With Christmas fast approaching, it’s time to recap on an incredible year here at London Drainage Facilities. Although the world has had its fair share of ups and downs, we’ve remained positive throughout and enjoyed serving our clients throughout 2021.
January
With London Drainage Facilities expanding rapidly, we needed a stronger customer experience team to serve as a first line of response for our growing client base. During January, we increased our team so we could handle our calls more quickly and efficiently. This worked really well, and we’ve gained many positive responses about the knowledge and friendliness of our customer-facing staff.
February
London Drainage Facilities takes accreditation seriously as it helps to demonstrate the level of proficiency and professionalism that we can offer our customers. We were delighted to achieve Constructionline Gold membership where we were assessed on areas including environmental management, quality management, equalities and diversity. LDF passed with flying colours!
March
With the country still in lockdown, London Drainage Facilities were tasked with helping to tackle blockages within key hospitals throughout London and the south-east. We sent in specially trained COVID-entry teams to the following healthcare institutions: Hammersmith Hospital (including Charlottes and Chelsea Hospital), Charing Cross Hospital, Royal Surrey County Hospital, Berkshire Hospital and St Marys Hospital.
April
As the UK emerged from the winter lockdown, LDF introduced regular workplace testing using the government’s lateral flow test kits. By testing regularly throughout the week, this meant that we had the best chance of picking up asymptomatic COVID-positive cases and could do our part to prevent the spread of the virus amongst colleagues and clients.
May
Brighter weather in May put a smile on everyone’s faces and London Drainage Facilities were excited to ditch virtual catchups. Instead, we headed into the fresh air and held our regular team meetings in our outdoor garden. It was fantastic to see everyone in person and we held a really productive session.
June
It was business as usual in June and London Drainage Facilities spent the month doing what we do best – winning record-breaking tenders in the construction and housing industries and completing these projects to an exceptional standard.
July
London Drainage Facilities is committed to the environment and in July we demonstrated this by purchasing our first electric van – a VW E-Transporter. We are trialling the capability of the vehicle in advance of switching our entire fleet to electric in the near future. So far, we have installed 2 electric charging points for vehicles at our head office.
August
Following emergency drainage at the A&E department of Newham General Hospital, our work there was written up in a press officer report and sent to no. 10 Downing Street. As a result, the Facilities Manager of the House of Commons hired us to resolve a flooding problem at the Palace of Westminster.
September
Following the easing of restrictions, all of LDF’s office staff returned to a COVID-19 safe office in September. We followed regulations to the letter and went the extra mile by installing clear screens to allow a return to normal working.
Our team tell us that they love being back in the office as it’s more sociable, offers easier team collaboration and helps to draw clear boundaries between work and home life.
October
We are constantly updating our equipment with the latest innovations in the market. In October, we purchased our first battery-powered Picote mini cleaner which is both cordless and easy to transport. It lasts for up to 3 hours and makes quick work of cleaning, descaling and root removal operations.
November
Who wouldn’t want to serve one of the UK’s largest pub chains? In November, LDF were excited to become the primary contractor for Mitchell & Butler, meaning that we will be providing drainage services throughout pubs and restaurants in East Anglia.
December
What a year! And to celebrate the hard work of our team, we’ve thrown our first LDF Christmas party since 2019, complete with Secret Santa and plenty of fun. It’s been great to see everyone letting their hair down over a couple of cocktails!
Looking forward to 2022
None of us know what the New Year will bring, but LDF have the team, experience and resilience to approach it feeling proud about our achievements and positive about 2022. Wishing you a merry Christmas and a happy New Year from everyone here at London Drainage Facilities.