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London 2012 Olympics Round-Up
Undergraduate Open Day
commercial services
informer
Issue 22 | August 2012
CSI is published every three months. You can also download it online at www.imperial.ac.uk/commercialservices. The next issue of CSI is due
in November 2012 . Please contact the Marketing team for more info: csmarketing@imperial.ac.uk +44 (0)20 7594 9062

director’s welcome
i
August 2012
am very proud to say that our usual high standards of customer care have been surpassed so far this summer.
In the last four months, we have seen the Olympics come and go with fourteen nations training in our facilities,
two of them also staying on campus along with the Police, and many other parties involved in the Olympics using
our facilities. We have made significant contributions to the success of this year’s postgraduate ceremonies and
the undergraduate science and engineering open day not to mention winning the FLAME award for the second
year running. I would like to thank all you of you involved in providing the best possible service and making these
occasions truly memorable.
Looking forward to the next few months, our focus must now turn to welcoming students to the new academic
year. I am excited about several new developments which will only serve to enhance the student experience – the
refurbishment of Wilson House, the opening of Wood Lane Studios, the implementation of the recently approved
Sports Strategy, the anticipated approval of the Hospitality Strategy to make the best possible use of our facilities
and reinvest more resources to the College, and the opening of the new Student Art Studio in Garden Hall. Let’s keep up the momentum
of the summer to make the start of the next academic year as smooth and professional as possible!
Melanie Wilson
Imperial medical student and Great Britain rower
Melanie raced in the women’s quadruple sculls qualifying for the
final and finishing 6th
ON YOUR MARKS, GET SET, GET READY FOR YOUR ROUND-UP!!!
W hat a summer for sport! From late July to mid August, the Imperial
community witnessed one of the most anticipated Olympic Games in history
and Commercial Services have been at the heart of Imperial’s contribution.
During the London 2012 Olympic Games, Imperial has cheered on two of its
own student competitors, played host to 14 Olympic teams training at Ethos,
hosted the Japanese and Swiss Olympic Committees and Metropolitan Police
in campus accommodation and catering facilities and been in the stands
watching the events live.
Staff from all Commercial Services departments have contributed to a
successful few weeks whether they were involved in checking guests into
accommodation and ensuring they have a comfortable stay, making sure
the Ethos facilities were set up and open on time for training sessions to
getting breakfast out on time and to an excellent standard. Everyone involved
together have ensured our Olympic guests have left feeling satisfied whilst
continuing to provide the best service possible to our usual customers!
Read on to the next page for a small reminder of what the Olympics
brought to Imperial...
Nicola Spirig, women’s triathlon
gold medallist
Neil Mosley with Swedish triathlete
gold medallist, Nicola Spirig - also
featured on the front cover!
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Alistair (right) and Jonny (left) Brownlee -
Men’s Triathlon Gold and Bronze medal winners
Canadian Silver Medallist Women’s
Eight Rower popped into Ethos for a
quick workout after competing and
took time to meet the team
Accommodation and Catering
Richard Weinberger, Men’s Open Water
Swimming Bronze Medallist - Richard made a
special guest appearance during a community
children’s event in collaboration with
Westminster City Council
Sport
• On 3 May Commercial Services received a Podium Award for
Innovative International Collaboration for our work in hosting
athletes from 14 nations
• Hosted 14 Olympic teams at Ethos including Great Britain, Japan,
Switzerland, Australia, France, Canada, New Zealand, Ireland,
Spain, Portugal, Chile, USA, Holland and Italy.
• Many of the world’s top 20 triathletes were amongst those using
the facilities including Great Britain’s Brownlee brothers, Alistair
and Jonny, who went on to win Gold and Bronze respectively in
the Men’s Triathlon in Hyde Park and Switzerland’s Nicola Spirig
who won Gold in the Women’s competition
• Students Melanie Wilson and
Adam Scholefield worked hard
and made the most of the support
provided to them by Sport
Imperial to earn their places
amongst the athletes of Team
GB. Melanie is a medical student
and rower – she raced in the
women’s quadruple sculls
qualifying for the final
Adam Scholefield - Imperial Student
and finishing a fantastic 6th.
and GB Waterpolo Vice-Captain
Adam, an engineering PhD student
and waterpolo centre-forward,
helped lead the GB water polo team into the preliminary round
getting his name on the scoresheet in the process but
unfortunately didn’t make it through the next level.
BIKE POOL Facilities Management and Commercial Services launched the trial of
the Bike Pool scheme to facilitate cycling to work over the Olympic Period. The trial
was run for six weeks and was open to all support services staff. The pool consisted
of ten bikes available to hire for up to 72 hours.
Japanese Men’s Fencing Foil Team
Who Where Number Value
Metropolitan Police Eastside 450 £2.8m
Weeks Hall 50
Evelyn Gardens 16
Japanese Olympic Committee Southside 300 £3.1m
BOSCO (Russian Clothing) Beit Hall 80 £190,000
Eventguard (UK security company) Evelyn Gardens 72 £17,000
Fauchon (French caterers) Evelyn gardens 50 £45,000
LOCOG (UK) Evelyn Gardens 43 £38,000
Assist Group (partner company of Italian Pembridge & Evelyn 30 £28,000
Olympic Committee)
Gardens
G4S (UK security company) Beit Hall 29 £45,000
Swiss Olympic Committee Southside 24 £66,000
TOTAL 1144 £4.5m
August 2012
If Ethos was an Olympic nation it
would have ranked 23rd in the
overall medals table tying with Kenya
The total Olympic medal count for athletes who
used Ethos is 11:
GOLD
Women’s Triathlon - Nicola Spirig (SUI)
Men’s Triathlon - Alistair Brownlee (GBR)
Men’s Super Heavyweight Boxing - Anthony Joshua (GBR)
SILVER
Men’s Triathlon - Javier Gomez (ESP)
Fencing Men’s Team Foil - Japan
Men’s Badminton - Lee Chong Wei (MAS)
BRONZE
Women’s Triathlon - Erin Densham (AUS)
Men’s Triathlon - Jonny Brownlee (GBR)
Women’s 400m Freestyle Swim - Rebecca Adlington
(GBR)
Women’s 800m Freestyle Swim - Rebecca Adlington
(GBR)
Men’s Open Water Swimming - Richard Weinberger (CAN)
Eleanor Simmonds, the Paralympic swimming
double Gold Medallist, paid her second visit
to Ethos on 28 March 2012. Visit the Sport
Imperial website to read the full story.
STAFF QUOTE OF THE OLYMPICS
“As the D-Day for the Olympics has come, and the
entire world’s eyes are on London, yesterday seems to
be my lucky day to be a part of it. On a detour, I went to
shepherd’s bush in the evening at 6pm and met a lady
who was nominated to carry the Olympic torch by the
community.
I was thrilled seeing the torch and requested her to give
me an opportunity to hold it and she kindly agreed. I
took pictures with her holding the torch.
This seems to be proud moment of my life holding the
torch. Please check the attachments and let the games
begin with full thrill and excitement.”
Cyril Joseph, Assistant Catering Manager
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ethos pool makes a big splash
Ethos’ high standards have also recently earned them the Chartered Institute for the
Management of Sport and Physical Activity (CIMSPA) European Pool Safety Award
– a sure signal to staff and customers that the pool meets the highest levels of
operational quality.
MP Chris Kelly couldn’t agree more. In an email to Ethos on 8 August, he said:
“I’m an Imperial alumnus and Ethos founder member. I can often be the first to point out when
something isn’t (as good) as it should be so I just wanted to send you an e-mail to say how
fantastic the pool looks. The neon blue lighting under water is great and the new lane markers
are superb. All-in-all the London 2012 refresh of the pool is absolutely great.”
arcs awards: appreciate, recognise and
celebrate sport
On Thursday 21 June 2012, Sport Imperial held the annual Imperial ARCS (Appreciate, Recognise and
Celebrate Sport) Event. The event brought together over 140 guests including students, staff, coaches,
officials, volunteers, sponsors and partner organisations.
We were lucky enough to have Simon Dennis, Great Britain Rower and Olympic Gold Medallist present.
Simon entertained our guests with the interesting story of his history as a student and a member of
the IC Boat Club at Imperial College London, his failures and successes and the path to his gold medal
achievement. Many students were able to relate to his experiences and had some great questions to ask
him. Simon kindly stayed for the entire evening and passed around his Gold medal for all to see.
Awards were presented in the following categories to the winners:
• Coach of the Year: Jim Lewis (Karate)
• Ambassador of the Year: Toby Spittle (IC Rugby)
• Athlete of the Year: Wilf Kimberley (IC Boat)
• Sports Media Award: James Carver (IC Snooker)
• Ethos Award: Ethos Reception Team
• Student Team of the Year: IC Ladies Fencing
• Student Club of the Year: Tennis
Congratulations to all those that were nominated for the awards and of course the winners.
Take a look at the photos from the ARCS event on the Sport Imperial Facebook page:
www.facebook.com/sportimperial
August 2012
ethos shines at flame 2012
Sport Imperial won again as Ethos took the title of Educational
Club of the Year at the FIA Flame Awards on Wednesday 27 June.
This is the second time that Ethos has won this award and the third
time that they have reached the final three. Ethos was up against
Hertfordshire Sports Village and The Edge, University of Leeds
Fitness, Sport and Wellbeing complex.
Finalists for this award were put through a vigorous three-stage
assessment process which began formally in March. The Ethos
team however, started their preparations long before this using
the knowledge gained from their 2011 win to maintain the high
standards recognised by the Fitness Industry Association (FIA).
The team worked hard to consolidate their experience and effort to
earn this prestigious win for the second year running.
a great idea!
The IDEA League was founded in 1999 and is a
network of five leading European universities of
technology and science including Imperial, TU
Delft (Holland), ETH Zurich (Switzerland), RWTH
Aachen (Germany) and ParisTech (France). Every
year the institutions take turns to host an annual
sports event and this year’s competition took
place at Imperial from 13 to 15 June.
Student teams competed in triathlon, tennis,
hand ball and table tennis. The Rector attended
the awards dinner on the evening of 14 June.
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undergraduate open day
Imperial opened its doors once again to welcome prospective
students and their parents to this year’s Science and
Engineering Open Day on 28 June 2012. The day was a great
success with approximately 2,500 prospective students and
1,400 parents visiting the Campus.
The Open Day was a great opportunity for Commercial Services
to promote services across the division, including Sport,
Accommodation and the Student Hub. We had three fantastic
stands at this year’s event. The incredibly popular Halls of Residence tours were very well organised
thanks to our hard working team and volunteer tour guides. The prospective students and their
parents were able to view rooms in Southside, Eastside, Beit and Evelyn Gardens.
Once again, the Commercial Services divison came together with enthusiasm to engage and help to
recruit students to Imperial.
WOOD LANE STUDIOS OPENS ITS DOORS
The brand new studio accommodation complex on
the new Imperial West site in White City opened its
doors on Saturday to its first 100 residents. These
606 postgraduate studios, developed in partnership
with Voreda, enhance the College’s postgraduate
accommodation provision through GradPad along with
Griffon Studios in Clapham Junction, which opened last
October and Orient House, Imperial Wharf, our latest
acquisition. See more at www.gradpadlondon.com
brand new facilities for alumni
on south kensington campus
An exciting project that will create a brand new Alumni Centre
and a café on the South Kensington Campus is due to start in
Autumn this year. The project was initiated in response to the
lack of space for Alumni on Campus and the new facilities will
help to improve our service to visiting Alumni.
Located at the eastern end of the Campus facing Dalby Court,
the Centre will be a versatile space equipped with desk spaces, WIFI and laptop stations. It will be an
ideal place for meetings, events and hospitality catering. The new open access café in the Business
School Annex will offer a wide range of food and drinks as well as provide resources and support for
the Alumni Centre.
Due to the new development, the Mechanical Engineering Café will be closed during 2012/13
academic year. The new facilities for Imperial Alumni are expected to open Spring 2013.
August 2012
CATERING HAVE BEEN BUSY!
did you know.....
... that the Blackwell’s book shop on the Level 2
Walkway on the South Kensington campus has
now closed and the Catering team will be opening
a new Grab & Go salad and soup outlet? This new
take-away space is being refurbished and is due
to open ready for the new academic year.
... the College is looking to redevelop the Holland
Club on Level 0 Sherfield, South Kensington. The
Catering team has tendered for the provision
of a new postgraduate and staff pub and café
along with the Student Union. The College will be
making a decision in the near future so we’ll keep
you posted in the next issue.
thumbs up from the royal
college of art (rca)
The Royal College of Art, who recently benefitted
from Imperial’s catering team providing a
catering service to their students and staff,
were very pleased with the overall service. In
a recent review of the College’s teaching and
facilities by the Quality Assurance Agency, our
Catering team looked after the review team’s
catering requirements and received the following
positive feedback from Dr Paul Thompson,
Rector and Vice-Provost of the College: “Thank
you very much for looking after the review team’s
catering requirements. At the end of the visit they
commented on how well your staff had looked
after them. They were particularly impressed by
the quality of the food. Please pass on my thanks
to the staff involved.”
diary dates save the
date
19 - 20 september square meal venues and events show
Our Sales and Events team will be attending the 8th annual Square Meal Venues and Events show in September. This event attracts over 7,000
attendees each year, and is a fantastic opportunity to showcase some of our unique venues, including 58 Prince’s Gate and 170 Queens Gate.
17 - 29 september pre-season training
Sport Imperial’s pre-season training programme, usually designed to boost our athletes’ fitness level prior to the start of a new season, will be open
to everyone this year. The high-intensity programme is an ideal way to improve general fitness. For more information or to register contact Shannon
Jewell, Active Lifestyles Manager at s.jewell@imperial.ac.uk
29 - 30 september move in weekend - volunteers needed!
The extremely busy Moving In Weekend will soon be upon us, with approximately 3,000 undergraduate students moving into Halls of Residence. As usual,
we are calling for volunteers for the Saturday, Sunday and Monday to help welcome and direct students. Please contact Ellie Fielding at
e.fielding@imperial.ac.uk if you would like to help.
30 september international welcome reception and mini fair
The event gives international students the opportunity to meet some representatives from around the College and from local businesses. The Reception will
take place in the Great Hall in the Sherfield Building on the South Kensington campus. Our Student Hub, Accommodation and Sport Imperial team will be
there to showcase what we have to offer.
30 september sports club captain’s evening
The Club Captain’s evening will the held at the Ethos Sports Centre. The event brings together all the new sports club captains for the new academic year to
be introduced to the BUCS calendar and briefed by Sport Imperial about aims and objectives throughout the sporting season. Students are able to have all
their questions answered by Sport Imperial staff.
2 october fresher’s fair
Over 6,000 new and returning Imperial students attend the Fresher’s Fair every October, which is the largest event of the year promoting activities and
opportunities at Imperial, including over 300 clubs and societies across the College. The Fresher’s Fair is a great opportunity for our Student Hub and Sports
Department to showcase what we have to offer.
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Real Lives
Born and raised in sunny South Africa, life revolved mainly around the beach and sea when I
was a child. My Dad was involved heavily in boats and yachts, so I spent a lot of time sailing
and surfing. Growing up, I studied and moved away from home to work on a guest farm where
I had many ‘pets’ - horses, guinea fowl, ostrich, blesbuck, zebra, wildebeest, great dane, bull
terrier, lions and some goldfish.
I have a fair number of my family working in hospitality so I guess it’s in my genes to work
in this industry. I worked at a conference centre in Jozi (Joburg) before moving to the UK and
married a lovely lady who is a great chef and makes amazing food (ask my team about the
yummy cakes I bring in sometimes).
Imperial was the second job that I had in the UK and almost seven years later I am still here.
I think one of the main reasons I have stayed around for such a long time is the people I work
with. The variety of clients I get to meet over the years has been vast and everyone brings their
own experience and idea of how to run an event. After years of experience working at Imperial,
I think I have well-rounded knowledge
about most things here, but there is
still a lot to learn.
Most of my friends and colleagues
know that I have a good sense of
humour. I know everyone works very
hard and it’s easy to find yourself
snowed under with work and feel
under pressure. So I enjoy taking a
moment out of the day and making
someone smile or laugh. One of my
mottos in life is ‘work to the best of
your ability and have fun doing it, life
is too short and so are most people’
(most people compared to me are
short, apologies but it’s true). I can be
a little sarcastic sometimes, not sure
if that’s a South African thing.
Michael St Clair Laing – Events Operations Manager
Michael has been working at Imperial for almost 7 years in the
Events team at Commercial Services. He is a very experienced
event manager and has worked on countless events held in our
venues.
By the way I love cycling! I have been ‘scaring’ people in the office for many years wearing my
lycra, so I would like to thank them for their understanding and not pointing and laughing.
the ‘queen’ made an appearance
at the academic venue show
The Conference and Events team were out in
force once again to showcase the Imperial
brand and facilities to new external clients
as they exhibited at the Academic Venue
Show on 16 May. This year, our stand was
decorated in Victorian style to celebrate the
‘Queen’s Jubilee’. The team were further
bolstered by a very authentic looking statue
of the Queen who certainly did a great job
attracting visitors to our stand.
Michael and Alex recently acquired two new ‘Duty
Managers‘ for the Events team!
did you know - the first imperial
festival attracted thousands of visitors
The first two-day Imperial Festival event on
11 and 12 May 2012 was a great success.
Thousands of visitors including members of
the public, alumni, staff and students explored
and discovered the wonderful world of life and
research at Imperial.
Our Conference and Events team once again
lived up to the challenge and made sure the
big-scale event was running smoothly. The
event was such a success that the organising
team has already pencilled in the date for the
next Imperial Festival – 10 and 11 May 2013!
August 2012
pitter patter of tiny feet!
Many congratulations to:
Charlotte Duggan, Sales and Events Executive
and her husband Ben Clark on the birth of their
beautiful daughter Olivia on 20 May.
Kevin Palmer, Stores Operations Manager and his
wife Aggie who are celebrating the birth of their
second child, Alicia on 13 June.
Ermal Goxhi, Catering Supervisor JCR and his wife
Teresa on the birth of their beautiful daughter
Alice on 27 May.
Guilherme Faioli, from the Library Café who is
celebrating the arrival of his baby boy Henrique.
Svetla Kolarska, 58PG Venue Manager who gave
birth to a little baby boy Max on 17 August.
Olivia Alicia Alice Henrique Max
employee of the month
Veronika Studena, Catering Supervisor- May
Kelly Swaby, Ethos Centre Manager and Hannah
Blandford, Sports Development Administrator -
June
our people
There have been several movers, starters and
leavers over the last few months. We wish
everyone the best of luck! See Commercial
Services weekly bulletins for details.
baristas call the shots
Imperial held its first Barista of the Year competition
on 20 June to recognise the skillful art of making
the perfect cup of coffee. The talent was exceptional
and our first winner was Paolo Barbosa Saraiva
who works in the Chemistry Café closely followed
by runners-up Anna Hikkerova in the SCR Café and
Leva Survilaite in the Electrical Engineering Café.
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