The pledge mural at TPS in Croydon.

TPS, a Croydon-based design, project management and architecture company, was a contender for the Best of Borough award in the category of Innovation and Change.  As part of the 2007 sustainability forum at their Croydon offices employees created the “Tomorrow in our Hands” mural pictured above.  Everyone dipped a hand in paint and added their pledge to make a small difference in their behaviour in environmental terms, recognising the potential to make a huge difference collectively.

Malcolm Cook, of TPS Croydon, says that it is often a combination of many small changes that result in massive improvement. “Designers tend to think that innovation must be a step change or a quantum leap. We encourage everyone to come up with small changes that they would like to see happening either in a service we provide or in the way we provide it.” Malcolm sees opportunity for innovation existing at three levels: “…the design, how we do the design or in the internal processes that enable us to provide the design.”

An example of an improvement in the way that TPS delivers their service was to introduce video conferencing as a result of an employee suggestion.  This reduces the carbon footprint of the company and reduces costs for clients.

Another innovation now enables TPS to deliver standard pre-fabricated foundation modules for electricity sub-stations that include complex services conduits. This allows for reuse of complex design calculations, reduces costs and speeds up construction.

Environmental concerns were also behind the invention of a new way of laying concrete for pavements for an airports authority client.  By harnessing GPS technology and analysing the options for mixing and laying concrete, TPS have partnered with suppliers to create an award-winning solution. Information about the characteristics of the ground of the target area is used to create a map of where the concrete needs to be thicker or stronger.  The result is the best value for the client and the most ecological.

“Ideas come from unusual places,” says Malcolm, “they are everywhere. In our company we hold an Innovation Competition to encourage the generation and sharing of ideas. We also ensure that ideas are regularly raised and assessed at team and department meetings.”

One TPS employee decided to measure the carbon footprint of his department and found that 50% of the carbon emissions were due to staff transport costs rather than heating lighting etc. This has provided the background for a customer service to help reduce the transport costs associated with new projects.

Malcolm agrees that ideas often come about when a team is solving a problem and that linking things together is often the basis of innovation: “Einstein was known for assembling the ideas of others and was criticised for not being original but he still created the overall picture that gave us new concepts.”

“At TPS, we have understood that a 1% improvement in our competency goes straight to our bottom line – with the potential to provide up to a 10% improvement in our profitability. We innovate to respond to new constraints, such as the need to reduce our carbon footprint, this then changes the way we engage with our workforce and the way we do business and deliver services to our customers.”