May has been a big month for ACCO UK in the Facilities sector! On the 10^th, we celebrated World FM Day by sharing some thoughts on sustainability with This Week in FM. Then last week from the 17^th-19^th, we occupied Stand FM1420 at the Facilities Show live event at ExCeL London. Weren’t able to make it? We’ve got you covered.

This was our first time attending the live event after hosting a Tech Talk at the virtual event in 2021. That year, we showcased our Kensington UV stand which was a timely choice. We were still very much living amid the pandemic during that time. Health and safety were front of mind for most, so the high-efficiency but low-effort sterilisation capabilities of the stand were in high demand. Safety is still a top issue, but priorities have shifted a bit. We knew we needed to step our game up for 2022, our official return to in-person events, by once again tuning into the needs of the evolving workforce.

That’s why this year’s Show appearance was all about ‘automating the workplace.’ As hybrid takes hold as the dominant working model in the UK, staff will be looking to make the most of their in-office days and the facilities professionals responsible for equipping the workplace will need to provide them with the solutions to make that happen. Saving time without sacrificing effectiveness will be key in the workplaces of the future, and we wanted to help paint a picture of how that might be possible.

Automation seems to be an area that many businesses are interested to explore but seems quite intimidating to know where to begin. Our goal for this year’s Facilities Show was to demonstrate just how easy it is to get started with some simple swaps around the office, such as upgrading existing equipment to more advanced versions.

Our team proudly showcased our Auto Feed shredding solutions from Leitz and Rexel at the show, which are capable of handling 45 to 750 pages in one single load and help to save 98% of time compared to traditional shredding machines. Auto Feed technology allows users to simply load their shredding job and let the machine handle the rest, meaning there is no need to sit and waste time continuously loading the machine. And with hyper-secure cross cut or micro cut capability and large bin capacities, employees can shred more and empty the machine less frequently, all while ensuring any sensitive or business documents are securely destroyed. We loved demonstrating this part for the visitors to our stand!

In keeping with our automation theme and showcasing our desire for innovation, we also brought the GBC Foton 30 with us to the Show. If you hear the word ‘lamination’ and immediately cringe, trust us, you aren’t alone. But as the world’s first fully automatic desktop laminator, the Foton 30 completely eschews lamination’s bad reputation for being tedious and time consuming to get right. Much like the Auto Feed shredders, the user only needs to load their documents into the machine and press a button for the job to get done right the first time. No more loading pouches and watching to make sure the job processes correctly. No more tedious loading and waiting. Honestly, seeing real-time reactions to the machine at work had to be one of our favourite parts of the Show.

Overall, it was a great three days, and we want to give a massive thank you to our team and to all who visited them at our stand. While the Show only comes around once a year, we’re here for you year-round to help you find the right solutions for your workplace.

To learn more about the products shown at this year’s shows, check out these pages:

Rexel shredders: https://www.rexeleurope.com/en-gb/ranges/new-optimum-autofeed-automatic-paper-shredders/

Leitz shredders: https://www.leitz.com/en-gb/product-categories/iq-paper-shredders/automatic-shredders/

GBC Foton 30: https://www.gbceurope.com/en-gb/ranges/automatic-laminators/