Grower of the Year Application - Canadian Nursery Landscape

Transcription

CNLA RBC Grower of the Year Application
Bylands Nurseries Ltd. | 1600 Byland Road | West Kelowna BC V1Z 1H6
www.bylands.com
Bylands Nurseries Ltd.
Growing Greener Everyday
Table of Contents
1.
Economic Performance and Marketplace Position ................................................................ page 2
2.
Innovation in Production and Growing Techniques ............................................................. page 6
3.
Market Orientation and Company Image ................................................................................. page 8
4.
Environmental Standards .............................................................................................................page 14
5.
Human Resource Policies..............................................................................................................page 16
6.
Additional Elements for Consideration....................................................................................page 18
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2. Innovation in Production and Growing Techniques
Bylands Nurseries Ltd. is a leading nursery operation because of our commitment to
innovation on every level. We are constantly evolving our product mix, technology and
facilities to ensure we are providing our customers with the best service and product
available.
Our product mix is one of the most diverse in North America. On a yearly basis, we have over
three million plants in production and our inventory lists up to three thousand varieties and
sizes. Bylands is the only western Canadian nursery to be part of both the Gold Key Program
from Proven Winners and the Endless Summer/Easy Elegance Network by Bailey Nurseries,
two programs that invigorate the market with new plant selections on a yearly basis. Bylands
has also been key to the introduction of trees for the colder climates, including the Byland
Green Poplar, Foothills Ash and the Dreamweaver™ Columnar Crabapple.
Although we are predominantly a container grower we also produce over 500,000 bareroot
plants annually for sale and our own container production. Bylands is one of the largest
suppliers of bareroot material in the western Canadian market today.
Bylands is constantly proactive with industry certification programs. We were one of the first
nurseries to become DCPC Certified and to implement the new Clean Plants Certification
Program. Such programs are important to our industry and our customers, so we actively seek
them out to ensure we are proactive in our practices.
Innovation in technology is also critical to the success of Bylands. Recently, we invested
$250,000 into a software system to improve our operational efficiencies. From a sales
perspective, the new system allows us to provide our customers with live data and for
information (such as UPC, retail pricing) to be exchanged without manually entry at our
nursery. We are currently working on a scanning system that would allow our outside sales
team to enter orders directly into our system, which would greatly increase the speed of order
processing. Our inventory has also greatly been improved by our new system; adjustments to
quantities in the field can be made through a handheld device live while viewing the crops.
This is especially critical for Bylands for programs like Clean Plants, and because our farming is
done on 400 acres spread throughout Kelowna and Chilliwack. Our new production tool
allows us to enter formulas which create the production timeframe for each individual item,
which takes the guessing work out of production planning. The sales system also ties in very
well with our production module and tracks any lost sales that we have so we can properly
plan what and how much of each item we should produce.
Bylands is incredibly innovative when it comes to shipping practices. We were one of the first
nurseries to palletize product which allows us to prepare orders prior to shipping to increase
how many orders we can process daily. We also use a scanning system that creates two check
points to ensure the product for each order is properly processed. The first scan occurs during
the palletizing process, where our staff scan a barcode for each product that is shipped. The
second occurs when the trucks are being loaded onto the truck by forklift. By using these
scanning processes, we are able to provide our customers with detailed breakdowns of what
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they will receive. Based on our shipping practices, we are able to comfortably load up to
sixteen 53’ trailers in a ten hour workday.
Palletizing crews
preparing product for
shipping the following
day
Palletized order loaded on
truck and ready for
shipment. This process
greatly improves the
speed of the loading and
unloading process
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3. Market Orientation and Company Image
“Bylands Nurseries Ltd. is a producer of premium plants. Our product, service and environmental
initiatives are superior to any nursery in Canada.”
At Bylands, we live by our mission statement. Our focus has always been on providing our
customers with the best in service and product quality, specifically into the prairie region of
Canada. This belief does not waiver with market conditions, and we continue to strive on
producing quality product with strong customer service in a price conscious market.
Our customer service is reflected in our strong sales staff. We have a sales staff of eight during
our peak season, which includes five sales representatives who live in our key market areas.
Having sales people in these regions has been instrumental in the success of our operation, as
they can provide a far greater level of customer service then out of area representatives.
In 2008 we began working with a marketing firm that has greatly influenced our marketing
strategies. This company encouraged Bylands to promote itself as a brand and target the end
consumer. They also helped update our company slogan to “Growing Greener Everyday.” It
became our goal to have the end consumer visit a garden centre and ask for Bylands
products, which is why we changed our logo, website, and our marketing initiatives for
advertisements, catalogues, calendars and price lists. Please see the attached files to view
these documents.
logo, pre-2008
logo, 2008-present
Our website has seen dramatic changes and is now both customer and consumer friendly.
Our protected area allows our customers to look at live availabilities, place Point of Purchase
orders and in the near future, place orders online. Bylands.com includes information on
hardiness zones, planting techniques, plant information, home garden videos (coming in the
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next few months) and retail locators for consumers. Our goal is to become a website of choice
for home garden enthusiasts in Canada.
New website launched in
2008
Our labels have gone through a complete redesign as well, as our logo is now prominently
shown on packaging sent to our independent garden centre customers. Our label is booklet
form for all plants excluding small perennials and provides a great picture with relevant
planting and product information. Our labels provide our customers with a complete finished
package that is very presentable at the retail level.
Booklet and Perennial
Labels
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We have noticed value in our marketing concepts that we have implemented over the past
few years. Our website visits are up substantially and our customers have reported that
people are beginning to reference our company based on our label, website, trailer and other
marketing initiatives.
Bylands trailers, pre-2009
Bylands trailers, redesigned with updated
labels and logo
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Company Logo and Website Evolution
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Product Packaging Material
Page 12
Additional Marketing Material
Page 13
4. Environmental Standards
Environmental responsibility is an integral aspect of the culture at Bylands Nurseries Ltd. For
the past several decades, our operation has been industry leading in the environmental
initiatives that we undertake. We even incorporated our commitment to the environment in
our slogan, “Growing Greener Everyday.”
Water consumption is a huge issue within our industry, especially in the desert conditions of
the BC Interior. Bylands has been employing the latest in water reduction methods to ensure
our impact is as minimal as possible for the past twenty years. In 1993, Bylands was the first
nursery in British Columbia to create a water reclamation pond to reduce our water
consumption. Since that time, we have added two additional reclamation ponds that allow
our nursery to reuse up to one-third of the water we consume. This past year, we invested
over $150,000 into one of our fields through an irrigation audit to ensure our irrigation runs as
efficiently as possible. In 2011, we will do the same with at least one additional field and will
continue to improve our irrigation efficiencies on a yearly basis.
Our first water recycling
pond (1 of 3 utilized
today)
Bylands continues to invest in the latest drip irrigation technology and in ‘pot in pot’ growing
methods as these are the most water efficient practices available for container growing. With
our latest addition of five gallon ‘pot in pot’, our nursery now has over 200,000 holes available
for plants.
Over the past decade, Bylands Nurseries Ltd. has created a community composting program
that helps eliminate large amounts of organic waste from entering local landfills by allowing
members to dump their green waste on our property. This composted material is eventually
added back to our fields and into our potting mix. This material helps improve our soil quality,
aids in aeration, increases soil nutrients and even assists in water retention capabilities.
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A before, during and after look at our
community composting program
Bylands Nurseries Ltd. voluntarily completed the British Columbia Environmental Farm Plan in
2005 to ensure that we are being proactive in identifying environmental opportunities and
risks within our surroundings.
We have employed an Integrated Pest Management Program, a proactive approach to pest
control. This effective and environmentally friendly philosophy significantly reduces and
eliminates the use of pesticides through a three step process of prevention, observation and
intervention and is critical to our growing philosophy.
The use of plastics is inevitable in our industry. At Bylands, we reduce our plastic consumption
by reusing our protective wintering plastic for two seasons prior to shipping it to a recycling
plant. We also ship any relevant used pots to a recycling depot on a yearly basis.
Based on our strong commitment to environmental initiatives, Bylands was recognized by the
BCLNA as the first recipient of the Environmental Stewardship Award. This award recognizes
excellence and effort by any BCLNA member for outstanding achievement in maintaining or
promoting a sustainable, healthy environment.
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5. Human Resource Policies
At Bylands, we have one of the best and most comprehensive human resource policies in the
nursery and landscape industry. Our human resources policy is built around our desire to be
an equal opportunity employer; to provide a safe, clean environment for our employees while
providing a rewarding career path within our company. When comparing our policies to
other operations, we look to different business segments to ensure we are following proper
standards for operations of our size and not just following the standard industry practices.
Our first responsibility to our employees is their safety and the safety of the workplace. This
starts with a corporate commitment to a clean, well-maintained workplace and a regular
program of equipment repair.
Other safety initiatives include an orientation for all employees including safe work habits as
well as employee and employer responsibilities. We have prepared our own DVD which
demonstrates proper lifting techniques, stretches and techniques to prevent muscle strain.
Bylands also arranges for a physiotherapist to visit once every two weeks which allows our
employees to receive assessments and treatments at the workplace at company cost. This
has been incredibly beneficial to our employees; since the addition of this program our WCB
Experience Rating Adjustment has decreased by 30%.
We also have an active Safety Committee which includes members from all sections of our
nursery. This Committee does monthly safety inspections and reviews all injury reports while
watching for safe work habits throughout the nursery at all times.
According to our Benefits Coordinator, our employee benefit package is one of the ten best in
B.C. This package includes a plan for full time employees and for continuing seasonal
employees who are off during winter. This package includes:
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Extended health
Dental (100% of basic services and 50% or major restorative services)
Pension (Bylands matches employee contributions to a monthly maximum)
Life insurance
Short & long term disability
We actively use industry apprenticeship programs and seminars to develop employees. Our
policy is to keep one or two employees involved in the apprenticeship program at all times.
Currently, we have three employees who have obtained journeyman status while working for
Bylands. We also send several employees to industry seminars or other developmental
courses each year.
We strongly believe in providing our staff with an opportunity to interact in a social
environment and in showing appreciation for hard work. We hold several events throughout
the year to accomplish this, including a Christmas Party, Golf Tournament and Staff
Appreciation BBQ.
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Our annual Christmas party includes a live band, full meal and paid transportation from the
event. Our Golf Tournament includes a company sponsorship of $2,000 for the event,
including prizes, meal and partial green fee coverage. Our Staff BBQ occurs once our peak
shipping season has ended as an appreciation for the hard work of our staff. It includes a
meal, games and an extended lunch hour with pay.
In addition to these events, supervisors are empowered to purchase meals for their crews on
days when they have worked longer hours or been asked to do something extra.
Annual Christmas Party
Annual Golf Tournament
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6. Additional Elements for Consideration
Bylands has always placed a high priority on community and industry involvement. Over the
years, the staff at Bylands has participated in a variety of organizations and was recognized for
its efforts as a company through many major awards, listed below.
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Canadian Association of Family Enterprise (CAFE) Business of the Year- 1996
Kelowna Chamber of Commerce Business of the Year (51+ Employees)- 1997
Kelowna Chamber of Commerce Business of the Decade (51+ Employees)- 1997
British Columbia Landscape and Nursery Association (BCLNA) Environmental
Stewardship Award- 2000 (Inaugural)
British Columbia Landscape and Nursery Association (BCLNA) Grower of the Year2010 (Inaugural)
Westbank and District Chamber of Commerce KEY Business Person of the Year Award2008
Westbank and District Chamber of Commerce KEY Sustainability Business Award- 2009
In 2010, Bylands Nurseries Ltd. staff participated in the following organizations and activities:
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Lakeview Heights Irrigation District- Chair
Seasonal Agriculture Worker Program (SAWP)
British Columbia Landscape and Nursery Association (BCLNA) Board of DirectorsInterior Representative
Kelowna Senior Secondary Junior Boys Basketball Coach
West Kelowna Minor Hockey Association Bantam Boys Coach
Westbank and District Chamber of Commerce Director
British Columbia Liberal Party Constitution Association
Bylands Nurseries Ltd. is also proud to be part of the following Associations:
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British Columbia Landscape and Nursery Association (BCLNA)
Canadian Nursery and Landscape Association (CNLA)
American Nursery and Landscape Association (ANLA)
Landscape Alberta Nursery Trades Association (LANTA)
Montana Nursery and Landscape Association (MNLA)
Western Nursery Growers Group (WNGG)
International Plant Propagators Society (IPPS)
International Fruit Tree Association (IFTA)
Canadian Ornamental Plant Foundation (COPF)
Perennial Plant Association (PPA)
Clean Plants Certified (CNCP)
Canadian Association of Family Enterprise (CAFE)
Westbank and District Chamber of Commerce
Page 18

Grower of the Year Application - Canadian Nursery Landscape

Transcription

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