In a landmark move to enhance energy efficiency across the nation, the government has rolled out the Eco4 Grant, a comprehensive funding initiative aimed at reducing carbon emissions and lowering energy costs for households. This grant focuses on utilising advanced address lookup and Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) data to streamline the application process and ensure targeted improvements.
The Eco4 Grant is designed to assist low-income households and those living in energy-inefficient homes, providing them with the financial support needed to make essential upgrades. By integrating address lookup and EPC data into the application process, the grant aims to identify eligible properties more efficiently, ensuring that the funds are allocated to homes that need it the most.
Advanced Address Lookup with EPC: Precision in Identification
AFD’s Address Lookup functionality returns an accurate address when a user searches by either postcode then selects their property or by typing in the first line of the address and selecting the property.
At this point of selection, AFD returns the PAF address alongside the EPC data.
The integration of advanced address lookup technology plays a pivotal role in the Eco4 Grant’s success. This system enables precise identification of properties, ensuring that no eligible household is overlooked. By cross-referencing accurate address data with various datasets including EPC and UPRN, the technology verifies eligibility and provides accurate location details via property level latitude/longitude for a pinpoint property location. This precision reduces administrative overhead and accelerates the application process, allowing more households to benefit from the grant in a shorter time frame.
EPC data can also be appended through bulk cleansing of address databases.
Energy Performance Certificates (EPCs) are crucial in assessing a property’s energy efficiency. The EPC data offers a detailed analysis of a home’s energy use, carbon dioxide emissions, and potential savings from energy efficiency improvements. By leveraging this data, the Eco4 Grant can prioritise properties that require the most urgent upgrades.
EPC data helps in the following ways:
Impact on Households and the Environment
The Eco4 Grant’s strategic use of address lookup and EPC data not only streamlines the application process but also ensures a significant impact on both households and the environment. By targeting the most inefficient homes, the grant helps reduce energy bills for low-income families, contributing to a reduction in fuel poverty. Additionally, the energy efficiency upgrades lower carbon emissions, aligning with national and global goals for climate change mitigation.
Pista technologies Ltd capture leads for Eco4 government grants to help individuals who live in properties with poor EPC ratings and areas of high deprivation. Adam Evans says; “We have Property level address validation with EPC data from AFD, this means we can capture property information with speed and accuracy, each captured address contains additional information including the EPC rating meaning we don’t have to separately source this data, helping our internal processes.
Bpha, a housing association managing over 40,000 properties rely on AFD’s address lookup and cleansing solutions with EPC data to prioritise maintenance and get their workforce to the right location, read their story here.
Do you want a codeless solution to auto-complete addresses and live validate emails and mobile / landline numbers within Microsoft Dynamics 365 Sales?
The AFD D365 PowerApps Component Framework (PCF) solution does just that. It prevents human mistakes which lead to data contamination and cleans up the contact data already in D365. It is the simplest, most effective way to ensure users enter contact data quickly and accurately across your D365 Sales estate.
The AFD D365 PCF is built with the same AFD Software API trusted and used today by over 300 Software Partners. This is at work in a wide range of sectors including legal, insurance, charity, and education – where accurate address, email and phone data is operationally essential.
Jonathan Stocks Head of Sales & Marketing at AFD explains the rich heritage of the component: “We wanted to find an expert Microsoft Partner to build us a D365 PCF component. They had to have depth of understanding of contact data, technical expertise and the ability to fully support and maintain the PCF into the future.”
After carefully reviewing the options, DQ Global were commissioned. Jonathan continued: “DQ Global met our strict technical and support criteria. A bonus for us is that we have known DQ Global for decades. Like AFD Software, they are fair, deliver a quality product without fuss and red-tape – and guarantee to support and update it. AFD within D365 looks and feels like it belongs there – it is native. We are incredibly pleased – and users love it.”
Conor Doyle is Head of Sales at DQ Global: “We share a passion with AFD for contact data quality and excellence. Just like AFD, we have rich expertise in data, with our specialty lying in CRM de-duplication. Therefore, we were thrilled to be chosen to develop the AFD D365 PCF component, ensuring users have complete confidence when entering address, email, and phone data into Dynamics 365 CRM.
“As a Microsoft Partner we are fully aware of the changes to MS Business Applications, putting us in a strong position to support AFD with ongoing technical changes and ultimately, enabling AFD to continue their high level of technical support and customer care.”
“We highly regard AFD for their deep expertise in contact data validation and cleansing. With thousands of customers, including Irwin Mitchell, Cats Protection and AXA, we always know that AFD are on hand to understand their client’s business challenges, and deliver solutions to meet their client’s needs.”
To find out more about the AFD Dynamics D365 PCF for lightning-fast entry and validation of address, email, and phone data, please contact jonathan.stocks@afd.co.uk.
Visit our D365 Developer page to view and download integration guides here.
Visit DQ Global’s site here
AFD Software helps over 100 Universities ensure their student Address, Email, and Phone data is accurate at the point of entry and bulk cleanses student contact databases.
Address validation and cleansing services offer significant benefits to universities across various aspects of their operations, from administrative efficiency to student services. Here are some key benefits:
Email and phone validation ensures all email addresses and phone numbers entered by staff or students are confirmed as accurate and “live” (currently in use). Feedback from some of the 100+ Universities that rely on AFD for accurate data have shared the following benefits:
Incorporating email and phone validation into their data management practices allows universities to enhance their operational efficiency, improve their communication strategies, and maintain strong relationships with all members of their community, from current students to alumni and staff.
To find out how these solutions can benefit your institution, contact Jonathan.stocks@afd.co.uk or call 01624 811711.
Taking second place in this year’s One World Charity Challenge – and also picking up the AFD Award for Advocacy – was the team from Castle Rushen High School representing Village Africa. This was the first time Village Africa had been represented in the Challenge and the team did an amazing job in explaining the work of the charity as well as raising awareness including being interviewed on Manx Radio and talking to their local MHK. The team is shown with David and Alison Dorricott of AFD who funded the advocacy prize and their link teacher Miss Metcalfe.
Learn more about the challenge here.
In the ever-evolving landscape of data management, accuracy is paramount.
One crucial aspect that demands meticulous attention is the handling of addresses. Whether it’s for e-commerce, logistics, or customer relationship management, accurate addresses are the cornerstone of seamless operations. Address lookup solutions are indispensable tools in ensuring that the data your organisation relies on is not just comprehensive but also error-free.
Address lookup is the initial step in the journey towards data accuracy. It involves using advanced algorithms and databases to translate fragments of information into a complete and standardised address. This process is particularly vital in scenarios where users manually input address details, potentially introducing errors. Through address lookup, the system cross-references the provided information against the best available data sources, correcting inaccuracies and ensuring that the final output is a properly formatted address.
For businesses relying on online transactions, address lookup is essential. It streamlines the checkout process, reducing instances of failed deliveries due to incorrect addresses. Additionally, address lookup enhances user experience, providing customers with autocomplete suggestions as they type, saving time and minimising errors during data entry.
As technology continues to advance, address management tools will likely evolve, becoming even more adept at handling complex data scenarios. Organisations that prioritise the accuracy of their address data today will undoubtedly reap the benefits of streamlined operations and enhanced customer trust tomorrow.
AFD Software has been helping organisations overcome their contact data challenges for 40 years. Asda, DPD, PayPoint, and The Royal Mail are amongst the thousands of organisations that continue to choose The Postcode People at AFD Software as their partners in address and data quality.
To find out more about our Address Lookup solution, click here.
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The Postcode People at AFD Software, the leading provider of contact data validation solutions, have partnered with Eureka Solutions, one of the UK’s leading cloud software experts, to boost its Sage 200 cloud accounting solution.
The new partnership allows Eureka Solutions customers to completely remove human error when typing in vital details, automatically validating bank details, addresses, phone and e-mail contact information at the point of entry.
The strategic partnership integrates AFD’s data verification into Sage 200, expanding its capabilities for customers during data input tasks like stock control, order processing and invoicing.
By leveraging AFD’s expertise in accurate data capture, the collaboration empowers Sage 200 users with new functionality, helping minimise manual errors, save time, reduce costs and protect company reputation.
Eureka Solutions Head of Product, Mike Hall, said: “The partnership with AFD will instantly bring Sage 200 users a new product that will save them time and improve data accuracy. By integrating AFD’s validation tools directly into Sage 200, we’ve created a seamless way for users to verify critical contact and payment information. We look forward to working with AFD to enhance this offering to Sage 200 customers.”
The partnership will allow Eureka Solutions to add AFD to its portfolio of business software solutions, which includes Sage 200, Oracle NetSuite, iplicit and its very own integration tool, Besyncly.
AFD’s Head of Sales & Marketing, Jonathan Stocks, said: “Partnering with Eureka Solutions is an important milestone for us. Their vast client base of Sage 200 users represents a clear opportunity for everyone involved.
Through collaboration, we’re confident we can put easy-to-use yet but powerful data analytics solution into the hands of thousands more businesses. By combining groundbreaking data capabilities with Sage expertise, companies can eliminate bottlenecks, save time and costs, while minimising risk.
More information about the partnership and how to get started can be found here.
To find out more about Eureka Solutions, visit www.eurekasolutions.co.uk
World Poetry Slam Champion Harry Baker joined AFD Software’s Annual Charity Event and 40th Anniversary Celebrations to deliver “An Ode to the Postcode”.
When not writing poems about The Postcode People at AFD, celebrating charitable donations and the importance of postcodes! Harry writes about a wide range of topics including hope, dinosaurs and German falafel-spoons. His work has been shared on TED.com and viewed millions of times worldwide, as well as being translated into over 20 different languages.
His latest collection ‘Unashamed’ was published with Burning Eye in 2022 and he has been sharing poems from it at every available opportunity ever since.
Harry’s work has been described as “Absolutely beautiful” by Zoe Ball, hailed as “a champion” by Ed Sheeran and “Epic” by Ice Cube.
Here is his poem in full.
Some heroes wear capes, some come dressed in Lycra
Some swing on webs once they’re bitten by spiders
Often the heroes are ones that we don’t know
Here’s an ode to the unsung hero: the postcode.
First trialled in Norwich, they mustered up history
Imparting knowledge with such specificity
No need for sonnets or colourful imagery
Just alphanumeric pure rugged efficiency
It starts with the area code:
You might pop to Preston for the good PR
Or choose to chuck Coventry on your CV
If you dwell in Darlington, keep it on the DL
Or head to Huddersfield for life in HD
If you wanna get online, take a trip to Ipswich
An IP address gives you all that you need
Of if you’re in Belfast and you need to bell fast
I can guarantee your phone line comes from BT
The next digits give you the district:
If central Newcastle is your fixed abode
You can always say yes to: “Is NE1 home?”
Or if school’s in South Peterborough and Gym’s not for you –
In all likelihood you’ll avoid PE2
Catch me walking round Hayes in a Daze for sure
Getting Deja Vu – I’ve seen UB4!
Or this happens all of the time:
Does a German reluctant
to solve workplace conflicts
in outer Herefordshire
go and see HR? Nein…
Finally you have the sector and unit:
If we find ourselves on the Isle of Man
And think King Edward Road is where we should meet
There’s no need for stress or contriving plans,
Just know that: IM3 2AT
Imagine if Frodo had known Mordor’s postcode
The eagles could have dropped him off and then flown home,
there’s no place like home for Dorothy and Toto
But it could have helped show where the yellow brick road goes
Way back when if I’d said I’m on the High Street
There were 5,410 I could mean.
Now the 3,811 Station Roads
Can all be separated by these basic codes.
It’s like we’re all Disney princesses, white as snow
How up to 7 small characters can guide us home
They may not see through walls or have super speed
They just help you get to where you need to be
Which brings us to AFD:
The first ones to use postcode data online
To help companies comfortably contact their clients
And just like anyone who’s made lots of bucks
They spent all their profits on planes, yachts and trucks!
Except:
The truck was for Beach Buddies cleaning our shores
The plane to deliver supplies to the poor
The yacht for disabled folk sailing on board
And they’ve donated so much to so many more.
Given their work it seems only apt,
The Postcode People put these on the map
They may not have super strength, or be angry and green
They’ve helped others get to where they need to be
All of this founded on strong Christian values
Enacted in every thing that they do
As they’ve given to hundreds of organisations
There’s power in people, and postcodes too
Jesus cleanses the sins of whoever confesses
They cleanse your database of duplicate addresses
Jesus fed thousands and walked onto water
They validate thousands of emails,
and that’s also important.
We know the Lord works in mysterious ways
And yet through him and through them there’s millions raised.
Long may his work continue through AFD
As he helps us all get to where we need to be.
Some heroes can fly, some are quick as a flash
Some become weirdly obsessive with bats
Often the heroes are ones that we don’t know
This goes out to the unsung hero: the postcode.
At the close of the Annual AFD Software Charity Event this evening, The Postcode People announced plans to celebrate their 40 years of successful business by purchasing a brand-new 9-seater humanitarian aircraft.
The announcement, to the gathering of Staff Team Members, Charity Leaders and community representatives – including the Lieutenant Governor Sir John and Lady Lorimer and the President of Tynwald – was at the Mountain View Innovation Centre – AFD Software’s iconic headquarters near Ramsey.
In addition to celebrating 40 successful years, AFD Software Ltd is also celebrating being named “Business of the Year 2023” at the Isle of Man Awards for Excellence earlier this month.
The state-of-the-art Cessna 208 Caravan worth over £2m will be a gift for Mission Aviation Fellowship [MAF], the world’s largest humanitarian air service. Known as a ‘workhorse of the skies’, the Cessna 208 Caravan has been described by Plane and Pilot magazine as “one of the most trusted and talented, purpose-built utility airplanes ever produced.”
Managing Director, David Dorricott said: “It has been a privilege to partner with MAF for decades – we know that this investment will save lives, and transform the quality of life for thousands in remote communities – what better way to celebrate such a waymark in our business?”
MAF’s CEO Donovan Palmer, who attended the 40th anniversary charity event, was deeply grateful for the generous gift. He presented AFD Software with a symbolic blueprint sketch of a Cessna 208 aircraft, saying: “It is overwhelming and humbling to be chosen by AFD Software as their main partner charity this year to celebrate their 40th anniversary. We admire them as innovators, collaborators and are so grateful to be considered friends. It is tragic that in 2023, millions of people still live cut off from the basics they need to survive. This gift of a new Cessna 208 Caravan aircraft will be a lifeline for thousands of people in PNG – where isolation kills every single day. What’s more, it will help propel MAF’s fleet into the next chapter of our mission enabling us to reach more isolated communities with lifesaving help long into the future. From everyone at MAF, we are deeply grateful for this life-changing gift.
Read the BBC News article covering the donations and 40 years in business here.
The gift of this new aircraft is in addition to over £1 million of donations from the Postcode People to over 80 staff-nominated charities celebrated during the charity evening. Two of which also gave presentations about the vital work they perform and how the funds will be used:
One by One CEO Becky Murray, showed how their international work supports children across the Pakistan brick kilns, tackles sexual abuse and trafficking of Ugandan girls, and is establishing prosecution pathways for child trafficking in Rwanda. www.onebyone.net
Isle Stand Up to Suicide Founder, Paula Dunlop explained how the charity aims to reduce death by suicide through its free phone line and short-term phone counselling sessions. AFD is funding training to help people spot signs of a person in a suicidal crisis – and how to help effectively. www.islestanduptosuicide.com
You can find out more about the other nominated charities here.
Read the BBC News article covering the donations and 40 years in business here.
Manx Radio’s At Your Service podcast featured The Postcode People at AFD Software’s three celebrations; 40 years in business, being named “Business of the Year 2023” at the Media Isle of Man Awards for Excellence, and the charitable donations covered above. Listen here.
We are delighted to announce that AFD Software – The Postcode People – have won the award for Business of The Year at the 2023 Awards for Excellence!
We couldn’t have achieved this without the hard work and dedication of all our Team, Customers and Suppliers – so thank you all for the part you have played in this.
AFD was specifically recognised for the award as the leading postcode software house, investing in the local community, providing high quality employment to the 50 strong team of experienced staff, and delivering on the company motto of “making happy customers” by continuing to support the thousands of organisations that rely on AFD for their address and contact data quality requirements.
Speaking at the award ceremony, AFD’s Managing Director, David Dorricott said: “This is a win for the fifty wonderful Postcode People at Mountain View (AFD’s Head Office) and in the UK. Its a win for the loyal customers who have used our services for decades. Its a win for our suppliers who are reliable and help, and its a win for the wider community – not only on the Isle of Man but across the world as proceeds from our business help make such a difference”.
More information about AFD’s Business of The Year including an interview with David Dorricott can be seen here.
All the award winners from the 2023 Awards for Excellence can be seen here.
To find out more about AFD Software, our solutions and highly experienced team visit our About page here.
Dr Tim Drye has decades of experience in data and statistics. He sits on the Royal Mail’s PAF Advisory Board and his companies help organisations overcome their data and statistical challenges. He shares his experience with AFD and gives his feedback on the latest solutions available.
We serve thousands of organisations and a network of hundreds of partners across multiple industry sectors, enabling them to have full confidence in their contact data.