Another Fantastic FIT Show For The VEKA UK Group

As FIT Show 2017 drew to a close, it would be hard to describe it as anything other than another success for The VEKA UK Group. With a footfall of over 13,000 people across three days, the event was the perfect opportunity to display and demonstrate a selection of new products and concepts with visitors spoilt for choice when it came to the latest in PVC-U door and window innovations.

Guests who came over to our stand were treated to the first look at new innovations for 2017 such as the SmartFold Door, SmartFold Window and the PVC Residential Door and Side Panel Combination. More highlights included the M70, FlushSash Slim Sightline Window, Bi-Fold Door, VEKA Screen, Vertical Slider (fully mechanically jointed) and Lift & Slide Patio Door from the Imagine range.

Also exhibiting at the event were six companies from Independent Network’s (previously Network VEKA’s) Affiliates Partners; Masterframe, UK Fasteners Ltd, Prefix Systems, Ritec International, Maco Door & Hardware UK Ltd and Trojan Manufacturing Group Ltd, presenting everything from skylights, sash windows and sliding doors, to letterplates, window locks and ‘non-stick’ glass.

The VEKA UK Group’s Marketing Director Dawn Stockell said of the event: “FIT Show 2017 has been absolutely great for The VEKA UK Group, and we have been delighted with the response to the new products we introduced during the event, such as the Imagine Lift & Slide, the newly-enhanced VEKA Vertical Slider and the innovative SmartFold Door.

“Events like this are so much more than showcasing our finished products however, and part of the process here for us is to test out some new concepts with visitors and get their feedback on them. This year, we wanted some real-life reactions to a super matte Spectral foil and a smart window with micro chip technology, so there’s no better place to glean that than at the FIT Show.

“The number of new business leads and enquiries we experienced over the three-day event was markedly higher than previous years too so we’re now looking forward to following up with these, getting customers signed up to the new products, and thinking about the next FIT Show of course!”

The biggest ever to date, FIT Show 2017 drew almost 10,000 visitors over three days, a figure that soared to over 13,200 when it took into account people that came back on more than one day. Extended hours on the first day; dubbed ‘Big Tuesday’ meant that the whole event lasted for 23 hours; longer than ever before.

www.vekauk.com

The Window Company (Contracts) has proved once again its determination to be one of the most efficient installers in the industry by becoming the first customer to start using Tradelink’s new ‘Window Designer for the Cloud’ online ordering system.

Because the Chelmsford based commercial installer already routinely orders online from its other suppliers, it was quick off the mark to take advantage of Tradelink’s new initiative.

Managing Director Rob Petre said: “Online ordering saves us time, cuts out unnecessary paperwork and eliminates the risk of errors from data being inputted incorrectly. In fact, it has become such a significant benefit for us that it is now one of our key criteria when we choose a new supplier.”

The big advantage of Tradelink’s Window Designer for the Cloud is that customers don’t need to download any proprietary software or configure new hardware to use it, they just log in from their standard PC and order exactly as they would have done on paper or over the phone.

This meant that The Window Company (Contracts) were able to start using the system almost as soon as it went live, ordering frames in REHAU TOTAL70 for a large scale window and door replacement contract currently being completed for Osbornes on behalf of Dacorum Council.

Tradelink guarantees that the ordering information on its Window Designer for the Cloud is always the most up to date so The Window Company (Contracts) are benefiting from being able to access the very latest hardware and glass specifications.

It also guarantees that orders placed online are placed straight into its manufacturing system so lead times, which are a key issue for a fast paced, high volume supplier like The Window Company (Contracts), are kept to a minimum.

Rob Petre added: “We’ve been impressed with how easy the process is and how effectively Tradelink are meeting our requirements for efficiency, quality and responsive customer service.”

www.thewinco.co.uk

Leading industry fabricator, frameXpress Ltd has continued with its Business Expansion Programme that Senior Management believes will set a new benchmark within the industry. The installation of a new ROTOX high speed sash line is only the 5th of its kind in the UK and will enable the company to diversify the portfolio and increase output substantially.

The extensive investment at the company’s head office in Telford is valued at over £400k, and is expected to increase the company’s capacity by 25%.

For senior management the time was right to further invest and streamline production, with the finished quality from the new sash line already far exceeding expectations. The increase in demand for the range has led to a need to further automate the facilities and ensure faster turnarounds for the benefit of all customers.

For Operations Director, Tim Ball, this is a strategic move that is repositioning the company for further growth. The ROTOX line was carefully evaluated with the German manufacturers to ensure the machinery could meet expectations. As a brand ROTOX has already proved reliable for the trade fabricator, with senior management keen to build on the already consistent quality standards.

Since installation the line now enables product to flow more easily through manufacturing and it provides technical advantages including a high speed welder that ensures less deformation from the weld joint. Its technique provides localised heat and high speed production via a new technology that is not widely used in the UK.

frameXpress has firmly established a strong reputation for excellence as a leading window, door and conservatory fabricator. The company is recognised for providing the highest possible standards, and this has been achieved by on-going investments over the years in modern equipment as well as staff training initiatives which guarantee consistent quality.

The company has achieved the highest BSI accreditations including BS 7412 for windows made from PVC-u extruded hollow profile and easily achieved the requirements regarding safety, operation and strength. In relation to the domestic market, frameXpress offers the BS Kitemark licence for BS 7950/7412 for enhanced security performance of casement and tilt and turn windows.

The BS EN 1279 standard relating to U-values was also passed and the company ensures an ongoing programme of product testing maintains all of those quality standards.

Over the years, the company has remained vigilant and strong, even during tough economic times, providing reassurance for customers in relation to guarantees, quality standards and brand superiority. Part of the success is attributed to the entire team’s understanding of the pressures on their customers to install only the best.

To this end frameXpress incorporate many enhanced technical features as standard that most other suppliers add as additional cost. Furthermore, the tailor-made solutions offered by the company reinforce its strong market position, with many customers recognising they can rely upon the technical expertise that is readily available from the highly skilled team.

Mark Westbrook comments, “With architectural design and new performance levels bringing their own challenges to production techniques, we consider it imperative to always evaluate the market and make substantial investments in modern equipment when necessary. Through this investment we can increase capacity substantially and further diversify the product range. ”

The fast and reliable nationwide delivery service is another key attribute for customers, due to the flexibility of delivering orders either to the factory or direct to site across the country.

frameXpress has taken an assertive stance to industry direction and product quality which has worked, and continues to reinforce the strong market presence that the company as a whole has established over the last 18 years.

Tim Ball comments, “frameXpress has kicked off the first half of this year with a progressive approach as it enters a major new phase.

As one of the UK’s most well established and well recognised fabricators, we have instigated extensive development programmes to accommodate an increase in demand for the entire product range. In a very competitive business sector it is always important to monitor and raise standards with customers and end users in mind. ”

For more information on the frameXpress portfolio please visit the website where a brochure can also be downloaded. To discuss project requirements please call 01952 581100

As part of a residential renovation project, Crystal Clear Bristol recently installed a Lumi composite door with sidelight all finished in Slate Blue.

“The homeowners wanted to add a modern, stylish finish to the property on which we had undertaken a complete window refit, and the unique Lumi door in Slate Blue was the perfect finishing touch.” James Mizen, MD of the Bristol-based home improvement specialist explains.

Crystal Clear Bristol has been installing high quality windows, doors and conservatories for almost 20 years, and has been offering Apeer products, including Apeer70, Modo and Diamond for almost a decade. After adding the Lumi range following its launch, James believes the products’ unique features make it popular with homeowners.

The market for home improvements is fast being driven by the homeowners’ modern and contemporary, design-focussed aspirations. Historically there has always been a gap between the homeowners’ desire to create their own grand designs and products that fit the brief, and so when Apeer successfully launched the ground-breaking Lumi System in 2015, it was met by widespread acclaim. Lumi features unique ‘edge-to-edge’ energy efficient triple glazing that is structurally bonded to a core of high strength, glass reinforced profiles. Unlike PVCU, timber and aluminium alternatives, Lumi doesn’t have the profile material on show from the outside. Linda Tomb, Marketing Manager adds: “In response to the feedback we have received since the successful launch of Lumi, we have continued to look at ways to further develop our products and expand the range. Installers see Lumi as a great choice for new-build applications, but we really want to raise its profile as an equally suitable product for refurbishment projects, and Crystal Clear Bristol’s latest installation is testament to that.”

Helping Lumi to meet the still growing customer demand for coloured windows and doors, Slate Blue is just one of the popular colour choices on offer. Joining Anthracite Grey, Black, Light Grey, Chartwell Green and Light Blue, the external finishes are all designed to better withstand the elements and resist fading over time. The internal finish is matched across the trims, windows boards and sills, 11 finishes are available; all of which are designed to complement the more traditional styling of windows and doors.

For more information on Lumi visit www.lumiwindows.com or call 0330 0415 014. To contact Crystal Clear Bristol visit www.crystalclearbristol.co.uk or call 0117 911 0272.

Image Above: Michelle Wootton, Order Processing Team Leader (Left) & Shona Thompson, Roof Order Processor (Right)

Yorkshire based fabricator Conservatory Outlet Ltd has appointed its ambitious Business Administration apprentice in a full time permanent role.

Shona Thompson, who began her apprenticeship at Conservatory Outlet in March 2016, has deservedly achieved a permanent role in the company’s order processing department after successfully completing her Intermediate Apprenticeship Certificate in Business Administration – Business Skills Sector.

Over the next five years, Conservatory Outlet has ambitious plans to invest further in both the infrastructure and the skills of its workforce to support its rapid growth. Currently employing 135 people at its 60,000 sq ft facility in Wakefield, the company recognises that an enhanced recruitment, training and apprenticeship programme will ensure it is best placed to take advantage of new business opportunities in untapped areas of the UK, as well as retaining its core Network of 24 retailers.

Shona applied for the apprenticeship in the hope of securing full time employment, and began her Apprenticeship qualification whilst working with Conservatory Outlet. Her core modules included Communication in a Business Environment, Principles of Providing Administrative Services, Understanding Employer Organisations and Store & Retrieve Information, which have given Shona a solid grounding in interacting directly with major customers on a daily basis.

Shona, now officially employed as ‘Roof Order Processor’ explains: “I started out looking for full term employment and the apprenticeship scheme offered with Conservatory Outlet was a great alternative to my other options. It allowed me to work full time whilst gaining a well-recognised qualification.

“The support I received from my employers was great too; it was so helpful to be able to apply my real life working situations to my assignments and gain valuable experience at the same time. This is just the beginning though, I’d love to work my way even further up the company!”

Michael Giscombe, Managing Director at Conservatory Outlet Ltd added “Apprentices are a vital part of our future priorities as a business, and the investment in people helps us to ensure we are equipped to manage future growth, all whilst supporting individuals on their own career development.

“Our apprentice schemes run as part of our growth strategy, as part of this we recognise the long-term importance of investing in our future workforce. Too often businesses see people development as a cost rather than an investment, but combining on the job learning with career development for Shona has proven to be mutually beneficial.

“Shona has worked really hard over the past year to pass this qualification, in that time she has also become a valued member of the Conservatory Outlet team, we’ve been really impressed with her energy and tenacity towards the role as well as her coursework. We’d like to offer our congratulations to Shona for her achievements and wish her well for her long-term employment at the company“.

www.conservatoryoutlet.co.uk

Profile 22’s Optima profile suite may only have been launched last year, but all the signs are that it’s fast becoming one of the commercial systems of choice for specifiers. Gerald Allen, Profile 22’s Marketing Manager, said: “Optima is a system designed for the 21^st century and beyond, which makes it very appealing in the first place. But the expertise and knowledge of our specification team takes that benefit to the next level. It’s something that gives Profile 22 fabricators a real competitive edge when tendering for commercial contracts.”

The award-winning Optima system offers two main systems in chamfered and sculptured variants, complemented with a heritage style flush casement system and a unique flush tilt and turn system designed to compete with aluminium, all of which have a familiar Profile 22 appearance for clear visual differentiation. The systems offer impressive technical innovations such as increased thermal chambers, deep drainage channels, a central eurogroove position, thickened walls around screw locations and a secure bead system. A wealth of glazing options, a wide range of ancillaries and an impressive colour selection add to the appeal.

But when it comes to commercial contracts, the quality of the profile is only the start of the story.

Profile 22 prides itself in helping specifiers to make the right choice of products for the specific application and project. Its in-house and field specification teams work collaboratively with local authorities, housing associations, procurement consortia, house builders and contractors to assist with all aspects of project planning, design, product and supplier selection.

Examples of the services offered include advice on specifications and current Building Regulations, surveying and structural calculations, section drawings of the Optima system for tender documents, forward planning and budgeting advice, supplying sample windows for planning approval and National Building Specification and BIM support.

Gerald concludes: “The expertise and proactiveness of our specification team makes choosing Profile 22 and Optima easy.” So if you are a fabricator working in the commercial market and wanting to secure more contracts, then Optima from Profile 22 could be the perfect answer.

www.profile22.co.uk

PIGS is going to Glasgow for the first time ever on Thursday 7 September 2017. It’s a brand-new city and the third event of the 2017 PIGS calendar.

PIGS organiser and Balls2 Marketing Director, Sarah Ball says: “There are some fantastic companies in the industry based up in Scotland that often miss out on PIGS events because of the travel, so in September, we’re bringing PIGS to Glasgow.”

The new PIGS event will be held in the basement bar at Bacchus on Glassford Street in Glasgow on Thursday 7 September, from 5pm.

All of our very generous sponsors’ money will be going behind the bar, to get the Scottish PIGS party started.

The companies who have offered to put their hands in their pockets for the Glasgow event and all other PIGS 2017 events this year are:

• AluK
• Avantis International
• Build Show
• Business Micros
• Central RPL
• Danvac
• Dempsey Dyer
• Edgetech UK
• Emplas
• ERA
• ExtrudaSeal
• FIT Show 2019
• Frame Fast
• Georgian Bar Company
• GGF
• Glazpart
• Network VEKA
• Profix Group
• Quickslide
• Regalead
• Sealco
• Selecta Systems
• Stuga Machinery
• Synseal
• The VEKA UK Group
• Thermoseal
• Ultraframe
• Universal Arches
• Victorian Sliders
• Whizzle
• Window Ware
• Yale
• Yes Glazing

As usual, tickets to PIGS are free and it’s really quick and easy to register for yours, just go to: www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/pigs-networking-glasgow-september-2017-tickets .

Registration is open now and will be open until the start of the event on:

Date: 7 September 2017

Time: 5pm ‘til late

Where: Bacchus – Basement Bar, 80 Glassford Street, Glasgow, G1 1UR

If you would like more information about the event, or becoming a PIGS sponsor, contact Sarah on sarah@balls2marketing.com or call 07540 049655. And don’t forget to like the Facebook page, follow PIGS on Twitter & join the Linked In group to get the latest updates.

Wintech Testing & Certification have completed another successful FIT Show. The larger venue allowed for the biggest show yet, which saw a noticeable increase of visitors to their stand.

Over a bustling three days the Wintech team had the opportunity to discuss testing and certification with both new and existing customers from the UK and around the world, this year seeing a rise in interest for the WinMark Enhanced Security schemes. The schemes were designed so that a fabricator can demonstrate that it conforms to the requirements laid down by Secured by Design. Building on the success of its WinMark Enhanced Security schemes, the show was used as a platform to launch a brand new WinMark scheme covering the Performance of Curtain Walling and Rainscreen Cladding.

On the success of the show Director, Steve Bramhill explains: “One of the highlights of our stand this year was our display of a door that had been successfully tested to PAS 24:2016, which gained the attention of many visitors throughout the course of the show. Alongside this, we ran a competition to win a PAS 24 test at our laboratory in Telford. The winner was drawn by Mr and Mrs FIT on the final day of the show, and once again I would like to congratulate Nigel Headford of ALUK.”

If you didn’t get a chance to visit us at the FIT Show and would like more information about Wintech, call our office on 01952 586580 or visit www.wintechtesting.com

Linktrusion^TM from Deceuninck is changing the way the market specifies fenestration, thanks to a trademarked manufacturing process and material content that results in the best of both worlds: top performance thermal efficiency usually associated with PVC-U with the strength, durability and design freedom of aluminium but up to 30% lower cost.

Deceuninck’s Rob McGlennon comments: “As specifiers, clients and architects have woken up to the benefits of this unique technology, we are now looking for ambitious companies across the UK to help meet this relentless demand for next generation fenestration solutions and to help grow our fabrication and installation network. London and Quadrant (L & Q) was one client who chose this advanced technology for their recent flagship project in Abbey Road, Barking.  Being one of the UK’s leading housing associations and one of London’s largest residential developers, this technology was fitting for this attractive development. Using Deceuninck’s unique Linktrusion^TM technology the project was completed in Decoroc Anthracite grey RAL 7016 –a very popular choice of colour in the current commercial sector.

The system really is a dream to sell as it is unrivalled in the market place. The benefits of this exceptional manufacturing process include the ability to produce windows which are as strong as steel reinforced windows, 30% more thermally efficient with U values below 0.8W/m²K, with up to 40% saving on materials and weight. New design opportunities are also generated through slimmer sightlines and increased sash sizes (1150 x 2500 single doors) traditionally the domain of aluminium is now easily manufactured using Linktrusion^TM.  With a heritage spanning eight decades, Deceuninck is one of the top three PVC-U extrusion systems’ companies in the world. Over 2,000,000 products are made from Deceuninck profile every year in the UK and many of these go into commercial new build and refurbishment projects. It’s precisely this experience and scale that means we are in the privileged position to be able to look at existing solutions – be it from a material, design or value for money perspective – and invest in bringing to market something better.”

The post Deceuninck Linktrusion Technology is the next generation fenestration solution appeared first on Windows Active Magazine.

Freefoam Building Products are delighted to showcase this recent installation using their complete range of grey PVC roofline and cladding products.

The property in Leicestershire originally featured a render finish to the entire upper level. It had become patchy and discoloured and either needed replacing or covering. Likewise the white fascia and black guttering were also in need of updating. The homeowner was introduced to the Freefoam range by local supplier Tru Plastics Ltd.

Fitting PVC cladding to the exterior gave the property an instant facelift. The homeowner chose Fortex Pro, a Double Shiplap style board, in Slate Grey. Adding a woodgrain foil finish fascia and soffit in Anthracite Grey and a gutter system in the same shade created an attractive co-ordinated look. Russell Skellett from Tru Plastics explained “Being able to offer homeowners a complete suite of products in coordinating and matching colours is a major USP for our company. Our customers are asking more and more for colour and the Freefoam range gives us the perfect solution”

Trends are changing for external building products particularly doors, windows and roofline. For many years white was the only option and the only choice. Colour was rationed and difficult to get and often had to be ordered well in advance and in large quantities. But things have changed. Developers, architects and specifiers have seen the advantages of using colour as a signature for their building projects. And homeowners, inspired by property and home improvement programmes, now regularly choose colour as they look to personalise their property and give it the ‘wow’ factor

Freefoam is the colour specialist. Manufacturing fascia and soffit in eight stunning shades and eight woodgrain finishes alongside cladding products in ten beautiful contemporary shades gives customers a really wide choice. Colin St John, UK Commercial Director commented “Our colour range has been developed specifically to enable our customers to win business. It gives them a wide range of options to meet the demands of today’s market place. We have established ourselves as leaders in the manufacture of colour PVC building products and this case study is another example of how Freefoam products are delivering real solutions to customer needs”

All products are listed online at www.freefoam.com.