HURST FIRES UP WITH COMPOSITE FIRE DOOR SOLUTION

Latest figures from the Home Office reveal that the number of fire-related fatalities in England during 2015/16 had grown by 15% to 303. The number of fire incidents attended by the Fire and rescue services also rose by 5% to a total of 162,000 incidents.

This growing number of fires has prompted Hurst Plastics to bolster its composite fire door offer and help customers to take advantage of increasing demand for composite fire doors in both commercial and retail markets.

Howard Wilson, Hurst Plastics’ Composite Manager, explains: “It is worrying that the number of fire incidents and deaths from fire has risen. Most fatalities from fire occur in the home or in social and affordable housing schemes, so it’s vital to ensure that appropriate passive fire protection systems are in place there to help to prevent the spread of fire. Fire doors are an important element.

“At Hurst, we’ve seen a marked rise in demand for composite fire doors and they now account for a large percentage of our business. We were however aware that some customers were nervous about composite fire doors because they were put off by complicated price guides, poor marketing and technical support, long lead times and unreliable deliveries. We developed a package to overcome all of these hurdles and to help customers to buy high quality composite fire doors with ease.

“Technical knowledge is at the heart of what we provide. We want to reduce the number and impact of fires in the UK and that starts with compliant products and an understanding of the legal requirements. The specifier has a legal responsibility to get their specification right and we are there to guide them through every stage of their composite door specification. Our aim is to steer customers through the red tape, including current European legislation and building regulations, to give them complete confidence in their specification.”

In addition to comprehensive technical support, Hurst has created a full marketing support package, which includes a re-vamped composite fire door brochure, individual retail price guides, personalised leaflets and tenants choice forms. Hurst also supplies pilot doors, samples and swatches for customers to demonstrate to tenants, specifiers, contractors and householders.

The new composite fire door brochure features a wide range of door styles and a number of frame, colour and glass options, including Pyrodur Plus glazing. The 44mm thick Hurst composite fire door leaf consists of a solid high performance core, which incorporates fire retardant phenolic foam and a high-density hardwood perimeter to provide a full half hour fire rating. The core is faced in a GRP colour finished skin, which is outwardly indistinguishable from Hurst’s standard composite doors. The skin is available in a four standard colours and any RAL Premium shade.

The new retail price guide makes pricing a composite fire door easier than ever before. A ‘one-stop’ price list, it features four simple price groups and prices for optional extras for colours, glass and ancillaries. The Hurst commercial team is also on hand to provide estimates and quotes and answer any technical queries.

Hurst Plastics’ range of composite fire doors includes FD30, FD30S, FDSBD and FD60 which have been audited and certified by Warrington Exova BM Trada to guarantee quality and performance. The fire doors have also been fire and smoke tested for up to 30 minutes by Warrington Exova to ensure they conform to BS476: Part 22: 1987

The doors offer the highest levels of security and satisfy the requirements of the Q-Mark enhanced security scheme. They also comply with PAS023/PAS024 security accreditation and the requirements of Secured by Design. Unlike some composite fire door suppliers, Hurst Plastics supplies every composite fire door with controlled door closers as standard to meet BS EN 1154.

www.hurst-plastics.co.uk

The market for windows, doors and conservatories is being driven by homeowners’ modern and contemporary, design-focused aspirations. There has always been historically a gap between consumers’ desire to create their own grand designs and products that fit within their budgets. This gap has started to close as products have been filtering through to installers and retailers that have helped them answer homeowners’ desires for modern and design-focused windows, doors and conservatories. With cost-effective price tags, these products have also become more likely to be included by installers and retailers in their product portfolio offered to middle and high-end customers. Arkay Windows is a trade supplier of a wide range of fenestration products, and has witnessed an upsurge in demand for its ranges of design-orientated aluminium windows and doors. Back in 2014 the company was quick to identify the growth potential of a more contemporary-inspired range of windows and doors. Managing Director Raju Radia told Windows Active: “Many projects featured on Grand Designs are grandiose and may include a 7-metre sliding door, but now, due to innovation and realistic prices, an owner of a semi-detached home can also recreate a similar look and feel.”

Today, Arkay Windows offers installers and retailers a burgeoning range of products at a competitive price point that allows them to offer solutions to help homeowners achieve their dreams. A range of affordable aluminium doors offers the latest products for installers and retailers, including folding sliding doors, minimal sliding doors, inline sliding doors and residential entrance doors.

UniFold is the new effortlessly slim aluminium folding sliding door. With just a 120mm, glass-to-glass sightline, UniFold opens up rooms to light, helping to create a functional, open space for living, working and entertaining. UniFold is fully adjustable for ease of installation; it can achieve PAS24 and Secured by Design and features fully openable corners. Attractively priced, Unifold is available with a maximum panel width of 1,200mm, maximum panel height of 3,000mm and a maximum panel weight of 120kg.

The InfiniGlide is the fully concealable architectural minimal sliding door that comes in two variants, the InfiniGlide 3 and 6. Whether your clients are looking out on to a beautiful landscape or a metropolitan skyline, they can enjoy every bit of the view with InfiniGlide 6 with its 25mm interlock or the InfiniGlide 3 with a 20mm interlock. This sliding door perfectly blends in with the home’s interior design and creates an almost uninterrupted vista with the inspiring ultra-slim interlocks. The frame and perimeter sashes are fully concealable and the door is fully openable with the ability to create glass-to-glass corners. For the InfiniGlide 6 the maximum panel sizes are 3 metres in width and 6 metres in height, with a maximum panel weight of 1,000 kgs. For the InfiniGlide 3 the maximum panel sizes are 2.2 metres in width and 3 metres in height, with a maximum panel weight of 320 kgs. Both feature market-leading 4-point key-locking.

The LumiDorr is Arkay’s thermally superior flush aluminium entrance door that features its own bespoke styling. When style and fine craftsmanship meet security, LumiDorr is the result. There is no need to sacrifice aesthetics in the quest for security as the door is available in 14 popular panel designs and can also be created bespoke by Arkay’s in-house design team.The LumiDorr range is available in a near-limitless choice of colours, textures and finishes. Importantly, the door offers impressive thermal performance delivering u-values as low as 0.86 W/m2K. It is fully reinforced with a 3mm aluminium external skin and is available with optional fully concealed hinges. The maximum panel width is 1,800mm, maximum height is 3,000mm and maximum panel weight is 220kg.

The EdgeGlide is the amazingly sleek, new inline aluminium sliding door. It combines top quality with colour-matched hardware and elegant design. The door features an ultra-slim 42mm interlock and panels sizes are up to 2.2m by 2.6m. Available in kit frame and sash options for full site-assembly, EdgeGlide has a 60mm frame depth for easy replacement.

For more information on the UniFold, InfiniGlide, LumiDorr or EdgeGlide please call Arkay Windows on 01923 803923 or email: info@arkaywindows.com.

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Clayton Glass have just produced a new 20-page Product Guide that’s packed with their expanded range of SMARTGLASS® products for the conservatory, bi-folding and patio door sectors, including the latest ground breaking, self-tinting Dynamic glass.

The new Product Guide includes technical performance characteristics of their conservatory roof glass range, that now includes the flagship Ultra 86 solution, which is they believe, the best performing glass of its type in the UK market at present. It boats a G-value of 14% and like all products in the SMARTGLASS® roof range, comes with warm edge technology and true self cleaning properties as standard.

SMARTGLASS®-W is the industry’s first dedicated range of glass for conservatory frames which is also detailed in the new guide and it’s also designed for the bi-folding and patio door market. The key property of this product is the fact that it is designed to vastly reduce the impact of solar heat gain, a characteristic certainly not welcomed in any conservatory environment.

The recently launched SMARTGLASS® Dynamic product, is the industry’s first automatically self-tinting, glass technology for conservatories, Orangeries and other glazing elements and is also detailed in the Product Guide. With availability in any shape and a 10-14 day turnaround on orders, along with a clever interactive market tool, it’s a new development that’s already generating considerable interest.

Jason McCabe, commercial and site director for Clayton Glass commented: ‘The Product Guide is very much the bible for conservatory, bi-folding and patio door glass with our unrivalled SMARTGLASS® range. There are technical tables and charts, along with flagship products that really help set us apart and make us the glass partner of choice in the sector.’

For a FREE 2017 Product Guide or SMARTGLASS® Dynamic sample kit, e-mail enquiries@smart-glass.co.uk or call the sales office on 01207 288200. You can also add to their growing Twitter following @ClaytonGlass and can find further product information at www.smart-glass.co.uk.

Paul Sullivan, MD Anglo European and director of Aluminium Shapes, Peter Toland chairman of Anglo European and Aluminium Shapes, Joe Martoccia CEO, Aluminium Shapes

Anglo European Group and Joe Martoccia have led a consortium in forming Aluminium Developments Group and acquiring Corby based aluminium extrusion and component manufacturing business, Aluminium Shapes.

Employing more than 60 people, Aluminium Shapes serves a wide range of industries and claims to offer its customers ‘a complete end-to-end service’, from design and prototyping, right through to component production.

Leading the acquisition, Joe Martoccia has been appointed group CEO and will be based at Aluminium Shapes’ head office and production facility in Corby. Joe commented: “Investment from Anglo European Group, existing shareholders and the management team, together with funding from AIB (GB) delivers a well structured, robust platform for growth in what is an exciting and dynamic sector. Collaboration with Anglo European in the fenestration and road transport markets will provide additional opportunities for growth, building on what is an already diverse customer base.

“This is an amazing business with a successful history and strong pedigree. I was overwhelmed by the enthusiasm, support and expertise of the team. There is a genuine ‘can do’ attitude which underpins the company’s superb customer service and quality ethos. Aluminium Shapes is a solid company and with the additional investment and combined expertise of the management team we can significantly accelerate the growth of the business.”

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PVC-U systems supplier The VEKA UK Group has invested £35,000 in new machinery for the company’s workshop. The Burnley-based firm has upgraded to a newer, more efficient Urban three-head welder to replace an older model.

The workshop is an area of the plant dedicated to development work, ensuring that The VEKA UK Group can work alongside customers and hardware suppliers to partner on various exciting projects, as well as continually testing and improving product ranges. It includes a host of test rigs and facilities to fabricate and assess all variants of VEKA and Halo products and there are three full time members of staff working in this department.

The Burnley-based company is well known for investing heavily in plant, people and technology – with capital investment well in excess of £20m in recent years. This latest investment of £35,000 takes the collective value of workshop machinery to around £500k.

MD of The VEKA UK Group Dave Jones said: “The VEKA UK Group is always proud to invest in technology for our plant, as it represents an investment in UK manufacturing and the ongoing partnerships we share with our customers. We’re committed to improving facilities wherever possible, including the workshop, and the new welder will make this department run even more efficiently; further improving the high levels of service we offer.”

www.vekauk.com

This is a sponsored article by Universal Arches

Shaped frame and arching specialist, Universal Arches, is putting its females to the fore when it comes to customer service, sales support and FIT Show planning.

Over the last few years there have been an increasing number of women involved in major roles within the glazing and fenestration industries and now Universal Arches are involving Kayleigh Pritchard and Caitlin Whalley in more wide-ranging responsibilities. Both of them came straight from college with Kayleigh now in her ninth year and Caitlin in her third with the specialist frame manufacturer.

There’s been an underlying shift in dynamics in the labour market as a whole, with around 67% of women, aged 16-64 now in work, an increase from 53% in 1971, according to the Office for National Statistics. Seasonally adjusted statistics also showed that that around 13.4million women were in work vs 15.3 million men, though the proportion of those in part time work between genders varies significantly. The fact is we should be experiencing more women taking on forward facing roles in our industry.

Leon Day, managing director of Universal Arches commented: ‘Both Kayleigh and Caitlin now have more proactive roles in the business and their experience and skill-sets fully justify this. I would expect that more women will come to the fore in this industry given the statistics and opportunities.

He continued: ‘We are starting to see more women such as Clair O’Hara at the Epwin Group now also taking major roles in what has been a male dominated environment for so many years and it is a welcome change in dynamics for modern society, as it is at Universal Arches.’

For further information on Universal Arches visit www.universalarches.com, call the sales office on 01744 612844 or follow them on Twitter @universalarches.