2020 has been a challenging year for us all, however, with only a few weeks until we begin 2021, we’re excited to share with you some of our major highlights from this past year.

New members to the leadership team

This year, we have taken direct measures to ensure our leadership team is enriched with leading professionals and are happy to announce the promotions of Dan Foster, Martin Ives, Rachel Archer and Steven Morgan to Director roles within the organisation.

Innovative Client-Focused Solutions

This year, we’ve made considerable advancements in ensuring that projects are working seamlessly for our clients. Through restructuring our organisation, we can provide a dedicated company to each stage of the Riba plan of work.

Under the newly formed FDS Group umbrella, we were excited to announce the formation of FDS Consult UK, FDS Contracting and FDS Maintenance. The restructure has enabled us to provide our customers with a dedicated approach throughout the project lifecycle.

Starting with FDS Consult UK, our customers can outline their projects and receive leading consultancy expertise, working holistically with buildings to find fire safety engineering solutions that enhance safety while remaining true to the initial design.

Once a suitable fire safety solution has been identified, the next company in our organisation, FDS Contracting, can provide the means for the commissioning and installation of the smoke ventilation solutions. Having a dedicated company for this ensures we can either work on designs established by FDS Consult UK, or third parties.

The final company, FDS Maintenance, provides maintenance services for your smoke ventilation systems to ensure they remain compliant to the latest industry regulations and compliance.

Through opting for each of these organisations under the consortium, we can provide clients with a seamless project lifecycle with experienced and knowledgeable teams during each stage.

Expansion into the North

Alongside our restructuring efforts, we have made significant growth to our organisation and infrastructure this year to meet increasing customer demand. We welcomed Michael Starr to the organisation to both better support and grow our Northern client base.

A year of Certification

With compliance being at the forefront of Dame Judith Hackitt’s report, we believe that this year, we have taken the vital steps to ensure we are industry-leading with regards to fire safety compliance. Whilst all of our companies boast experienced and knowledgeable teams, the certifications which we have gained this year provide our clients with additional reassurance that they are receiving the highest-quality and leading solutions.

Our certification to LPS 1014 this year, demonstrated the high levels of compliance that we bring to each of our projects. With the fire safety industry facing reviews of its regulations, this demonstrates both our quality of work and continued efforts to ensure compliance across all operations.

With only 1% of companies being awarded this certification, it is a testament to the high-quality solutions we provide to our clients.

Alongside our LPS 1014 certification, we have also become BAFE Certified and gained the SCA IFC SDI 19 Certification as part of the SCA’s competent installer scheme.

FDS FireSmart

This year, we are proud to have announced the relaunch of FDS FireSmart, a complete smoke ventilation system, which assists in the occupant’s means of escape and provides clear access for firefighting services.

Comprised of multiple high-quality components to form an innovative yet fully compliant smoke ventilation solution, FDS FireSmart provides options for mechanical, natural and car park smoke ventilation systems.

M&E Package

With client satisfaction being at the core of our organisation, we’re excited to introduce our newest service to you, the M&E package. For clients who have their own installation teams or who simply want to source a smoke ventilation system and its components, they are now able to do so.

Longstanding Employees Recognised

We would like to thank the following employees for their continued hard work, dedication and long-time commitment to the FDS Group:

15 Year Work Anniversaries

• Simon Williams (FDS Contracting)

10 Year Work Anniversaries

• Karen Brett (FDS Contracting)
• Dan Foster (FDS Contracting)
• Nick Waterfield (FDS Contracting)
• Terry Smith (FDS Contracting)

5 Year Work Anniversaries

• Nicola Stannard (FDS Contracting)
• Emma Russell (FDS Consult UK)
• Daniel Bonner (FDS Contracting)
• Sue Turner (FDS Maintenance)

The FDS Group

All of us at The FDS Group would like to thank you for your continued support. Despite a challenging year, we’ve seen FDS Contracting complete over 30 projects ensuring the fire safety of hundreds of buildings across the UK.

We’re also pleased to announce there have been 371 maintenance contracts undertaken this year, a major factor in FDS Maintenance evolving into its own separate business unit.

We hope that moving forward in 2021; we will continue to be working on projects with you, our valued clients to create safer buildings throughout the UK.