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How do we monitor the quality of our data?
Each tracked company is reviewed and updated at least once every three months. During these routine checks we verify the following are still correct (and amend them if they are not):
company name
management team
company description
social media
logo
among others
As well as doing the aforementioned regular checks, we adopt a daily top-down approach of automatically monitoring for potential company review triggers:
the company's status on Companies House has changed
its website has a 404 (or other) error
the company's ultimate parent company has changed
it has filed a new share allotment form
among many others.
What are export credits and how are they used in Beauhurst?
If your subscription has been enabled to export data from Beauhurst, you will have received a monthly Export Credit allowance. Export Credits are used in our platform to keep track of export activity; they have no monetary value and are not transferable.
Any data point that you download using one of the export functionalities provided by our platform will count against your Export Credit allowance. If you reach the limit of your Export Credit allowance you will not be able to perform any more export actions until the first day of the next calendar month, when your allowance will be reset. Any Export Credits you haven't spent on a specific calendar month do not carry over to the next.
Types of data regulated by your Export Credits allowance include (but are not limited to):
CSV spreadsheets obtained through Advanced Search, Collections or the Innovate UK Grant Search section: one Export Credit per result or collection item exported
PDF tear sheets: one Export Credit per company or fund exported
PDF reports from the 'My Clients' section: one Export Credit per fund exported
If you do need access to more Export Credits, please do not hesitate to get in touch with your Account Manager.
Subscription administrators can access a statement of all the export actions performed by their users by clicking here.
What patents data does Beauhurst have?
We display granted patents that are associated with UK companies - we match patents from the European Patent Office with the relevant company profile on the platform.
We present patents using the simple patent family system, whereby a patent means a group of patent applications referring to the exact same unique invention.
The source data is updated twice a year and there is typically a four-five month lag between data being updated and being made available by the European Patent Office - this is dependent on each national patent authority’s filings.
How does Beauhurst assign COVID-19 impact tags?
Beauhurst data analysts have assigned “COVID-19 impact tags” to all tracked companies according to the impact COVID-19 has had on their operations. We have combined published information on company websites and social media channels with in-house analysis of the likely impact of the lockdown rules, regulations and current economic situation in order to determine these tags.
The following are the impact tags. A company can have as many or few as applicable.
Temporary cessation of operations: The company has halted operations but has shown intent to restart in the future.
Closing most or all physical premises: The company has closed customer-facing physical premises, for example restaurants, retail stores, or offices that are open to the public. Note that companies that have only closed administrative offices (for example Beauhurst!) do not receive this tag.
Limiting physical services provided: The company has reduced or stopped its provision of physical services. For companies to receive this tag, the physical aspect must be essential to their service. For example, a company that values property and is unable or unwilling to provide this as a physical service at this time would receive this tag.
Restrictions currently prevent provision of product/service: A company whose operations have been impacted by legally imposed government restrictions would receive this tag. For example estate agents, who now cannot carry out house viewings with potential renters or buyers; or restaurants that cannot offer a sit-down service.
Restrictions currently prevent product/service provision in some locations: A company that operates across locations that have in place different lockdown rules. (e.g. The reopening of car dealerships in England on 1st June 2020, in advance of other UK nations).
Surge in demand: The company has experienced increased demand as a result of these circumstances.
Creating job opportunities: The company has had the need to create permanent jobs as a result of these circumstances.
Offering product for free/reduced cost: The company has offered a product for free or at a reduced cost in response to these circumstances.
Reduced Operating Hours: The company has not ceased operations altogether, but has reduced the hours its employees work or the hours that clients can access its products or services.
Offering online services only: The company now only enables clients to access its products or services online.
Take-away only: The company no longer enables clients to peruse or consume products on-site, but enables clients to pick them up, for consumption elsewhere.
Explicit staffing cuts: The company has stated it is permanently laying off staff. Companies that have merely put staff on furlough do not receive this tag.
Increased lead times: The company has increased the time it requires to deliver its product(s). For example, where a company sources parts from China, the delivery of those parts may be delayed and the production and distribution of the final good may therefore also be delayed.
Loss of key customer group: The company has lost a key customer group due to current restrictions or circumstances, usually because the customer group is itself unable to operate. For example, a wine merchant that sells mainly to restaurants will have lost that customer group as those restaurants are currently unable to operate.
Struggling to cope with demand: The company can't fulfil all orders at the moment. This could be either due to a surge in demand for its product beyond that which it is able to meet, or due to its internal processes or supply chain being adversely affected by the situation.
Fundamental business model change: The company can’t operate as it normally would and is therefore making very significant operational changes. For example, a fruit and vegetable wholesaler that usually sells to restaurants changing to delivering boxes to consumers instead (new distribution channel), or a florist that now delivers fruit and vegetables, not flowers (new market altogether).
Permanent closure of the business: The company has explicitly declared that it has ceased operations definitively.
Based on these tags, an algorithm then determines a company’s "Current COVID-19 status" from the following selection:
Potentially positive impact: a company that can potentially grow its operations as a result of these circumstances.
Positive (Recovery): a company that seems to have recovered from the impact of COVID-19.
Low impact: a company that will largely still be able to continue normal operations, albeit possibly also furloughing some staff and implementing safety measures such as working from home. This is the default classification.
Moderate impact: a company that has suffered disruption beyond mere inconvenience but is mostly able to continue to operate.
Severe impact: a company that has suffered serious disruption to its ability to operate.
Critical impact: a company that is facing an existential threat to its ability to continue in operation.
Product launch postponed: A company that is postponing the launch of its first commercially released product or service as a result of COVID-19. A company with one product out that is delaying the release of a second product would not receive this tag.
Permanent closure: a company that has definitively ceased trading as a result of COVID-19.
Since a company's current COVID-19 status changes over time as the situation changes, a company will also be assigned an "Overall COVID-19 status". This will always show which status the company had when they were most affected by COVID-19.
Note that the status of a company does not directly reflect its underlying financial situation (we are not able to have visibility over each company’s individual 'live' finances) but is likely to be strongly correlated with it. Demand is likely to be depressed in almost all sectors of the economy during this pandemic, even for companies whose status is “Low impact”.
All new tracked companies added to the system will also be tagged with these data. This is a rapidly evolving situation and data may become out-of-date very quickly. Tracked companies see their impact tags reviewed at least once every two weeks (sometimes more often, where a company is updated or reviewed as part of our other internal processes or where we uncover or receive new information).