Charity Santas On The Run

Scorpio staff joined in the annual Santas On The Run dash on Sunday 1st December 2013 at Stockeld Park, Wetherby to raise funds for Martin House Hospice in Clifford, near Wetherby, West Yorkshire.
Not only does this event raise vital funds for a worthy charity, it is a great morning - filled with the festive spirit and has a great community atmosphere enjoyed by all age groups and families.
Matt Holland, Managing Director at Scorpio said, "I look forward to this run every year, it raises essential funds for Martin House and everyone who gets involved. enters into the Christmas spirit. My family and colleagues are proud to support the great work done by Martin House"

This year there were approximately 450 Santas on the run, the morning was beautiful and everyone who took part had a great time.
The course is based at Wetherby's Stockeld Park and takes in 5 laps of the enchanted forest which is approximately 6km. The event is well organised and welcomes all runners of all abilities.
As a company, we encourage our staff to enter into community based events and to help raise funds for charities such as, Martin House.

This photo shows the start of the run as the Santas pick up the pace.

For information on Martin House Hospice, follow the link below.
http://www.martinhouse.org.uk

 Small Santas on the run!

Ethical, Financial and Environmental costs of original branded printer ink - a visual reminder.

Here’s an interesting design concept; printer ink re branded in expensive perfume packaging.  It’s often quoted that printer ink is more expensive than Channel No. 5 perfume but Australian communications designer, Celeste Watson, takes the point further. Just like the perfume, it’s not necessarily the contents you’re paying for. It’s the brand name and the packaging.

“This self-initiated brief is a response to how absurdly priced household printer cartridges are. This project aims to resolve the current discrepancy between the price of the product and its packaging,” the designer writes on her Behance page.

This striking image forces the customer to consider other costs involved with original branded printer supplies, such as the cost to the environment and the ethical costs of production of these commodities; concerns which are often more associated with that of the beauty industry.

HP shouldn’t be singled out on this issue, there are a number of other printer cartridge manufacturers doing the same thing. If you buy an original Brother, Epson or Canon cartridge, to name but a few, you will pay a huge premium for the packaging and the brand. We all know that we can save money by buying alternative brands of ink and toner but because of the problems they can cause to printers, there is, rightly a lack of trust in unknown manufacturers.

After extensive research and testing, Scorpio’s solution is Hytec Inks. There are Hytec alternatives for all of the standard home and office printers in the UK. They usually work out at around half the price of the original brands but the print quantity and quality matches (if not exceeds) that of the originals. They have an ISO 9001 quality certificate and do not invalidate the printer manufacturer’s warranty, even if used in the first year. Scorpio supplies in excess of 45,000 Hytec inks and toners per year and the failure rate is less than 1%.

Hytec is the obvious choice financially but it’s also a better choice ethically and environmentally. It is one of an elite group of manufacturers that holds the ISO 14001 Environmental Management certificate.

Celeste Watson’s design concept is an original take on a problem we have long been aware of. Now is the time for consumers and procurement managers to take action and improve the financial, ethical and environmental performance of their printer inks and toners.

If you are interested in trying Hytec alternative inks and toners, please contact Scorpio UK for a free sample. 01924 233770.

NHS ‘Champions of Procurement’ continue to opt for Scorpio UK

Countess of Chester Hospital NHS Foundation Trust have marked their place at the forefront of the current movement for increased procurement from SME suppliers. The Trust is looking at developing a framework to enable products from more specialised suppliers to be accessed by the entire NHS.

Many NHS procurement managers will recognise the frustration of dealing with the dominant supply chain corporations, offering a less specialised product range at greater expense. The reason they continue to abuse their power; because smaller organisations are not always able to penetrate the system. Andy O’Connor, Director of Commercial Procurement Services at Countess of Chester NHS Foundation Trust said,

“We have, to date, held a number of conversations with practising clinicians who have products they believe offer added levels of benefit to NHS organisations but who are struggling to penetrate the NHS marketplace”.

Scorpio UK, the Trust’s supplier of printer consumables is delighted to note that the Trust is being recognised for its excellence in procurement. Matthew Holland, Managing Director for Scorpio Computer Supplies said, 

“The Trust is extremely thorough in ensuring they find suppliers offering the very best value and service. Over the years we have been supplying them, they have carefully reviewed our service against our competitors a number of times. I am glad to say that we still come out top”.

Whilst Scorpio UK is a long standing supplier to a number of NHS organisations across the UK and fully versed in the wide range of NHS procurement processes, the company remains extremely competitive on price, quality and service. Matthew Holland added,

“Integrity is central to our organisation’s philosophy and the key to our success in supplying our NHS for over 20 years. I believe it is for this reason that we have outlasted a number of larger, more complacent suppliers. We welcome the chance to work alongside a greater number of high quality, specialised suppliers”.

Given the scrupulous manner in which Andy O’Connor’s team work, Scorpio UK has no hesitation in endorsing their intention to become ‘Champions of Procurement’.

Welcome to the world, baby Blake!

Congratulations to Samantha and Nick Lazenby on the birth of their gorgeous baby boy, Blake.

Both Sam and Nick are account managers on our Sales team. They are going to split the maternity leave between them but both are contactable via the usual channels. Just bear in mind that if either of them sound a bit muddled at any point it might be due to lack of sleep!!