/2023.

Incidences of pollution will have a significant impact on funding throughout AMP7. It’s, therefore, vital that businesses involved in water and wastewater treatment focus on preventing chemical leakages. Hiring or purchasing bunds, structures that underly and wall-off areas containing hazardous chemicals or liquids, thereby providing containment in the event of leaks, represents a small investment. However, it drastically reduces the risks associated with storing chemicals.

Businesses have an array of choices to make when it comes to selecting a bund suitable for their needs. They can opt for a permanent bund, built directly on the treatment site or manufactured off-site, transported and then installed. Temporary or portable bunds, used for smaller volumes, meanwhile, are made from lighter materials. They include intermediate bulk containers (IBC) bunds, which when constructed for movement by forklift trucks are often referred to as pallet bunds.

The most suitable material for the bund must be considered and selected based on several factors, including the size of the storage containers, the nature of the chemical stored, and the bund’s position and environment. The decision is also strongly affected by whether it will be built on-site or manufactured off-site.

The most traditional permanent bunds are built with concrete, brick or block walls, standing on concrete floors. These materials, and any mortar used in the masonry walls, must be watertight and capable of resisting the chemicals.

In recent years, as off-site bund manufacture has grown in popularity, different materials and construction methods have become more common. One alternative for permanent bunds is prefabricated steel. However, this is susceptible to both atmospheric corrosion and attack by the stored chemical, so a special resistant coating must be applied to it.

Together with the growth in off-site and modular manufacture of chemical dosing systems, there has been a considerable evolution in bund construction methodology and design in recent years. For packaged systems up to around 30,000 litres, fabricated polyethylene (PE) or polypropylene (PP) bunds with a rectangular footprint are now commonplace. However, certain design issues must be addressed if they are to be considered viable alternatives to civil-engineered bunds constructed on-site.

When it comes to choosing the capacity of your bund, the UK WIMES: Water Industry Mechanical and Electrical Specifications stipulate that it should be 110% of the total storage capacity of the largest tank or 25% of the total capacity of all tanks, whichever is the greater. However, requirements for outdoor bunds may differ a little between individual water companies. Thames Water, for example, insists on sizing at 110%, while Yorkshire Water extends this to 130% in its own specifications.

Finally, bunds must be protected from the elements and rigorously maintained if they are to function correctly in the long term.

Taking all of this into account, the safest approach is often to buy or hire complete chemical storage and dosing equipment set-ups from WES. They come with the most appropriate bunds, as well as all necessary filling and safety systems, and all components are pre-assembled and pre-tested. For easy installation and integration with the plant’s existing operation, each delivery is also accompanied by the right pipework, connectors and control features.