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core markets,” Alan explains.“ The second is taking that model and replicating it in a different geographical location, most likely through acquisition. The third is expanding into adjacent sectors that still sell into the same customer base or align with our wider offering. It’ s about broadening the range in a way that complements the core business.”
Good sustainability practices drive good commercial performance
Engagement and education
Sustainability has become an increasingly important part of RTU’ s long-term strategy, but rather than treating it as a standalone initiative, the company has embedded it into the way it operates.“ In our experience,” Alan adds,“ good sustainability practices drive good commercial performance. A strong example is the concrete waste recycling facility we invested in last year, which allows us to recover and reuse materials such as stone, sand, and water from our production process, significantly reducing waste and the need for new raw materials. That has obvious environmental benefits, but it also makes good commercial sense.
“ The first stage of our ESG journey was understanding what we were already doing. We’ d been making positive changes for years, but we hadn’ t been formally documenting or measuring them. This led to the development of our ESG report, Our Plan for What Matters, which sets out our commitments, progress, and future ambitions. By benchmarking where we were and improving how we capture data, we can now provide customers with clear, measurable information that supports their own sustainability reporting.”
Alongside embedding sustainability in its processes, RTU approaches safety in a similar manner.“ Culture is the key,” Alan explains.“ Complying with legislation is the baseline. What matters is creating a culture where the commitment comes from the workforce, not just senior management.
“ For us, that means focusing on engagement and education rather than enforcement. Through regular toolbox talks, sharing lessons from incidents and encouraging open communication, we’ re building a culture where people understand why these things matter and take ownership of them.
“ The industry recognition we’ ve received reflects that approach. We’ ve always had high standards, but we’ re now much better at measuring, documenting and communicating what we’ re doing.”
Looking to the future, Alan shares his priorities for the coming years.“ We’ ve already started work on our next four-year strategy, which we’ re calling Project Horizon,” he says.“ We believe the planning process needs to start early, so we’ re carrying out a full review of the business, looking at everything from our performance and systems to our strengths, challenges and future opportunities.
“ Our vision remains the same: to be the number one supplier of products and services within our chosen markets,” Alan concludes.“ Whatever markets we decide to operate in, we want to be recognised for consistently high-quality products and unrivalled customer service. That ambition continues to guide everything we do.” ■
www. rtu. co. uk | www. colinwell. com
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