The 10 toughest tenders
THE FASTEST
WHERE? Honda plant, Swindon
WHO PROVIDES IT? Sodexho
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? It's a rolling contract, but started in 1986
There's not much dawdling time for the 150 Sodexho staff at Honda's Swindon site. Their brief is to feed 800 workers in just 10 minutes three times a day, including once in the middle of the night.
Sally Clare, group manager catering and cleaning, says the job's never boring but that staff need to be aware of the nature of the business. "We are doing mass catering," she says.
To help workers gulp back a quick cuppa, the vending machines have a "cold shot option", whereby an ounce of water is added to a cup to cool the drink down more quickly.
And to cope with the numbers, the contractor operates three canteens on site with banks of cashless tills to flush the crowds through. Unlike other contracts with multiple outlets, they all serve the same menu - mostly grab-and-go food, although twice a week there's the option of Japanese dishes such as pork tonkatsu.
So what if the team don't hit the 10-minute target? "There's no penalty," says Clare cautiously, "but obviously it's one of those things we have to do if they are to get the production line started up again. It hasn't happened often - if at all… "
THE MOST REMOTE
WHERE? Ascension Island
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Eurest Defence Support Services
WHO FOR? Ministry of Defence
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? Five years
ANNUAL TURNOVER? £300,000
The only way to fly out to Ascension Island - located way out in the South Atlantic - is by military aircraft. General manager Pauline Thorsby has been there six years and doesn't mind the distance from the UK any more, but she says it isn't unusual for some of her more homesick colleagues to run up bills of £400 a month on the Internet. "I remember when I went for the interview for this job," says Thorsby. "The operations manager pointed to a pin in a global map, but as soon as he took the pin out the island disappeared."
Thorsby is in charge of 40 catering staff, and the team provides hotel, soft facilities management and operational support services for the Ministry of Defence.
The weather on Ascension is beautiful year-round, with temperatures between 20°C and 30°C, but the island is used as a base to support operations in the Falklands, and poor conditions en route mean Thorsby and the team often have a plane-load of passengers to feed and house at short notice.
THE MOST HAUNTED
WHERE? Stirling Castle
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Leith's
WHO FOR? Historic Scotland
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? Four years
HOW MANY DO YOU FEED? Between 10 and 700
ANNUAL TURNOVER? More than £500,000 a year
As one of Scotland's most historic sites, it's perhaps not surprising that the caterers at Stirling Castle have a ghost problem to deal with. According to Leith's sales manager, Michaela Ruff, they discovered that one particular staircase was haunted when the medieval banqueting hall was being restored in 1999. One of the pipers reported having his shoulder pulled while he was practising - alone - and a builder claimed he was pushed downstairs.
One of the more practical problems faced by the seven full-time and 40 part-time catering staff is getting the timing right, however. As the castle is open to the public, they can't set up tables until the last visitors leave at about 6pm. And that's not a small job: the castle's medieval banqueting hall is the largest in Scotland, with capacity for up to 300 guests, and many of the events are themed, ranging from traditional Scottish weddings to clan battles.
THE BLEAKEST
WHERE? The Stena Don semi-submersible drilling rig off the far north coast of Norway
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Trinity International Services (independent offshore catering contractor)
WHAT'S THE DEAL? Trinity took over the contract at Stena Don in October 2000
HOW MANY DO YOU FEED? 102 mostly British, Swedish and Norwegian personnel
A sunny personality is an asset on board the Stena Don semi-submersible drilling rig off the north coast of Norway. With only two hours of daylight in winter, the old joke about working so hard you never see the sun wears a bit thin.
But it's the harshness of the weather conditions that are the greatest test for those who live and work on the rig. There are nine catering staff on board at any time, and although they tend to be restricted to working indoors in the accommodation block, they do have to venture out into freezing temperatures when disposing of waste, bringing supplies aboard and taking part in first-aid drills. All wear thermal clothing - in fact, it's so cold the handrails are heated to prevent people's hands sticking to them.
Indeed, stormy weather year-round can cause havoc with the catering. The weekly supply boats sometimes can't get close enough in high winds, so the brigade is forced to use emergency supplies. When the rig is heaving in the Atlantic swell, special matting is used to help prevent ingredients and equipment slipping around - and that includes the chairs and tables in the mess. Similarly, all the shelving has special brackets and crossbars fitted along the front to stop things falling and causing injury.
According to unit manager Jean Watson, there's a positive side, however: "The harsh external conditions aboard the Stena Don bring about a greater team spirit," she says, "and it's nice to get away from the cold and dark at the end of the two-week trip, even if it does take three flights to get back home to Aberdeen. And our two-weeks-on, four-weeks-off rota is an extra bonus. Just think - eight months' holiday a year."
The food on board is stimulating, too. Meals are served four times a day and include reindeer, catfish, pink caviar and rice porridge.
THE MOST ACTION-PACKED
WHERE? Loch Eil, Fort William, Inverness-shire
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Sodexho
WHO FOR? The Outward Bound Trust
ANNUAL TURNOVER? £29,000
HOW MANY DO YOU FEED? 10-190 people a day
Regular power cuts are one of the side effects of being off the beaten track and halfway up a mountain, so the 14 catering staff at the outdoor activity centre have to be adept at running around with Tilley lamps and candles. Other side effects include having to put together 24-hour ration packs of dehydrated food for camping trips.
That's if the staff get to work in the first place. Hazards such as bad weather and even running into deer on the road have left colleagues short-handed. It's the same story with supplies. As the centre is so far north, it's difficult for Sodexho to use its national suppliers, so food is usually brought up the hill by local producers.
Besides catering and housekeeping, the Sodexho staff have found there's a nurturing element to the job. Some of those on the outdoor activity breaks are children as young as 11. "Many children haven't been away from home before and will come down for breakfast in their pajamas," says accounts manager Andrew Finn. "We'll say, ‘Fine, but tomorrow get dressed first.'"
THE FURRIEST, FEATHERIEST AND SCALIEST
WHERE? London Zoo
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Leith's (a subsidiary of Compass UK and Ireland)
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? 11 years
HOW MANY DO YOU FEED? Web of Life, up to 250; Lion Terrace, up to 250; reptile house, up to 200; Bear Mountain, up to 150; aquarium, up to 380
ANNUAL TURNOVER? More than £1.5m
It isn't crucial, but it certainly helps, if Leith's event catering staff at London Zoo like getting close to animals. That's because the function rooms range from the Lion Terrace, where diners are separated from the animals by what to some might seem to be a "mere" glass screen, to Bear Mountain, where guests can enjoy a bite to eat near their furry friends. At some functions the animals get even closer, as the keeper will bring in owls - some with 6ft wingspans - or snakes to show the guests.
Needless to say, security is an issue, but that's as much to protect animals from humans as vice-versa, so catering staff work alongside zoo-keepers by day and security staff by night.
"So far nothing has escaped," says Sarah Bright, sales manager, who adds that one of the best parts of the job is "hearing the gibbons sing in the morning".
The working day is a tad different in other respects, too. For instance, catering staff attend operational meetings, where briefings extend to whether the leopards are mating or not. They also have to be sensitive about what's on the menu, as the client, the Zoological Society for London, is an animal conservation charity. As the zoo's commercial director Brian Oldman says: "We wouldn't want cod served, as that is an endangered species."
THE BIGGEST SUPPLY HEADACHE
WHERE? Kazakhstan
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Aramark
HOW MANY DO YOU FEED? 300 employees on three oil rigs in the Kazakhi Caspian sea, and 100 staff at a supply base on land
WHO FOR? Eni - global energy company involved in the exploration and production of oil and natural gas
ANNUAL TURNOVER? $4.5m (£2.8m)
Imagine working in a place where it starts snowing in October and doesn't stop until April - where temperatures drop to -40°C in winter and rise to +40°C in the summer. Sounds grim, but some eight British unit managers oversee the 85 staff at Aramark's Kazakhstan contract, and for them the weather is only part of the problem.
According to Pete Prochaski, Aramark's regional director for the Caspian and the Russian Federation, it's the supply chain that's the most problematic area. "It's not because of remoteness, but rather the intransigence and bloody-mindedness of Russian customs officers," says Prochaski. "We bring 60% of our foodstuff from the UK and the Netherlands. In the past two years, because of BSE and foot-and-mouth, we've had every bit of paperwork thrown at us."
Some foodstuffs, such as dairy products, can't be brought into the country; and red tape is often made worse by communication problems. A lot of thought has to go into the ordering process, for example, even with brand names. Prochaski describes how on one occasion supply trucks, which take between 21 and 28 days to get to the Russian border, had been sent all the way back because they contained cream crackers. Protestations that the biscuits don't contain any dairy products were met with the stony reply: "Well why does it say ‘cream' on the packet?"
A "facilitation payment" to border guards, such as a few chickens, can sometimes oil the bureaucratic cogs.
To bypass Russia's fierce border controls, Aramark is now buying in meat from the United Arab Emirates which is transported across the Arabian Gulf and through Iran. A local farmer supplies fruit and salad. Aramark has invested in his business, which is called the Aramarket Garden.
THE HIGHEST
WHERE? Vertigo 42 at Tower 42 in the City of London
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Roux Fine Dining
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? Five years concessional
WHAT'S THE TURNOVER? £750,000 a year (Restaurant and Bar Twentyfour on the 24th floor turns over £1.2m)
No prizes for guessing that Vertigo 42 is on the top floor of the tallest building in the City of London, Tower 42.
"Some of the guests really do get vertigo," says Roux general manager Danny Lemon. "It's glass all around, so they have no choice but to look out of the window and sometimes they have to leave and sit in the lobby area."
Lemon has no such problems, in fact he says it's the best place to work in London. "It's very peaceful up here, out of the city. One of the nicest things is the ‘wow' factor. Guests are still amazed at the view."
Business, unsurprisingly, did tail off after 11 September, but Lemon claims it was soon back to three-week waiting lists. Security is tight, and guests always have to book in advance, giving names and telephone numbers.
A simple menu of mainly seafood is served, because the kitchen is attached to the fine-dining restaurant on the 24th floor - a haven for those who prefer to be nearer the ground.
THE WEIRDEST
WHERE? Staff restaurant in an articulated lorry in Warrington, Cheshire
WHO DOES THE CATERING? Charlton House
WHO FOR? Sales development and field marketing agency CPM International
HOW MANY DO THEY FEED? 250-400
HOW LONG'S THE CONTRACT? One-year rolling contract
ANNUAL TURNOVER? £125,000
Yup, due to lack of space in the main building, the staff restaurant at CPM International's Warrington site is none other than a US diner in an articulated lorry. The diner, complete with shiny metal cladding, red banquettes and chrome high stools, seats only 25 people, so the 125-400 employees on site either take food away or eat in shifts between 11.30am and 2.30pm.
Charlton House has only recently won the contract from Mellors Catering, and area manager Alistair Bidgood admits he was a bit shocked when he was told he was in charge of the back of a truck. "I saw another lorry parked outside and thought I was getting an extension," he says.
THE SCARIEST
We've nominated Eurest as having one of the scariest contracts in the UK. New manager Ian Stockley has to cater for the discerning tastes of the Caterer & Hotelkeeper team here at Quadrant House in Sutton. Is he scared yet? "No, not really," he says.
We've no doubt there are even more extreme contracts out there, so tell us about them. E-mail the contract catering editor on rosalind.mullen@rbi.co.uk.
