Speed Screed

A Message from Lord Pickles and Lord Blunkett, followed by Speed Screed's best practice article

The ability to listen and learn from one another has always been vital in parliament, in business and in most aspects of daily life. But at this particular moment in time, as national and global events continue to reiterate, it is uncommonly crucial that we forge new channels of communication and reinforce existing ones. The following article from Speed Screed is an attempt to do just that. We would welcome your thoughts on this or any other Parliamentary Review article.

Rt Hon The Lord David Blunkett, MP

Rt Hon The Lord Eric Pickles, MP

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

34 | SPEED SCREED

Andy and Nicola Parkin, co-

founders

Housing development in

Faldingworth by Cyden Homes

Screed is a pumped levelling layer, often sand or cement,

that comes between the structural substrate and the floor

covering when any building is constructed. When Andy Parkin

was employed as a screed manager by a multinational materials

supplier, he started simply providing the pump hire. When he

discovered a lack of availability and his supplier pulled out, he

began to take on more and more, and in 2006, he founded Speed

Screed. From their base in Retford, Nottinghamshire, they employ

11 members of staff, operate up and down the country, and

work alongside trusted contractors to consistently provide the

best levelling layer for any kind of structural construction.

The screed we provide generally goes in beneath tiles, flooring or carpets. Our

work is roughly 40 per cent domestic and 60 per cent commercial – we can work

on anything from flats and houses to schools or hospitals. We lay any given type

of screed that the client will require, but the current market is saturated with

cement-based compounds, which make up about 85 per cent of what’s on offer.

The remaining 15 per cent is a calcium sulphate-based flowing screed product –

something we can also provide.

Respect and high standards

We like to treat clients as we want to be treated – it really is fundamental to our

service. If we say we’re going to do something, or deliver along a certain timeframe,

we do it. Ensuring these basic things should be second nature for companies like ours,

but, unfortunately, it quite often isn’t. I have previously seen others in our industry

FACTS ABOUT

SPEED SCREED

»Founders: Andy and Nicola

Parkin

»Established in 2006

»Based in Retford,

Nottinghamshire

»Services: Screed pumping and

laying for construction

»No. of employees: 11

»Winner of North

Nottinghamshire Business

Awards in 2015 and 2017

»www.speed-screed.com

Speed Screed

35SPEED SCREED |

BEST PRACTICE REPRESENTATIVE 2018

fabricate, lie and cheat their customers,

and, though it isn’t necessarily

widespread, it is very muchthere.

We try to inform everyone we work

for and work with about our attitude

towards standards. It’s a battle – we

fight day in, day out to ensure that

people recognise and work to them.

People often say “that’s fine” or “it’ll

do”, but for us, it’s about far more than

that. We are accredited to ISO 9001

and ISO 14001 alongside, importantly,

BS 8204, the British standard for our

industry. If we surpass them, excellent,

but they really indicate the absolute

minimum we should be delivering on

every project. I’m confident that no other

screeding company is accredited to the

same level that we are, and that nobody

else in the industry operates like we do.

From humble beginnings

From the very start in 2006, we grew

year on year all the way through to

2015, where we turned over £1.6

million. Our market is undoubtedly a

small and niche one, and finding the

right people, the right contractors and

the right training is a tough balance. The

industry offers no formal training for

what we do – the closest thing you can

get is a two-day NVQ in plastering, so,

really, the best education is experience.

There’s a distinct shortage, so we have

to be incredibly careful with the people

we either employ or work with.

Using a slightly different array of

contractors and working alongside

new partners has allowed us to take

on more work, and start getting back

to where we were a few years ago.

With a recent period of reinvestment,

we are confident we’ll stay sustainable

and keep growing organically.

Staying relevant

Repeat business has always helped

with growth – we like to keep in touch

with clients, and get as many formal

reviews as possible on the appropriate

platforms. We do, however, want to

be more than that; we want people

to view Speed Screed as more than a

service provider, and to start educating

people about an industry that’s

relatively unknown. With 20 years’

experience in this incredibly specialised

business, I think I’m one of the most

knowledgeable people around, and

as a result, I have started compiling a

series of educational videos.

These serve not only to answer a

broad swathe of some of the most

common questions we receive on the

job, but also to identify any of the

more specific issues with screed and

the industry as a whole. We have set

a target of just under 500 videos,

and hope this will allow people to

Our head office in Retford

I’m confident

that no other

screeding

company is

accredited to

the same level

that we are, and

that nobody else

in the industry

operates like

wedo

“

Portsmouth office

project

THE PARLIAMENTARY REVIEW

Highlighting best practice

36 | SPEED SCREED

recognise us as experts. It’s a mutually

beneficial process – it will hopefully

bring in more custom for the business

while educating both clients and

contractors. Knowledgeable customers

are better customers – with a more

in-depth understanding comes fewer

delays and disputes, leading to a better

overall customer experience. The entire

initiative will hopefully serve to raise

the bar all across thesector.

A number of challenges

We haven’t seen much of an impact

from Brexit just yet, because we do

already have a lot of projects in motion.

The one thing we do anticipate,

however, is a lack of available partners

– there’s a greater availability for

screeding contractors with open access

to the EU, and we might suffer with

recruitment in thefuture.

There are financial challenges which

plague the construction industry as

a whole that we too suffer from.

Overdue payments are a big one, but

we consider contractual retention

to be something of a weekly battle,

and the recent government review

is welcome. Removing the practice

would be helpful to all businesses,

as the administrative time involved in

managing and recovering retention

payments can cause suppliers to

experience a drain on working capital

and inflated unmanageable debt.

These can then end up compounded

by issues such as overdraft fees and

limited access to finance as a result.

An educated future

To ensure future growth, we want to

educate. We’re looking to train people

ourselves, on the job, and though it

would be great to have a supporting

structure locally, perhaps a college,

we presently have to be entirely self-

sufficient in that regard. We believe

that education could really drive and

expedite success, but, for now, we’ll

have to wait and see.

No matter what, going forward, it has

to be about maintaining the standards

we’ve become known for and doing

all the right things. It’s not about

mirroring our competitors or other

firms in the sector; it’s about doing

what’s good for the industry and good

for our customers. I don’t know if the

way we operate will change things –

but I know we want to try.

No matter

what, going

forward, it has

to be about

maintaining

the standards

we’ve become

known for

“

A hotel in Lodore Falls,

Keswick, by Thomas

Armstrong

The Parliamentary Review Publication, in which this article originally appeared, contained the following foreword from the prime minister.

The Rt Hon Theresa May MP's Foreword For The Parliamentary Review

By The Rt Hon Theresa May MP

British politics provides ample material for analysis in the pages of The Parliamentary Review. For Her Majesty’s Government, our task in the year ahead is clear: to achieve the best Brexit deal for Britain and to carry on our work to build a more prosperous and united country – one that truly works for everyone.

The right Brexit deal will not be sufficient on its own to secure a more prosperous future for Britain. We also need to ensure that our economy is ready for what tomorrow will bring. Our Modern Industrial Strategy is our plan to do that. It means Government stepping up to secure the foundations of our productivity: providing an education system that delivers the skills our economy needs, improving school standards and transforming technical education; delivering infrastructure for growth; ensuring people have the homes they need in the places they want to live. It is all about taking action for the long-term that will pay dividends in the future.

But it also goes beyond that. Government, the private sector and academia working together as strategic partners achieve far more than we could separately. That is why we have set an ambitious goal of lifting UK public and private research and development investment to 2.4 per cent of GDP by 2027. It is why we are developing four Grand Challenges, the big drivers of social and economic change in the world today: harnessing artificial intelligence and the data revolution; leading in changes to the future of mobility; meeting the challenges of our ageing society; and driving ahead the revolution in clean growth. By focusing our efforts on making the most of these areas of enormous potential, we can develop new exports, grow new industries and create more good jobs in every part of our country.

Years of hard work and sacrifice from the British people have got our deficit down by over three quarters. We are building on this success by taking a balanced approach to public spending. We are continuing to deal with our debts, so that our economy can remain strong and we can protect people’s jobs, and at the same time we are investing in vital public services, like our NHS. We have set out plans to increase NHS funding annually by an average by 3.4 percent in real terms: that is £394 million a week more. In return, the NHS will produce a ten-year plan, led by doctors and nurses, to eliminate waste and improve patient care.

I believe that Britain can look to the future with confidence. We are leaving the EU and setting a new course for prosperity as a global trading nation. We have a Modern Industrial Strategy that is strengthening the foundations of our economy and helping us to seize the opportunities of the future. We are investing in the public services we all rely on and helping them to grow and improve. Building on our country’s great strengths – our world-class universities and researchers, our excellent services sector, our cutting edge manufacturers, our vibrant creative industries, our dedicated public servants – we can look towards a new decade that is ripe with possibility. The government I lead is doing all it can to make that brighter future a reality for everyone in our country.

British politics provides ample material for analysis in the pages of The Parliamentary Review

The Rt Hon Theresa May MP
Prime Minister