Fenestration Digital Magazine Edition 2

glass technology

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HEGLA Machinery (UK) Ltd. •Buckinghamshire•MK8 0AJ•E-mail: [email protected]

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INTRODUCING FENESTRATION DIGITAL

You may have seen in the last week or so a brand new fenestration industry digital magazine drop into your inbox. It’s called Fenestration Digital, and it’s yet another signal of the direction that industry and trade media is going.

In so many areas of life, we are all consuming our news and information via digital platforms. Be it apps, websites, social media and anything else in between that can be read on a screen. The fenestration media is no different. Each year more and more traffic is sent to digital magazine and news platforms. It’s convenient, it’s far more current (assuming the company updates it’s website on a regular basis), it can be accessed almost anywhere and readers are able to zone in on the news that matter to the them. To that end, Fenestration Digital has been set up to provide exactly that service. Covering all parts of the industry, from machinery to IGU manufacturers, to fabricators to ancillary companies. A lot of column inches, both digital and print are given to the already well established sectors of UK fenestration. But, it’s a team effort, and all niches in our industry play a part.

It will be Fenestration Digital’s aim to help shine a light on the areas of our sector that play a vital role with what they do, but don’t always get the media coverage they should. The Fenestration Digital website is now live: www.fenestrationdigital.co.uk. The site has only been live for a couple of weeks, but there is a decent amount of content from a variety of companies already on the site. Over the coming weeks the site will grow, evolve and be tweaked accordingly as it expands to cover more areas and feedback is taken on board from readers. The site also has social media accounts live: Twitter: @FenDigital Facebook: www.facebook.com/ fenestrationdigital Linkedin and Instagram accounts will be up and live in the coming weeks and those handles will be promoted accordingly.

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Why another digital platform?

Building on that, this will be a truly 100% digital platform. Not only will the Fenestration Digital website become a hub packed full of regularly updated industry content, but a regular monthly digital magazine will go out to the industry as it’s regular circular. This can be read anywhere, at any time, on any device. Surely the most convenient way to consume fenestration industry news and the most environmentally friendly! This is a new service, very much in it’s early stages. But those behind it will ensure that it grows fast and will become a platform you hear much more from in the coming weeks and months.

Some of you may be wondering why another digital platform has been set up for news in the fenestration industry. Well, as is mentioned earlier in the article, more and more media is being consumed in the digital space. There is no getting away from it, the trend in online news readership is shooting north, whilst print-based engagement and circulation is waning. You only need to look at what is happening with the national print media, and it’s rapid cost-cutting and consolidation in an attempt to keep business profitable. You either move forward, or stick your head in the sand and allow stubbornness to take over. Fenestration Digital is the former. Moreover, after the exit of the successful MyTradeTV from the media marketplace, a new slot presented itself. This is where Fenestration Digital will aim to fill that space and grow it further.

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ANOTHER WINDOW INSTALLER FINED FOR BAD SELLING METHODS The reputation of the industry is really taking a battering at the moment. Days after the BBC reported that Safestyle had been fined £120,000 for unlawful selling methods, another Bradford-based company has been fined for the very same thing. This time for the amount of nearly £65,000. And there was a 15 month suspended jail sentence for the person responsible too.

THE MIRROR ARTICLE

If you’ve already read the Mirror article, you’ll see that the nice chap found guilty is pictured with Floyd Mayweather. You many also know that he has been advertising windows for a new company called Love Windows. I’ll let you come up with your own ideas.

You can read the full article on The Mirror website here: www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/no-wonder- double-glazing-salesmen-12940723 In the piece, it explains how the guilty party collected over £1m in sales using typically dirty tactics that far too many in this industry will be familiar with. It’s reported that his company left home owners with unfinished work, got them to pay up front before the job was finished by taking out their old windows and threatening to not fit the new ones until the balance was paid. It goes on to say that toughened glass wasn’t supplied in the right areas, which is a basic and big balls up, took payments including VAT– despite being NOT VAT registered. The list goes on. If you click the link above you’ll be able to read through the bullet points that smack of good old fashioned industry thuggery. The exact behaviour which has tainted our industry for so long, and has left home owners doubting the professionalism and quality of our industry. This is also the exact reason why hard-selling of any kind has to be banned outright. It’s worth stating from the start that there are plenty of good installers out there who obviously don’t participate in dodgy sales methods, which is only right. However, there remains a stubborn portion of the sector that still think hard-sell of any kind is OK. When it isn’t. And as we have seen in the past week or so, it only takes a handful of companies to step over the line of what is right to bring their companies and the industry into disrepute.

A BAD COUPLE OF WEEKS

There’s no doubting that this has been a bad week or two for the window industry as a whole. It does seem a little while since court cases like this have been in the media about our industry. Many of us have been trying hard to keep our heads low and do good work for home owners. Personally, I believe that in recent years our sector has earned back a little bit more respect from home owners. I don’t think we’re as hated as we once were. These recent cases though may set us back. Millions of people read both the BBC and Mirror websites, of which the recent Safestyle and this case were reported on. It’s going to ripple through social media and do untold damage. Whether it actually shocks people is another matter. Companies like this don’t have the sort of high-end reputation. Still, it’s been a poor run of news, and it only demonstrates further that pressure selling tactics have to be outlawed. Not just in the window industry, but across business as a whole. It preys on the elderly, the vulnerable and those who are too trusting to question what they are being told. Any decent person would know that to take advantage of those sorts of people with pressure and hard-sell methods is plain old wrong. It does not justify the sales person winning a sale.

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F E N E S T R A T I O N N E W S F R O M A D I F F E R E N T P E R S P E C T I V E

QUALITY CONTENT

FAR REACHING

LATEST NEWS FIRST

Tackling genuine, thought provoking UK glazing industry issues on a daily and independent basis

Set to be read by over a quarter of a million people, creating over 317,000 page views (est on Jan 1st-Apr 19th site stats)

Read the most important breaking news, features, opinion and PR long before you'll see them in print

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NEW Slimline SL16 integral blinds

Ideal for composite doors and vertical sliding windows Slider or cord controlled options Available in white, beige or silver ONLY fromMorley Glass & Glazing

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Tel: 0113 277 8722 Email: [email protected] Direct fax for quotations: 0113 277 8723 Morley Glass & Glazing Ltd, Unit 3, Leeds 27 Industrial Estate, Bruntclie Way, Leeds LS27 0HH

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MORLEY MD GETS READY FOR CHARITY JUDGING ROLE

After being crowned the winner of the 2017 Variety Strictly Ballroom event, and helping raise over £40k for the charity, Morley Glass & Glazing managing director Ian Short is getting his scoring paddles ready as he joins the judging panel for this year’s event. Among those competing for this year’s title will be Variety Yorkshire board member David Wilson and his wife Gail, Bruce Lightbody; partner at Addleshaw Goddard, Nicola McNally; MD of McNally Electrical Group and Mahmood Mazhar; CEO of Core Telecom. They will be joined by Jilly Johnson, Bev Burrows, Lisa Black, Andy Smith and Stephen Pressley. The ten contestants have already begun tirelessly training with their very own professional dancers, getting ready for the final show, where they will battle it out for this year's glitter ball. Gethin Jones, semi-finalist on Strictly Come Dancing 2007 and roving reporter on Strictly Come Dancing It Takes Two, will return as host alongside the fabulous judging panel. The event will also benefit from a little expert dance help courtesy of dancing school Wallflower Dance in Buxton, with all choreography being overseen by owner and professional dancer, Victoria Coultas. Judge Ian Short, who individually raised over £10k towards last year’s final overall total, said: “Winning last year’s Strictly Ballroom event was honestly lifechanging for me. Not only did I learn to dance, I also quit smoking and lost over six stones in weight.

I’ve continued to dance with my professional partner, Olivia Choi from Freedom2Dance studio, and we’re even entering a competition together later this year. “In June this year I was lucky enough to be invited to see the money Variety raises being put to good use first hand when the charity asked me to present Mill Field Primary School in Leeds with its own new Sunshine coach. It’s a very worthy cause and I am delighted to be able to continue my support for the work they do. I hope this year’s contestants are ready for the work they need to put in to be the very best and I’m looking forward to seeing what they can do in October!” underprivileged children. Its objective is to increase their independence, level of confidence and self- esteem, providing them with the opportunity to reach their full potential. This year’s Strictly Ballroom event will take place on Wednesday 10th October at Bowcliffe Hall in Bramham, Leeds. Standard tickets are £25 with children’s tickets £10 and all proceeds going to help Variety continue its important work. Doors will open at 7pm for a 7.30pm start. For more information or to book your ticket contact Variety Yorkshire on 01132 459937 or email [email protected] Variety, the Children's Charity is dedicated to improving the lives of sick, disabled and

To donate, please visit: uk.virginmoneygiving.com/ fund/varietystrictlyballroom

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THE MORLEY SUCCESS STORY CONTINUES - 20 YEARS ON The success of Morley Glass & Glazing can be

machinery that enables the company to produce up to 3000 sealed units with integral blinds inside per week. More than £700,000 has been invested in the business this year with a second IGU production line having been installed at the company’s 50,000 sq. ft manufacturing facility in Leeds. Ian Short, managing director at Morley Glass & Glazing, said: “When we moved into larger premises in 2016 we invested in a 58-metre long automated sealed unit production line from Best Makina. We have not been disappointed with the quality and efficiency of the system that has led to us im-pressing customers with our products and services, so the natural progression was to invest in a sec-ond line. Now that we can easily manufacture up to 3000 sealed units per week we will be able to continue to meet customer demand.” With demand steadily increasing for Morley Glass products, the company has achieved 30% year-on- year growth with Uni-Blind® sealed units that come complete with ScreenLine® blinds inside.

attributed to a driven leader and the commitment of a dedicated team that places customer satisfaction at the heart of the business. This year as the company celebrates a milestone 20 years in the sector, manufacturing and supply- ing Uni-Blinds® sealed units with integral blinds inside to the UK market, there have been more de-velopments that further substantiate its leading market position. In order to ensure that Morley Glass and Glazing can meet the 10-day delivery promise for orders placed before 11 am on Fridays, there has been substantial investment in five additional fleet vehicles that brings the total number of delivery lorries up to 26. Supplied by JDS Trucks the vehicles annual-ly achieve in excess of 100,000 miles as they travel across the UK to support customers and increase the company’s distribution capabilities in line with its growth strategy. Furthermore, Morley Glass & Glazing has doubled its production capacity this year, by making in- vestments in the latest modern manufacturing

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This is such a popular product there is great belief that this growth trend will continue.

The Uni-Blinds® range provides the widest choice of integral blinds in double and triple glazed units, with all manual, solar and motorized versions available in the industry’s shortest lead-time of 10 days from 11am any Friday. Ian believes that a business is only as successful as the team that drives it forward and over the com- pany’s 20-year history, a group of focused people have turned into a strong, committed team. The sales figures prove that the range and the services offered by Morley Glass & Glazing clearly in-spire investment with consumers. Greater choice and the simplicity to install the range make it a win-ner with builders and installers. There has been a sharp increase in orders with the Morley range providing an array of enhanced features including strength and security that provide complete peace of mind for investors. Ian concludes “In general we have had a very positive year so far - and this is reflected in our sales figures. The entire range is easy to install which when combined with quality standards and industry accreditations we clearly have an exceptional product that is very appealing all round.” Yet the success story does not stop there with Ian still very much committed to his charitable causes that are all supported by the Morley Glass team. Last year, Ian trained for three months alongside professional dance partner Olivia Choi from the North Leeds Dance Academy before competing against 9 other amateur dancers in Variety’s Strictly Ballroom competition. After entering the competition, he went on to secure £20k worth of charitable support from local busi- nesses and friends, which meant Mill Field Primary School in Leeds got a brand-new mini bus, which was presented to the school earlier this year. For 2018 Ian will be taking off his dancing shoes and

sitting this one out on the judging panel to help judge this year’s contestants.

Variety is the Children’s Charity that is dedicated to improving the lives of sick, disabled and under- privileged children. Its objective is to increase their independence, level of confidence and self-esteem, providing them with the opportunity to reach their full potential. This year’s Strictly Ballroom event will take place on Wednesday 10th October at Bowcliffe Hall in Bramham, Leeds, Also the professional dancers come from Wallflower Dance school , with all chore- ography overseen by owner and professional dancer Victoria Coultas Tickets available from Variety Yorkshire on-line Celebrating 20 years in a sector that has had very challenging moments both technically and financial- ly is quite an achievement, if this is a sample of success for the first 20 years then it will be exciting times to watch as Morley Glass and Glazing continues to invigorate the market.

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