MTM

MTM does not miss a single environmental test thanks to Artion

"When I took over my previous distribution company

I immediately inherited two environmental violations.."

- Jean-Michel Teerlinck

Following up on environmental inspections yourself is a disaster

Jean-Michel Teerlinck - entrepreneur at heart - is the owner of the Ghent-based hospitality group MTM. As an experienced entrepreneur, he knew all too well how great the need was for a partner to relieve the burden of environmental inspection.

"We have certain items in many premises that need to be inspected, such as air conditioners, low voltage systems, boilers, fire extinguishers.... All these mandatory inspections and maintenance used to be tracked in an Excel sheet, but of course we don't get reminders from that. We are mainly focussed on daily management and so you quickly lose track of all the different data."

A few years earlier, Jean-Michel had also taken over a distribution company in chemicals and laboratory supplies. After the acquisition, it became clear that the environmental permits (which were previously time-limited) hadn’t been renewed in time.

"When I took over my previous distribution company [chemicals and lab supplies], I also immediately took over two environmental violations, that needed to be resolved. That was quite stressful. For example, my heating oil tank hadn't been inspected on time, neither by my predecessor nor by myself. I didn't know that it had to be inspected regularly. Had I known Artion back then, I wouldn't have had to worry about any of this."

Business risks of neglecting environmental inspections

By properly following up on all inspections and maintenance, you avoid the risk of criminal sanctions, such as an operating ban, a professional ban and/or the closure of the company. There’s also the huge risk of forfeiting revenue. On the other hand, you are not liable for any potential damages when your installations have been inspected and maintained. For example, if your boiler hasn’t been inspected, there’s an electrical fault, and everything catches fire, you definitely can’t count on insurance goodwill to cover any damages. But ensuring proper compliance does take time..

“There’s a huge amount of time involved in finding the right contractor or inspector. You have to search for them, call them, request and compare quotes, try to negotiate, follow up, set appointments, and then they don’t show up… That’s why a comprehensive partner with reliable contractors is more than welcome. The time you have to invest yourself doesn’t even come close to the cost of a partner like Artion to take care of everything."

How Artion works

With Artion, it’s simple: first, you request an audit. During the audit, Artion creates an overview of all the equipment that needs to be inspected, with the dates of required inspections and any adjustments that need to be made. They also map out all maintenance requirements. That’s it. You literally just let the inspectors in, and they do their thing. You get access to the digital platform, so documents are available during inspections or for insurance purposes. Basically, you don't have to look after this anymore, because everything is monitored by Artion.