News

23rd March 2020

Information for Current Hannon Transport Customers

This initial communication is to advise you of the procedures and precautions currently being put into operation by HANNON in order to try and ensure continuity of service to you and your customers. The situation of course remains very fluid and we are monitoring the advice from UK, Irish & EU authorities and will update our procedures accordingly.

Administrative and Accounts Personnel

Staff that are either high risk or not essential to the transport operation are now working remotely from their homes, this may result in some delays in our administration and some non-urgent tasks may be also handled later. Therefore, we ask for your patience and understanding. At this time, because the accounts team are working from home, we would ask you please use the following direct email addresses:

Queries related to payments to HANNON – fiona@hannontransport.com
Queries related to payments from HANNON – aine@hannontransprt.com

Planning, Order Entry and Customer Service

Staff involved in logistics planning, order entry and customer service are still working from our offices in Aghalee, Dublin & Poeldijk, we have implemented reutilisation of offices and office space in order to keep individuals at least 2m apart where possible. Currently we are still operating at normal efficiency, however illness or other factors may impact on these service levels as the crisis continues.

We would ask that customers understand that should circumstances demand, and we need to introduce flexible collection or delivery times, were we cannot guarantee making time slots and items may be delayed to the next day. We will obviously endeavour to keep any deviations to a minimum. Please note we will not be held responsible for any delays and will not be accepting any penalties until the crisis has averted.

In case of a virus outbreak in one of the offices, we will follow the guidance being released by government agencies, because logistics staff are deemed to be “essential workers” we will not be required to close the affected office/warehouse. We also have backup plans in place using a combination of our other offices and remote access for key logistics planning staff not infected.

Access to the building (Warehouse and Offices)

The access to our building for driving personnel and third-party suppliers has been restricted to a minimum. Hand washing stations have been set up to be used before accessing the offices and warehouse and appropriate signage on our handwashing protocols placed at the reduced number of entry points into offices.

Proof of Delivery

Paperwork Controls are in place for both the handing in and out and processing of paperwork, with disposable gloves being used by administrative staff. We are using technology, were possible, to mitigate the amount of paperwork that needs be physically handled.

Cleaning

In addition to our daily cleaning protocols we have carried out additional deep cleaning and sterilization of our offices and other shared areas, and have the services of a specialist Ozone Sterilisation contractor on stand-by to sterilize any affected site should an outbreak occur Our existing stringent truck and trailer cleaning regimen remain unchanged, at this time.

Meeting and Appointments

All face to face appointments and meetings have been changed to teleconference/videoconference calls, rescheduled or cancelled until further notice. All staff remain contactable by phone and email as normal.

Social Distancing Policy

We have introduced a social distancing policy based on Government Public Health Agency guidelines, this has been shared with all staff who have been encouraged to adopt the policy both inside and outside the working environment.

Risks for drivers

HGV drivers are alone for significant portions of time when driving a long distances but they do come into contact with others given the nature of their work.

Drivers of freight vehicles are being also being recognised as essential workers and we have taken steps to provide appropriate resources and training for our drivers to allow them to understand and follow the guidance from Government Public Health Agencies on best practice in order to keep both themselves and those they come into contact with safe.

Drivers are aware of and monitor themselves for symptoms and have been instructed what to do and who to contact if they feel ill while travelling.

Borders and Ferry Crossings

For the time being there are no known delays, but we are sure that in the future the virus will have some impact on these services. We are in active communication with the ferry companies for service updates and policy changes.

Limitations to loading and unloading

Due to controls and restrictions most loading and unloading locations are currently closed to drivers. At this time, we cannot therefore ensure exact counts will be correct with loading / unloading, and therefore cannot take responsibility for any errors or deviations in these counts. We would ask for your help by asking your suppliers to notify their personnel to ensure all the goods are correct and implement extra checks and ensure all accompanying paperwork is completed correctly and checked.

All these measures will be in effect immediately and will be active until the end of the COVID-19 crisis. Please may we ask that all our drivers including any sub-contractors working on our behalf, are allowed to return to their vehicles whilst waiting to load / unload at all your sites and are not required to remain in confined shared spaces.

May I also request that they continue to be allowed to use the toilet facilities on sites that provide adequate sanitation and appropriate hand washing facilities.

We thank you for your custom and would ask that you support us in our efforts to keep your product moving as safely and efficiently as possible.

For this to happen we will all need to work together and show resilience and patience in these testing times. We count on your understanding and cooperation. Please also pass this correspondence onto any of your colleagues who may need to read it.