Demolition Environmental Enabling Civil Engineering Plant Hire

Simon Barlow on The Sustainable Standard

- 18/11/20

With the launch of our new website and Sustainable Standard framework, we took a few minutes with Managing Director, Simon Barlow to understand his vision for the company and why he’s been so eager to make these developments.

Simon, Rye was established in 1994 and has taken on many large and high profile projects. Why have you decided to make such a big change to the organisation’s strategic position?

Simon: You’re right, we have been fortunate to work on some really exciting projects in recent years, such as West Ham’s Boleyn Stadium, Kodak’s factory in Harrow and the National Institute of Medical Research’s site in Mill Hill, amongst others. We’ve been growing and it has been exciting to lead on these high profile projects, but I am clear that we must always strive to improve.

The industry is changing and so is society and I know that, if we are to continue delivering excellent services to our clients, we need to push ourselves and so we have set out to do this with a new mind-set and framework. I want Rye to be seen as an organisation that sets the industry standard and I want to be able to say that the way my team works is positive, that it delivers excellent results and that it makes a positive impact on society.

So what is your vision for the next 5 years for Rye Demolition?

Simon: In essence the vision is to be the group organisation that sets the industry standard and positively impact our clients, teams and society. This means that I want to see us further improve the standard of our services, enhance our recycling rates, develop relationships with local communities and help our teams live interesting, fulfilled lives with a path to career development.

Simon Barlow

How will the Sustainable Standard framework be turned into reality?

Simon: The framework has been developed to address the key areas of impact and is not just a strapline. We have a series of objectives and activities to push us in each area and I have expanded the team to ensure we develop in these areas. For instance, we will maintain our three ISO accreditations, we will continually develop our health and safety practices with an aim of zero lost time accidents and we will continue to invest in the training and development of our people, as well as engaging with the communities in which we are working. Clearly the nature of what we can do has changed since the beginning of the Covid pandemic but we look forward to welcoming schools back for site tours, sponsoring local events and running other charitable initiatives.

Another cause particularly important to me is about our recruitment strategy. If the industry is to thrive then we need a constant stream of talent and that is why we are looking to recruit and train apprentices and also bring on board ex-forces and ex-offenders, expanding the experience and skills available to us.

Finally, we need to keep evolving as an organisation and as an industry and I am determined that we don’t let this opportunity slip. We will develop, we will improve and we will make a positive difference.

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