30 January 2014

Quartzelec, a leading international electrical engineering group, has just been named 'Contractor of the Year' for low-volume contracts in 2013 by Bentley Motors, in appreciation of the outstanding professionalism and customer service and meticulous attention to Health & Safety when providing services to this luxury vehicle manufacturer.

Quartzelec has, for more than 25 years, provided a range of high and low voltage electrical contracting services at Bentley Motors’ historic Pyms Lane, Crewe headquarters, home to all its operations including design, R&D, engineering and production. This year Quartzelec beat off over 100 other companies in the (Low volume of Job Registrations) category, which covers all suppliers involved in fewer than 10 individual contracts of work a year, to win this prestigious recognition. Separate winners were named in the 11-20 jobs a year category, for which there were eight contractors considered, and 11 on-site contractors competed in the 21+ jobs category. A total of 792 jobs were awarded throughout the qualifying year.

“The projects Quartzelec typically undertake for us are critical to our overall operation but don’t necessarily have a high invoice value – which is why the level of service and commitment they provide is that much more impressive,” stated Liz Jackson, Construction Safety Engineer for Bentley Motors. “Over the years, Quartzelec have always been really attentive to our needs, are totally reliable and provide a first rate service. Their winning this years’ ‘low-volume’ Contractor of the Year category is quite an accomplishment, but Quartzelec exceeded our expectations and were 100% justified in winning.”

The award process takes into account every aspect of H&S performance regardless of the number of jobs awarded to any one contractor. Liz Jackson further commented; "It’s not just about having a good on-site safety record, Bentley Motors looks at the quality of the Risk Assessments and Method Statements, how quickly any amendments were made, attitude and professionalism. Essentially it was the complete end-to-end process which is critical to being part of the working team."

Quartzelec's recent projects on-site have included carrying out high voltage maintenance on 11kV and 415V distribution boards and transformers; Fault repairs to a number of protection relays and circuit breakers; Plus the testing and commissioning of all low voltage ACB's (air circuit breakers), fitted on Bentley’s newly installed solar panel system, the largest in the UK, which covers over 3.45 hectares of roof space and delivers a capacity of 5MW - enough energy to power over 1,200 households and three times larger and more powerful than any other roof mounted system in the UK.

“We are truly proud that our professionalism and customer service when it comes to health & safety issues has been publically recognised by another of our important customers,” added Bryn Morris Quartzelec’s General Manager in Wrexham operation. “Over recent months we have received a number of customer commendations for both our high and low voltage services and our electrical motor maintenance and refurbishment work. Recognition for our diligent approach to health and safety also demonstrated to others that we are serious in how we do business. More importantly existing clients recognise this and are rewarding us with increased contracts and it is also helping us grow our UK and international customer base.”

Quartzelec has an annual turnover in excess of £50m and a heritage that stretches back more than 80 years. Its electrical contracting business currently operates and maintains more than 4000 customer assets at over 450 customer sites across the UK plus it has invested significantly in electrical Health and Safety procedures to ensure a safe environment for both employees and customers. The company also delivers design, manufacturing, installation, maintenance and service solutions to customers operating across a broad range of industrial and commercial sectors around the globe.