Visit us at Stand H16 at Highways UK

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We can’t wait to exhibit at Highways UK and we’re now only one week away. Highways UK is the sector’s must-attend event, as it offers companies the opportunity to showcase their latest products or solutions, as well as explore other innovations in the market, and network with others in the industry.

If you are attending, make sure that you stop by Stand H16 to say hello to our friendly team and ask them any questions you may have. Our Managing Director, Pat Musgrave, will be attending and the rest of the team will be wearing a different colour polo shirt in relation to the 5 colours in our logo. 

So, let’s meet the members of the MVIS team who will be attending and working the stand this year. 

Pat Musgrave – Managing Director

Pat helped with the launch of our sister company Bartco UK and has been MVIS’ Managing Director since 2013. Under his leadership, we have successfully rebranded and launched a series of innovative ITS solutions that have cemented our reputation in the highways and event management sectors.

If anyone wants to catch up, discuss innovation and future opportunities, be sure to have a chat with him and take one of his business cards. 

 

Anne Ashman – UK Group Commercial and Operations Director

Anne is the driving force behind the MVIS and Bartco UK machine and will be greeting and welcoming visitors to the stand. With over 10 years of industry experience, there isn’t much Anne hasn’t seen in her role with the company and this is reflected in her dynamism and passion for customer service.

As some of our team members will be attending Highways UK for the first time this year, Anne’s presence will give them the opportunity to meet familiar faces in the industry. 

 

Ben Kettell –  Marketing Manager

Ben is the newest member of the MVIS team, joining as our Marketing Manager in July. Even though he hasn’t been here that long, Ben has become very knowledgeable about our products and the highways industry in general. 

Make sure that you have a chat with Ben as it is his first time working the stand at a trade show for MVIS, as well as his first time at a Highways UK event. He’ll also be wearing a bright orange polo shirt, so you can’t really miss him. 

 

Juliette Wright – Customer Relations Officer 

Juliette has recently been promoted to Customer Relations Officer as she has proven herself to be a highly important member of the MVIS team since joining in January 2021. 

As part of her new role, Juliette provides support to Graeme, our Sales Director, as well as to Clair and Mia in our Customer Relations team. Juliette embodies our Platinum Service Promise in everything that she does and will provide a friendly face for any visitor who comes to the stand. 

 

Tom Hooton – Research & Development Manager 

Tom is the Research and Development Manager at our sister company Bartco UK, who manufactures all of our products. Tom has been with the group since 2014, making him a highly experienced and knowledgeable member of the team. He also has some Highways UK experience, having attended last year for the first time.  

Tom’s knowledge and technical capability make him a fantastic team member to chat with for anyone who has any technical questions about our products.

 

Graeme Lee – Sales Director 

Graeme is the second longest-serving member of the team, joining the group in 2012. Since then, he has helped to build our customer base and enforce the high standards we set for ourselves by leading by example. 

Highly skilled in sales, networking and maintaining relationships, Graeme is well respected within the industry which makes his presence at Highways UK very important for us. 

 

Make sure that you download the Swapcard app before you go, so you scan our badges and collect our contact information. 

There’s also still time to register for your FREE ticket to attend. For those who have registered, see you there! 

Project EDWARD and National Safe Speeds Day

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Wednesday the 19th is National Safe Speed Day, which coincides with Day 3 of the #ProjectEdward campaign. #SafeSpeedsDay aims to encourage drivers to reflect on their driving and commit to making every journey a safe one that doesn’t exceed the speed limits. 

Project EDWARD is an initiative which promotes safety on our roads with this year’s theme being ‘Changing Minds, Changing Behaviour’. Its Week of Action began on Monday the 17th of October, with police forces across the UK increasing their speed enforcement activity, focusing on roads or areas that are known to be where speeding happens or where past incidents have occurred.  

As a company that prioritises safety, particularly with speed, showing our support for this initiative is important to us. Over the last 10 years, our ITS solutions have served the UK’s highways and helped to keep them safe. Products like our Radar Activated VMS, IVD Radar and HD Data Collection Radar can all be used to solve speed safety issues. 

Our Radar Activated VMS can be used to display a variety of vital messages, speed alerts and responsive information, all triggered by the driver’s speed. The VMS-A, VMS-C and HD Compact VMS can all be integrated with radar to increase their capabilities whilst still maintaining all the fantastic features of our standard VMS.

There are lots of great benefits to Radar Activated VMS, such as the capability to detect speed and use the VMS-A’s messaging power for ‘Specific Speed Messaging’, where messages can be overridden with a speed roundel if a vehicle exceeds the set speed limit. When the unit detects the speed of an approaching vehicle, it alerts the driver of their speed and advises them to slow down if necessary. 

All our VMS also discreetly house a data collection radar which can collect vehicle logs on speed, time and date. By allowing users to identify traffic trends and risks, such as speed or volume of traffic, they can then take steps to solve them.

 

As a fleet operator, making sure that our drivers are driving safely and within the speed limit is crucial. This is why we’re proud to achieve a FORS Bronze accreditation, which shows our commitment to excellence in driver and vehicle safety, as well as efficiency and environmental protection.

If you’d like to learn more about how our Radar Activated VMS can solve your speed safety issues, or any of our other products for that matter, get in touch with our Sales team at 01629 580570 or by email at: sales@m-vis.co.uk. 

Learn more about Project EDWARD here: projectedward.org. Make sure to get involved and show your support by using the hashtag #ProjectEdward. 

The Great MVIS Bake Off Begins

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This year we’re back with another charity baking competition, The Great MVIS Bake Off. Inspired by the TV show, this year the competition is being stepped up a few gears, with more rounds, more people and a different theme each week. 

Last year’s Bake Off competition went down a treat with the team as it was the first time in a long time that everyone could come together. In the 5 man finale, Pip and Tim narrowly beat out the rest and were crowned winners. Will Tim be looking to win again this year? 

This year’s competition will last for 11 weeks instead of 5, starting today on the 17th of October and finishing with a final on the 21st of December. There are 12 members of the MVIS and Bartco UK team taking part, and they will be split into groups of 3, with 2 people from each group advancing into the next round. The team can buy a slice of their favourite bakes for £1, with all of the money raised going to Ashgate Hospice. 

The schedule is as follows: 

To kick things off in Week 1, Ben, Chris and Juliette each baked and brought in a delicious cake of their choice. In contention was Ben with his Lotus Biscoff cake, Juliette with her chocolate cream cake and Chris with his Halloween-themed chocolate tray cake. 

A slice from each cake was cut up into small pieces and tasted by the entire team, who then had to write down their favourite on a piece of paper to vote.

After carefully counting up the votes, the winners of The Great MVIS Bake Off Week 1 were…Ben with his Lotus Biscoff cake and Juliette with her chocolate cream cake! Ben’s Lotus Biscoff cake went down particularly well with the team, which earned him an incredible 8 votes. 

Stay tuned for Week 2 where Ben K, Alex and Tim will be baking some brilliant biscuits! Ben and Juliette will be advancing into the second round, with Ben baking again in Week 5, Spice Week and Juliette in Week 6, Botanical Week. 

Make sure to follow and keep tabs on our Instagram account so you don’t miss a bake. 

Supporting World Mental Health Day 2022

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Here at MVIS, we take mental health very seriously. As a socially responsible employer, we feel it is important to focus on mental health every day and not just today. Working in an industry that suffers from high suicide rates, it is of vital importance that we stay one step ahead when it comes to mental health.

In the UK, suicide claims an alarming number of lives each year, with many of those in the Highways and Construction industries. As safety is one of the core foundations at MVIS in addition to mental health, there is no denying the obligation we have in raising awareness of this to help make the industry safer for everyone. 

Last year for World Mental Health Day, we supported YoungMinds, the mental health charity for young people and participated in their #HellowYellow campaign by donating money and wearing a hi-vis or yellow clothing. 

In support of World Mental Health Day this year, we got all our staff together for some cake and a chat to help encourage the conversation around mental health. The theme for this year is to make mental health and wellbeing a priority, which is something that we have been working to achieve for many years now. 

Brew Monday for World Mental Health DayBrew Monday for World Mental Health Day

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Over the years, we have taken a number of steps to safeguard the wellbeing and mental health of our team. One of the things we’ve done to support our team is giving them access to 3 qualified mental health first aiders, 2 female and 1 male. Our mental health first aiders are Rebecca Prince,  MVIS’ Purchasing & Stock Control Supervisor, Jon Larkins, our North Delivery Supervisor and the UK Group Commercial and Operations Director for both MVIS, Anne Ashman. 

One of our more recent developments is providing our team with access to the Employee Assistance Programme (EAP), an anonymous advice and support service offered by Peninsula. If you feel that you may need advice or support on your mental health, some helpful links will be included below. 

Anne Ashman, UK Group Commercial and Operations Director comments, “The mental health of our team is one of our top priorities and today was a great opportunity for them to have a break and spend some time together. Here at MVIS and Bartco UK, we have been working with our staff for a long time now on ways we can best safeguard their mental health and wellbeing, which has helped us build the support system we have in place today.”

Get help and support: 

How does a company respond to the ever-growing focus on sustainability?

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MVIS has committed to achieving net zero carbon in line with its client base, carefully monitoring its development and production processes to continually improve the sustainability element of its product range.

MVIS is constantly striving to increase solar and battery output to minimise site visits and time spent on site, with a process centred around developing products which are fully self-sufficient on power.

With the addition of MVIS’ environmental sensors, the company can also now monitor and report on a live working environment to measure gases for air quality, dust and noise levels on sites. This is in addition to displaying important environmental messaging to workers and the general public in real time, whilst aligning with a clients’ environmental KPI’s.

The R&D process

Each MVIS idea has to go through a strategic process. One which sees lots of information gathered before a new idea even goes into development.

Before a product idea gets signed off for development, MVIS will know what testing procedures are needed to make it compliant to present standards, how long a prototype will take, what sort of software is required, and a budget will be allocated to the project along with a timeline.

How has the R&D process changed?

“There has been a significant increase in the questions and requirements relating to sustainability and environmental impact, particularly in major projects,” says MVIS Sales Director Graeme Lee. Graeme has spent the last decade with MVIS, and so is perfectly placed to have witnessed the change in sustainable thinking over the last 10 years.

“Environmental accreditations have become a standard requirement, with the industry constantly driving the supply chain to develop the very latest technology powered by sustainable methods,” Graeme continued.

“I’d say this has really snowballed over the last 3-4 years, but MVIS’ has placed sustainability at the forefront of product development since inception in 2012, so whilst I feel the industry has had a bit of a mass shift when it comes to sustainable thinking, our R&D process hasn’t seen too much of a change at all really. It’s something we were ahead of the general curve on and so it’s all part of the daily operation for us.”

2012 v 2022 – what’s changed?

“With the country and Government promising to achieve environmental targets, there has undoubtedly been a change in focus regarding sustainability over the last 10 years.,” Graeme added.

“On the back of this ‘go greener’ attitude that’s swept the sector, the biggest change for us is probably the volume of enquiries that reference or specifically request sustainable credentials. That’s not to say companies didn’t value this element when hiring from MVIS previously, but it’s now much more obvious that this is an absolute necessity and not just an additional benefit.”

Source: HighwaysIndustry.com

Come to the ITS and VMS Experts

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Through our commitment to our clients, we have built a strong reputation for customer service and expertise. Due to our focus on portable VMS and specific ITS solutions, our expertise is specialised in our core solutions rather than diluted across many different types of products, like some of our competitors.

Often working in collaboration with Highways England and other Tier 1 contractors, MVIS has become a trusted asset when it comes to the delivery of safe, efficient VMS and ITS products and solutions onto the UK’s roads. As the company has continued to deliver and further its stellar reputation, MVIS has become more involved in the preparation phase of major schemes.

We are committed to providing our clients with quality service, which is further reinforced by our Quality Service Promise, which outlines all the additional aspects that we offer as part of our service. MVIS adopts the policy of treating all customers equally, no matter who they are and aims to provide a quality service to all of them. 

When our clients hire with MVIS, they can be confident that our expertise is backed up by a number of accreditations and memberships. Amongst these include FORS Bronze, Achilles BuildingConfidence membership, Constructionline Platinum and ISO accreditations in ISO45001: Occupational Health & Safety, ISO9001: Quality Management Systems and ISO14001: Environmental Management Systems, which come together to make an Integrated Management System (IMS), bringing our systems and processes into one complete framework.

The MVIS approach to training is continuous and has a number of critical elements, which are: 

  • MVIS staff is fully trained as hiab and slinger signalers for delivery, installation and removal.
  • Our staff are fully trained in health and safety. Each MVIS operative participates in an ongoing safety training program, as well as externally completed safety training to ensure quality across all departments.
  • Depending on their role on site, the MVIS workforce is all on site with the appropriate and relevant CSCS card. Even the management team are CSCS qualified so they can visit the site to carry out essential auditing.

More than 60% of our team members have been with MVIS for their entire careers. The company has a reputation for investing in people and a high staff retention rate. This results in MVIS staff embracing the company values, which translates into excellent customer service.  

As a result of these factors, we are already recognised in the industry as the best at what we do, and this is only confirmed with every project we are trusted with.   

Our ITS and VMS expertise, accredited quality, comprehensive training, vast fleet, and versatile products make us the ideal company for your ITS and VMS requirements. You can hire with confidence when you hire with MVIS, so why would you go anywhere else? 
 

Get in touch with our Sales team who are available to assist you with any questions you may have by calling 01629 580570 or by email at sales@m-vis.co.uk. 

A Decade of Driving Innovation

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As a company that clocked up a decade in business this year, MVIS has come a long way since its inception in 2012.

One of the constants across the company’s journey is its attitude towards innovation; never resting on its laurels and continually investing in its research & development programme to continue to better itself for the benefit of its customers.

So, just what does ‘innovation’ mean to the business?

“It means we are constantly moving our products forward and fulfilling required gaps in the market with our bespoke products and R&D department,” says Graeme Lee, the company’s Sales Director.

MVIS exists in a world of technology, and as a result, innovation has to be a major part of the company’s remit, or its products and software runs the risk of stagnation.

“That’s just not something we’re willing to accept.” Graeme continued. “We place great pride and great emphasis on being at the forefront of technologies within our field, and it’s a stance that hasn’t wavered across the last 10 years.”

MVIS’ very own web studio system was the company’s first major innovation success and was the single biggest reason for the company being successful in its 2012 Olympic Games contract in its first year of operating. A standout innovative feature at the time, was MVIS’ grouping facility – the capability of programming multiple signs with the same message at the click of a button from a web-based system, whilst other software programming systems for VMS were still having to dial in remotely and could only program one sign at a time. The innovation won the day.

‘How crucial is R&D into innovation?’ we asked Graeme. He explained:

“It’s the cog that keeps innovation alive, without our R&D team we wouldn’t be able to look at new ideas or produce the bespoke items our customers often request. When it comes to being successful, we know it’s a combination of multiple things working efficiently and effectively, but it could be argued that R&D for innovation is the most important factor in what we do. Technology is ever evolving; the industry is always changing, and customers are always looking for something that saves them time or cost in the long run – so we see it as our duty to invest the time into servicing that constant customer need.”

And is there an internal standard procedure for getting a new idea off the ground at MVIS?

“Yes, each idea has to go through a strategic process where we collect lots of information before the new idea even goes into development, I suppose you could attribute this to being the ‘research’ from both the R&D team and other departments within the company. Before a product idea gets signed off for development, we will know what testing procedures are needed to make it compliant to present standards, how long a prototype will take, what sort of software is required, and a budget will be allocated to the project along with a timeline.”

Looking back on the last 10 years, we asked Graeme to give us his opinion on his top four most significant MVIS innovations within the decade the company has been in business. After a few moments of pondering, Graeme told us:

“Firstly, our Web studio. As already mentioned, it really helped put the company on the map in 2012 and showed that even in our infancy as a company, we were an innovative, well-prepared business with high capability.

“Next, the 5 Colour VMS. We were the first in the UK to bring it to market and had to educate the marketplace on the quality of having colour and the visual pictogram aspect the signs could give – rather than just amber text signs.

Solar IP

“The Solar IP platform is number 3. Again, we were the first to bring this product to market and the first company enabling a solar-powered platform to go out onto the network with multiple functions. This meant eradicating stopping schemes to lay cables to a power source for a short-term need of CCTV, ANPR and traffic data counting radars. Thus, saving money and also reducing the risk of injury to staff due to the short deployment time and bodies not required on the network for any longer than necessary.

“The fourth would have to be our HD Compact unit. It has a tiny footprint, ideal for compounds and is used as part of our works Egress system. Again, both products were the first to market. It is interesting when we look back to see how many products we were first to the market with. It’s something we’re really proud of and we have to credit our R&D team immensely for their consistency and innovative thinking.”

It’s clear to see that innovation is no fluke. Time, effort and investment go into becoming a company known for innovative thinking and as a result, innovative products. As MVIS enters its second decade of operations, one thing that will never change is its embedded ethos of innovation and a commitment to constant improvement for its customer base.

Source: HighwaysIndustry.com

Adding Value With Quality Service

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Over the last decade, we have built an outstanding reputation across the highways sector for providing excellent service to our customers on all projects. However, the quality service that we offer applies to all the sectors that we work with, not just highways. In fact, one of the ways we look to offer added value for our customers is by taking the time and effort to learn about all the industries we work with.

Prioritising the added value that we can offer in our service has always been important to us. Although we specialise in portable solar powered ITS solutions, we never lose sight of the fact that we are ultimately a service-based company. Unlike our competitors, we don’t dilute our service and our expertise means that your ITS and portable VMS are being supplied by the experts. 

We take pride in offering our customers the MVIS ‘Platinum Service Promise’,  with the aim of delivering a ‘Platinum’ level service for a ‘Bronze’ level price. Our Quality Service Promise outlines our commitment to what we consider to be ‘Platinum Level Service’ and also highlights all the additional aspects that set us apart from other suppliers. We regularly receive feedback and testimonials that are attributed to a lot of the features mentioned in this document. This allows us to improve on what we offer even more and has also helped us to build excellent long-standing relationships with our customers. 

When you hire with MVIS, unit monitoring and maintenance are included in the cost along with deployment, advice, consultation and all the other added value that we offer. We even include battery changes, repairs and replacements into the service promise that we offer our clients. If there ever is an issue, our strategically placed depots across the UK mean that our highly trained team can respond to a problem quickly, whether on site or in the office. 

Anne Ashman, UK Group Commercial and Operations Director commented, “We offer an excellent and experienced service from a team that is highly trained and always willing to go the extra mile. Our impressive range of additional aspects that are listed in our Quality & Service promise helps to distinguish us from a typical VMS supplier.” 

Exceeding expectations and delivering the best service possible is what we do here at MVIS. So, get in contact with our friendly Sales team at sales@m-vis.co.uk or on 01629 580570 to make sure that your ITS technology is taken care of by the experts. You won’t get better service anywhere else. 

10 years of sustainability: What supporting ‘green’ means to our team

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MVIS has a long-standing commitment to sustainability and is constantly searching for ways to reduce its environmental footprint. MVIS’ products are designed to be energy efficient, and the company encourages its employees to operate with sustainability in mind.

MVIS are proud to be an environmentally responsible company and continue to work hard to protect the environment. A proud member of Greener Highways, as well as the Carbon Club, MVIS puts its money where its mouth is when it comes to sustainability.

With such a focus and a passion embedded in the company’s entire existence, we spoke with some of the MVIS team about their own views and interpretations of what it means to be truly sustainable.

Anne Ashman, Group Commercial and Operations Director told us:

“As a business, we’ve made great strides over the last decade in the sustainability realm. It’s been clear there’s been a major shift over the last few years towards sustainability at the forefront of thinking, and that’s absolutely fantastic – but it’s not a recent thing for us.

“To me, sustainability is an ever present that evolves, and an area that requires constant attention and R&D to see what further steps can be taken to reduce our carbon footprint. Recently we made the switch from product sheets to QR codes that showcase the same information when at events and exhibitions. It’s about consistent, sustained improvement.”

MVIS has had a keen eye on a sustainable future since its inception in 2012.

Sales Manager Graeme Lee, who recently celebrated his own 10-year anniversary with MVIS commented:

“To me, sustainability is at the heart of the business – the products. Our range is all solar powered, making the most of a sustainable energy source that charges and re-charges the batteries on our units.

“This, in addition to our delivery model, where we are able to deliver multiple units on one journey significantly reduces drive time and therefore, our emissions. Carbon footprint is something we’re very conscious of so this delivery model has been a significant step forward in reducing our output.”

Jon Larkins, North Delivery Supervisor said:

“There is a human factor to our sustainability policy, as our units require less maintenance and battery changes due to their solar powered nature. This means less visits to site for our operatives, and less ventures into harms way on what can be a very dangerous road network. As someone who delivers and maintains our units, this sustainable safety benefit to our workforce is something that means a great deal to me.”

MVIS’ environmental sensor measures data analysing air quality in a bid for better environmental health

Tom Hooton, Research & Development Manager also told us:

“Sustainability to me is showcased through the fact that MVIS also chooses local suppliers wherever possible. In sourcing local services and products, not only is our carbon footprint reduced, but there’s economic sustainability in bringing repeat business to the local area.

Major components of our products, such as our trailers, are sourced from a local business, and wider servicing of work vehicles is also conducted locally.”

The job is never done

It’s clear that as a business, MVIS not only places huge emphasis on a sustainable future in a variety of areas, but also doesn’t rest on its laurels and believe the job is ever truly done.

Anne concluded:

“We’re still working hard in Research & Development to look at ways we further our sustainable stance and actions. We have a fantastic team and one that is fully behind the company’s ethos of all things sustainable – from further product development, right down to watering the plants and looking after the beehouse at our offices.”

Source: HighwaysIndustry.com

Mavis the VMS-A Becomes a Hit With Locals

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What seemed to be a standard delivery of a VMS-A down to Cornwall turned out to be an incredible story. As we know, Cornwall experiences a massive influx of visitors during the summer months so our sign was sent down there to provide messaging.

A VMS-A was deployed and positioned in a layby just a short drive away from the beach. The VMS-A was programmed to provide several different messages throughout the day, working a long shift from 8:00 am to 10:00 pm at night. 

People quickly became quite attached to the sign and gave it the nickname Mavis. The name stuck and so, Mavis the VMS-A was born. Over the summer, Mavis met and made friends with many locals and summer visitors seeing the beautiful sights of Cornwall. Her adventures were captured and shared in several Facebook Groups and Pages in the area, turning Mavis into a local legend. 

On the 31st of August, Mavis was due to be collected and taken back to her home after almost 2 months of being away. As a result, the customer decided that they wanted to let everyone know how much Mavis enjoyed her holiday and how grateful she was for the love from the locals. 

We’d like to thank the local town and their visitors for giving Mavis the best summer of her life. The whole team at MVIS really enjoyed hearing about her adventures whilst she was away. 

If you’d like to hire Mavis or any other of our VMS for that matter, get in touch with our sales team on 01629 580 570 or by email at sales@m-vis.co.uk. 

Solving Safety Issues With Radar Integration

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When our Variable Message Signs (VMS) are integrated with radar, their functionality is expanded across a range of applications. The VMS-A, VMS-C and HD Compact VMS can all be integrated with radar to increase their capabilities whilst still maintaining all the fantastic features of our standard VMS.

All our VMS discreetly houses a data collection radar which can collect vehicle logs on speed, time and date. Data as a commodity has always been important for identifying trends and risks and the VMS-A offers this as standard. Better yet, all of our VMS are solar powered and highly portable, which makes them the ideal solution for data collection.

Data that has been collected is uploaded to our server every hour, ready to be downloaded at any time by the user via a web-based portal. If there are any issues, our outstanding 24/7 customer support is there to assist you in any way they can. 

Combining data collection and VMS into one unit offers a multi-functional solution that can help collect valuable data at the same time as communicating important messages. These messages, such as speed alerts and responsive information, can be communicated to drivers in relation to their behaviour. This will then be used to positively influence driver behaviours and decisions. To encourage drivers to continue driving safely, a VMS with radar can also display a message or pictogram thanking drivers who are adhering to the set speed limit. 

So, when used in conjunction with radar, a VMS can display:

  • A message
  • A message and the motorist’s speed
  • The motorist’s speed only
  • The motorist’s speed only and a ‘too high’ or ‘too fast’ warning

There are lots of great benefits to Radar Activated VMS, such as the capability to detect speed and use the VMS-A’s messaging power for Specific Speed Messaging, where messages can be overridden with a speed roundel if a vehicle exceeds the set speed limit. When the unit detects the speed of an approaching vehicle, it alerts the driver of their speed and advises them to slow down if necessary. 

It isn’t just our VMS that can integrate radar, though. The IVD Radar integrates our Solar IP with the AGD 343 Highways Monitoring Radar to create portability and dramatically enhance road safety, capability and efficiency. This solution uses proven radar and measurement techniques to track and measure the speed, length, and direction of individual targets. 

If you would like to find out more about how our products with integrated radar can benefit you, please get in touch with our Sales team on 01629 580 570 or email sales@m-vis.co.uk. 

MVIS Helps Belper Pride Run Smoothly

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On Saturday 6th August, we supported and supplied several units free of charge for this year’s Belper Pride. As well as receiving some fantastic feedback from The Pride in Belper Team, they have also written us a blog post about how our signs helped with managing the event. 

Pride in Belper returned to the town this summer, for the first time since its inaugural event in 2019. Although activities still took place online in 2020 and 2021, it wasn’t the same as everyone coming together in person to celebrate the town’s diversity and inclusivity with a parade around the town centre.

Three years ago, it was felt the parade (or ‘Strutt’ as we call it in Belper – after the local millowners) wasn’t long enough, so this time we wanted it to take to the main roads. Once, in the days of Belper’s carnival parades, road closures, long processions and a town centre grinding to a halt for an hour or so was an annual event – expected, accepted and, by many, embraced.

But the carnivals disappeared in the 1990s, so it’s been a long time since road closures, on the scale we had planned, have been seen in the town. Unless we could reach out and warn the multitude of motorists before the day, it could become a fractious and difficult day – not the inclusive celebration it needed to be.

The offer of three portable Variable Message Signs (VMS) from MVIS Ltd not only resolved those worries, but in being the first tangible signs of what was coming to the town the following weekend, they also brought a real sense of anticipation and an acceptance from the public. Acceptance that this would be a professional event – something that could be embraced and would work smoothly despite taking out some of the main streets of a busy town on a Saturday lunchtime.

The portable VMS signs weren’t huge but positioned strategically across the town, they were well-noticed, eye-catching and the perfect way of telling people not only about the expected traffic disruption but also why it was happening – a chance for people to avoid the area by car but instead come to the town centre and join in.

How fantastic that we were able to have rolling information – and that we had colours too, perfect for a Pride-themed rainbow illustration to accompany that information. They were much remarked on in the days leading up to the event, and well recognised as useful, professional tools for ensuring that Pride in Belper ran so smoothly.

Without a doubt, the VMS ensured that the all-important Strutt around the town was an absolute highlight for the town this year. It was a joyful event with very little drama on the roads because people knew what was happening and engaged with the signage before the day.

So, thank you, MVIS Ltd, for sponsoring us in this way, and helping to ensure that Pride in Belper was such an important, emotional and successful day for 11,000 people. You made such a difference, and we love you for it.

The Pride in Belper Team

Mobile Visual Information Systems

01629 580 570

MVIS, Units 6-8, Brookfield Way, Brookfield Industrial Estate, Tansley, Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 5ND

© 2022. Company registered in England No. 8130402 - Registered Office: Units 6-8, Brookfield Way, Brookfield Industrial Estate, Tansley, Matlock, Derbyshire. DE4 5ND