A local special needs school got one step closer to their new multi-sensory room after £3,000 was raised towards the project.

Manchester-based Enterprise Resource Planning (ERP) solutions provider NexSys (K3) donated the sum after being sponsored to complete the Cape Argus Pick n Pay Cycle Tour in Western Cape, South Africa. And in an interesting twist, it is one of K3’s own customers, sensory equipment manufacturer Rompa, who have built the new room for Springwood Primary School in Swinton. Rompa has also donated its flagship product Sensory Magic to the school, an interactive device which empowers users to control light, colour, images, videos and sounds.

Springwood Primary School provides specialist education for pupils aged two to 11 years, all of whom have profound, complex and challenging needs. The school’s previous multi-sensory room required a full refurbishment and it now benefits from brand new mirrors, projectors and lights in the new room.

NexSys went to South Africa, where staff competed with their software supplier SYSPRO (headquartered in South Africa), to tackle the largest individually timed event in the world. The Cape Argus put 35,000 riders through their paces cycling a gruelling distance of 109km – about the same distance from Manchester to Birmingham in the UK. Since its inception in 1978 the event has been held annually, attracting such cycling superstars as Miguel Indurain and Jan Ullrich.

The local firm put five members of staff through the challenge, who finished the course in the combined time of 20 hours, 36 minutes; 10 hours ahead of their South African partners. The winning time recorded at the event was 2 hours 40 seconds and the fastest NexSys cyclist completed the course in just three hours and 6 minutes, impressively only 26 minutes behind.

Andy Latham, Managing Director of NexSys, was delighted that the company was able to raise vital funds for Springwood Primary School. “Springwood Primary is such a fantastic local school and is an invaluable resource for local children who have challenging needs. The new multi-sensory room being built by Rompa will be an important facility to students and will enable them to benefit from the latest technological advances for multi sensory environments. We are really proud to have contributed to this worthy cause.

“There is always a great sporting relationship between the UK and South Africa and we are sure it will continue as we wait for our next challenge with SYSPRO.”