Printers in South Wales were amongst the worst hit with Merthyr Tydfil-based Stephens & George reporting some 20-30cm of snowfall over the weekend.
A spokesman for the firm, which is situated on the edge of the Brecon Beacons, said: "We were well prepared, so it hasn’t affected production. We had as much grit on hand as possible and people going round in range rovers to pick up anyone who was struggling to get in."
It was a similar story for Blackwood-based Pensord, whose employees braved the conditions to walk in from up to five miles away. Managing director Darren Coxon praised his staff for their efforts and also gave a special mention to Royal Mail who made an extraordinary weekend collection after being unable to reach the magazine printer on Friday (18 January).
"We prepare well when the forecast is poor and as a result we haven’t skipped a beat and all customer requirements have been met – partly in thanks to the Royal Mail who made collections Saturday after they couldn’t make it on Friday," said Coxon.
"The vast majority of our staff live within two to three miles of the factory and if the cars don’t get through they take to the paths and walk in. Our maintenance engineer Tyrone Evans walked five miles to get in on Friday along with many others who made shorter journeys!"
Meanwhile, Derbyshire-based Buxton Press, which is surrounded by the Peak District, reported six inches of snow still on Tuesday (22 January) following heavy snowfall over the weekend. A spokeswoman for the company said: "Because it happens quite often in our area we’re used to it – we only had one member of staff who was unable to get in and there was no impact on production or deliveries."
Snow was certainly not welcomed at Tonbridge-based Fenner Paper, where marketing director Justin Hobson reported up to five inches of the white stuff. He said: "Paper is very heavy and needs moving around on large vehicles which depends on the roads and access to industrial estates being clear.
"The roads have been kept well clear and we have been able to make all our delivery commitments in the local area and up to the North of England with our logistics partner, Sittingbourne-based Carousel Logistics."
Courier services were disrupted around the West Yorkshire area, where the A640 near Huddersfield has been closed, and AB Print Group reported that some of Friday’s deliveries have been delayed by up to 24 hours.
But the team pulled together to clear the snow within the first hour of the working day on Monday (21 January) and ensured that all their own deliveries went out and packages were received on time despite having six inches of snow on the ground.
AC Labels jumped into marketing mode, handily creating a bar code to add to their annual 200m barcode labels as they cleared the snow from the fore of their Derbyshire-based print shop.
AC Labels business development manager Jason Woodhouse said: "It was 'snow' joking matter, there was four or five inches of snow and the staff were clearing it up to allow collections and deliveries to take place when the idea was formed to create the 'snow code'. There was a great deal of 'thawed' gone into its design."
Peter Hartshorn, general manager, added: "This idea kept drifting into our heads and it took some real grit to complete it, we hope it doesn't get an icy reception and an avalanche of complaints!"
