Are you reasonably good at everything? Enjoy working in a small team? We're recruiting!

I once saw a job advert with the headline "Are you reasonably good at everything?" and it really caught my eye.  We're recruiting now for our Telford office and that phrase actually describes the person we're looking for - someone who would enjoy being our office administrator and also would relish speaking to clients, chasing quotes, updating our systems, even learning or making use of some technical skills!

The role is based in our Telford office (TF2 9FT) and is available now.  Some element of home-working might be available but you should expect to be in the office Monday - Friday.  We can be flexible on working hours, including offering a school-hours contract, if relevant.

Would you like to work with us and our product Alpha Tracker?

We're proud to be a Living Wage Employer (we've just had our anniversary) and we enjoy working with apprentices and seeing them develop their skills and become full-time employees - see how well Jamie and Zac did. 

Other benefits of working with us at Start Software include a supportive team environment, profit-share bonuses, occasional foreign travel, a cycle-to-work scheme, a tech scheme (for buying discounted technology for home use) and a working environment based on trust and empowerment.

If you would like to explore this opportunity, click here and send us your details.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Dan has presented Zac with his apprenticeship certificate - congrats from all of us

Congratulations Zac for achieving your apprenticeship! Zac is now working as a support technician and junior software developer, alongside our team of programmers in Telford, UK.

That certificate was well earned! Zac (left) and Team Leader Dan (right)

Would you like a technical or customer service apprenticeship here at Start Software?  Get in touch here.

The latest Alpha Tracker Mobile update is now in beta test

Jack has released the latest Alpha Tracker Mobile app to our beta testers.

The latest version of Alpha Tracker Mobile in action

The latest update has these new features and improvements, many of which will appeal to our water hygiene consultancies:

1. You can now duplicate water assets and outlets (and the data associated with them) with just one click
   
   
2. You can mark outlets as being infrequently accessed
   
   
3. The last date an outlet was monitored/cleaned/serviced is now shown when working on site (so that you can avoid working on outlets which don't need to be actioned)
   
   
4. Attempting to log in with an invalid user ID or password, or an expired password, now displays a more helpful message
   
   
5. If your sync is interrupted for any reason, you will not see duplicate assets and outlets when you re-sync
   
   
6. Photos are now quicker to display
   
   
7. A variety of minor bugs have been addressed.

Do you need more lab analysis capacity? HSL are offering sub-contracting services to other Alpha Tracker labs

If you're looking for additional lab capacity, HSL is offering lab services to other Alpha Tracker asbestos consultancies.

HSL operate fully accredited and very experienced laboratories offering the full range of asbestos testing services including water absorption tests for cement/board confirmations.  All of their work is certified to ISO 17025 and ISO9001:2000.

HSL's lab testing and analysis services

If you're interested in outsourcing to HSL, talk to Asbestos Lab Manager Lucy Croydon (click here to email).

If you'd like us to feature your consultancy on the Alpha Tracker news feed & blog, get in touch with Robin.

The latest Water Hygiene User Guide for Alpha Tracker is now available on our website

Kim has updated the Alpha Tracker Water Hygiene User Guide and it is now available to read and download.

You'll find the Water Hygiene User Guide with our other documentation

The guide explains how to book jobs into Alpha Tracker, how to schedule them, site data capture (for Legionella Risk Assessments as well as monitoring/temperature work), report production and accessing the asset & outlet data afterwards.

Click here to view our Alpha Tracker manuals.  Feel free to read online or download and print.

Client Portal live webinar next Tuesday! Join Kim & Robin live and ask questions, suggest new features, get involved

It's our next Alpha Tracker live webinar on Tuesday 28 November at 12:30 (UK).  Kim & Robin will be showing the Client Portal and how it can deliver real benefits to your business and your clients.

You can watch all of our webinar recordings here 

Registration for our webinars is free and takes just a couple of minutes.  Click here and see you Tuesday.

Asbestos disease campaigner & fundraiser Mavis Nye has finally lost her battle with Mesothelioma. Such sad news

It's with a heavy heart that we share the news that legendary asbestos disease campaigner and fundraiser Mavis Nye has finally lost her battle with Mesothelioma.  

Mavis contracted Mesothelioma in 2009 and, together with her husband Ray, they have raised £1000s for asbestos disease research since her diagnosis as well as supporting fellow sufferers of the disease and being a figurehead for the asbestos industry as a whole.

Our Alpha Tracker director Robin is a Trustee of the Mavis Nye Foundation and was devastated to hear of Mavis's passing.  Robin will be taking an oil portrait of Mavis & Nye to the European Asbestos Forum in Brussels to help the attendees from 27 different countries celebrate Mavis and her incredible achievements.

Ray & Mavis Nye

Rest in peace, Mavis, your work is done.

Come and say hello at EAF in Brussels! Meet Jack, Judy, Kim & the whole Alpha Tracker team

The Alpha Tracker asbestos software team are exhibiting at the European Asbestos Forum in Brussels next week.  You'll be able to meet the whole UK team as well as Judy from our Adelaide office.  Do come and say hello!

Alpha Tracker is a sponsor and exhibitor at EAF 2023

Want to find out more or want to book your place?  Click https://www.europeanasbestosforum.org/programme-and-registration-2023/

The latest webinar - all about Alpha Draw - is now available to watch on YouTube

Did you miss Tuesday's Alpha Tracker live webinar?  It's now available on YouTube - well worth watching if you want to speed up your surveys with our free site drawing tool, Alpha Draw.

Jack, Kim & Dan presenting the webinar

Watch below - or direct on YouTube.  By the way, we had the most attendees ever on the live session - thanks for joining!

You can register for our free monthly webinars here - https://us06web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_aS6dJ0j5QCycZ65VbHgBow#/registration

Another 98/100 month on the Support Desk at Start Software

It's another Support Team record!  

Our Support Team have done themselves proud again.  In October, they solved 98% of urgent tickets within 2 hours - equalling the record from August (see https://blog.start-software.com/2023/09/its-record-98-of-urgent-tickets-were.html).

Well done James, Zac, Leanne, Judy, Jack, Tina and all for doing such a great job.

It's the closest we've been to 100% success!

(all together, we took 678 calls for assistance in October with 92% of queries raised being resolved within the timescales agreed with the caller)