News
Click here for our most recent Newsletter - June 2001
Photo shoot – August 2010
We recently had a photographer in to update our photo library; we regularly send off editorial to our local papers and industry publications as well as using the photographs in our quarterly newsletter and on the web site, of course, so it was decided that we were ready for some updated photos. It was also an opportunity to include the new members of staff we have. Sadly our ‘face of fc’ Dan Hawley wasn’t with us on the day, so we’re having the photographer back in September to capture his dashing good looks!.
fc cartons hosts Duran's Omega ALLPRO-SM 110 - July 2010
Later in the year we will be hosting an Open Week to demonstrate Duran’s Omega ALLPRO-SM 110 Folder Gluer on behalf of Duran Machinery of Turkey. We will be running various jobs on the machine throughout the week in order for you to see the equipment in action. The type of work will range from six corner to crash-lock bases but if there is a particular job you would like us to run through the Allpro, you will have the opportunity to book a slot, with confidentiality assured, nearer the time.
Duran have chosen this option to launch the Omega ALLPRO-SM 110 Folder Gluer rather than at IPEX 2010 so this will be your only UK opportunity to view the machine and also to have your own job on the machine either as a trial to assist you in making a decision to purchase the machine or for you to see for yourself just what fc cartons can achieve – on even the most complex of cartons.
The open week is by invitation only and we will be posting invites out, giving you plenty of time to plan a visit into your working week.
Customer Satisfaction Survey 2010 - First Prize - adidas Jabulani World Cup 2010 Match Football - June 2010
If you are reading this as one of our existing customers you will be receiving a Customer Satisfaction Survey questionnaire in the post offering some fabulous FIFA World Cup prices for all questionnaires completed and returned to us by Friday 9th July.
We always have a reasonable response rate on returned questionnaires but this year we are attempting to increase on 2009 by offering this incentive
There are some fabulous World Cup prizes to be won, simply return your completed Satisfaction Survey by 9th July 2010 to be entered into the draw. Don’t forget to include your email address as we will notify the winners via email.
fc FC - June 2010
It’s the 7th week for FC FC. What a catchy name for a football team, I hear you say. Or maybe you thought our Marketing person had her finger stuck on the keyboard! We’re a team of mixed ages and abilities but everyone felt that the benefits of keeping fit, having a good de-stressing run about and of course, the secondary benefits of it all being good for team building; would make it all worthwhile.
We got off to an inauspicious start with a staggering result of 25 – 5. We would love to lay claim to the 25 figure...but sadly we can’t. But.... not to be deterred, the feisty FC FC re-grouped and after encouraging words from the team Captain, the team was back on the pitch the following week with just a few new rules in place; one of them being......no drinking prior to the game.
We’ve had one broken toe for one of the more senior members of the team and the obvious comments on varying levels of fitness within the team but they are all confident that things will improve and the only way is up for FC FC. We considered using the Capello Index software to chart the players efforts but we’ve come to the same decision as the FA and decided it might not be good for morale – so we’ve shelved that idea!
We’ll let you know how things progress when we join the JJB League but for now the scores on our web site. We have to keep morale up, you see.
The waiting is finally over - the result is announced - June 2010
After all these months of guessing, all those debates, all the weighing up of for and against options. The closed doors and heads huddled over documents, the serious faces and furrowed brows – deep in thought.
Key figures put forward an argument...from their standpoint, of course, stating their case, but which way would it go? The decision to be made? No, it wasn’t who to vote for in the general election....it was the decision to invest in yet another gluer for fc cartons. And we’re pleased to announce, the votes have been cast and there’s nothing hanging in the balance for us, we reached a majority.
It might not be Number 10, it’s B4 but we’ll welcome the new arrival; another great leader - the Omega ALLPRO-SM 110 Folder Gluer. We’re confident in our new incumbent’s abilities now we’ve seen them in action, the performance so far has proved worthy of our vote and none of the existing machines will be relegated to the back benches.
Our ALLPRO-SM 110 also comes equipped with a Braille system which enables us to emboss Braille, designed as a separate module; the system is able to emboss not only straight line but also crash lock bottom and 4 corner boxes.
There’s a lot to be done as the FC/ALLPRO coalition works hard to ensure a stable future for all. What a team!
Supporting an U11's football team - June 2010
We supported Castle Donington U11’s football team this year at their awards night at Derby Assembly Rooms by providing team polo shirts for all the players. The team plays in the Derby Division 2, City League and won the league with two games to spare. At the start of the league they only had 11 players in the squad which wasn’t ideal but it made it easy for the managers when it came to picking the squad and substitutions.
An addition to Liam's family - 12th June 2010
Machine Minder Liam Finch has recently added to his brood with the arrival of a daughter – Chloe Sarah, who came into the world at the Royal Derby Hospital on 8th June at 4.12 pm, weighing 8lbs 15oz. Chloe is the second daughter for Liam and his wife Gemma and is sister to Freya who is now two years old. “Freya is delighted with her baby sister,” said Liam. “She keeps asking her to play. I’m now heavily out-numbered in the household and I can’t help but wonder what life will be like when they are teenagers. ” 
Race for Life Sponsorship - 7th June 2010
We recently sponsored our machine minder, Chris Greensmith’s daughter Samantha in the Nottingham Race for Life in aid of Cancer Research. The charity event took place on the Trent Embankment on Sunday 5th June, with 16 year old Samantha raising £200 pounds for the organisation.
Samantha took part with her Grandmother who does the race every year and has had cancer herself; they were joined by her Grandmother’s friend Lynn on the 5K event, along with 3,500 other entrants.
It was a particularly proud day for Samantha’s parents Chris and Amanda as their daughter had never undertaken a walk of this distance before, having been born with Achondroplasia Dwarfism as well as related medical conditions.We were very surprised when Sammi said she wanted to take part as she just cannot walk long distances. Having witnessed how she has coped with all that she has had to deal with over the years, it was a great lift to us, as her parents, to see her do this walk and she had to do the last 1.5k without her trainers as she had a large blister on her foot. She was so tired when she’d finished; when she does something like this it makes us very proud to say she’s our daughter.”
After a well deserved holiday in Florida with her family, Samantha will be starting a childcare and development course at South Nottingham College in September. We wish her well in her studies.
Donation to Treetops Hospice - March 2010 In December we pledged to make a donation to Treetops Hospice in Risley, Derbyshire for |
every Christmas card sent to our customers. A cheque has been drawn up for £125.00 and we are just waiting for some building work to be completed at the hospice before we pay a visit with cheque in hand.Tree Planting - February 2010
Our tree planting programme continues throughout 2010 via the Tree Appeal organisation. We will continue to have broad-leafed trees, such as oak, ash and beech planted in nature reserves, dedicated woodlands and parks. As ever, we base the donation on how much waste we produce over the previous 12 months. We have now sent a cheque to pay for 22 trees to be planted for the waste produced in 2009.
How we measure up - January 2010
To ensure we are providing the same high level of service right from delivery into our premises and collection from our unit when the job is done, we have put into place a brief questionnaire for delivery drivers and logistics companies, asking them to score our services, facilities and levels of communication.
We feel very strongly that everyone’s experience of visiting our premises should be a positive one and we also feel that every visitor to fc cartons should be treated in a professional and courteous manner.
So far we’ve had some excellent feedback, with one driver commenting on his joy at being able to use our shower facilities as he’s often on an over-night trip when he leaves us. We haven’t gone as far as to supply a fluffy towelling bathrobe and slippers….but who knows.
Christmas Outing -18th December 2009
As is the tradition at the Christmas bash, there is always a competition to be entered into, of course, when it’s archery or go-karting, as in previous years, there is a straight forward competition and a clear winner. So, this year, in order to introduce a competitive element to the day, it was decided that we all had to pick a winner for each of the seven races, for the sake of the competition only (we did actually go and place our bets with the bookmakers as well) and the person who had the most wins would get their names put on the prestigious fc cartons Challenge Trophy.
We piled on to the coach for a brief sojourn to a local hostelry for the announcement of the Challenge Trophy winner which was Dave Perry. The sensible females of the group – who knew when they have had enough – went home after the presentation, the die hards in the party went on to the local curry restaurant. The pressure will be on to top that in 2010. |
In our quest to do something different each year for the Christmas bash, we spent the day at Uttoxeter Race course on 18th December. When we woke up that morning there had been a heavy frost but after a quick call to the course, we were told the racing was on, so away we went on our coach with everyone in good spirits. We arrived at the course at 11 o’clock with the sun shining and a very cheerful race crowd all looking forward to a good day’s racing and we had a fabulous hospitality box right next to the finish post.
We enjoyed a superb hot buffet served by the fabulous Jill, the wine flowed, and numerous bets were placed - some by people who studied the form of the horses and claimed to be knowledgeable and some by people who chose their winning horse; based purely on the jockey’s colours or the name of horses. Whether you knew anything about horse racing or not, it was a great day out for all and consensus was that this was the best Christmas do ever. But it wasn’t all over.....
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Major confectionary company reduces packaging by 40% - December 2009
The good old favourite – the selection box has had a major re-vamp at Nestlé this year, with the company claiming they will be the greenest on the market this Christmas.
Their web site and advertising campaign states that packaging has been reduced by 40% from 2007 levels and will be 100% recyclable as the plastic inserts have been removed from the boxes. A step in the right direction and one in which, we’re certain, others will follow.
ISO Audits - December 2009
Once again, we have come out of all three ISO audits being judged as fully compliant against the Standard, with no NCR’s whatsoever. It is testament to everyone involved, not only those responsible for quality but to everyone in the company for ensuring that we uphold our systems and procedures at all times which is evident in the results of these external audits
“An excellent external audit for ISO 9001, 18001 and 14001. Fully compliant in all areas of the Standard – well done”
Window Patcher update - October 2009
Many of you will have already received a flyer on our latest acquisition, a Heiber & Schroder WPS 1100 Window Patcher, purchased to run alongside our existing Kohmann machine.
The machine complements our plant list perfectly and has provided us with much need capacity after we very quickly outgrew the one machine. We’ve hit the ground running since installation in July and have kept the machine busy. If you would like to discuss any window patching requirements you may have, now or in the near future, please call
David Woodyatt on 01332 850648
Training update - September 2009
Dan Hawley has recently undertaken First Aid Training and becomes our third First Aider and as well as acquiring the knowledge and skills to deal with all eventualities on that front, he also volunteered to take on the role of Fire Marshall. Let’s hope he’s not kept too busy in his extra roles!
Press release....10th August 2009 - Nottingham Evening Post
The team
A packaging specialist has bounced back into rapid growth only three years after a major fire destroyed its premises.
FC Cartons at Castle Donington was set up in 2003, specialising in making cartons with plastic windows for the confectionery and medicines industry. It was aimed particularly at supplying companies along the M1 corridor. FC Cartons, set up by David and Debra Woodyatt, has now invested in a high-tech £70,000 Heiber and Schroder window-patching machine which will enable the company to undertake a greater volume of gluing and folding work for the carton packaging industry.
The machine will sit alongside the existing window-patcher bought two years ago. Window patching is the clear film glued on to a box or carton in order to view and protect the contents.
The Woodyatts set up the company when they realised there was a gap in the market for an ISO accredited finishing company giving a high quality service to major players. A huge fire in neighbouring premises saw their newly built factory destroyed three years ago. The company made a temporary move into an empty unit opposite, switching back into rebuilt premises a year later. It not only recovered from the set-back and reached its sales goals, but surpassed them by at least 25 per cent. Last year it had sales of £700,000 and it hopes to break the £1m barrier this year.
Mr Woodyatt said: “The future is looking bright for us but we’re never complacent. We have yet to promote our additional capabilities to the people in the packaging industry, but just through word of mouth the new machine has been working at full capacity in the month it has been installed. We were confident that there was a need out there, but the timing had to be right for the company, because any major investment in the current climate is not undertaken lightly”.
Debra Woodyatt said that when the company sought to secure funds for the investment, the first telephone call to the bank was a disappointment. "They just weren’t interested; no careful consideration, no looking at our history. Ours has always been a well-run, profit making company, showing steady year-on-year growth, with a significant increase in turnover throughout the last year. They didn’t even want to come in to see us to discuss things.
At a time when the Government is still talking about being keen to ensure that banks support small businesses, I was astounded to hear the bank’s response. But the second call I made was to a broker and within two weeks a finance package was in place. As we enter into our seventh year of trading, we’re looking forward to continued growth.”
Last year FC Cartons employed 13 staff and that figure has risen to 18 this year.
By Richard Tressider – Business Editor, Nottingham Post
Press release.....4th August 2009
It’s not all doom and gloom in the manufacturing sector in the region as the Directors of Castle Donington based fc cartons will testify. A recent investment of £70,000 has enabled the company to purchase a hi-tech Heiber & Schröder window patching machine, the machine will sit along side the existing window patcher purchased just two years ago and will enable the company to undertake a greater volume of gluing and folding work for the packaging industry – primarily for confectionary and pharmaceutical companies. Window patching is the clear film glued onto a box or carton in order to view and protect the content.
David and Debra Woodyatt established the company in 2003 in premises off Trent Lane after realising there was a gap in the market for an ISO accredited finishing company proving a high quality service to the major players throughout the UK. After a huge fire in neighbouring premises saw their newly built factory destroyed three years ago, the company made a temporary move into an empty unit opposite and bounced back to move back into the newly built premises a year later, getting right back on track and have not only managed to reach the goals they had set out in their business plan but have now surpassed them by 26%.
“The future is looking bright for us but we’re never complacent, we have yet to promote our additional capabilities to the people in the packaging industry but just through word of mouth the new machine has been working at full capacity in the month it has been installed,” commented David Woodatt, managing director. “We were confident that there was a need out there but the timing had to be right for the company as any major investment in the current climate is not to be undertaken lightly”.
When looking to secure funding for the investment, the first telephone call was made to their bank, “Rather disappointingly, there response was immediate,” said Debra Woodyatt, finance director. “They just weren’t interested, no careful consideration, no looking at our history. Ours has always been a well run, profit making company, showing steady year on year growth, with a significant increase in turnover throughout the last year. They didn’t even want to come in to see us to discuss things and the reason given was that they are just not interested in financing an investment under £100,000. At a time when the Government is still talking about being keen to ensure that banks support small business, companies, incidentally, who make up the SMEs who employ over 58% of the working population, I was astounded to hear the bank’s response. The second call I made was to a broker and within two weeks a finance package was in place. As we enter into our seventh year of trading, we’re looking forward to continued growth by meeting the needs of our customers and reacting to the changes within the industry. Despite the current economic downturn we are pleased to report a really positive first quarter.”
Last year the company employed 13 staff and that figure has risen to 18 this year, with a view to continuing to recruit as productivity demands, employing experienced personnel from within the industry as well as taking on new recruits from the local area.
By Robin Johnson - Business Editor, Derby Telegraph
Press release.....31st July 2009 - Leicester Mercury
A packaging firm is looking forward to growth after investing £70,000 in new equipment. FC Cartons in Castle Donington, has bought machines to help it carry out more gluing and folding work in packaging for confectionery and pharmaceutical companies. David and Debra Woodyatt, who started the business in 2003, said the company had literally risen from the ashes.
Fire destroyed their original premises in Trent Lane three years ago. Mrs Woodyatt said the business had secured a loan for the new equipment through a broker after their bank refused to help. She said: “They just weren’t interested, no careful consideration, no looking at our history. Ours has always been a well run, profit-making company, showing steady year on year growth, with a significant increase in turnover throughout the last year. At a time when the Government is still talking about being keen to ensure that banks support small businesses, I was astounded to hear the bank’s response.
“Despite the current economic downturn, we are pleased to report a really positive first quarter”. The business employs 18 staff after taking on five workers this year.
fc cartons welcomes a visit from Castle Donington Community College students - June 2009
“It was clear that you put in an enormous amount of time and effort into the two sessions and made them fun and informative whilst also ensuring their safety at fc cartons.”
Year eight students from the Art, Design and Technology department of Castle Donington Community College came in to our company in the Summer to learn more about production as part of their graphics project entitled ‘ Easter Egg Boxes’.
Over two days around 40 students watched a production line in process so they could see for themselves, the processes involved from the carton’s arrival into the company through to despatch.
After having a Health & Safety induction they were split into two groups, with half the group going to learn about the make-ready and production processes and the remaining students being shown how the work is quoted for from pdf drawings and the many variations of carton types. We gave them some statistics on the quantity of Easter eggs consumed each year and the percentage of those that we glue here at fc cartons.
The final part of their visit centred on environmental issues surrounding the industry and the policies fc cartons, in particular, has in place for compliance with ISO 14001. They were told about our pledge to pay for a tree to be planted for every 10 tonnes of waste produced in order to off-set our carbon emissions.
We had very positive feedback from the teachers and they have expressed an interest in continuing the relationship we have with the college.
“It is rare that students get to see the inner workings of industry and all the processes involved so we always welcome these trips to complement and enhance their classroom learning.”
Tree Planting
Our pledge to plant more trees continues and we know of a company in Nottingham who saw one of our newsletters and was prompted to become involved in the Tree Appeal via the web site www.treeappeal.com ...and that's just one that we know of, we may have influenced others.
We continue to measure our waste tonnage and off-set the tree planting against this measurement as we reported in our last newsletter.
Water flasks
Just after our last newsletter in April we purchased insulated drinking flasks for all our staff.
We provide chilled mains drinking water with the usual plastic cups but if everyone in the
company used just one cup a day, the amount of waste produced in a month would be
staggering - even without any decent summer weather to talk of! They now all have their own flasks.
Travel to and from work
Currently 20% of our staff cycle to work and make use of secure undercover cycle storage as well as changing rooms and showers provided by the company. Reduced carbon footprints as well as fit healthy souls!
Staff have also set up a car sharing rota between themselves - helps keep the travel costs down but, once again - good for the environment.
