The secretary for Climate Change, Ed Miliband, has recently received criticism for his willingness to spend money on his own office water cooler, whilst encouraging others to make do with drinking from the tap. The Labour MP is said to have claimed over £1,500 for the cooler and water to supply it, all on expenses. Following the scandal earlier in the year, it seems this might be tricky line to be walking on. Miliband however did claim far less than other MPs in his constituency throughout the rest of the year, and also had no access to “appropriate kitchen facilities” in order to be able to drink the tap water as a substitute at his constituency base in south Yorkshire. Others have protested against his double standards, that the energy used to produce the plastic bottles for the cooler is far great than that used for a mains water supply, thus inhibiting the hard work against Climate Change that Miliband himself is fronting.
What are your views on this story? As it has now been made law that all employers provide their staff with suitable drinking water whilst at work, do you think this is so different? We always like hearing your points of view, so do get in touch and let us know what you think!

Water In The News Bottled Water Cooler, Ed Miliband, Office water cooler

The Water Delivery Company is proud to announce that our very own blog was featured in this month’s edition of water cooler industry magazine cooler innovation.

The article at on the back page of the magazine previews our blog article on Water Cooler Bottle Experiments on Channel 5

All in the office are walking with chests puffed out that little bit more today as we take pride in our blog being considered worthy of feature in the industry’s main news magazine. Many thanks to your support of our blog!

Water In The News cooler innovation magazine, water cooler

Being in the United Kingdom where it rains, let’s face it, all the time, we’re not very careful with our water supply as we think it will never run out. However, recent reports show that more than a billion litres of drinking water are lost every day in Scotland through leaks. Apparently the country’s waste water rate was running at 45%.

The figure has been blamed on poor water mains which have not had the attention they require (some of the pipelines date back to the 19th century) and have subsequently fallen under par. Something that we can not afford have happen as Scottish homes and businesses use on average around 2.5 billion litres of water every day. Imagine how much is leaking out and being wasted? According to the figures that would mean almost 1 billion litres would be lost before the water reached people.

Apparently Scottish Water will be spending £1.8bn on a programme to improve all its services. A spokeswoman said “There is leakages and there is water going out and what we are left with is a network which suffered from a long time of underinvestment. We are currently making an assessment across Scotland of our water mains.” she said.

So with that much water being lost every day at the fault of pipelines and water mains, it’s even more important to ensure you do all you can to minimise water wastage at home. There are simple things you can do to stop water waste. Something as easy as turning the tap off while you brush your teeth or waiting until you have a full load of washing before you put a load in the washing machine. Another big one is to check your water coolers in the home if you have any and ensure they are not leaking anywhere.

Usually if there’s a leak it’s to do with something not being plugged in or screwed in correctly so have a quick look around the cooler for any signs of that and if you can’t find anything except leaking water then it’s probably best to call someone who can come out and fix it for you. The earlier the better. If you try to cut back on water use around the home every little bit will help. The Water Delivery can help with a leaky cooler, feel free to contact us on 0845 006 3309 or drop us an email on contact@thewaterdeliverycompany.com

Water Coolers, Water In The News, home water coolers saving water, water coolers, water waste

A Water Cooler Goliath gets it right in the eye from an Internet David

We all love a good moan and when we know we are absolutely in the right, the ability to add righteous indignation to our ranting makes many of us glow with glorious feeling! Ben Betts from www.ht2.org has gone even further!

He’s published a blog venting his fury/anger/frustration/disbelief at the level of service he has endured from a leading water cooler company with respect to their supply of  water and watercoolers, and the risible level of customer service he feels he has received from the organisation. But what he’s managed to do by airing his complaints in such an entertaining and light hearted way, is actually create an entertaining blog. So entertaining that its gathering a lot of attention over the internet – and that could be a PR disaster for the company.

Take a look at his article . You’ll enjoy reading it as lots of people have already enjoyed reading it …… and then passing it on to others! The old adage ‘give good service and the customer will tell two people – give bad service and the customer will tell many more’ really stands up to the test here! And when that bad service is exposed in such an entertaining manner then we’ll all jump aboard!

The master stroke in Bens article shows just how companies need to understand the power of the internet and positive customer feedback! So convinced were this company of its efficacy that they posted the ‘I love them. Great service!’ response alledgedly  from a satisfied customer. Unfortunately for them, Ben spotted the fact that the glorious recommendation was posted from the companies very own domain – nice home goal lads!

Unlike the set up Virgin passenger complaint, Ben Betts and hundreds of others who happily flexed their typing fingers on this issue,  have genuine complaints and have suffered appalling levels of customer service at the hands of this company. These are just the tips of MANY icebergs and could really gather great momentum threatening the company with a tsunami of public critcism – which could  potentially be the last nail in their business coffin. So Ben and his fellow bloggers may finally have the last laugh – as their expression of disatisfaction enters the public arena and potentially deals a dangerous blow to the water cooler business.

It is interesting that these irate customers have been commenting in such numbers. Powerless to express through these frustrations through the continually engaged Customer Sevice Complaint channels, they have finally found their forum! Throwing wet rags at a worthy ‘Aunt Sally’ circus doll appeals to us all – a welcome feeling of empowerment and a tempting avenue to vent our frustrations! Had a bad journey on the tube this morning? Go to Ben’s blog and give the company you hate a  kick – it’ll make you feel better!

I’m not expressing my personal judgement of the company. I’m simply (although with great relish and delight) reflecting how a public outcry in a new arena .. the internet viral …. can act as an ignition switch threatening to spread faster than a California fire – and with equally devestating effect! We’ll be watching the progress of this story closely!

(If customers looking for a new water cooler company are reading this… take a look at our customer feedback web pages, so you can see how it SHOULD be done!)

If you have any questions regarding The Water Delivery Company, feel free to leave a comment on this post, or ring us on 0845 006 3309.

Water In The News water cooler industry, water coolers

The bottled water industry – that ‘Aunt Sally’ target for environmental criticism fights back and shows its determination to Save the Earth!

I’ve written before, on The Water Delivery Company blog site, about my frustration with lazy journalists writing about the damage water bottles and bottled water generally are doing to our environment. In an effort to present a more balanced argument,  I’ve been doing my own research into what the industry is doing to clean up their own act – with some interesting results!

Silver Medal Awarded by Cradle to Cradle to Nestle Water

Nestle have suffered from a poor reputation for many years within the bottled water and water cooler industry. As the previous owners of  Powwow, Nestle were infamous for complaints of poor customer service, badly run accounts departments and unhelpful/grumpy drivers. They sold that company off a little time ago, and whilst Powwow continued to be dogged by ever-escalating customer complaints, it seems that a new shiny, environmentally responsible Nestle water business is emerging from the ashes.

Their latest venture looks like its addressing the environmental issue head on – and was even awarded a Silver Medal by the Cradle to Cradle organisation which looks to promote and reward environmentally repsonsible corporations . With their new company Re-source Spring Water, recycling has been brought to the core of the company ethos.

Re-Source point out that of the total landfill, discarded water bottles make up less than 0.03% – but, commendably, they quickly add that this is still too much and then they set out just how they – and more importantly WE – can reduce this figure even further. Efforts include a recycling commitment for refundable bottle deposits  and lobbying for more accessible recycling points. They are also actively trying to engage with the younger consumer – on the basis that if we educate that group of environmentally aware people, then we/they are investing in a long term mind shift towards more responsible consumerism.

Bottled Water From The Water Delivery Company

Critics could decry their efforts by dismissing them as a mere marketing strategies – maximising positive PR, harnessing the younger, environmentally-conscious crowd luring them into the bottled water purchasing market – but for me the strongest evidence in against this accusation is the incredible amount of work they have done  lobbying for a refundable deposit system on individual water bottles. Nothing focuses a consumer’s mind like a cash incentive. Not to mention the potential for kids scouring every kitchen bin and neighbourhood for the bounty promised by returning discarded water bottles. This work alone has incurred legal costs already into the millions of dollars. (Read the finer details of their legal battle, alongside the IBWA, in this article on the FoodBev.com industry website .

A major part of this legal campaign is to impose legal responsibilities on local councils to ensure they are providing sufficient recycling facilities for plastic bottles – a particular sweet sidepoint. It could be argued that these ‘holier than though‘ councils, who sanctimoniously cancel their contract for bottled water with water delivery companies already struggling through a recession,  seem to be less forthcoming when it comes to putting up their hands in the ‘lets have more recycling plants‘ vote.

Don’t get me wrong – I’m as opposed to public money being needlessly wasted on unnecessary water bottles as the next person.You need to get the facts about the particular circumstances of the relevant public offices before swallowing unchallenged the ‘Im doing my bit ’ public image that so many of our politicians and councillors like to trot out. This trot is an easy-target for the ‘ready to print a populist trite story’ journalists we seem to be overcrowded with in this country.

The bad news… all this campaigning is taking place in the States. As I mentioned before, undeniably, Nestle ultimately will be the primary beneficiaries of any change in legislation of this type – but, equally undeniably, they are the ones who have dug deep – very deep – into their legal budgets and taken on this huge campaign which promises to benefit everyone. Definite benefits to  consumers, bottle manufacturers, the water companies, AND the environmentalists – everyone but lazy journalists who dont seem to have picked up on this story…

(Apologies…I will EVENTUALLY get off my anti-journalist soapbox!)  Lets hope this is another thing that the UK will eventually be forced to follow suit on.

If you have any questions regarding The Water Delivery Company, feel free to leave a comment on this post, or ring us on 0845 006 3309.

Water In The News bottled water, environmental

The Water Delivery Company is happy to announce that a number of company records were broken in the past month.  Much of this was due to the soaring temperatures that London experienced towards the end of June, with one day it being hotter in the capital than it was in Bangkok.

This led to the Met office issuing warnings about the heatwave, with recommendations to wear sunscreen and to drink plenty of water.

And we are happy to say that our customers definitely heeded the advice, as the demand for extra water cooler bottles was huge.  In the last week of June the Water Delivery Company broke it’s previous record for number of 19 litre bottles sold in a week (set in July 2006) by 16%.

The record for number of 19 litre bottles sold in one month (set in July 2007) was also beaten by a huge 22%.

If you have any questions about The Water Delivery Company, or this blog post, please feel free to leave a comment.

Water Coolers for Health, Water In The News the water delivery company, water coolers

Never, ever listen to someone who tries to predict the weather – a slippery path leads forward from heeding such advice . But – maybe – if this forecast comes from a world renown news source we should sit up and take note.

So we find ourselves in a quandry after reading the BBC’s prediction for the weather during the summer 2009. To quote - ”odds on for a barbecue summer” and “Chief meteorologist at the Met Office, Ewen McCallum, said a repeat of the wet summers of 2007 and 2008 is unlikely”. Surely the ultra conservative broadcasting goliath has done its research – stock up with water, hoard sun tan lotion and take on a fleet of extra staff to cover the extra demand for water coolers in 2009.

BUT – lets remember that in the spring of 2007 we were told by the BBC  that they were predicting a hot summer that it in fact turned out to be the “UK’s wettest recorded summer in 2007, when thousands of families were forced out of their homes by floods.” In 2008 the BBC went for “Wet and Warm” in its regular spring prediction article – the reality was lots of the former and little of the later.

If you want to hedge your bets against a hot summer by taking a water cooler early – call us on 0845 006 3309 or email contact@thewaterdeliverycompany.com

Water In The News Health Benefits, water cooler

It’s that time of the year again when issues surrounding bottled water in general and trusted into the news at the behest of the entrenched utility water suppliers – most notably Thames Water.  Please put  a reminder in your diary for the end of April 2010 for the next time this debate will emerge in the national press. Timely speaking predicatable – but again it brings to the fore the important debate about bottled water.

This year the water cooler bottled market has again been largely left out of the debate – with the headlines prefering to focus on small pack (330ml to 1.5 litre) bottles.  We encourage the water authorities to look at the wider bottled water industry as it may push them further away from the simple sound-bites and comparisons that are rolled out annually. The worst culprit, notably “Fiji Water” is again rearing its ugly head this year and was mentionned on 20th April during a Radio 4 piece regarding the news furore – and we encourage anyone who hears the phrase “Fiji Water” used in any discussion about bottled water to walk away immediately and find an educated debate elsewhere.

 The Water Delivery Company work predominantly within the bottled water cooler market and believe that our industry sector within the general bottled water market has many unique facets. In comparison with the small pack market we create very little waste as our water bottles are consumed, returned, cleaned and reused. We operate a fleet of vans that run solely on LPG fuel and deliver water to customers within geographically limited areas. As a company and an industry we have much to be proud of and deserve not to be tainted with the same brush by unwary consumers concerned by reports in the media.

So that the  small pack bottled industry has a voice in this debate the Natural Hydration Council was set up in September last year by some of the larger small pack industry players to speak for the small pack industry. 

To follow the debate further look we recommend our customers the following steps – (some of these can be reused almost every year)

1) Look at the debates and articles in any/all newspapers over the next week, and make an educated view based on the wider bottled water market.

2) Wait for a government minister in a lesser department looking for easy PR to call bottled water “Evil”.

3) Research on the research based website on the Natural Hydration Council regarding the arguments for  small pack bottled water from one side of the industry.

4) Look at our website for details on how The Water Delivery Company is approaching environmental responsibility.

5) Have a look at the consumer website from the Natural Hydration Council – the badly named – YouOughtToDrinkMoreWater.com.

The Water Delivery Company encourages genuine and educated debate about bottled water and believe that this will in the long term lead to less confusion among our customers and customers of the industry.  Please call us on 0845 006 3309 for further details.

Water In The News environmental, natural hydration council

 The Water Delivery Company are today toasting the launch of the new series of The Apprentice and the third year in a row when our water cooler was the source of refreshment to the youngsters and featured in the reception area before the boardroom.

The Summit Water Cooler was chosen this year over by the set designers at the BBC  to fit into the highly stylised set for the meeting and boardroom.  We are told that last years Zenith water cooler appearance will come back next year.

We are also told by sources that Sir Alan found our spring water to be the finest he has tasted. High allocades indeed and one that we are proud of. We have a Summitwater cooler laid aside for Sir Alan and will be auctionning the water cooler used for charity at the end of the series. Good luck to the cannon fodder in the meantime

If customers wish to get details of how they can have the Summit water cooler in their office or home we ask them to call us or fill out our enquiry form.

Water In The News The Apprentice, Zenith

A company in the States has launched what it claims is the first 100% biodegradable water bottle! At present they are only manufacturing them in the individual small pack bottle sizes that we can all carry around – and no news as yet whether this would be a viable material for the large office sized bottles that go on our coolers.

Its certainly something that our bottle manufacturer is aware of and they have promised to look into this more for us as we’re sure its something our clients would be interested in. For more information then check out the news web page and we’ll publish more news as we get it!

Water In The News environmental, water bottles