More than 180 delegates, representing 66 construction and house building clients gave the ‘thumbs up’ for the first combined COINS Conference for Contractors and House Builders held at the Hayley Conference Centre in Swindon.  All the customer satisfaction surveys received from delegates indicate that they considered the conference to be good value for money and that they would be very likely to attend again next time!

Delegates were able to personalise the experience by selecting relevant sessions from a very full multi-track agenda, providing every opportunity to get an update on existing, new and forthcoming solutions available from COINS.

Product showcases offered delegates the opportunity to assess how some of the new COINS solutions could deliver business benefit to their companies.  Special Interest Group meetings provided a forum for clients to have their say on the product direction for the future.  Meanwhile, workshops gave training and ideas on how to get the most from COINS now.  An exhibition by selected 3rd party suppliers added a further dimension.

The conference made it clear that many COINS clients are now getting real business benefit from COINS Open Architecture, especially the powerful reporting tools.  The sessions on reporting were particularly popular and well-received.

Clients appreciated the fact that over 50 COINS software developers, analysts, implementation consultants, and other staff were available to answer delegates’ individual questions both during sessions and over coffee, lunch or a drink in the bar.  They also took the opportunity to meet and share knowledge with other COINS users on the best ways of using COINS effectively.

Our thanks to our guest speaker Barbara Wilson from HMRC, who spoke about the changes to the CIS tax scheme due to come into effect next April.  This is probably the biggest challenge facing COINS’ UK clients in the coming year and delegates welcomed the opportunity to talk directly with a representative from HMRC.  The detailed workshops which explained how to handle this within COINS were also extremely popular with clients.

An enjoyable highlight for many delegates was the Comedy Night on Wednesday provided by Zoo42 Productions.  The last act, the brilliant Terry Alderton, had everyone in stitches from the moment he walked on stage dressed from head to toe in construction safety gear. A close second was the COINS quiz night on Tuesday hosted by our own Paul Stewart-Smith, combining general knowledge and construction software questions.  This was so closely contested that several tie-breaker questions were required before a winning team could be declared. 

Before dinner on Wednesday night a fascinating chat session was hosted by the humorous Simon Fanshaw.  The casual session provided guests with the opportunity to explore why COINS, its people and customers engage in community projects, specifically the COINS 3 Peaks Challenge, which is run exclusively for the Construction Industry and supports Care International. Our particular thanks to our panellists, Lynn Cox (COINS), Sue Jones (Connaught), Terry Anderson (McInerney), Tim Morris (CARE) for sharing enlightening accounts of their experiences on the COINS 3 Peaks Challenge which no doubt were thought provoking for many of the audience.

The combined Conference took place over three days, from the 17th to 19th October.  Comments from just a few of the delegates illustrate what a success the formula proved to be.

“From the sessions I attended, I thought the conference presentation was absolutely first rate.  Somebody obviously put in a lot of effort!” David Bell, Finance Director, Tithegrove.

“What an excellent job all of the COINS staffs did during the conference. The event was supremely well organised and all the presentations were well delivered, with good content. I found the whole experience both useful and enjoyable, and came away with a real positive outlook about the future.” Lee Hollins, Operations Analyst, Seddon.

“Thank you for a fantastic conference. It was exceptionally well delivered by a great bunch of people. The conference was most enjoyable and a great success from a relationship building and a content perspective.” Richard Ward, Financial Controller, Downer Energy Systems.

“The hospitality, food and general organisation were excellent. I can’t wait until the next one!” Clive Bassett, Finance Director, Beard Construction.

“The conference was very enjoyable, informative and very well organised. The comics were superb and I met some interesting people. My hangover was my only regret!”  Stuart Thomas, Finance Director, Weston Homes.

“I thought the COINS Conference this year was by far the best one.  Because it was a combined Contractor’s and House Builders conference, you could appreciate the size of COINS and also learn about how other people are using the product.”  Nigel Salisbury, Business Systems Manager, Persimmon.

“The conference was an excellent way to communicate about new products, I thought there was a good choice of workshops and that meeting with the COINS people and other users gave me a more truthful and positive view of things.  I enjoyed the conference very much and can’t wait to see what COINS will come up with next year to better the Star Wars clip!”  Lyn Mazingham, Simons Group.

“It keeps getting better! Well worth attending.”  Alan Tredgold, Project Manager, Crest Nicholson.

Further details, including reports of the SIG meetings will be made available in the Client Area shortly. If you would like copies of any of the presentations please do get in touch with your account manager, or contact Pauline Sargent, COINS Event Manager on 01753 501078.