by Fern Shaw | Feb 8, 2013 | Water Coolers
Inception and operations
We’ve been in operation for 13 years. An indication of our commitment to what we do shows in our great staff retention:
- Lindsey Page, our dynamic Office Manager, has been with AquAid for 10 years
- Joe Farnell, Account Manager extraordinaire, with AquAid for 7 years
- Pete Dinger, Clive Homer and Paul Unitt have been with us for 5 years
We have a total staff contingent of 13 people who are dedicated to offering our very extensive customer base, 780 Bottle fed water coolers and 1538 Mains fed water coolers, with unrivaled service and attention.
Monies raised
In 2012 AquAid Birmingham raised £43 000 for our hand-picked charities that provide, amongst other sustainable projects, clean drinking water to communities in Third World countries. That translates to enough funds for 4 300 children to have drinking water for life.
EDWCA Audit
The EDWCA, European Drinking Water Cooler Association (previously known as the European Point-Of Use Drinking Water Association EPDWA), is an association that was formed to “promote, develop and maintain the highest standards of hygiene, safety and ethics within the European Point-Of-Use Drinking Water industry to the benefit of customers.”
We are delighted to announce that last year we scored 100% in our EDWCA audits. This means that not only do we adhere to the stringent EDWCA requirements and take pride in our work, but that our valued customers benefit from us meeting and surpassing these standards too.
by Fern Shaw | Nov 8, 2012 | Charity, Water Coolers
How many of us take the water coming out of our taps or water coolers for granted? It is always there and if it would one day stop, what would we do? Fortunately we all live in a first world country where water is a resource readily available to everyone, just about anywhere.
But not everyone is that fortunate. Most African countries have a serious water problem in that they either do not have it, or they have it and cannot use it. Fortunately for those people in need, one British water supplier is making a massive difference to their lives. AquAid is one of the leading water cooler supply companies in the UK and they have committed themselves to assist in reducing and eliminating the water crisis in struggling African countries.
They achieve their goals by sharing a large section of their water cooler sales with certain trusts and charitable organisations. For every water cooler they install in your home, office or business area, a portion of the sale is donated to either the African Trust or to Christian Aid.
The biggest cause of death for Africa children is not war or even famine, it is dehydration. The two biggest causes of dehydration in children and adults in Africa is either not having the required amount of water, or the water that they drink is dirty and not suited for consumption. The dirty water leads to diarrhea and that in turn leads to rapid dehydration and in many cases, death.
So far in 2012, AquAid donated £542,000 to The Africa Trust and £70,000 to the Christian Aid groups respectably. The money is used to create safe drinking areas for children and parents and their efforts have saved thousands of lives in the last few years.
Can you honestly state that the water cooler in your office is doing something positive every time someone has a drink of clean, cool and fresh water? If you have a water cooler or water dispensing system from AquAid, then you are not just getting great service and value for money, but you are also doing a small, but significant, part in assisting the less fortunate in surviving each day.
by Fern Shaw | Oct 2, 2012 | Water Coolers
1. It’s for a good cause
Using an AquAid water cooler means that 30p is donated to The Africa Trust with every supplied bottle of water, and 10p is donated to Christian Aid. The African Trust focus on sustainability and job creation, which are key to dealing with poverty in the developing world. AquAid relations with Christian Aid helps fund many water related project in third world countries.
2. It’s safe
Tap water is known to contain chlorine and various other harmful compounds that can affect both the taste of the water and one’s health. AquAid’s water is naturally sourced from pure spring water, which means that it’s free from impurities and chemicals. The water coolers are also quarterly sanitized (according to regulations), which eliminates any potential bacterial growth.
3. It’s Green
Here’s a sobering statistic: 1.8 million single-use plastic water bottles are added to UK landfills each year. However, having a bottled water cooler system doesn’t have to mean you’re damaging the environment. AquAid bottles are cleaned (through a strict process) and re-used. The bottles that don’t make the cleaning grade are then recycled.
4. It saves space
Many people are under the impression that having a bottled water cooler in the office is going to be a clunky affair, but this isn’t the case. Many coolers are designed with space in mind, with some only requiring 1 sq. foot. Empty bottle storage isn’t an issue either, as AquAid collects them upon delivery of new ones (which is once every two weeks). In addition, bottles that are currently in use can be kept in handy space-saving storage racks.
5. It’s a healthy mini-break
Employees need regular breaks in order to keep their productivity levels up – but many turn to either cigarettes or coffee (or both). Having a bottled water cooler in the office provides a much healthier alternative (and an excuse for workers to get up, move around, and hydrate themselves). A cup of water and a quick chat around the cooler will leave employees feeling refreshed and ready to tackle the next task or deadline.
by Fern Shaw | Aug 30, 2012 | Water Coolers
Choosing which water cooler company to go for is no longer about who is the cheapest. The importance of staying hydrated is so well known now, that many companies are placing higher importance on reputation, service and quality. It is extremely important that when deciding who to choose, you do some research and ensure that you will get exactly what you are paying for.
As one of the UK’S top water cooler companies, we at AquAid do not compromise when it comes to service and quality. We believe that making our customers our priority is what keeps them coming back for more. Our delivery network comprises of 27 depots across the country. This means we have over 160 delivery drivers at any time delivering water to your workplace or home. These delivery drivers all work from regional depots which ensure that they are never far away and in cases of emergencies, we can get there within 24 hours. Our teams are all dedicated to making sure that you and your staff are always hydrated.
We at AquAid believe that giving back to the community is a responsibility that forms a vital part of the success of our business. As a company, we are committed to acting responsibly and most importantly motivating others to make a difference. Sharing the responsibility in the world in which we all operate should be an integral part of your working day. We believe that making a difference is complimentary to a commercial success. We are very proud of our long running association with Christian Aid, donating over 2.5 million pounds since our partnership with them began. For as little as £10, Christian Aid can provide a child with a lifetime’s supply of clean, fresh water.
The Africa Trust was established as a way to bring sustainable solutions to poverty in Africa. This includes establishing sustainable supplies of clean productive water and decent sanitation. Income generating projects are used to pay school fees, improve clinics and generate the funds needed to run orphanages. To date we have donated in excess of 1 million pounds and are encouraged by the success stories coming from individuals that are benefitting from the training that is being provided.
We at AquAid believe that our exceptional product together with our first class service and community responsibility is what has gotten us to where we are today. Paul Searle, Managing Director of AquAid said ‘The sign of a great partnership is where business, charity and community all work together.’
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by Fern Shaw | Aug 14, 2012 | Charity
AquAid is proud to sponsor Christian Aid’s water-related projects around the world. Thanks to your support, AquAid has been able to donate over £2 million to help Christian Aid help those in need.
Planting the seeds of hope.
Faced with the dual challenges of climate change and poverty, women in Tajikistan are coming together to create new market gardens and sewing businesses, thanks to funding from Christian Aid. Like communities across Tajikistan, people in Dekhanabad, a village outside the capital Dushanbe, used to rely on their Soviet-built irrigation systems to supply them with enough water to grow their crops.
Following the collapse of the Soviet Union, the money to maintain the irrigation systems was withdrawn and they began to fall into disrepair. Worse still, climate change has been rapidly melting away the mountain glaciers, taking away much of the water for irrigation and leaving the villagers vulnerable to the extremes of droughts and floods. As farming became more difficult, few families had enough food to last them throughout the year. Funding bears fruit Now, with training and finance from Christian Aid partner the Youth Eco Centre (YEC), a women’s group in Dekhanabad has set up a new market-garden cooperative. They have learnt how to conserve water more effectively and grow produce that is better suited to the changing climate, as well as extending the growing season through use of greenhouses and new farming techniques.
Mavluda Akhmedova was one of the first members of the cooperative and encouraged other women to join. ‘We need to adapt because we do not know what will happen in the future,’ she said. The cooperative is doing so well that not only can the members grow enough fruit and vegetables for themselves, but they also sell some at market to help support other families in the village. The cooperative has also set up sewing workshops for younger women so they can learn new skills and have an alternative way of earning an income.
The fruits of ingenuity
Christian Aid partners in Tajikistan are developing ingenious solutions to help poor communities cope with the impact of climate change and the breakdown in the country’s infrastructure and basic services. Tajikistan is a little-known and little-visited country, where the standard of living has fallen dramatically over the past 20 years. In the Soviet era, mountain waters were harnessed to supply communities with water and generate much of the country’s electricity (hydropower). Now, glacial melt and changing weather patterns are threatening the availability of this water and increasing the risk of floods and droughts. According to the World Bank, Tajikistan is one of the most vulnerablecountries to climate change. Irrigation and electricity supplies have been further diminished by two decades of neglect and the damage caused during the civil war of the 1990s, which have left the country’s infrastructure in a dilapidated state.
Becoming self-sufficient
Previously, we saw how new techniques that have been developed to cope with climate change are helping a women’s cooperative in Dekhanabad to grow all kinds of fruit and vegetables – in greenhouses, in pots, in allotment beds, on roofs and verandas. The women are earning so much from selling their surplus produce that they’ve been able to buy books and computers to boost their children’s education and have set up a sewing project to give young women a chance to earn a living from home.
Innovative solutions
As supplies of electricity in rural areas break down, Christian Aid partner ASDP Nau is helping local communities to develop sustainable sources of power. One of the most ingenious devices is the solar stove. Made out of a plastic foil-covered satellite dish with a saucepan stand welded onto it, it reflects the sun’s rays onto the base of a saucepan or kettle and can boil water in a large kettle or cook rice in a saucepan in around 15 minutes. Tajikistan has an abundance of sunshine, so solar power is an ideal sustainable energy resource. In another scheme, apricot farmers have been able to boost their income by using a solar-powered drier to improve the quality of their dried apricots. In hospitals, ASDP Nau has brought hot water back into maternity wards and medical centres for the first time in more than a decade, thanks to solar-powered water-heating systems. Such innovations are going to be crucial in sustaining services and livelihoods as food production and infrastructure come under increasing strain.
Turning the corner.
As the current food crisis deepens, Christian Aid partners are helping communities in Burkina Faso to find ways to provide food for their families and supporting them in withstanding future emergencies. Burkina Faso is one of the poorest countries in the world. Forty per cent of children in rural areas are chronically malnourished. Now the country is experiencing long-term temperature rises and repeated food shortages. Alizeta Sawadogo lives with her children and grandchildren in Masboré village in the north of the country. During the food crisis in 2010, people simply did not have enough to eat. Now the same thing is happening again, but this time the people of Masboré village have a plan in place to help them cope.
The community is planning to extend the livestock scheme to other families. When one family’s goats or sheep breed, they will pass on one offspring to another family to make the project as costeffective and sustainable as possible.
A growing project
Another person to benefit from Christian Aid’s support is Madiaga Lemani, who has three daughters and two sons. Madiaga is working with families in her community to set up a new market gardening cooperative. With support from Christian Aid partner ATAD, members will help each other to grow vegetables. They will also be able to invest any profits back into their cooperative and community, helping more families. For now, many of these families are receiving direct food assistance. This will meet their immediate needs while they get the market garden up and running, but the possibility of forming a cooperative and being self-sufficient offers hope for the future. And it’s hope for a better life for their children that inspires so many. Alizeta said: ‘The most important benefit is the education of my children. It’s very important to me. So I hope that this breeding activity will help me with this.’
West Africa food crisis
During the food crisis of 2010, Christian Aid helped to fund emergency relief for some of the worstaffected communities. But many remained in a precarious position. Heavy rains at the end of 2010 led to severe flooding, damaging homes, crops and property in communities weakened by the food crisis. Many families were forced to go into debt or sell their livestock, leaving them without the resources to withstand future emergencies. The political turmoil in Cote d’Ivoire and Libya in 2011 also had a serious impact because many families rely on money sent home by relatives working in these countries. The current food crisis is affecting communities across the Sahel region including Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger. A million children across the region are at risk of severe acute malnutrition. Christian Aid is treating malnourished children and is working to reach families with emergency aid and cash grants. It is also helping communities to develop sustainable ways to support themselves in the long-term with projects such as those mentioned above. If you wish to donate to Christian Aid’s emergency appeal, please visit christianaid.org.uk/emergencies.
‘You feel a fear, a terrifying fear’
Ana Maria Ayala was one of thousands of people in El Salvador caught up in the storm known as Tropical Depression E12. The storm caused untold damage, but thanks to projects to help communities prepare for disasters, many lives were saved. In October 2011, the small country of El Salvador suffered the devastation of Tropical Depression E12, the impact of which was even more severe than Hurricane Mitch in Central America in 1998. Rivers that previously had never flooded burst their banks. Families that had never had to evacuate before were forced to flee their homes. ‘We heard a noise like the crash of an earthquake. You feel a fear, a terrifying fear. The children are crying, and you think you will die or drown,’ said Ana. ‘Even now, when some of the children see black rain clouds they begin to cry, as they think it will flood again.’
Standing the test
El Salvador is a country that is frequently hit by severe weather events and Christian Aid has been working here since 1983. Christian Aid partners help people to prepare for the devastating impact of tropical storms, hurricanes and floods. This includes helping communities to develop early warning systems, build flood-resistant homes, and develop ways of making money to tie them over when farming becomes impossible. Christian Aid partner UNES has been working with Ana Maria’s community since Hurricane Mitch. When Tropical Depression 12E hit, the community knew what to do and where to go, thanks to the training they had received and a storm shelter that had been built by UNES.
Projects like these proved their worth during Tropical Depression 12E. The communities that our partners had been working with were clearly organised, capable and suffered far fewer deaths than other communities. Indeed, no one in Ana Maria’s community died during the floods. The work of our partners in El Salvador is not about hand-outs, but helps poor people to harness the skills, tools and organisation needed to protect their families and build thriving, resilient communities.
Keep pressing
This is the good news story. But disasters are becoming more frequent and intense in countries like El Salvador. It is important that charities like Christian Aid and their supporters continue to lobby governments about the impact of climatic instability and extreme poverty as we look at how to build sustainable solutions for the future. Please visit christianaid.org.uk/actnow to add your voice to our call for climate justice.
