Midland Lead Reflect on 2019 with pride

As 2019 draws to a close and 2020 appears as a bright light, we wanted to reflect on our achievements, and the people that make it happen.

2019 has been filled with highlights which is largely thanks to the strengths of our team. Some of the greatest achievements that we are ending the year on includes being named as one of the Top 200 Businesses in Derbyshire alongside other major employers in the region. Midland Lead is an SME family owned business employing 50 dedicated people, so to be named as one of the Top 200 Businesses alongside major manufactures is a great honour.

In this article we wanted to reflect on a few highlights to end the year with pride;

2019 Highlights

Earlier in the year, after several months of hard work by all of our team, Midland Lead was awarded membership of the Institute of Customer Service in recognition of the support our dedicated staff offer to all customers. Further achievements were recognised throughout this year as the team, individuals and projects with customers made it to the finals in four national and regional awards for Apprentice of the Year, Rising Star of the Year, International Trading Award, Employer of The Year and Leadership Team of the Year.

We were also lucky enough to work with so many customers on a number of exciting projects including most recently a restoration development with Glenbuild Ltd in Glasgow. This inspiring project made it through to the national Pitched Roofing Awards for the ‘Best use of a Lead Roof Application’ for their work on the Gorbals Tenement.

With such a strong commitment to people, training and staff development, we are proud of the fact that Midland Lead has become a major employer in the area, and we have welcomed new additions to #TeamMidlandLead – Andy Stott, Jake Slade and Sonia Bowkers have further strengthened the sales team and Angela Stevenson, our health, safety and facilities coordinator is a real asset to our company, together with the new starters within operations who make it all happen.

We also work with an extended team of roofing experts as we seek their in-depth knowledge on application of products. Recently we have been lucky enough to see first-hand the work of artists Craig Marshall of CM Leadworks and Geo Gargan an independent artist, who share with us their love of working with lead. You can read our article ‘The Art Of Lead’ here. We also shared advice from Matt Timby, a specialist Roofing Contractor, on his tips on how to work with lead, three articles you can look back on include ‘Tips on How to use Lead in Construction’; ‘Tips on how to use Lead in Heritage Projects.

We have also continued to deliver our pledge to support the next generation of roofers, whatever stage in their career. This has resulted in us expanding the training offer to eighteen colleges throughout the UK and is something that we will continue to increase into the future.

Midland Lead champions the promotion of diversity in the workplace and we kicked off 2019 by sponsoring the first Diversity Award category in the BMJ Industry Awards, and the Women in Roofing Conference in June. This is a theme that we will continue to support into 2020 and beyond.

We also strongly identify the importance of sustainability in manufacturing and this is something that we continuously measure and make changes to our processes to ensure our production operations are as environmentally and energy efficient as possible. Technical Development Manager, Arun Prabhakar joined us to continue to improve our energy efficiencies, and he has made some significant changes. Arun is currently working on a project that will help Midland Lead spearhead change in the sector that will be revealed early in 2020.

Charity and Community

Midland Lead is a company that is proud to be play their part of a community and support customers – wherever they are. This year Midland Lead sponsored a number of local football teams including Turrif FC, Gresley FC and Repton Casuals. Sponsorship included sponsoring the kit and helping to improve the pitch.

Our team are always keen to help raise money for charitable events and with Christmas Jumper Day just around the corner where they are raising money for Save the Children  they have also raised more than £500 for Movember and our sales and marketing manager raised over £320,000 for Women v Cancer in a cycle ride across Costa Rica last month.

Looking forward to 2020

Next year is set to be a year of continued growth and innovation and we will kick off the new year by attending Arab Health as part of the Midlands Engine delegation. Arab Health is an event with leading healthcare providers at the end of January in Dubai. This further reinforces our ‘Expertise in Export’ as relationships with our overseas clients grows through our in-depth knowledge of international trading.

Boudewijn Tuinenburg, managing director of Midland Lead reflected on this year’s achievements: “I would like to say a big thank you to everyone who has helped us to continue to develop and deliver our core values that have only been possible because of the hard work of our team, customers and suppliers.

“Midland Lead is committed to providing a rewarding working environment so we can continue to add value to our customers and staff, and this is something that has been done with the support of a wider partnership of experts.

“Sustainability, customer service and innovation will be a theme that will continue throughout 2020 and beyond, not only with our product development but also through our people who we support at every stage.

“2020 will certainly be another year of change but with change comes opportunity, achievement, and exciting developments – we can’t wait to see what the future holds.”