London December 2018 PDC BIG celebrates thirty years as a UK market leader for Name Badges with industry accolades, achievements and awards. During this time, it has enjoyed a trailblazing journey as a print, design and brand expert.
PDC BIG manufactures permanent and reusable, high quality, branded name badges, ID accessories and business print. Its innovative solutions revolve around ease-of-use, brand, presentation, accessibility and security. They are widely used within public and private sectors, including Corporates and Events, Conferences, Leisure, Entertainment, Hospitality, Retail and Healthcare.
For over thirty years, the company has excelled in technical expertise and service quality. It started as PDMS (Products) Ltd in 1988 and scaled up to become BIG, enjoying brand leadership in name badges throughout Europe. Brady Corporation, the US-based People ID titan, bought the business in 2003; in 2013 BIG merged with PDC - another European pioneer in ID systems and technologies for wristbands and labels for healthcare, leisure and entertainment and law enforcement. Together, they formed PDC BIG.
A legacy of expertise, quality manufacturing and technology
As the business grew - opening the Ipswich manufacturing facility in 1994, expanding across Europe, and joining a global family with operations in 26 countries – it never stopped investing in people, technology and solutions. Such investment won them major accounts and industry awards.
International standards underpin the design and manufacturing processes. Led by Mark Alderman, UK and Ireland Regional Business Manager, the 14,000-square-foot facility in Ipswich processes over two million name badges a year, along with a billion wristbands, half a million lanyards and 13 million business cards.
As Mark said, himself a PDC BIG veteran of over 22 years, “Many of our customers have been with us since the beginning and we make sure they are all delighted with our service and solutions. Our dedication is legendary – we can deliver badges within 72 hours, and sometimes even 24 hours!” This passion is shared across servicing, sourcing and product development, and has earned them praise from customers and suppliers alike.
Practical and Seamless Solutions
PDC BIG were early developers of automated systems and online ordering platforms, and many of their solutions have since been imitated!
In 1992, they launched the Selfit® reusable name badges - still among their flagship solutions. Within the first decade, they had a dedicated online ordering system E@SY for business cards and invested in top-of-the-range printing presses. A revolutionary web-to-workbench approach paved their way to handle the largest singular personalised name badge UK rollout for Supermarket giant Tesco in 2008. They later added badges to the E@SY platform -now Click2Order – and introduced Smarter Business Cards with the ability to add QR Codes.
As businesses adopted new technologies, they improved the original Selfit® badge software to a state-of-the-art complete software system using web-based technology for pcs and mobiles - and won the Best Technology for Conferences Awards in 2012. Selfit® badges are widely used at conferences and events as well as in hospitality, retail and corporates. They were even present at high-profile events including the 2012 Olympics Games and the SuperBowl XLVI!
Innovations continued online and offline, such as the Badge Surround developed for long-standing customer Tesco.
In 2016, PDC BIG enhanced the Click2Order online badge ordering and management platform for trade and corporates. Another flagship solution, the 24X7 integrated e-procurement, is accessed via customised website portals. It handles multiple, localised, detailed and repeat orders with personalised templates for branded name badges, photo ID cards and accessories, while providing full centralised control for customers.
Smaller customers can access the popular e-shop, with free online design tools for name badges, lanyards and accessories.
In 2017 PDC BIG introduced Selfit® Global, ushering in significant updates. Other PDC BIG products include the reusable Selfit® Pro and Premium Badges; permanent Premium Impress and ID badges; Chalkboard Badges, and the Event, Xpress and InstaCards badges together with an extensive range of promotional badges and ID accessories (such as lanyards, fasteners and ID Card-holders). They have also developed an eco-friendly range of permanent badges and wristbands made from recycled material, event badges made of biodegradable laminate and bamboo lanyards.
Green Credentials, Socially Responsible, Fully Accredited
PDC BIG is justifiably proud of the prestigious Made in Britain accreditation for its badge products, displayed next to industry awards, SEDEX and PCIAW memberships and BSI ISO and Investors in People certifications. They complement PDC BIG’s commitment to ethical, sustainable and responsible business practices.
The PDC BIG journey has been an enviable roadmap, upheld by five pillars: Innovation; Service; Quality, Loyalty and Fun. Throughout, PDC BIG has kept customers firmly at the heart of every decision made. The future is exciting - and service excellence, innovation and quality will continue to be pivotal in many years to come.
About PDC BIG
PDC BIG is a global leader in people identification. We connect people, products, and technology through innovative ID solutions that deliver superior customer experiences worldwide. We are focused on quality and excellent customer service. We provide the most innovative and widest available range of identification products such as wristbands, badges, lanyards and ID accessories to customers all over the world from our manufacturing facilities located in the United Kingdom, Belgium, the United States, Mexico, and China. Most of our ID products can be personalised to the customer's needs and requirements. They can be found in major events like conferences, festivals or fairs organised all over Europe.
PDC BIG is committed to quality and sustainability. We are proud members of Sedex (http://www.sedexglobal.com/), the global not-for-profit organisation dedicated to driving improvements in ethical and responsible business practices in global supply chains; PCIAW (https://pciaw.org) The Professional Clothing Industry Association Worldwide and Made in Britain (www.madeingb.org). We operate a strict Quality Management System, incorporating a robust Quality Assurance Policy which complies with the requirements of ISO 9001:2008.
For a list of services and products, please visit www.pdc-big.co.uk.
Contact Details
Aleesha Roy, Marketing Communications Assistant
PDC BIG - 5 Hampton Hill Business Park, High Street, Hampton Hill, TW12 1NP, United Kingdom
PDC BIG UK (Manufacturing) - 6 - 8 Dencora Business Centre, Whitehouse Road, Ipswich, Suffolk IP1 5LU, United Kingdom.
T/F: +44 (0) 208 614 8800
For more information, please contact
Market Accents - www.marketaccents.com
Noreen Cesareo - communications@marketaccents.com - +44 7787 555651
Customer Services, Technical, Design, Web and Print Specialists at the Ipswich facility led by Mark Alderman (1st left, front row)
PDC BIG Client Servicing and Office Team at Hampton Hill
PDC BIG An Eye For Detail An eye for detail: 30 years of PDC BIG dedication to quality service and product excellence.