Brogan Fuels is now servicing the Merseyside area through its new office at Ellesmere Port. Sab Hoctor heads up the team.
In addition they have established a specialist lubricant oils division in Buckie led by Martin Reid.
Consol Oils has an active and interesting blog on the company website. One of their bloggers, Kevin, has written a number of posts about BoilerJuice and here is an extract from the latest article:
“We are increasingly finding that various online self styled, web based ”cheap” suppliers using third parties to effect deliveries on their behalf are muscling in on this sector with often extravagant claims that can be misleading to potential customers when closely scrutinsed.
One such claim made by Boilerjuice (BJ) was “the cheapest heating oil in Cornwall” which was guaranteed to grab everybody’s attention including mine. At the time in question without trying we were frequently up to 5ppl cheaper than BJ. Subsequently this claim was amended from “cheapest” to “cheaper” a subtle play on words to make the claim legally acceptable. However by what yardsick do BJ claim to be cheaper than any other operator, given that red herrings often abound in the oil distribution trade as part of the cut and thrust of genuine competition, there still appears to be a lack of genuine transparency designed to grab consumers attention by offering potentiallly misleading information.
Part of any online offer actually involves the physical delivery of the product, this is where the whole thing can so easily unravel if lack of resources dictates that service levels are not of the highest calibre. Boilerjuice in their latest blurb offer a standard 10 working day delivery (in reality 2 weeks) but then move on to trumpet that they now offer “EXPRESS” deliveries of “5, 3 or 2 working days” they do not state on the blurb whether this involves a premium. Then there is the “EMERGENCY NEXT WORKING DAY DELIVERY FOR WHEN YOU NEED OIL EVEN FASTER” again no mention of a premium upfront. In fairness when the actual quote page comes up it does clearly state the premium levels, which in the case of an “EMERGENCY” delivery is 3ppl by normal size tanker plus, where applicable, a small tanker surcharge, by this stage an anxious customer who is shivering is already on the slippery slope, a couple of mouse clicks from commitment.”
To see the full article please go to http://www.consolsoils.co.uk/blog/
A director of Transtore, a fuel tank manufacturing business, has been banned from directing any company for five years after breaching a raft of health and safety regulations.
Brian Nixon of Evesham, Worcestershire, and managing director of Transtore (UK) Ltd was also fined £17,000.
Workers at Transtore (UK) Ltd in Stratford-upon-Avon were exposed to lead and other harmful chemicals while paint was sprayed at the plant without the correct safety measures in place. Workers were also put at risk of falls from height with no safety equipment provided.
Inspectors from the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) investigated and prosecuted Mr Nixon and Transtore (UK) Ltd in Stratford-upon-Avon, after a receiving a complaint from a concerned employee.
Mr Nixon was also ordered to pay £9,169 costs after admitting breaching Regulation 4(1) of the Work at Height Regulations 2005 and Section 33(1)(g) of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 at Stratford-upon-Avon Magistrates’ Court today.
The company, Transtore (UK) Ltd, based at Long Marston Storage, Campden Road, Stratford-upon-Avon was fined £70,000, with costs of £27,507 after being found guilty of eight separate breaches of health and safety law. The company is now in administration.
During HSE’s investigation, specialist inspectors took air samples as well as blood and urine samples from the workers to assess their exposure to lead, among other harmful chemicals in the plant that was being sprayed unsafely.
The company was condemned for allowing workers to spray paint, containing toxic lead chromate, without adequate controls in place, leaving them to breathe in harmful fumes and absorb lead into their blood.
Five workers needed blood and urine tests, with the fumes having the potential to cause headaches, tiredness, and stomach pains. Long-term exposure can led to irreversible central and peripheral nervous system damage, kidney damage and gastrointestinal problems.
All results from the workers showed higher levels of lead than the UK population average.
Workers were also expected to stand beneath the half-tonne fuel tanks they were painting during the spraying process with nothing to prevent them from being crushed if the lifting equipment, which had not been maintained or checked properly, had failed.
The company was also criticised for allowing its employees to work on top of the tanks with no safety equipment to prevent them falling two metres on to the concrete floor. The workers received no training or instructions and were left to devise their own systems of work.
HSE served four prohibition notices on the company during its investigation to immediately stop unsafe work. It also issued four improvement notices. Mr Nixon ignored the notice prohibiting work at height and continued to instruct his employees to work on top of the tanks.
HSE Inspector Peter Snelgrove said:
“Mr Nixon deliberately flouted health and safety laws and paid scant regard to the safety of his employees. I agree with what the District Judge said in court about it being a lamentable situation and it was very fortunate that there were no injuries before we carried out our investigation. Legal proceedings highlighted that there was a complete flagrant lack of attention and as we heard in court, a gross dereliction of duty by the management of this company.
“Companies and their managing directors have a legal responsibility to protect their employees. No one should be expected to work in the conditions found at Transtore and it is quite right that an employee contacted HSE to complain. Failure to properly manage health and safety can have catastrophic results.”
Transtore (UK) Ltd was found guilty of breaching:
It was also found guilty of contravening on three occasions prohibition notices that had been issued under section 22 of the Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974.
Listed below is a summary of the recent acquisitions by GB Oils, part of DCC. The data is derived from Companies House and is freely available.
Speed Fuel - £1.3 million
Leask Motor Garage - £1.2 million
Kenneth MacLennan - £232,000
Chevron’s distribution division - £87 million
Southern Counties - £20 million
Townson Thornber - £1.6 million
Can anyone compete with DCC in this consolidation of the UK heating oil market ?
The board of directors of ConocoPhillips has elected Robert A. Niblock as a new outside director. The election of Mr. Niblock increases the total number of ConocoPhillips directors to 14, of which 13 are outside directors.
Mr. Niblock, 47, is chairman and chief executive officer of Lowe’s Companies, Inc., the second-largest home improvement retailer in the world. Elected chairman and CEO in 2005, he also served as Lowe’s president from 2003 to 2006, and joined the board of directors when he was named chairman and CEO-elect in 2004.
Mr. Niblock is immediate past chairman and a member of the board of directors of the Retail Industry Leaders Association, after having served as chairman in 2008 and 2009. He has been a member of the organization since 2003 and served as vice chairman in 2006 and 2007.
ConocoPhillips also announced two senior leadership changes. Robert Herman, currently president, Europe Refining, Marketing &Transportation, will become vice president, Health, Safety and Environment. He replaces Bob Ridge who has elected to retire after more than 31 years of service. Herman will report to John Carrig, president and chief operating officer. Larry Ziemba, currently president, U.S. Refining, will become president, Global Refining. In this expanded role, he will assume responsibility for all of ConocoPhillips’ worldwide refining operations. Ziemba will continue reporting to Willie Chiang, senior vice president, Refining, Marketing and Transportation. Both Herman and Ziemba will join the ConocoPhillips Management Committee.
TOTAL BUTLER has announced the launch of TOTAL BUTLER Online, their new online ordering and payments service. The site allows customers to place orders, request quotations, pay and sign up to other services 24 hours a day, 7 days per week.
This is inevitably the way forward and everyone in the industry accepts that online sales is the future. Independent heating oil distributors need to recognise this and either develop their own ecommerce site or use existing platforms like WhichOilSupplier.
Watson Fuels has launched a new corporate website plus a series of sister sites that are customer specific. The network of oil sites comprises:
watsonheatingoil.co.uk
watsoncommercialfuel.co.uk
watsonfarmfuel.co.uk
watsonheatingoil.co.uk/boiler-servicing.aspx
watsoncommercialfuel.co.uk/Watson-Commercial-Fuel/Fuel-Cards.aspx
www.watsonlubricants.co.uk
The layout is clean and some considerable thought has obviously gone into the branding exercise.
Heating Oil Supplier News