Author: manager_new

Pigeons were roosting on girders under the canopy of a loading bay of a prestigious company in Havant. Not only do bird droppings cause a health hazard, being infested with disease-causing organisms, but they create slip hazards, are unsightly and can cause ongoing damage to the fabric of a building.

Requirements

A bird deterrent system was needed to create an impenetrable barrier to deny pigeons and other pest birds from roosting and nesting in the building.

Our client, Sumika Polymer Compounds (UK) Ltd, part of a worldwide business supplying excellence in the field of high performance thermoplastic engineering compounds, wanted a solution that would be successful, cost-effective and aesthetically pleasing.

There was restricted access under the canopy making loading and unloading of vehicles difficult and there were also electric hoists and fall arrest systems obstructing access. 

Outcome

With knowledge, experience and understanding of what the task involved, 1^st Choice High Level Cleaning & Maintenance were able to install a bird deterrent system of the highest grade materials, which blended into the fabric of the building and delivered the desired results. To ensure minimal disruption we liaised closely with managers and loading bay staff to work outside of their normal working hours and down time between scheduled despatch and delivery times. With detailed planning and procedures the work was carried within the deadline and without complications.

Using Mobile Elevating Work Platforms (MEWPs), man safe systems and pressure washers they were able to clean the area and safely install the bird netting, which acts as the best solution for high infestations and immediately rids buildings of all unwanted bird species.

Sumika Polymer Compounds (UK) Ltd’s Health & Safety Advisor, John White said that the work was carried out with the minimum disruption to normal working practices.

 “1^st Choice handled the entire project very well and we have no hesitation in using them for services in the future. They are quick to respond; quick to quote and familiar with our working practices.  They carry out all the proper safety procedures and always do a good job for us.”

We’d been involved for sometime working with Portsmouth City Council on cleaning their sensitive and historic buildings including Southsea Castle and so were delighted when asked to help with the cleaning of The Square Tower which dates back to 1494 and the bust of King Charles I. Portsmouth City Council Seafront Manager David Evans gives us his views on the project.

‘The Square Tower was built in 1494 during the reign of Henry VII and was the residence of the military governor until about 1580. It was during the English Civil War that this building was used as an arsenal and contained large amounts of gunpowder. The Tower is thought to be the last stronghold of the Royalists in Portsmouth and the then Governor of Portsmouth threatened to blow it up unless his terms were agreed, which they were.

The bust of Charles I housed within the eastern wall was in poor cosmetic condition as were the walls of the tower.  The bust and the walls had never been cleaned before and as 1st Choice High Level Cleaning had made such an excellent job of cleaning Southsea Castle walls of centuries of debris, they were the natural choice of contractor.  It was a tricky job as it’s in the main pedestrian area of Old Portsmouth and a key tourist trail.  To ensure the public were not disturbed, careful planning was needed to make sure that all detritus was kept to the minimum.  Working with 1st Choice is very straightforward and they always keep to the programme and budget and they have an excellent understanding of our historic buildings.’
David Evans, Seafront Manager, Portsmouth City Council 

Cosham Citizens Advice Bureau has provided free, impartial advice to those that need it for decades and over this time it has faced many challenges. However, this time they knew they were facing their toughest challenge to date  …. Rats!

Cosham CAB manager Patricia Exley explains, ‘The rubbish from discarded and blown litter has accumulated over many months between the building and the perimeter fence and we’ve had rats scratching about in the roof above our heads whilst we’ve been providing advice to people. It’s been a bit distracting to say the least.

We would have cleared it ourselves but it’s very difficult to access and together with the overgrown vegetation, it’s become a specialist job.’

Fortunately for Cosham CAB, a Drayton based company, 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance had the necessary equipment and expertise and they volunteered to clear it free of charge.  

Paul Coupland, Director of 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance said,

‘We know they do a valuable job for local people and many of those working at the CAB are volunteers themselves so we thought it would be good to give our time and expertise to help them out and in doing so, give something back to the local community.’

Chief Executive Lynne Davies said, 

“We’re really grateful to Paul and everyone at 1st Choice high Level Cleaning and Maintenance for giving their time freely and clearing this area around our building in Cosham. It was a big job and required specialist equipment to access the hard to reach areas and deal with the overgrown vegetation. Without Paul’s help Cosham CAB would have really struggled to overcome this problem.’

1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance are raising money for the Royal Marines Charitable Trust Fund by encouraging their customers to recycle their used milk bottle tops.

The Milk Bottle tops are not generally collected by local councils but they can be recycled by specialist companies that granulate them, enabling them to be used to make hard plastic garden toys for children such as slides or indeed more bottle tops. 

Our Portsmouth based commercial cleaning company will collect the bottle tops from their customers and deliver them to the specialist recycling company who weighs them in and makes a donation to the Royal Marines Charitable Trust Fund – equal to the recycling value of the tops.

The Royal Marines Charity Trust Fund supports wounded and injured Marines, those Marines who are still serving and facing successive tours in high threat environments and taking care of those left behind when a Marine dies in service. The Charity aims to raise £2.4million per year to support this crucially important work.

The Lord Mayor of Portsmouth Councillor Frank Jonas congratulates Dawn Nickels of 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance on being the first Portsmouth business to gain the Wellbeing Workplace Charter’s national accreditation following their successful completion of the Council’s programme. 

There is strong evidence from the World Health Organisation and other leading research bodies to show that having a healthy workforce can reduce sickness absence, lower staff turnover and boost productivity.  The Government recognised the health benefits and the value to the economy of healthy workplaces through the launch in 2014 of Public Health England’s Workplace Wellbeing Charter. It provides a standardised national accreditation programme, recognising local businesses that have demonstrated their commitment to improving the health and wellbeing of their workforce.

Portsmouth City Council’s Public Health team now offer any size or type of workplace the support and guidance they need to become registered and accredited as a healthy workplace under this scheme and they are delighted to announce 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance as the first business in the City to achieve this accreditation through their programme.

Councillor Luke Stubbs, Cabinet Member for Health and Social Care commented:

‘Well done to 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance on their accreditation. We’re delighted to see the first businesses to achieve this accreditation now coming through our programme. We believe that increasing the number of healthy workplaces in the City will be good for the health of Portsmouth people and the productivity of our businesses. It’s a win win.’

Dawn Nickels from 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance was delighted with the award as well.  

‘We are very proud to be the first business in the City to come through the Council’s programme and achieve the Health and Wellbeing Charter accreditation. We are not complacent and are committed to continuing to improve the health and wellbeing of our workforce.’

At 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance we value the work of those who volunteer in our city and so this year we are sponsoring the Portsmouth Inspiring Volunteers Awards 2016. 

The Sports and Healthy Living Award links in with our work with Portsmouth City Council and Public Health England on becoming the 1st Accredited Workplace in Portsmouth to receive the Workplace Wellbeing Charter Award.

Do you know a volunteer who should be recognised for their work?

People across Portsmouth are being asked to nominate inspirational individuals or groups for the Portsmouth Inspiring Volunteer Awards 2016.

The awards recognise volunteers who make a real difference to their area or the lives of others.

Organised by Portsmouth Together and Pompey in the Community, the awards are funded through support from local businesses and nominations remain open until 21 March 2016.

Teams or individuals can be nominated within five categories:

Organisations or individuals can be nominated for the following award categories:

• ‘Sports & Healthy Living’ supported by 1st Choice High Level Cleaning & Maintenance
• ‘Education and Mentoring supported by Irwin Mitchell Solicitors
• ‘Cleaning and Greening’ supported by Snows BMWi
• ‘My Community’ supported by The Southern Co-operative
• ‘Arts, Culture and Heritage’ supported by IBM UK

Each category contains three awards, with a new team prize introduced this year alongside the existing under-25 and 25 and over categories.

Up to three nominees will be shortlisted for each award by a panel of judges made up of representatives from the Portsmouth Voluntary and Community Network and the award sponsors.

The winners will be announced at a ceremony at Fratton Park on 1 June, during Volunteers’ Week 2016.

The Lord Mayor of Portsmouth Cllr Frank Jonas said: “The awards are our chance to celebrate not only the excellence of volunteers, but the amazing things we can accomplish when we work together to make Portsmouth the best city it can be. The judges will be looking for volunteers who have shown outstanding enthusiasm and commitment, who have given exceptional service or contributed particular depth of experience, or who have achieved great impact through their volunteering.”

Clare Martin, Pompey in the Community’s director of community projects, said: “Volunteers form an integral part of any community organisation and Pompey in the Community is no different – without our volunteers we wouldn’t be able to deliver programmes that have such an impact on the city and surrounding areas. We are pleased to again be part of the Portsmouth Inspiring Volunteers Awards”.

Nominations can be registered online by visiting  www.volunteer.portsmouth.gov.uk or emailing [email protected]

1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance are raising money for the Royal Marines Charity by encouraging their customers to recycle their used milk bottle tops.

The milk bottle tops are not generally collected by local councils and therefore often end up in landfill. However these bottle tops can be recycled by specialist companies that granulate them, enabling them to be used to make items such as hard plastic garden toys for children like as slides or indeed more bottle tops. 

Because we care about the environment 1st Choice High Level Cleaning and Maintenance will collect the bottle tops from our customers and deliver them to the specialist recycling company. The company will then weigh them and make a donation to the Royal Marines Charity – equal to the recycling value of the tops.

The Royal Marines Charity supports wounded and injured Marines, those Marines who are still serving and facing successive tours in high threat environments and taking care of those left behind when a Marine dies in service. The Charity aims to raise £2.4million per year to support this crucially important work. Find out more about the charity here on the Royal Marines Charity website.

Thank you to everyone who bought a cake at Maritime House in Portsmouth last week in our Cakes4Commandos fundraiser in support of the Royal Marines Charity. The Royal Marines Charity supports both serving and veteran Marines and their families. Our photos didn’t come out brilliantly but we had some lovely feedback from the visitors asking if we’d be back before Christmas! Dawn did a tremendous job baking over 300 cakes and raising £161.11 for the Charity.

Paul renamed some of the cakes with a Royal marine take.  Bootneck Mincemeat Apple Cake, Royal Cranberry Muffins, St Clements Tray Bake, Fresh Cream Butterfly Cakes, Gucci Banana Cake, Apple Spice Muffins, Gucci Banana Cake,Fresh CAM Cream Chocolate Butterfly Cakes, Fresh Cream Fruit Scones, English Madeleines.

Find out more about the charity here www.theroyalmarinescharity.org.uk

On 16 September we had the pleasure of cleaning the historic King William III (William of orange) statue in Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard. The statue which is in the Porters’ Garden was given to the Commissioner of the Dockyard (Sir William Townsend) by Richard Norton, who was the grandson and heir of Colonel Richard Norton. 

The statue was cast in lead to the design of John Van Nost the Elder of London and finished with a covering of double gold leaf; mounted on a polished white marble plinth The Commissioner set up the statue in front of the new terrace (Long Row) in the middle of the Offal Ground now the site of Victory Building and surrounded it with an ornamental wrought-iron railing with Royal Crowns on the corners. The statue was transported to London in 1967 to be restored and returned to the dockyard in 1968. It can be viewed as part of a visit to Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard.

You can find more information about the statue on the following link https://portsmouthdockyard.org.uk/timeline/details/1718-statue-of-king-william-iii

Professional window cleaners recommend deionised water for window cleaning. Some window cleaners use tap water to clean your windows. However tap water contains minerals, which while ideal for drinking are not ideal for your windows.

These nutritionally useful minerals cause streaking and deposits on your windows and along with other environmental factors such as rainwater, traffic pollution, tree sap, bird lime and run off from masonry, can cause unsightly staining and discolouration of the glass.

In deionised water these minerals are removed ensuring you get a streak free finish and a great shine on your windows. Deionised water acts as a magnet for dirt keeping your windows cleaner and streak free and eliminates the need for extra harsh chemicals meaning it is better for your windows and the environment.

At 1st Choice High Level Cleaning we produce our own deionised water and bring it to site ensuring we get the best finish for your windows.