UAP wins new category at prestigious G21 Awards

Leading door hardware supplier UAP Ltd has won the Glass and Glazing industry’s new, prestigious G21 Award for the Covid Business Hero 2021 thanks to their unrivalled support and quick response to the Covid crisis. 

The Awards Ceremony, which took place in London in November, was attended by leading managers and staff of UAP who all accepted the award with pride. This special, new category was introduced to honour the businesses that reacted to the global pandemic and leveraged the way they operate to be a force for good within the glazing industry.

One of several reasons UAP won the Award was the way they were so quick to respond to the crisis when the pandemic first emerged in China: they immediately prevented visitors from going to site and also enabled staff to work from home, weeks before the majority of the UK was locked down. 

Concerned about the lack of quality PPE available in the UK, the company leveraged its contacts in Asia to purchase PPE consignments, including 1.5 million masks, 130,000 face shields, 500 thermometers, over 15,000 pairs of goggles, 65,000 litres of hand sanitiser and 2.7 million alcohol wipes.  Pivoting its business to sustain jobs, they became a vital supplier and were instrumental in keeping people safer. 

UAP’s Technical & Development Director, John Mcloughlin said, “We deployed our 3D printers to make more than 250 headbands to enable face shields for front-line workers, as part of a nationwide initiative by the National 3D Printing Society.

“We have also donated £500,000 worth of PPE to local charities, healthcare providers, schools and community groups around the North West, as well as keeping our own team safe. 

“Alongside our focus on protecting people from the virus physically, we have place considerable emphasis and supporting our team’s mental health and wellbeing. This has included generating opportunities for colleagues to remain connected, through initiatives such as bite-sized training, online staff quizzes and free weekly yoga sessions for the team”.