Well its been an unusual week this last one. About 1 am the other morning I suddenly woke after hearing what I thought was my daughter falling down the stairs. After rushing out of the bedroom in a panic I could see she hadn't. My wife thought that someone we had asked to leave our property (people seem to like parking in my front drive) and received a mouthful of abuse from had come back and rammed the house with something, so she was running around the house looking for signs of damage. After a while we decided it must have been a joint bad dream and went back to bed. We found out the next morning that we had experienced an earthquake, which to be fair is not something you expect in West Yorkshire!

Anyhow back to our efforts to save the planet, the main recycling bins were delivered the other day, ready to be built into mobile recycling points. We hope to launch them at an upcoming event in Darlington. The bins in question are ideal for outside use at larger events, but we have many indoor events with our candy floss carts etc. To solve this we have bought a number of miniature 3 way recycling step bins with the idea to place one at the foot of each cart, candy floss, popcorn, coffee etc.

They are a nice stainless steel item and look classy enough for our more prestigious events.




|

I must admit that I like gadgets. When I buy a phone, the last thing I look at is its ability to make phone calls. Sat nav, internet access etc, great.

The one area I don't apply this rule to is the equipment we operate. I've found over time that the more sophisticated something is, the more there is to go wrong, so I try to operate the K.I.S.S. methodology (keep it simple stupid!). Our prime movers, (heavy vehicles used to transport or tow attractions) tend to be Fodens. This is an English marque established over 100 years ago. Now the thing I like most is the fact that the most sophisticated piece of electronics on a Foden is the radio cassette player, this means that most problems you encounter can be sorted in house, or at the side of the road.

I was reminded of the wisdom of this approach recently. On the way back from Mablethorpe I called into a service station to refuel, and pulled alongside another showman's vehicle. As I climbed out of the cab I recognised a mate of mine called Patrick. On seeing me his eyes lit up and he exclaimed "Good, you know what you're doing with technology, I need help."

What it transpires happened is that his vehicle, a Swedish built Volvo, has probably the most sophisticated drivers seat I have ever seen. Around a dozen buttons on the side are connected to a number of motors and valves enabling you to adjust virtually any part of the seat. Pulling into the service station, Patrick decided his seat was inclined slightly too much, so he pushed the adjustment button. The electronics in the seat chose this moment to malfunction and promptly kept folding the seat forward, doubling Patrick up against the steering wheel. Luckily it ran out of adjustment just short of squashing him completely, otherwise he might well have went down in history as the first man killed by a self adjusting drivers seat!

By the time I had rolled up he had managed to extricate himself from the position and was trying to strip the seat down to move it into a position he could sit in. After the Stratford incident I try to make sure our vehicles have a comprehensive supply of tools available, so I was able to help him get the seat into some type of order.



|

Coming from the North East I always like it when we have an event in the area. I'm writing this having just returned from Stockton on Tees which is just down the road from my hometown of Middlesbrough. Now I like Stockton, but when it comes to operating there I am beginning to think there is a vicious little gremlin lurking about, and for once I am not talking about Arthur!

At the back end of last season we operated there and the details of that episode can be found here
This time we were presenting a couple of carts (coffee and candy floss) in support of the town centres Fairtrade initiative. I got there nice and early expecting Arthur to be waiting as he was coming half the distance I was, but he wasn't . About half an hour after arriving my phone rang and Arthur explained that a gust of wind had hit his vehicle on route and damaged the candy floss cart, he was limping back to the depot at Houghton le Spring and then coming through without the cart, we would just have to use one cart with both products. So I set to work assembling the coffee cart, it was like a scene from the 3 stooges, as fast as I put something together it blew apart in the gale force gusts. Eventually I managed the get the barrow assembled as well as the frame for the stall which was to cover the cart, Arthur and I and protect us from the weather. At that point a van full of workmen rolled up. The gangmaster jumped out shaking his head. "What's up I enquired?", and he proceeded to point out that the yellow marks the cart was stood on, marked the spot where his team where just about to dig a big hole. I rang the town centre management team that had positioned me there and they came over. After a while it was decided that I would have to move about 15 feet, so I got to work disassembling the bloody cart.

Arthur eventually rolled up just in time to help me put the cover on. By now the wind had got event stronger, we struggled for quarter of an hour with Arthur insisting we could get the cover on and I taking the opposite viewpoint. At one point we were both balanced on the frame of the stall trying to pull the cover over, when a guest of wind blew the cover with Arthur and I still attached, straight off. It was at this point Arthur decided I was right after all.

We went to explain our predicament to the organisers only to be told that everything was being cancelled due to the 50 MPH wind.

On a brighter note I have just managed to source 100% biodegradable cups for the coffee barrow at a price not much above that of normal cups. This was a relief as up till this point It looked like we were going to have to pay around 3 times the normal price which would have hurt a bit, but it goes to prove that a little shopping around can save you a fortune.




|

There is a sufficiency in the world for man's need but not for man's greed. ~Mohandas K. Gandhi

After making the decision to go green, we've put some extra effort into examining our basic operations, finding what we can alter quickly, easily and economically, and putting this into practice. Going ahead with the easier options first means that whilst we are trying to solve the more difficult problems we are still making a difference, however small it may be.

The major waste production at our events is centred around the catering operations. We have ordered a number of waste recycling stations for use at our events. These will be set up so that aluminium cans, plastic bottles and waste paper can be easily placed into the correct container by members of the public. We have arranged with a number of organisations for them to take delivery of this waste stream. The cans are actually a valuable commodity, we have decided that any returns from them will be reinvested into our recycling efforts. The plastic and paper won't earn any revenue, but they will be taken out of landfill so that is a benefit in itself.

Our coffee carts are being switched to 100% biodegradable cups. The lids aren't available in a degradable form as yet, but a mini version of our recycling station will be sited with a coffee cart to enable the plastic lids to be collected for recycling. The teabags and used coffee grinds will also be collected and forwarded to a gardening company we deal with, it seems they make excellent compost.

With the best intention in the world, we are still going to be left with some waste that we cannot recycle and is going to end up in landfill. We are using biodegradable refuse bags to transport the rubbish in so at least the amount of plastic we dump will be reduced.

Clear candy floss bags in biodegradable form are proving a bit more problematic. The best price we have found so far is around 6 times that of normal bags, which is a bit steep. We will keep looking and eventually I have no doubt that we will source something more affordable. That will only leave us with the candy floss sticks to deal with. Being made of wood the hope is that we will be able to drop them in at a wood recyclers.

As soon as one of the recycling stations turn up I will post some photos here, in the meantime I'm off the try and find some accurate information on the level of biodiesel an unmodified engine can tolerate.


|

Just occasionally, something happens that restores my faith in human nature. We've just supplied a candy floss cart for a marketing event for the Market Walk Shopping Centre in the Lancashire town of Chorley. We were hired to give out free candy floss for St Valentines day in conjunction with a shopping precinct. Now normally when undertaking events of this type the conversation runs like this;
"How much is your candy floss?"
"It's complimentary sir"
"Yes but how much is it?"
"It is free"
"Oh, in that case I will take three bags, might as well if it's free"

This time however things were different, those people with more than one kid seemed genuinely embarrassed when they asked if they could take another bag, and I lost count of how many people on being told the candy floss was free, asked if we had a charity collection tin they could put some money in. That's the first time I can remember receiving a reaction like that.

Dodgems Available For Any Event, Nationwide

|

We are now running out of time, and the question now is not what is happening to the climate, but how bad will it be before the world, starts doing enough? - Jonathon Porritt (2007)

Climate change and sustainability is rapidly becoming the hottest topic ever. No one in the developed world today can be ignorant of the damage that is being inflicted upon the planet by the industrial nations of the world. This is all well known and documented, what is not, is the solution. Respected scientists are still arguing over the cause and effect of global warming, with one camp claiming it is all down to human activities, whilst others claim that mankind itself contributes less than one percent of the emissions into the atmosphere, with the bulk coming from rotting vegetation and methane emitted by the digestive process of cattle? Similarly it has been stated that if Britain cut its emissions to zero, the developing nation of China would make up the shortfall in a short space of time, so what is to be done?

We don't claim to know any better than the academia of the world, but we feel that mankind is contributing to this global crises, and we are obligated to look for ways of cutting our emissions and waste products. A chinese philosopher , Lao-tzu once said "A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step", and we feel that climate change is like this journey. Every little step from whatever source will help us towards the eventual goal.

We have just finalised our Environmental Policy Statement, a copy of which will be supplied to our clients as part of the comprehensive safety dossier we present before any event. We have also put together our initial Environmental action plan, which is a list of what we would like to do to help achieve our aim of becoming the most environmentally friendly funfair operators in the U.K. Much of what is contained in this action plan is easily achievable, and indeed we are already doing it. Small things like using only recycled paper and printer cartridges in our office, (we used approximately 15,000 sheets of paper last year), asking our clients to accept PDF documents, instead of hardcopy , we estimate that we saved an extra 30% use of paper last year and hope to double that this year.

Most of our events are for corporate clients rather than members of the public, but we do have a number of events that are run along the lines of traditional fairgrounds, and need to be promoted to attract people to them. We have redesigned our advertising strategy to use posters that are undated, allowing them to be recovered and reused. We have an in house vinyl graphics machine and make use of this to produce advertising material that can be altered quickly, inexpensively and in an environmentally friendly way.

Use of fossil fuels is probably one of the biggest topics regarding emissions. Many fairground vehicles are custom built systems incorporating built in games units, generating plant and sometimes rides. It isn't possible to just replace these with newer vehicles that have better emissions ratings. Indeed it wouldn't really be good for the environment as they tend to do relatively low mileage, and the raw materials used and emissions created by replacing them would outweigh any benefits gained.

Biofuels hold the promise of a more sustainable future, but they are not really the answer at the moment. It isn't possible with many engines to just replace the diesel fuel with a 100% biofuel equivalent. Most engines will run on a blend, and that is one avenue we are following. When our current agreement with our fuel card supplier expires, we intend to begin using the Rix Petroleum Green card. Rix have a number of service stations dispensing a biofuel blend, and if you have to use a station that doesn't stock this blend, you use normal fuel, and Rix then place an equivalent amount of bio blend into the system so you are in effect offsetting you use of fossil fuels to a degree.

We are also looking at a way to convert our generating plant to the use of biofuel. One possibility, depending on cost, is to purchase a micro biofuel production plant. These are available in versions that produce around 200 litres of fuel at a time. Not enough for our transport needs, but they would provide a blend that could reduce our use of fossil fuel, and if they work well enough the system could be expanded.

We already use a large number of wastebins at our events, so theoretically it should not be too difficult to have them set up for different types of waste, with the idea being to then separate the recyclable items and transport them to a plant that can make use of them, the left over litter would be disposed of as normal, but it should hopefully be less than it is at the moment.

The action plan we have put together is due to be reviewed every quarter, so as it becomes clear what is and isn't working we can adapt it to be more effective. Updates will be posted on this blog concerning both what we have and have not been able to do with the state of current technology.

Coupled with our recent Fairtrade initiative, we hope that we can help make a difference, no matter how small.



|

One of the best things about our move into the corporate entertainment industry has been the number of stunning venues that we have operated at. The latest of these was the Wallace collection in Manchester Steet London.

This event was the 100th birthday party of Mills and Boon, the romantic novel publisher and was designed to bring together their editors, publishers and authors in a birthday bash. The theme was PINK, with the room being decorated with coloured spotlights and giant flamingo stilt walkers greeting the guests. We only received confirmation of the event on Monday morning, and the event was being held on Thursday, which resulted in a couple of days rushed activity to respray one of our candy floss carts in pink tones to fit in with the theme. We pride ourselves on our customisation service, although we do tend to like a bit more notice.

In the event the event was stunning, with Greek tenor Attila serenading the guests while waiters handed the ladies Roses. Alan Titchmarsh gave the opening speech, followed by a couple of senior executives from the Mills and Boon and Harlequin companies.

At one point Venessa Feltz came over for a candy floss, and I have to say that she looked really well. I know television is supposed to add pounds to your appearance, but she looked slim and healthy.

We operate a lot in the London area nowadays, so most of the little foibles such as the congestion charge and red routes hold no surprises for us. We were however caught out by one little item. The venue unfortunately had no parking or unloading facility and London seems packed with eager traffic wardens. We ended up parked on double yellow lines waiting for the loading doors to be opened, all the time a traffic warden was stood across the road watching. The usual procedure is as soon as you step out of the vehicle and open the back doors, he pounces. I decided to take the bull by the horns and sauntered across to speak to him. After asking for the best place to unload he pointed out a small piece of road, about 8 feet long with a single yellow line, "You are allowed twenty minutes there to unload."

Nineteen minutes later I jumped in the van to find a parking space for the night, I circled the block until I came across an empty slot and parked up. Approaching the meter with a handful of coins I got a surprise, London parking meters no longer accept cash! I rang Arthur, gave him all the details and walked back to the venue for the start of the event. Ten minutes later Arthur rang, "I can't get the pay by phone system to work!", (didn't want to pay the seventy five pence more likely). Looking at my watch it was quarter past six, after half six parking is free, but knowing my luck I would probably get a ticket in the meantime, so I ended up sprinting back to the van, then driving round the block for fifteen minutes.

During the event, we receive an email for another corporate client who wanted a candy floss cart for a St Valentines event. They specified a pink cart so the spray job ended up serving its purpose better than we expected.

JARM Amusements, The Corporate Funfair Specialists

|

'On Time Every Time'

Take a look at the slogan above, its used by Fedex, a multinational parcels company. Now I don't use them, I use either Parcel Force or Interlink. Recently however I ordered some printed goods from an Australian based company who use Fedex for their deliveries.

After placing the order you are supplied with a tracking number which allows you to go online and see where your parcel is, allegedly. I monitored the progress of my delivery noting that 24hours after dispatch, it had travelled from Australia to England, so far so good. It was then scheduled for delivery to me on Tuesday.

Nearing theclose of business tuesday I still hadn't received the package so I rang the helpline and gave them the tracking number. The voice on the other line came back with a smug tone, "It hasn't been delivered because you have given us the wrong address",
"Really", I replied, "Could you read the address back to me please", which she promptly did, guess what, it was in fact the correct address. After pointing this fact out she asked me if I was sure, "Of course I'm sure, it is the same address that Securicor, Parcel Force, Interlink, Royal Mail and TNT use when they deliver to me". After a moments thought she apologised and assured me that it would definitely, certainly be delivered on Wednesday.

Wednesday, near the end of delivery times I was still empty handed, so I rang back. "Oh, dear," said the voice on the telephone, "It hasn't been rescheduled for delivery, Miss X will look into what has happened and ring you back." Two hours later Miss X hadn't contacted me so I re rang Fedex. "Really sorry, Miss X is on the other line and will ring you back shortly.",
"That's fine," I said, "But tell Miss X that time is of the essence, and I need the goods by 12 Noon tomorrow or you can return them to the sender."

I still didn't receive a call that evening, way to go Fedex customer services! The next morning Miss X did indeed ring, "Very sorry, its all been sorted and you're parcel will be with you before noon." At least that's something I thought. How wrong I was, at 12.30 I re rang Fedex yet again and spoke to Miss X. She rang me back with the information that 'everything is O.K., the driver will be with you in an hour, "That's good", I remarked, "I am now on my way to London, so will your driver be following me?"
"Oh, well we can resend it tomorrow"
"Tell you what ", I finally decided, "I will arrange for a PROFESSIONAL parcel company to collect it from you and deliver it to me, in the meantime you might like to consider employing Mr Bean and Frank Spencer to increase the quality of your services!"

Now I fully accept that things go wrong, every parcel firm I have ever used has let me down at some point, but usually when they do, they make damn sure that I have the parcel the first thing the following morning. Fedex managed non delivery 3 times in a row, and their customer service team did their best to ensure that I would never willingly use their services again.

Espresso Coffee Carts, Nationwide Hire

|

The winter months are when we usually revamp our equipment, or take care of the myriad of non essential repairs and upgrades that seem difficult to fit into our schedule during the summer season. This year however has been totally different, we never stopped during January, with a number of events mainly in the London area.

February seemed to be quieter, so I decided to get stuck into some of the jobs. The first one being a strip down and rebuild of the braking system on the helter skelter. I was half way through this as the weekend came to a close, by lunchtime Monday (4th February) I was having to speed my schedule up due to the fact that within the space of 4 hours we had successfully negotiated and been awarded an extra 7 corporate events for this month, including a week long hire of the helter skelter by a promotions company.

Normally our best month for picking bookings up is March. This year December and January were about on par with the usual level of business we receive in March, February is looking like it is going to surpass that, and if the March bookings increase by the same proportion we are going to have one heck of a summer. I am thinking of submitting an application to higher powers to have a standard day increased to 36 hours to give us a chance at coping.

We ended last month by supplying a number of Victorian side stalls along with a candy floss and popcorn cart for the official opening of a Hotel in the London area. I have to say that it was one of the most pleasant events we have undertaken to date, the hotel management and staff were lovely, even reserving a room for us to change into uniforms before the event started. It probably helped that the assistant manager came from my home town of Middlesbrough and still supported the mighty Boro football team, so it gave us some common ground.

Towards the end of this month we are presenting attraction in 3 different North East town centres, when we have details and photos of the events I will place them in a later Blog post. This brings the number of new local authorities we have been invited to work with in the North East to 5, with a number of new events promised for the coming season including a new street fair (albeit a small one).


|