How Technoprint has prepared for Brexit

Since the referendum in 2016, how smoothly the UK would depart from the EU has been a question on everyone’s mind. It was clear, however, that businesses up and down the country would need to adapt in the face of the new regulations in the event of a no-deal Brexit.

In a previous blog we discussed the impact of stockpiling in the face of this crisis. This was the plan of many pharmaceutical companies in order to allow for the continuation of the flow of medication. Pharmaceutical companies struggled due to a lack of internal capacity to stockpile large quantities of medications, and therefore faced the worrying prospect of product shortages in the case of a no-deal Brexit.

Our General Manager, Karen Noden, is keeping up to speed with the impacts of Brexit on businesses by currently taking part in an online course run by the Chamber of Commerce, ‘Customs declaration training eLearning.’ Here she explains how Technoprint has prepared itself for the changes brought on by Brexit.

Deal or no deal

At Technoprint, we ensured we were well prepared for the challenges Brexit was going to present. At the start of the year, we ensured that we had enough of our raw materials in stock in preparation for any hiccups in the supply chain by liaising with our paper, plates and ink suppliers to ensure they were also well prepared to cope with the coming changes to rules.

The multiple extended transition periods set out by the government also provided us with time to adjust our stockpiling.

Preparation and education

As General Manager of Technoprint, I have a multitude of day-to-day responsibilities. From overseeing admin, customer service and our customer’s orders, to working alongside our operations manager and M.D. to ensure everything on the production side of things is going smoothly. Everything we do is to for the benefit of our customers and to provide them with quick and easy service.

However, I also decided to undertake an eLearning course. This helped me better learn the less obvious impacts Brexit will be having on us and the supply chain as a whole.

An example of one of the new regulations I learnt about was making sure that the pallets we transfer the patient information leaflets on are heat treated, and contain the relevant stamps. If this was done incorrectly they will be stopped at customs and cause delay. Not an obvious change that you would think about but an important one to know nevertheless!

The course has also given me a better understanding of the kinds of documentation suppliers and hauliers need, such as commodity codes. These are necessary for products which are being imported, and are so border officials can check the safety and legality of imported products and calculate any tax owed.

I am now the official ‘Brexpert’ in the company!

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