Employee sporting adventures
Two Joseph Ash Galvanizing employees have recently completed gruelling sporting activities to not only push themselves to the limit and feel a sense of great achievement, but also to raise much needed funds for charity.
Mick Bonnar (left photo), Transport Manager from Joseph Ash Bridgend took part in the Prudential Ride London event – the largest annual cycling fundraiser managed by the London and Surrey Cycling Partnership (LSCP).
The event has been running since 2013 and cyclists raise money for charity by riding from London to Surrey every August.
Mick Bonnar was proud to complete the ride in five hours and 28 minutes, raising £850 for Macmillan Cancer Support in the process. This money forms part of the £17m the event has raised for good causes over the last six years.
Amazing!
Stuart Cobourne (right photo), Divisional Manager from Joseph Ash Telford, also took part in a cycling challenge in August. Not only cycling though… as he completed as a triathlete in the Ironman distance contest in Copenhagen.
Having completed in triathlons for four years, Stuart wished to push himself in the ‘ultimate challenge’, by swimming for 2.4 miles, cycling for 112 miles, and then running for 26.2 miles. (It’s making our legs wobble just writing about it!)
Stuart completed the Ironman in 11 hours and 15 minutes, finishing 1076th out of 3000 starters (500 of whom didn’t make it past the finish line).
Stuart fundraised for the event and amassed over £1000 for Acorns Children’s Hospice.
Well done to both Mick and Stuart. Such amazing achievements, which you deserve to feel very proud of. (Now we want to know what your plans are for 2020?!)
Next pageIn 1984, Torvill and Dean won the gold medal for ice-skating at the Winter Olympics, the Thames Barrier was officially opened, Prince Harry was born, and the initial agreement to return Hong Kong to China was signed. A momentous year.
But what else happened in 1984?
John Gollings started his career at Joseph Ash Galvanizing, joining the Chesterfield plant straight out of school!
And 35 years later (almost to the day, as he joined on 28 August), he is still part of the family. Brilliant.
John’s history:
When John joined Joseph Ash he initially worked with the team building the acid tanks, and helped to get the business operational.
Since then, John has become multi-skilled in all aspects of the galvanizing process, especially the galvanizing bath, becoming the Leading Bath Man in 2015.
John is a highly valued member of the team and his expertise is called upon when we receive new types of projects or carry out trials on new product designs for galvanizing.
John’s approach to his job, and the tasks he’s asked to perform including all aspects of site regulations, is exemplary.
During his 35 years he has become a leading figure within the company and is an integral part of the team.
Congratulations on reaching your 35th anniversary John!
(From left to right in the photo: John Gollings and Paul Marriott. Interestingly, Paul has also achieved 37 years’ service with Joseph Ash Galvanizing, which is a huge 72 years’ experience between them!)
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We’re pleased to introduce some team members at our Corby (Premier Galvanizing*) plant. From left to right we have David Prattis, Lisa Sutton, Daren Stevens, Anna Stocks, Bob Preston, Heather Elmore and John Frankland.
Find out more about the team below:
David Prattis joined Premier Galvanizing Corby as General Manager in September 2019. He has over 30 years’ experience in Steel and Aluminium Coil Coating, supplying product into the Construction and Leisure Industries. Before joining Premier Galvanizing, he spent 10 years as Plant Manager for an International Coil Coating Company based in the UK and The Netherlands.
Lisa Sutton is the Corby Office Manager. She is a long-standing member of the team, having worked for the company for 14 years, ensuring the smooth operation of all business administration.
Daren Stevens has been with Premier Galvanizing since it originally opened in September 2002 as an experienced Operative. He previously worked with Bob Preston (below) at Clark Steel. Working his way up from Shift Supervisor, he became Works Supervisor, then Galvanizing Manager. He was promoted to Operations Manager last year. Having worked at the plant for many years, Daren has expert knowledge in running a busy galvanizing plant.
Our Corby plant operates eight dedicated lorries to service customers’ needs giving a fast turnaround of typically 2-3 days. As Operations Manager, Daren also ensures these collections and deliveries run smoothly.
Anna Stocks is the Financial Controller for Premier Galvanizing and operates across two plants (Corby and Hull). She is a valuable member of the team and has worked for the company since 2016.
Bob Preston has a wealth of experience in galvanizing, having worked in the industry since 1972. Throughout his career, Bob has progressed through the galvanizing business from Shift Operative, to Works Manager, to Production Manager and onto his current position as Production Director. In this role Bob supports all other members of the customer focused team in delivering an exceptional all-round service.
Heather Elmore is experienced in administration, bookkeeping and credit control. She has worked with the Corby team for over three years providing much needed assistance in the office.
John Frankland joined Premier Galvanizing in September last year as Sales Manager. John is new to the galvanizing industry and has a background in Capital Equipment Sales to the manufacturing and metal fabrication sectors. John works at our Corby plant providing hot dip galvanizing services from Mansfield and Nottingham in the north, following the A1, M1 and M11 routes down through the country and covering the north half of London from Essex in the East through to Berkshire in the West.
The entire Corby team take pride in delivering an unbeatable service in terms of quality, turnaround and doing exactly what they promise. If you have any questions or queries, or if you’d like to place an order, please get in touch with the Corby team.
*Premier Galvanizing is part of the Joseph Ash Group.
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Matt Green and Myles Durward from Joseph Ash nominated for In-Comm Training and Business Services Awards
On 7 June 2019 the annual In-Comm Training and Business Services Awards were held at the ICC in Birmingham. The Awards celebrate and reward young apprentices and adult learners across the West Midlands, and this year team members from Joseph Ash Chesterfield were there to celebrate their training achievements.
Matt Green and Myles Durward have both been completing JAC Level 2 of In-Comm’s BIT training. As part of this course they are learning new skills to take back to Joseph Ash Chesterfield. Skills include looking at ways to be more efficient (and remove wastage) in the following plant processes: Overproduction, Transportation, Waiting, Inventory, Defects, Motion and Process.
Myles and Matt were both nominated for the ‘Learner of the Year: Continuous Improvement’ award, and on the night, Matt walked away with a ‘Highly Commended’ accolade.
Six other team members from Joseph Ash Galvanizing have also completed their Level 2 training, and alongside Matt and Myles, will be moving onto Level 3. A new team from Joseph Ash will also start Level 2. (Back row left to right: James Crookes, Matthew Phillips, Dean Holland, Matt Green. Front row left to right: Mark Payne, Myles Durward, Dave Foster (In-comm trainer), Wayne Smith)
Congratulations to all our team members endeavouring to learn new skills, improve our plants and further their careers. The commitment to learning is great! A special congratulations to Matt and Myles too.
Thanks for such a great event In-Comm!
Next pageCertificate in Leadership and Management for team members at Joseph Ash Galvanizing
We’re pleased to announce that five members of our team across five of our plants have recently completed the Certificate in Leadership and Management, Levels 3 and 5.
The course is designed for middle managers to develop and strengthen their skills including management and leadership, managing team and individual performance. It also enables them to become stronger leaders by discovering new and innovative ideas and creative approaches to business management.
The five team members are:
- Tracie Lockley – Level 5 – Deputy Divisional Manager, Joseph Ash Telford
- Sukhwinder Singh – Level 5 – Deputy Divisional Manager, Joseph Ash Walsall
- Mark Payne – Level 5 – Divisional Manager, Joseph Ash Chesterfield
- Rob Nelson – Level 5 – Divisional Manager, Joseph Ash Bilston
- Kevin Williams – Level 3 – Divisional Manager, Joseph Ash Bridgend
The course was conducted by Professional Development Training Ltd, in Birmingham.
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It’s always good to put a face to a name… With this in mind we thought we’d introduce some of the team at Premier Galvanizing Hull* (one of our sister companies)
From left to right we have: Steve East (Production Manager), Conner Harman (Business Support Officer), Alex Camp (General Manager), Chris Young (Commercial Support Officer) and Andrew Tweddle (Commercial Manager).
Steve East, Conner Harman and Chris Young oversee the production and transport side of the operation at Hull. Always willing and able to assist with any collection and delivery needs, keeping customers up to date with the progress of their work. The team are available from 5am to 5pm Monday to Friday and can be reached on 01482 587587.
Alex Camp – General Manager
Alex has worked for Premier Galvanizing for over 12 years and has a wealth of knowledge in galvanizing. He always takes service to the next level and ensures that all customers are at the heart of the business. Most recently he has been overseeing a significant overhaul of the plant including the installation of new automated systems to further the growth and efficiency of Premier Galvanizing Hull. Alex is available to assist with any technical queries and quotes.
Andrew Tweddle – Commercial Manager
For any enquiries or quotes for galvanizing work, or for any technical questions, contact Andrew on 07776 592008. Andrew is out and about visiting customers on a daily basis ensuring service levels are at their best and customers are happy with the work we produce for them.
*Premier Galvanizing is part of the Joseph Ash Group
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Wow! What a quarter we’ve had for celebrating long-time service achievements at our plants. Eight team members have celebrated anniversaries ranging from 20 to 35 years across the Bilston, Walsall, Chesterfield and Telford plants. Amazing!
Here are the details:
Andrew Stote
In January Andrew reached his 20-year anniversary at Joseph Ash Bilston. With a keen eye for quality control, Andrew has been a night shift supervisor and a white line leader.
John Spruce
In February, John also reached 20-years’ service at Joseph Ash Bilston. John has worked on the black line, jigging the work. He has also been a fork lift truck driver at the plant.
Andrew Gale
Andy began working at Joseph Ash Telford in 1999, and 20 years later (as of February) we’re pleased to say he’s still here! A competent and experienced member of the team, he has spent many years working in the pre-treatment area as a pickler. More recently he has taken the opportunity to put his broad experience to good use by becoming a shift supervisor.
Peter Jones
Peter joined Joseph Ash Chesterfield 20 years ago, in February 1999. Peter has always worked the night shift primarily as a bath man, but he is also experienced in all other areas of the hot dip galvanizing process, having worked most roles.
Andrew Hudson
25 years ago, in February 1994, Andrew started working at Joseph Ash Chesterfield as part of a team of three in the maintenance department. Since that time the team has grown to five people and Andrew is the team manager, having been promoted to this role seven years ago.
Jackie Wright
Jackie joined the Oldbury division (Albion Galvanizers) as maternity cover for one year in March 1999. Twenty years later and she’s still with us!
After completing maternity cover, Jackie moved to Joseph Ash Telford for six years working for Fred Haycock who was the former Telford Divisional Manager. When Fred moved to Joseph Ash Bilston, Jackie worked for him there for another 12 years, and has latterly spent her 20th year working for Rob Nelson (also at Bilston). All Divisional Manager’s acknowledge that Jackie has been an invaluable asset.
Hannah Beard
Hannah joined Joseph Ash in 1999 in the commercial department at Albion Galvanizers (specialist spin galvanizing plant). Since then, Hannah has worked in a number of Commercial Management roles at Albion, at the Joseph Ash Head Office and most recently at Joseph Ash Telford. Hannah’s positive outlook and outgoing personality have resulted in her becoming well-known in the industry, forging some very important relationships with many of Joseph Ash’s customers.
Gurpal Singh
Last, but not least, Gurpal has recently celebrated a huge 35 years at Joseph Ash Walsall. Such an amazing milestone.
In 1984 Gurpal, aka Charlie, joined Joseph Ash Walsall as a Yard/Transport Supervisor and in 1999 he was promoted to Production Manager. Fast forward 11 years, and Gurpal also took on additional duties and responsibilities of Production Management at Joseph Ash Telford overseeing the production efficiencies of both plants. In 2013 Gurpal returned to Joseph Ash Walsall as Divisional Manager and began transforming the facility into a semi-automated plant. Never one to rest on his laurels, he has been busy ever since! In 2016 he spear headed the design for a vast plant extension to streamline flow and improve productivity, and in late 2018 he project managed the installation of a new galvanizing bath, and made significant improvements to the yard to improve health and safety, and storage and working area capacity.
Congratulations to everyone. Your experience and commitment are what makes Joseph Ash Galvanizing so successful!
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Ray Rubenis retires from Joseph Ash after 37 years
Whilst looking on a Birmingham history chat room a few days ago we came across some text about the origins of Joseph Ash Galvanizing. One of historians in the forum stated that in the 1950s people used to queue to try and get a job at Joseph Ash Galvanizing, and once they had a foot in the door, it was a job for life with good pay and good experiences. We think this still rings true in more modern times, as we’ve just celebrated the retirement of a valued member of staff – Ray Rubenis – who has left the Company after 37 years’ service.
Ray started working at Joseph Ash Telford in 1982, starting out on the shop floor. From then on for the next 21 years, the Telford branch allowed Ray the opportunity to work his way up through Jigging to Dipping. In 2003, Ray moved to the maintenance department where he could also put his excellent fabrication skills to use. He spent another 11/12 years in this department ensuring any improvements/repairs were completed to keep the plant up and running.
In mid-2012, due to the economic situation at the time across the UK, Ray was facing redundancy. He did not want to leave the Company and he said, “the Walsall Branch came to the rescue and offered me a vacant position within their team, where I was able to work happily until my retirement”.
During Ray’s time at Joseph Ash Walsall he fabricated, repaired and completed general maintenance for the plant working with great support from a fantastic team. He said: “I worked at Joseph Ash for the best years of my life, totalling 37 years. I was extremely lucky to have found a career and home at both their sites and leave with only my best wishes to all the colleagues that I worked with during this time.”
Ray is now looking forward to spending his retirement looking after his grandchildren more often, going away with his caravan in tow whenever (and as often!) as he can, and completing all the jobs he’d been putting off over the years in his home “and of course whatever my wife would like me to do!”.
Congratulations on your retirement Ray. It’s been great having you as part of the Joseph Ash family for nearly 40 years. Enjoy your well-deserved retirement and come back and see us sometime!
First photo left to right: Osmond Crosdale (Maintenance Manager), Charlie Singh (DM Walsall), Ray Rubenis, Sukwinder Singh (Deputy Divisional Manager)
Second photo left to right: Gerry Green (Group Operations Director) and Ray Rubenis
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25 years ago, in 1993, ‘Jurassic Park’ and ‘The Firm’ showed at the cinema; ‘Seinfeld’, ‘Roseanne’ and ‘Murder, She Wrote’ were amongst the most popular TV shows; Meatloaf spent over a month as UK number one for ‘I’d Do Anything for Love’; and Pete Sampras and Steffi Graf won Wimbledon. Also, in this year – in Joseph Ash Galvanizing related history – Pauline Alcide joined our team!
Pauline started her career at Joseph Ash in the Head Office as a Payroll Clerk. Fast forward seven years to 2000, and she was promoted to Assistant to the Accountant. In 2003 she also took on the extra responsibility of managing the payroll for the company.
Pauline reports to Richard Hall, the Finance Director for the Joseph Ash Group, and can be seen in the photo being presented with some flowers from Steven Hopkins, Managing Director.
‘Loyal’, ‘honest’, ‘funny’ and ‘very friendly’ are the words that spring to mind when we think about Pauline, so we are lucky to have her working with us.
When Pauline isn’t working, she loves to dance, enjoying salsa nights with her husband every week.
Congratulations on reaching your 25-year anniversary Pauline! A great achievement.
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Appreciation for years of service
The start of Autumn has seen a string of anniversaries for various team members at Joseph Ash Galvanizing, with three of our colleagues celebrating long-time service ranging from 20-35 years.
The three team members are Stuart Cobourne, Peter Ore and Darren Sweet.
Stuart Cobourne
Stuart works as the Divisional Manager in our Joseph Ash Telford plant and has clocked up an amazing 20 years’ service with the company.
He joined the Joseph Ash Technical Department in 1998 and trained as a Metallurgist, after which he held the role of Technical Manager. With a view to moving into line management, he took a year’s secondment as a Works Manager at Joseph Ash Hereford, whilst also completing an MBA at Worcester University, and in 2013 he assumed the position of Joseph Ash Telford Divisional Manager.
During the last 20 years, Stuart has also served as the Chairman of the Technical Committee of the Galvanizers Association and was heavily involved in a joint project with the BCSA to produce industry guidance on CE marking, as well as the development of a range of national and international standards.
Stuart’s technical competence has enabled Joseph Ash Telford to become universally recognised for having the best galvanizing quality in the UK.
Peter Ore
In 1988 Peter joined Joseph Ash at the Bridgend plant, as a Potman. 30 years later and we’re proud to say that he’s still with the company. He has been a hard-working and loyal employee who has witnessed a lot of changes as the company has grown. He is a valued member of the team.
Darren Sweet
Darren joined the Joseph Ash Telford plant in 1983, the year when the pound coin was introduced, the compact disc was first marketed in Britain, James Dyson launched his first prototype vacuum cleaner and the Space Shuttle Challenger had its maiden launch. 35 years later and we’re pleased to say that Darren is still a valued member of our team. He is hard-working, honest and loyal, always working to and excelling in his role as Shift Supervisor.
Congratulations on reaching these milestones Stuart, Peter and Darren. Major achievements!
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