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intouch
THE HILLS GROUP NEWSLETTER
What
a Neat
Issue 11
December 2006
Fleet!
See special feature
on Hills Haulage on
Page 6

Comment
by Alan Pardoe, Group Managing Director
and Mike Hill, Company Secretary
A year to be proud of ...
Welcome to another action packed edition of intouch as we
come to the end of yet another year that only seemed to have
started last week!
It has been an exciting year, and one that has emphasised that
change and evolution is now the norm both within and outside
the work environment, and that the pace of that change is
forever getting faster.
Examples of these changes throughout the Group are many:
growth of the concrete business above expectations; more
professional management of our disposal facilities; innovative
waste treatment, recovery and collection projects; improved
performance and management of the aggregates haulage
fleet; and the creation of a much needed IT department – to
name but a few!
We are under no illusion that there is still a lot to do, however,
we are convinced that we will become and remain the envy of
all our competitors both large and small in all the markets that
we operate in, not only for the quality of what we do and the
way we do it, but more importantly for the people we employ.
Thanks to all of you for your contribution to our achievements
and please make sure that you all have a fantastic Christmas
and a happy and prosperous New Year!
Exam success
Well done to Donna Fern, Part Time Assistant Credit Control Clerk and
Kate Chipping, Accounts Assistant, who passed their final exams and
have successfully completed AAT NVQ Level 4 Accounting.
Donna Fern
Kate Chipping
Alan Pardoe
Mike Hill
Useful contact numbers
& website information
Group website
www.hills-group.co.uk
Hills Homes
www.hills-homes.co.uk
Human Resources Dept
01672 518924
IT Help Desk
01672 518932
Confidential HOTLINE
0800 328 4735
(for reporting suspicion of fraud, theft
or health and safety breaches etc)
Publishers Note
‘intouch’ is published by The Hills Group Limited and is distributed three times a year
to employees, pensioners, shareholders and friends of The Hills Group Limited and its
various trading divisions.
The Hills Group Limited, Ailesbury Court, High Street, Marlborough SN8 1AA
Tel: 01672 516999 www.hills-group.co.uk
Issue No 12 will be published in April 2007; please submit news and photographs
(if possible) to Monique Hayes, either to the above address, on telephone (01672)
518941, or via email to mhayes@hills-group.co.uk
The newsletter is printed on recycled paper.
Monique Hayes
2 intouch

HILLS
NEWS
Shareholder & Management
Conference – Sorrento
T
he Shareholder and Management Conference and Group Annual
General Meeting were held in the town of Sorrento on the sunny coast
of south-west Italy in early October. As always the Conference, now held
every two years, provided three generations of shareholders with the
important opportunity to meet any new members of the Senior
Management team as well as renew old friendships with the rest of the
family and longer serving management.
Those present also saw Alan Pardoe, the Group Managing Director, report on
the Group’s financial performance for 2005/6 as well as the performance
targets, issues and assumptions for the next five years. Alan also outlined
the Group’s practical approach to the ownership and management changes
necessary over the next few years as key directors and shareholders retire.
This approach includes the formation, in May next year, of a new holdings
company and the creation of a new operating board to manage the trading
businesses of the Group, as
well as the appointment of a
new Group Chief Executive by
early 2008.
More details of these changes
will obviously be covered in
future issues of intouch.
Alan Pardoe, Group MD, giving his
presentation at the Conference
Link to
Shorncote
Shorncote Quarry gets pride of
place in a new Quarry Products
Association (QPA) publication
designed to help members raise
awareness of the industry’s
vital role.
A photograph of the site dominates
the front cover, and the Company
also features in a case study which
details the part played by the
quarry in providing construction
materials for Swindon’s Great
Western Hospital, which serves
300,000 people. It also points out
that Shorncote creates a total of
40 rural jobs, funds valuable
archaeological discoveries and
will ultimately add to the leisure
facilities in the Cotswold Water
Park.
The QPA’s “Make The Link”
initiative underpins all the
industry’s campaigns, aiming to
demonstrate to stakeholders at all
levels that their own most basic
needs rely heavily on quarrying.
Elements of the publication are
downloadable from our website
www.hills-group.co.uk
Kindly modelled by Jon
Bucksey, Management
Accountant
Personalised Sponsored Rugby Shirts
available...
Size To fit chest Cost
The latest fashion ‘must have’ is now available
to readers of in touch! The Company is
the proud sponsor of Marlborough RFC and
readers can order the high quality nylon
replica rugby shirts with their own (or their
children’s) name and choice of number
printed on the back of the shirt.
The available shirt sizes and costs can be
found in the table opposite and those
interested should contact Monique Hayes on
01672 518941 to order. It has been proven
that these shirts enhance sporting
performance as Marlborough have risen to
be league leaders since wearing the
sponsored shirts!
Age 6 Under 32” £20
Age 8 32” £20
Age 10 34” £20
Age 12 36” £20
XS 38”-40” £25
S 40”-42” £25
M 42”-44” £25
L 44”-46” £25
XL 46”-48” £25
XXL 48”-50” £25
3XL 50”-52” £25
4XL 52”-54” £25
Contents
Comment 2
Hills News 3
Hills Homes 4-5
Aggregates & Haulage 6-7
Recycling & Waste Management 8-9
Waste Warriors 10-11
People News 12
intouch 3

HILLS
HOMES
New site at Manor
Farm Burbage
Manor Farm is the latest select
development from Hills Homes of
just eight, very individual barn style
homes in charming courtyard
settings. Located in the popular
village of Burbage at the edge of
Savernake Forest it’s just 6 miles
south of Marlborough. The new
homes are set to be launched in
early 2007.
It’s been a success!
A brief review of recent Hills Homes’ developments -
Good outcome after a slow start in Calne
With 95 of the 104 homes occupied and the remaining 9 all having exchanged
contracts, Newcroft Gardens in Calne is heading for a successful outcome.
Early delays on the site, with the discovery of slow worms which took six
months to relocate, do not appear to have had a major affect on the final
outcome.
82 houses and 22 apartments sold at an average price of £130,000, the town of
Calne has acquired some much needed affordable housing and the
development achieved the expected level of profitability for the Company.
Even the gardeners were provided for as 25 new and improved allotment plots
complete with new water supply were created on the site. The slow worms
were reported as having settled in nicely to their new home as well.
All done in Malmesbury & Cheltenham
The Malmesbury site consisted of 7 attractive houses within walking distance
of the town’s historic centre with the last home being sold in July this year.
On London Road in Charlton Kings near Cheltenham, 12 impressive town
houses were built in keeping with the standards of the locality. The keys to the
last house at this site were handed over in September 2006 to complete this
successful development.
Good news from
Warminster
The Warminster site’s
achievement further
demonstrates the demand
for reasonably priced new
housing, and the sooner
than expected return of the
Company’s investment will
provide the funds for other
exciting projects.
New show home
in the Circus
Sibylla O’Brien and Rachel Bird, our sales
advisers at Ermin Gate, Priory Vale,
Swindon are caught having a giggle in
our brand new 3 bedroom show home in
the Circus. Only a handful of properties
remain in Phase 1 of this development.
Welcome to...
Katie Sands, Sales Assistant
Paul Cook, Assistant Quantity Surveyor:
All sold at Charlton Kings
4 intouch

Timber
frame
homes an
eye opener
Hills Homes’ first foray into timber
frame construction is moving on a
pace with the development of five
dwellings for Sarsen Housing
Association alongside our own site at
Manor Farm in Burbage near
Marlborough.
Having taken a traditionally pragmatic
view with reliance on masonry construction
up to this time, the Company decided
to “dip its toe” in the water by using Modern
Methods of Construction (MMC) for this
mixed tenure eco-homes scheme.
Bob Sparrow, Production Director, who has
worked closely with specialist timber frame
contractor Merronbrook Limited, commented that
“it was a joy to see the five dwellings watertight &
ready for internal trades just three weeks after commencement
of the frames’ erection. The speed was a
real eye opener; indeed if you blinked you almost
missed it”.
Summer sales soared
at Warminster
S
ales were certainly not slow during summer and we
have proved this at our new development in Warminster.
Although the 25-home development at Chestnut Tree
Gardens will not be complete until the middle of next
year, all but one has sold ‘off plan’ in a record 14 weeks!
The development consists of four house types,
with two to four bedrooms. They are set in a rural
location nestling on the western fringes of the
Salisbury Plain.
David Chamberlain has teamed up with friends
to buy six of the properties, which they plan to
let. He received information about the
development from Hills Homes after buying
houses at our Newcroft Gardens site in Calne.
“I was keen to invest in more Hills Homes
properties,” says David.
“I have been thoroughly impressed with
the quality of finish and the specification
– a number of ‘extras’ are included in an
already reasonable price. I have enjoyed
dealing with a relatively small housebuilder
because you have confidence
that problems will be dealt with. The
site managers and sales advisors
couldn’t have been more helpful.”
Bob Sparrow (second right) inspects the new timber frame buildings with
(left to right) Alan Pardoe, Group MD, Robert Hill, Group Chairman, Nick
King, General Manager Property and Barry Wheeler, Site Manager.
Nick King, General Manager for
Hills Homes, adds: “Chestnut Tree
Gardens has been a tremendous
success. Part of the credit
should go to our sales advisor,
Liz Young. She showed great
tenacity in following
through leads. Potential
buyers were impressed
with her experience, good
judgement and
personable nature.”
Coming soon… for 2007
8 country homes in Burbage
11 homes in Minety
10 houses & 4 apartments in Highworth
6 five-bedroom detached homes in Cromhall (near Wootton under Edge)
All enquiries to Fiona Lawson and Josi Hobbs on 01672 518944
The last remaining plot is a Gainsford which is
a 3 bedroom 3 storey house with two parking
spaces. Priced at £163,500, incentives are
available, please call Liz for more
information on telephone 01985 220532.
intouch 5

AGGREGATES & HAULAGE
Training and technology improve safety
and efficiency for haulage fleet
In the August 2005 issue we reported on the installation
throughout the Hills Haulage fleet of Siemens VDO’s FM300 On
Board Telemetry System. At that stage the use of the system was
limited to vehicle tracking. This allowed the shipping staff to
know where their vehicles were at any given moment enabling
them to inform customers of expected delivery times as well as
optimising shipping. During 2006 Hills Haulage, Siemens and
the vehicle manufacturers have worked closely together to use
the additional product features that enable monitoring of how
and when the vehicles are driven.
The vehicle manufacturers have also provided additional training
to assist drivers in getting the best out of their vehicles.
Furthermore throughout November all the drivers received
training on SAFED (Safe and Fuel Efficient Driving). This is an
example of cross divisional co-operation as the training was
carried out by SAFED assessors from the Waste Division who ran
half day sessions for each driver.
Fuel costs are the fleet’s single biggest annual spend, however,
the combination of the technology, the training and a fantastic
effort by the drivers is already yielding an improvement of 1mpg
in some cases – which does not sound like much, but translates
into a cost saving of as much as £3,500 per year for each vehicle!
Neil Watts, Transport Co-ordinator, using the new Siemens system
Garry Mulcock, LGV Driver
Haulage
overhaul
Over the last 18 months the Hills
Haulage fleet, based at Shorncote
quarry, has undergone an
overhaul. The impressive line-up
now boasts ten new eight
wheelers and two new artics
which have replaced older and
costlier vehicles.
John Warner, Transport Manager (far
right), taking delivery of the final new
vehicle with (left to right) Mark
Bullows, Account Manager MAN Trucks,
Colin Wenban, LGV Driver, and Mike
Bull, Sales Executive MAN Trucks
Ode to
John
Here is John Warner our
transport man,
Tries to do lots of things if he can.
Looks after the drivers,
Neil & Linda too,
But there is one more thing
he has to do.
The roller towel in the gents
needs to be replaced,
So come on John, do it with
some haste.
“I don’t know how to do it”
John said to Fran,
She replied, “Come along with
John Warner, Transport Manager
me then young man”
Into the gents they did go,
Progress it was very slow!
Quite a bit later out they came,
Johns little face was etched with pain.
“Have you managed to change it” we did say,
“Of course I did, that’s made my day”
So excited was John with what he had done,
We thought it was time to have our fun.
A certificate was then awarded to him and a couple of Mars Bars too,
So proud was he for learning to change the roller towel in the loo!!!!
6 intouch

Special design drainage
material gets the green light
In September the aggregates sales team were
approached by Bachy Solentanche, one of the
world’s leading contractors in foundation and
underground engineering, to design a
specialised drainage material to be used at
the new Blunsdon Bypass.
The specification they wrote for the contract
was unique and could not be supplied by any
other company in the area. It not only had to
be correct for ground conditions, but also for a
brand new drainage trench machine which
had been commissioned to work on the
project. After lengthy consultation a new
product was created using a mixed pea
shingle and Compton Bassett washed sand to
fill the trenches.
Hills was also commissioned by McAlpines,
who are managing the Blunsdon Bypass
project, to supply the material for the haul
road and site compound. This was done using
a recycled stone from Shorncote.
Top: The product being delivered to the site.
Middle: The mix is loaded into a mobile conveyor
Bottom: The drainage trench machine laying the
pipes and infilling with the special mix
Quarry Safari a big hit
Shorncote Quarry proved the perfect venue for a group of visitors to Keynes Country Park
who were offered the chance to drive four-by-four vehicles over a ‘lunar’ landscape.
The Quarry Safari was run by motor dealers Pebley Beach in conjunction with The
Cotswold Water Park Society and Hills. Participation in the safari was free and queues
formed as groups of people came to traverse slippery slopes, muddy water splashes and
rugged rubble terrain.
“It gave the people the opportunity to look behind the scenes at a working quarry and
have access to areas that are normally out of bounds to the public,” said Mike Brunsdon,
the dealer principal of Pebley Beach. “Of course it was also a perfect opportunity for
them to see what the range of Suzuki off-roaders are capable of. Most of all, it gave
visitors a chance to have a
lot of fun! The response
to this event was great,
and we will definitely
hold another Quarry
Safari in the future.”
Gavin Walton, Business Manager for Hills
Concrete
Aggregates
Review of 2006
We began the year by supplying
the new Dobbies Garden Centre
at Cirencester with both
limestone and our processed
Topsoil. At Easter we supplied
clay for the embankments to the
long awaited A419 road
improvement at Commonhead
for McAlpines - a joint venture
with the waste division, with the
clay coming from Chapel Farm.
In the summer Network Rail
released a contract to restore
Challow Rail embankment. This
involved transporting muck on
Hills Haulage vehicles from the
site to Bowling Green and then
taking Class 1A limestone from
Bowling Green back to the
contract for embankment fill.
In Oxford we obtained a 20,000
tonne contract to remove muck
from Churchill Hospital for
Raymond Brown Construction
and we provided a similar service
for P J Carey as they built a new
extension for BMW at Cowley.
We end the year with the loss of
one of the sales team, Gavin
Walton. In truth he moved
within the quarry, approximately
100 yards away to the Concrete
plant where he took up his new
post as Business Manager. We
would like to take this
opportunity on behalf of the
aggregates team to wish him
every success.
intouch 7

RECYCLING & WASTE MANAGEMENT
Launch of new HazBin service
S
eptember saw the launch of our new hazardous waste collection
service called the ‘HazBin’.
Recent changes to waste regulations
have brought about a ban on businesses disposing of hazardous waste
with the normal waste stream.
As a result of these changes, Hills waste collection staff identified the
opportunity to provide a specific collection service to assist their
customers.
The HazBin is a 60 litre plastic container designed for the safe storage
and collection of hazardous wastes, such as aerosol cans, bleach
bottles, batteries and fluorescent lights, from business premises.
The new
‘HazBin’
“We are really excited to be able to add the Hazbin to our range of
services and the reaction from customers has been very positive,” said
Richard Bond, Sales Manager. “We are always looking for opportunities
to expand our services.”
New equipment improves
efficiency
Thorny Down Transfer Station recently took delivery of a new Volvo 360º
tracked excavator which is fitted with a cab that can be raised and lowered
hydraulically and a grab for picking up waste.
The addition of the hydraulic cab helps the driver work at the same height
as the vehicle being loaded, increasing safety and reducing the potential for
damage being caused to vehicles. The grab allows the careful selection and
placement of waste, again helping provide a safer working environment.
“The new machine is a very welcome addition at Thorny Down. It has
helped improve operator comfort and shortened the loading time of the
Company’s bulk artics. Due to the improved visibility, better weights of the
paper and cardboard mix are also being achieved,” said Martyn Parfitt,
Recycling Manager.
Still in
Bloom
Hanging baskets at Amesbury HRC, planted
up using Warrior compost, were showing no
signs of fading away – despite that fact that
these pictures were taken at the beginning
of November. Their display certainly helped
to sell a lot more compost from the site.
The new equipment in operation at Thorny Down
8 intouch

Think about it
– reduce, reuse, recycle
Steve Burns, Recycling Contracts Manager
In 2005/06
Hills recycled
12.3 million plastic
bottles, the
equivalent to
65 for every
household in
Wiltshire.
Cliff Carter, Recycling Promotions Manager
In 2005/06
Hills recycled
41,665,400 cans,
saving enough
energy to power
5.5million 60 watt
light bulbs for 24
hours, or if placed
end to end would
be approximately
3,800 miles long.
Waste
Warrior
does
Machu
Picchu!
Hills recently sponsored the
Macmillan Cancer Relief’s Peru
Cycling Challenge where
participants cycled for 6
consecutive days from Lake
Titicaca up to Machu Picchu
which is 4,338m above sea level.
Nick Fiore, one of the participants
and a business associate
of the Company, agreed to wear
the T-shirt and the helmet to
secure his sponsorship.
The number of
cardboard bales
Hills produced at
the MRF in
Compton Bassett
in 2005/06 was
1.9 x the height of
Ben Nevis, or put
another way –
laid end to end
they would reach
from the MRF to
Hilmarton.
Alex Marland, Waste Collection Manager
intouch 9

Waste ‘Oscars
for young art
WASTE WARRIORS
September saw the launch of Wiltshire Wildlife Trust’s Waste Action
Calendar, which features the 13 winning pictures drawn by school
children across Wiltshire and is published with funding by Hills. The
competition was held to spread the word about recycling in
classrooms across the county, and produced 400 entries from no
fewer than 24 schools.
At the Awards ceremony, which was held at the Hayley Conference
Centre in Wroughton, each child whose picture is printed in the
calendar received a certificate plus a bundle of goodies made from
recycled materials. Then the children, accompanied by a friend, each
gave a short presentation about recycling.
Guests at the event included MPs Robert Key (Salisbury) and Michael
Wills (North Swindon), Alan Pardoe, Group MD of Hills, as well as representatives
from local authorities and others.
The winners, wearing their ‘warrior’ helmets following the awards ceremony
10

’
sts
Michael Booth, whose picture appears on the cover of the
calendar, receives his award from Alan Pardoe, Group MD
Phillipa Saunders, the Trust’s Waste Education Team Leader,
said,“We’d like to thank everyone who took part in our
calendar competition. All the winning entries carry a very
powerful message and we were overwhelmed with the
amount of hard work everyone put in. Although we had to
choose just 13 pictures to be printed, all the children who
entered should feel very proud of themselves.”
“We’d also like to thank the Hills Group for generously
funding the printing of the calendar, as well as the
Community Recycling and Economic Development
Programme (CRED) for funding the project itself.”
11

PEOPLE
NEWS
Long Service
There are many employees who have worked for the Company for a considerable
period of time and we would like to acknowledge those who have reached
significant milestones in the year 2006.
These milestones start at 10 years’ service and go on to include service for every
five years thereafter. Congratulations to:
10 years’ service
Dave Budgen, Weighbridgeman/
Checker, Chapel Farm
Peter Strange, Foreman, Everleigh
HRC & Transfer Station
Andrew Liddle, Production Manager,
Aggregates
Neil Driver, LGV Driver, Purton
Daryl Taylor, Technical and Environmental
Manager, Marlborough
Brian Hayes, Foreman/ Weighbridgeman,
Thorney Down Transfer Station
Andy Rumming, Plant Operative,
Compton Bassett
Martyn Parfitt, Recycling Manager,
Compton Bassett
First Aiders
Dave Minett, Compost Foreman,
Compton Bassett
Colin Woodhouse, Development
Manager, Marlborough
15 years’ service
Steve Mead, Tele-sales Co-ordinator,
Shorncote - plus 13 years previously
giving a total of 28!
20 years’ service
Les Miles, LGV Driver, Purton
25 years’ service
Jan Nadin, Transport Supervisor, Newbury
30 years’ service
Lance Parry, Special Projects Director,
Marlborough
New Employees
A warm ‘Hills’ welcome to the
following employees who joined the
Company between 1 August and 31
October 2006:
Darren Humphries, Casual Recycling
Operative
Keith Heald, Weighbridge Operator
Claire Webber, Casual Recycling Operative
Malcolm Fodey, Kerbside Loader
Andrew Quinney, Kerbside Loader
Leslie Gibbs, Kerbside Loader
John Fulton, LGV Driver
James Palmer, Casual Site Operative
Paul Cook, Assistant Quantity Surveyor
Terry Little, LGV Driver
Darren Smith, Plant Operative
Nigel Barnes, LGV Driver
Alasdair Ingle, Casual Recycling Operative
Geoff Soldiering on!
It was fantastic to bump into Geoff
Cottle, resplendent in medals, in early
November as he was raising money
for the annual Poppy Appeal in
Marlborough High Street. Geoff was
still bursting with as much energy as
he had when he retired from the
Company 16 years ago after 38 years
service! Great to see you Geoff.
Kate Chipping (right) and Carly Collings have
both recently qualified as First Aiders after
completing a four day training course with
St. John’s Ambulance.
One of their main tasks was to ensure that
each floor of the head office building was
equipped with the necessary first aid box
and accident book.
Wear it Pink!
Staff at head office participated in the national Wear It Pink Day on 27th October to
raise money for Breast Cancer Awareness.
12 intouch
New arrivals
Congratulations to
Nigel Bray (Site Supervisor, Stanton St
Quintin HRC ) and Paula, a son, Harvey,
born on 11 September 2006.
Cliff Carter (Recycling
Promotions Manager)
and Pauline, a son,
Harvey, born on
30 September.
Designed by The Lines Group, Cheltenham. Tel: 01242 244830