Cox’s Development Phase Two – Having completed the improvements to the entrance of the yard we have started to build an ecologically friendly boat wash down system, hence the steel piles and concrete pads in the car park. The system will harvest rain water from the roof of the workshop and use this water to wash the antifouling on the bottom of boats while they are located over a special catchment area. The dirty water is cleaned by pumping it through several filters before discharge back into the river. This system has taken several months to design including completion of many lengthy licence applications. We are pleased that part of the funding for this system has come from a grant from the Sustainable Development Fund. It will hopefully be up and running in time for the main winter craning. This boat wash down system will be one of only a handful in the UK and the first to use rain water.
CCTV – We have installed CCTV to improve the level of security on the yard and in the moorings. This system records and stores movement of animals, people and vehicles in Cox’s Boatyard.
Customer Satisfaction Feedback – Your responses have been very positive and your comments have been a great help which we take very seriously changing our systems where we can. There have been a few comments about the grass cuttings which are left on the grass. We do use a machine which chops the cuttings up very fine, but when they are wet they do stick to your feet (and in the spring it was rather wet!!). We have looked into different systems but the mulching deck seems to be the most effective way.
This year the water lilies and other water plants have been growing with speed, on one side this means the water quality has improved greatly but on the other side we have to sort out the problem. The plants in the main channels of the marina are trimmed at least twice a year, but cutting around the boats is difficult. We are looking at different ways of plant control but if anybody has any query or concern over large clumps growing near their craft please contact me.
Winter Storage – Attached is the winter storage form for you to complete and return to me. As before the most important date is when you would like your boat or boats in the water and ready for you to use. Easter next year is 29th March 2013 which is very early. The first May bank holiday is 6th May 2013 so please plan your date carefully. We will start lifting craft out of the water on 29th October 2012.
Insurance – Please may I remind you that you must have insurance for your craft and you must send in the insurance form which is attached to your mooring invoice to Cox’s. It was interesting when the Broads Authority visited the yard to check on boats moored on ‘adjacent’ waters how many boats did not have a river toll. Please make sure you have paid your river toll.
Mooring Charges – There will be a small increase of 3% in the mooring rates as from the 1st April 2013. The main mooring rate will be £35.50 per foot per year plus VAT.
Tern Rafts In the spring of this year we built two Tern Rafts which are now on the Trinity Broads complete with nesting terns. These rafts were designed by us several years ago and there are now several floating around lakes and broads in Norfolk. They allow birds to nest on the water without any water borne predators eating the eggs. All the nesting rafts are working very successfully.
Website – Our website is being re-designed to make it more user friendly and easier to find, and will allow us to include more information. We plan to add more stories about what we do, the projects we have completed and what is coming up.
It just leaves me to thank you for your support and I hope that you enjoy using your boats over the late summer season.
Eric Bishop
Manager