TRANSFORMATIONAL CHANGE AT HERAS UNDER OWEN
Recently appointed to the position of UK MD for one of the fencing sector’s leading brands, David Owen is already making an impact by delivering what he describes as transformational change in the UK at a company that was founded in 1952 and operates in 24 countries.
The affable and refreshingly honest Heras chief was appointed to the position at the end of 2021 and he’s well aware of the immense challenges that lie ahead during what will be very tough times for UK industry as a whole as well as the general population with skyrocketing energy bills and the resulting cost of living crisis.
David’s approach is paying dividends though with the Doncaster-based perimeter security specialists recently reporting a 35% increase in half year earnings as well as restoring relationships with customers where Heras had previously overcomplicated things.
“It’s been a lot of hard work to get where we are,” explained David “but it’s a constant journey of progress. We wouldn’t have achieved these results without making some drastic changes.
“We’ve just moved into new offices in Doncaster very close to our previous headquarters. It’s a good place to be both geographically and from a quality of life perspective with around 55 of our 120-strong UK team based here,” added David who is originally from Derby and started working with Heras two years ago as Operations Director within what was a complicated management structure. Previous to that he’d worked around the world in the oil and gas industry.
“One of the key changes I have been involved with,” he continued “has been the rationalisation and simplification of our management structure. I’ve lived in Australia and France and worked in places like India and Saudi Arabia and seen a lot of ways of doing the same things.
“At the moment around 50% of the demand for our fencing systems encompasses temporary requirements such as major events with the other half covering the provision of permanent security installations for public infrastructure and private businesses.
“The pandemic led to a big demand for temporary fencing solutions with permanent installations remaining fairly consistent due to the construction industry continuing to operate.”
Speaking about the changes that have been going on at Heras over the last 12 months, David added: “We’ve also rationalised and reduced the range of different products we supply from around 85 to less than half that and this has been a key part of our transformational journey. We were trying to be all things to all people and upsetting people along the way because we were overcomplicating what is quite a simple product.
“We looked at what delivers value for our customers and reduced our portfolio to the core products that we know will work.”
Up until recently Heras had a manufacturing facility nearby but now utilises its supply chain. Around 60% comes from UK-based firms, 20% from its main manufacturing hub in the Netherlands and the remainder from manufacturers across Europe.
Heras has its own installation teams both in the UK and across Europe effectively making itself a ‘one stop shop’ according to David.
When it comes to rapidly increasing costs on a myriad fronts David continued: “We were one step ahead of the game in this respect in terms of the operational changes we’ve made. An increasing reliance on our supply chain partners has reduced our cost base.
“Steel prices seem to have topped out and, in some cases are reducing. There are gains to be had here and there.
“The cost-of-living crisis does suggest that people are going to take more risks as they become more desperate. They are more likely to break into sites to supplement their income hence there is an increased requirement for robust fencing systems.
“Many more businesses will experience break ins and realise quite how vulnerable their perimeter security is. Aging infrastructure will reveal its weaknesses as times get more testing and therein lies opportunities for Heras and other businesses within our sector.
“We operate across most sectors and every sector has a need. If something needs protecting we’ve got a solution for it. Whether it’s warehouses, power stations, prisons, embassies or even the training grounds of football clubs such as Rangers in Glasgow, we don’t limit our thinking in this respect.
“Even offices get in touch for solutions such as car parking barriers. We really do provide universally. Security is needed everywhere!”
David freely admits that Heras had let some customers down over the last couple of years as a result of not being able to get the desired performance or delivery times out of its’ teams on the ground but operations have improved substantially over the past six months.
He added: “There were a hundred and one reasons why this was happening but we’ve taken big strides forward and are now consistently delivering for our customers. We are seeing key tier one contracts coming back to us and are now hitting dates. On some occasions, we’re even pushing customers to move on as we were ahead of our schedule.
“The fact that we can clearly demonstrate the improvements we’ve made is good news for everyone. Heras is definitely back!” concluded David.
Watch this space. Chances are it’ll be made more secure with a bit of Heras know how as we hit uncertain times!
