Newsletter
February 2011
It's Claude here from Prontopak. As you know from our previous communications, nothing frustrates me more than unreliable service. So we promise fast turnaround and utmost care when handling your goods.
To show what we mean, we've produced a new guide: "5 Things To Ask Your Packing Provider" - see below.
Plus: find out how the new Agency Workers Regulations may affect your business, and meet some of our team.
What Do You Look For In A Pick & Pack Partner?
How would you select your ideal pick and pack partner? Choosing the wrong partner can result in poor quality work, costly delays, breakages and worse. The solution is to ask the right questions.
Last year, just before Christmas, we sent out an email to our contacts to let them know that even in the busiest of times for retailers and manufacturers we were still available to help with last minute picking and pack requirements.
We were surprised by the response, not least because some businesses had obviously been 'let down' by their regular pick and pack providers. That got us to thinking.
What questions should you ask your potential packing partner? Here are our top 5 tips:
1. Can You Prove You're Reliable?
Packing and dispatch usually means keeping to tight deadlines. How quickly can your provider a) respond to you and b) turn your job around? Do they keep their promises?
If your business depends on hitting deadlines, you'll need your goods packed and out of the door quickly and reliably – every time. Ask for references, ask to look around their site, meet some of the staff and test out how quickly they can turn your job around.
2. Where Are You Located?
An easily accessible location gives your provider the best chance of receiving and delivering your goods within deadlines. A good choice of main traffic arteries including motorways dual carriageways can be important given the unpredictable traffic conditions on Britain's crowded roads.
How many major roads are within 5 miles of your provider's location?
3. How Do You Treat Your Workers?
Sweatshop conditions and wages are not a recipe for success, and could impact on the quality of service you receive.
A happy and motivated workforce will ultimately do a better quality job. If ethical employment is important to you, find out about the conditions your provider's workers operate and live in – and whether they are legally employed.
4. How Flexible Can You Be?
Not everything always runs to plan, so a bit of flexibility can go a long way. If you find yourself in a fix as a result of delays beyond your control, you may need your picking and packing done in a hurry – possibly overnight.
How accommodating can your potential provider be in helping you out in these tight situations?
5. Do You Understand My Business?
Every business is different and has different needs. We really like suppliers who show us that that they understand what we do and the dynamics of our business. It means they’re better positioned to deliver the service we need.
How much do your suppliers understand about your business and your particular requirements?
Legislation Update
A key piece of legislation affecting many of our customers is the Agency Workers Regulations 2010. It applies to companies using and supervising workers supplied on a temporary basis by any kind of employment-related agency.
The main feature of this Directive is the requirement of 'equal treatment' for agency workers engaged on assignments lasting 12 weeks or more.
Equal treatment means that the basic working and employment conditions of temporary workers must, for the duration of the assignment for a hirer, be comparable to workers who recruited directly to do the same job.
Implications for your business
In practice, if you use agency workers from other sources, we suggest you review your arrangements with those agencies. In particular, ensure you have measures in place to monitor and control the length of agency contracts and assignments for individual agency workers.
Also review the contractual arrangements with agencies you use and make sure contracts are amended to reflect new agency workers of 12 weeks or more.
You may also need to consider the impact – financial and otherwise – that the new legislation will have on your business. Your cost base and pricing structures may well need to be reviewed.
Meet The Team
Here at Prontopak we try to be "the company that everyone wants to work with". But we 
couldn't do it without our dedicated people. If you've ever spoken to Emma Childers, you'll know exactly what we mean. Emma is our Accounts Ninja and is always here to help.
When it comes to managing the money, Emma can draw on her years of experience dealing with money matters. Outside of Prontopak Emma's other job is looking after her family – a full time job in itself – and she'll really be put to the test with little Jodie arriving in March. Good luck Em's!
We know your heart is big enough to care for the world!
Happy Customers!
Happy Customers are the lifeblood of any business, so we work very hard at exceeding expectations and keeping our promises. But don't just take our word for it.
Here's what Mr Fothergill's seeds say about us:
"I have been sending outwork to Prontopak for the last 18 months. In this time I can honestly say of all the contract packers I deal with, Prontopak are the quickest with the fastest turnaround of finished stock back to me. The quality of work returned is also of a high degree.
I have no trouble in recommending Prontopak for outwork of any nature, along with friendly staff that always seems to help and have all the answers."
Stephen Long
Production Supervisor
Mr Fothergill's Seeds Ltd
And here's a comment from Frederic Smart:
"We used Prontopak recently for an intensive hand sorting and repacking task, and were very pleased with the way the work was handled.
The facilities, both for handling pallets of stock in and out, and the actual packing room are well equipped, and this, combined with conscientious staff, means that we look forward to using their services again in the near future."
Douglas Smart
Frederic Smart and Son Ltd
