Do the Benefits of Regulations Truly Outweigh the Costs?

Image Above: Guardian Glass’ new float and coated glass plant is planned to be located adjacent to the company’s existing plant in Czestochowa, Poland.                 (Photo Guardian Industries Corp.)

Guardian Industries has approved the investment for an additional float and coated glass manufacturing plant in Czestochowa, Poland, to meet the growing demand for float, coated and fabricated glass products across Europe.

The new facility location is planned to be adjacent to the company’s existing plant, with preparation and execution of the project starting immediately. The facility is expected to begin operations in the third quarter of 2019, and will create more than 150 new jobs. It will pull 1,000 metric tons of glass per day and will include a technologically advanced glass coater.

Guardian Glass President and CEO Kevin Baird says: “The new facility will be the biggest green field capital investment in Guardian Glass’ history and will further position us as a leading producer of high performance, safety and energy-efficient glass products for European residential and commercial buildings.” He adds: “Guardian is excited about the growth we’ve seen in Poland — and confident that the Czestochowa location is well positioned to meet our customer’s needs. We’ve enjoyed strong support from the city of Czestochowa, the Katowice Special Economic Zone and the Polish government.”

Further evidence of the company’s commitment to Poland, Guardian Glass’ existing float line in Czestochowa will go through a repair project at the start of 2018 that will increase its production capacity.

“We look forward to continued growth in Poland and neighboring countries. The co-location of the two plants will create a competitive and efficient structure to deliver a wide range of glass products and will contribute to generate long-term value for our customers in the region,” says Guus Boekhoudt, Vice President of Guardian Glass in Europe.

In addition to the Czestochowa plant, Guardian Glass operates facilities in Oroshaza, Hungary; Thalheim, Germany; and Ryazan and Rostov, Russia, among its 10 European float plant locations.

Made for Trade have updated their dedicated dynamic website at www.korniche.co.uk. The re-vamped website goes hand in hand with the trade and consumer brochures to emphasise the Korniche Aluminium Roof Lantern’s unique features of being FASTER – quickest most efficient lantern to install. STRONGER – substantially stronger than competitors, WARMER – superior, class leading thermal performance and SLIMMER – the most elegant roof on the market. The modern, feature rich site design makes use of the Made for Trade established brand colourways to highlight each of the Korniche core features, providing a striking looking and user friendly experience.

A dynamic landing page with video content provides the gateway into the product specific site where users will find in depth descriptions of the roofs main USP’s with explanations and descriptive images, a regularly updated photo gallery providing a platform for installers to show off their latest projects and there are sections for client testimonials, news updates and social media links. Also available is a host of downloadable content with links to consumer and trade brochures alongside the Korniche installation guide and best of all the website has been optimised for easy access on smartphones and tablets ensuring resellers and installers have instant access to sales collateral and product imagery in showrooms, at sites and even when on the move.

GET A QUOTE

If you need a quotation, MFT give you all the options you need! Editable PDF, printable and also direct online quotation forms all with survey details are available whenever and wherever you need it.

MADE FOR ‘TRADE PARTNERS’

Made for Trade are continuing to invest in online developments and will soon be rolling out their KwikQUOTE online costing engine accessible from the Korniche site via user login. Not everyone wants a standard sized roof and Korniche is a bespoke product. MFT are reacting to customer needs by removing the uncertainty or a short wait for manufacturer price confirmation. The KwikQUOTE system will provide trade partners access to a simple, easy to use pricing tool allowing bespoke product costings including glass and delivery options in an instant.  It will also be possible for customers to tailor the interface to their specific needs by adding logos, contacts, inputting discount and mark up levels so the printable page can be given direct to their end customer at point of sale. KwikQUOTE means the end customer can check and sign for an order there and then, additional features such as saving estimates will provide a seamless ordering process. Completing a lantern sale has never been easier!

Alongside added online support, Made for Trade continue to offer tailored marketing solutions to suit businesses of all sizes. Point of Sale material such as Korniche sample stands, roll up banners, posters, branded brochure holders and more are available to suit showrooms and sales counters large and small.

If you would like to register for the online Korniche ordering tool or enquire about point of sale collateral for your showroom contact MFT at marketing@madefortrade.co

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The latest update to the Building Regulations has outlined that any new building will require a front door that adheres to the United Kingdom Accreditation Service (UKAS) PAS24 2016 security regulation. As such, door-stop, the UK’s favourite composite door manufacturer has responded to this by launching a new, tougher slab. Door-stop’s new security slab is significantly thicker than the standard option, with an increased glass content, giving it the strength it needs to successfully pass the vigorous three-minute cut-through test required to meet the PAS24 2016 regulation.

Patrick Dean, Head of Sales and Marketing at door-stop said: “According to a survey carried out by at least 30 police forces in England and Wales, homes with little or no security measures are five times more likely to be broken into or burgled.  It’s therefore essential that any potential areas of vulnerability are addressed.  With that in mind, door-stop has developed a new security slab to provide peace of mind for customers and building specifiers.   Our new security slab has passed the three-minute cut-through test, which is an essential requirement in order to achieve Secured by Design status. Secured by Design is awarded to companies that produce products, which pass standards and tests nominated by the police service – and we are proud to say that our doors live-up to these high standards.”

Door-stop’s new reinforced slab option is available on all of its Secured By Design doors and will be extended to cover its cottage style range later this year.

The company prides itself on providing Genuine door-stop doors, which are branded with its mark of quality. There are many benefits to owning a genuine door-stop door: they are weather-proof, police approved, energy efficient and come with a secure guarantee – and what’s more, they also come with a unique serial number, which can be registered on the door-stop website. 

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HL Plastics, the company behind the Liniar brand, has opened its new state-of-the-art foiling and lamination plant as part of ongoing expansion plans. The division was previously located a few miles away from the rest of the operation at premises in Somercotes, but a smooth move to the main site at Denby was completed in just eight days, with no loss of production time. A brand new WPR machine has also been installed as part of the new set-up in order to increase the facility’s capacity. The plant is now located in the former warehouse building at HL’s Derbyshire headquarters, which became vacant after the existing operation moved into the impressive new 178,000 ft² Liniar House building, adjacent to the factory and mixing plant.

“This move makes perfect commercial sense,” said HL’s Managing Director, Martin Thurley. “The new warehouse building allows us to have the majority of our manufacturing divisions all on one site. This removes the cost of additional transport and man hours spent shunting materials between the two locations and keeps in line with our philosophy of being efficient and eco-friendly. The layout of the lamination plant has been specifically designed to maximise throughput of our foiled profiles for maximum efficiency and the additional WPR machine has been necessitated by the growing demand for coloured Liniar products. Due to this increase in demand for a wider choice of colours, we’ve now dedicated one of the machines for specials, which is great news for customers.”

Liniar House, incorporating stunning new showrooms for both Liniar and Avantek Machinery, will be officially opened in September.

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Synseal Group has launched a new all-inclusive trade website which incorporates its full portfolio of products including Masterdor and WarmCore brands. With the most comprehensive range of products available in the industry, the website now showcases the full range of Synseal Group’s window profiles, doors, roof products, glass offer and additional ancillaries. This includes the WarmCore range, Masterdor Craftsman and Benchmark doors, as well as four leading PVC-U systems and Global, K2 and Stratus roofs.

Andy Jones, Group Sales and Marketing Director at Synseal Group, said “Over the years we have acquired a number of brands and their websites which has meant our customers have needed to visit numerous places online to find the information they need. Our new all-inclusive website puts all of the Synseal Group brands and individual products on display in one place for the first time, making it really easy for fabricators, installers, specifiers and architects to find everything they are looking for. Across every industry, websites have become the go-to location to find out about a company, their products and their services. Now when our current and prospective customers search online for Synseal, they will find an innovative, responsive site which reflects the quality and diversity of our product ranges and makes it very simple for them to access all the information they need.”

The new website will also include an accessible, easy-to-use portal for customers to log in and keep up-to-date with the latest developments specific to their product offering. Once a customer has registered, their portal will be pre-loaded with news and product updates along with the customer’s named Synseal contacts, giving them all the information they need in one place.

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This year’s FIT Show wasn’t that long ago but already efforts are in full swing to make its 2019 show the best yet. With a record number of attendees – 9,935 unique visitors, a number that rises to 13,285 when revisits are included – it’s fair to say that this year’s show was a success. With praise coming in from both visitors and exhibitors, the feedback so far has been exceptional. While much of it highlights how worthwhile a trip it was to the first FIT Show to be held at the NEC, Birmingham, it appears many are also excited for what’s in store at the 2019 show.

“FIT Show 2017 was the best yet,” said Brisant Secure CEO, Nick Dutton. “Despite transitioning to a new venue and a significantly larger floor space, footfall seemed to be up every day on last year and the year before.” Robert Goulty, Digital Marketing Executive for Granada Secondary Glazing said, “The show was fantastic and the support from the staff was exceptional,” while Stephen O’Reilly, Marketing Manager for Brookvent, said, “FIT Show 2017 stood out as the best trade show experience I’ve had to date. I was extremely happy with the marketing and promotion prior to the show and the organisation and its support.” Katie Wilson of Profine UK Ltd rounded off the exhibitor comments by adding: “We had a good show and it all went without a hitch. We look forward to being back in 2019.” Celebrity special guest Nick Knowles of DIY SOS was impressed with the FIT Show also. “It’s good for the industry,” he explained. “Because the industry has to work together to make sure that it’s pushing forward.”

Visitors were quick to offer their opinion also. Joseph Solomons, Director of Windows Etc, said, “It was a great show! The exhibitors had clearly invested a lot of time and thought into their stands and were all very helpful.”  After asking Kait Leeming of StormMeister what she thought of the show, her response: “Exciting! Engaging! Educating! Enormous!” Ray Bursey of Dolphin Homes (Poole) Ltd added that he felt FIT Show 2017 was a “thoroughly enjoyable experience.”

With more feedback still to come, visit: http://www.fitshow.co.uk/testimonials to see the current list of testimonials for FIT Show 2017.

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Back in the late 1960’s, Architect Richard Rogers designed and completed ‘22 Parkside’ with his then wife Su Brumwell, he considers this residential project to be one of the best examples of his early work. He links it to a far more spectacular and famous building, the Pompidou centre in Paris, which he had just begun work on at the time with Renzo Piano. Four years ago, 22 Parkside was granted Grade II listing and is now widely regarded as one of Lord Rogers best examples of his early postmodern architecture.

Lord Rogers donated the building to the Harvard Graduate School of Design who appointed architect Philip Gumuchdjian and his practice to refurbish the property whilst maintaining the unique appearance of this iconic structure. One of projects’ features was its design as a kit of parts that could be quickly assembled on site, something that was quite radical at the time.

During the refurbishment, one of the main criteria was the replacement of all 36 wall panels. These were the original 2” thick aluminium faced ‘Alcoa’ wall panels, complete with a rigid Asbestolux lining and polyurethane insulated core. With the safe removal of the asbestos filled wall panels, the original aluminium framed doors, windows and ventilators were removed from the panels and refurbished.

With the assistance of Aluprof UK, new panels were designed around the company’s high-performance MB-59S system which were of 75 mm thickness and incorporated a rigid polyurethane insulation and fireboard covered with a 2mm powder coated aluminum skin to both sides. The new panels were designed to match the original Alcoa panels and consisted of a new jointing ‘zip’ gasket, again to match existing, extruded from EPDM. The original aluminium framed doors, windows and ventilators were then refitted into the new panels with new EPDM gaskets. The newly installed panels now have a U value of just 0.4 W/m2K.

Aluprof are delighted to have been involved with the grade II listed project which typifies the companies flexible and bespoke approach to all construction projects, either new or of a complex refurbishment arrangement such as this.

Aluprof’s extensive range of systems which include unitised curtain walling, sliding folding doors and a wide range of window systems are increasingly being specified on a variety of residential and commercial projects across the UK. All systems are designed and installed by selected, specially trained companies to ensure each product meets the Aluprof exacting standards. Further information is available on the company website at aluprof.co.uk and specialist advice is available directly from Aluprof’s UK offices on 0161 941 4005.

www.aluprof.co.uk