April and May are the months when we think about planting for colour but these warmer months also bring with them an increase in the number of pests to our grounds and gardens.

Did you know that the plants you choose for colour will directly impact upon your pest management costs for the year?

Plants are complex chemical systems some of which have evolved to attract pollinators while others have evolved to repel plant-eating (phytophagous) insects.Your choice of plants and landscape features will determine which species of insects and animals populate your grounds.

Nepeta cataria and its subspecies are commonly found in gardens and garden centres throughout ireland. Also known and catnip, Nepeta contains nepetalactone which attracts cats while repelling phytophagous insects.
Nepetalactone is also present in other plants such as Lonicera tatarica (tartarian honeysuckle).
Many resinous trees such as pines and aromatic shrubs such as lavendar and rosemary are proven to deter and repel certain types of insects.

Many colourful leafy scented plants attract insects to your grounds and gardens. tropaeolum majus (Nasturtium) is famously attractive to a variety of pests including aphids and slugs. Nasturtiums are so effective at attracting pests, gardeners often grow them near to their vegetable patches as a sacrificial crop.

Understanding the natural connection between landscape gardening and pest management can improve the enjoyment of your grounds while reducing your pest management costs.

At NOONAN we self-deliver both landscaping and pest management services.

We are delighted to announce that as part of the NOONAN strategy to become the market leader and best in class provider of Facility Solutions in Ireland an agreement has been reached with RPS Engineering Services Ltd to transfer the contracts of the TSS (Technical Support Services) and Site Placement divisions to NOONAN.

The existing support structure of these divisions, together with the direct staff have all been invited to transfer to the NOONAN Group thus ensuring that the expertise of these divisions is retained.

The organisational chart [fig.1] (below) illustrates how this divisions will be structured within the group.

Our new Technical Division will report to John MacInnes (Group Facilities Director) with Brendan Mannix (Facilities Services Director, Technical Division) and his senior team transferring to the business from RPS.

This Agreement will complete on March 30th and all operations will be centred in the NOONAN offices in Dublin and Cork with the existing office in Waterford being maintained.

NOONAN will be exhibiting at the FM Ireland Conference 22^nd & 23^rd February (Stand E7).

Our team will be attending the event to make an important announcement and to showcase the new, innovative systems and technologies that we have adopted for the benefit of our clients.

We will by presenting a keynote address titled ‘Integrated, Flexible Solutions in Healthcare’ on 23^rd February 14:45 -15:15 in conference room 4.

Noonan has been nominated as a finalist in the Ernst &Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2011 competition.
‘This is a highly prestigious competition and progressing to this stage is tremendous recognition for all our staff and our clients
who have supported the business over the last 34 years ‘ said John O Donoghue, Group CEO who will represent the company in
the competition.
The next stage of the process will be a business retreat to India on the 8th June which will provide an
opportunity to network with other owners/leaders from various industries in Ireland.

We will keep you up to date with developments on this process over the next 6 months.

We are delighted to announce two significant developments in relation to our Retail Sector.

Firstly we have been confirmed as the lead sponsor in the All Ireland Shopping Centre Conference 2011 – www.allirelandshoppingcentreconference.com. The Conference will be held in the Slieve Russell Hotel, Cavan on 27th September and represents an excellent opportunity for Noonan to showcase our broad range of services to the Retail Sector. The Conference is open to all Shopping Centres in the country and will be beneficial in highlighting our brand in Northern Ireland.

Secondly, the “Sceptre Awards” recognise excellence within the Shopping Centre Industry throughout Britain and Ireland. Awards are available for several elements such as Manager of the Year, Managing Agent, Retailer, Marketing etc. This year our Team in Pavilions has been shortlisted in the category of “Security Team of the Year”. We are the first company from Ireland to have been shortlisted in this category and this is a fantastic achievement for all concerned. The Awards take place in London on 21st June.

Public concern regarding the impact of commercial activities on the environment has increased significantly in recent years. At Noonan Services Group (NSG) we are continuously striving to implement initiatives which enable sustainable service delivery and development. To this end NSG has embarked on a Cleaner Greener Production Programme with the support if the Environmental Protection Agency. The project will undertake a base-line assessment on consumption of water, electricity, energy, chemicals, and waste associated with the provision of the service and set in motion projects to reduce consumption.

A green procurement policy will be introduced and we will work with suppliers of green/ sustainable chemicals and cleaning equipment to embark on substitution of supplies with more environmentally benign alternatives.

Training will also be delivered as part of this project to include environmental awareness and detergent dosing equipment introduction and training.

An objective is to build a competence around prevention of resource consumption and share this knowledge with clients.

Deliverables include

• Substitution of chemicals with greener sustainable alternatives will be qualified and the benefits measured and presented through most appropriate KPI’s.
• Energy Reduction of 20% per 100 meter square.
• Water reduction of 20% per 100 meters square.
• Training on environmental resource reduction and CGPP techniques to 5,000 people.
• Introducing and Environmental Management System – ISO14001 which will facilitate continuous improvement

This project will progress over the next eighteen months and information updates on progress will be made quarterly.

NOONAN is delighted to announce its recent success in the provision of Cleaning, Security, Environmental and Customer Services at the prestigious Victoria Square Shopping Centre in Belfast.

The contract which is due to commence in early December will see NOONAN deliver an entire range of facility services under one integrated management team.

“This is a significant development for NOONAN and we are delighted to partner with the management team at Victoria Square to deliver first class services to this landmark centre and development”.

NOONAN have completed the mobilisation of the cleaning contract for Dublin Bus. This contract includes the deep cleaning of their entire fleet of vehicles and their entire office building portfolio. This contract commenced in September 2010 and will run for three years.

Company Announcement

Friday 17^th September 2010

I am delighted to announce that Noonan have won the prestigious ECO Business Award at The Chambers Ireland President’s Awards for Corporate Social Responsibility, The awards were established in 2004 to recognise the work being carried out by Irish and multinational companies to improve the lives of their employees and to enhance the civic environment in which they operate. This is a unique competition that offers the business community a chance to promote their efforts in Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and gain recognition for best practice. The awards are presented in a variety of categories covering all areas of CSR.

This year’s awards were presented across a total of seven areas at a gala awards ceremony in the Burlington Hotel, Dublin, last night the 16^th September 2010.

Noonan are thrilled to be awarded the ECO Business Award for “Providing a Cleaner Greener Cleaning Service by introducing green chemicals, making measurable reductions in the consumption of water, energy, chemicals and the generation of waste associated with the provision of our Service”

Previous winners of the Environmental category awards have included Intel, AIB and Diageo.

I would sincerely like to congratulate each member of our Cleaner Greener Production Programme Team who were instrumental in achieving this award for the Company and for all their hard work and efforts.

Noonan is delighted to advise that it has acquired the assets of a landscaping company, Oak Church. This is a significant development for Noonan as it enhances the range of services that we can offer to our clients and extends our self delivery capability. Oak Church has already established a reputation as a high quality landscaping company with an excellent client base.