NATFEN Awards Magazine Edition 11

NATFEN Awards Magazine Edition 11

glass technology

RapidLam Shape: More Scope To Shape The Future.

Shape Cutting of Laminated Glass as a Compact Unit More possibilities to cut shapes and free forms on laminated glass. Can be integrated into an existing line, or as stand-alone machine. This compact machine uses synchronised turning cutting heads, providing precise results that match the cutting plan. • Automatic cutting of free forms in laminated glass • Can be used as part of a cutting line or as stand-alone machine • Laser foil separation can be installed at a later date

www.hegla.co.uk

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

GENERAL

CLIPPINGS AND MUSINGS – NOVEMBER EDITION - HELEN DUVAL 2018 T echnology, performance, trends, culture and art influence many aspects of the glazing industry with design becoming

more important than ever before, as sleek finishes that make bold statements are as important to end users as the performance of the product. Whether that is for contemporary new build or redeveloping a listed property to today’s standards, modern design is playing its part and it really matters. With Facebook, Instagram, Twitter or Snapchat now being major forces shaping our business and personal worlds, we must all keep pace to be relevant it seems. In some recent articles there appears to be increasingly heated discussion about the ‘abduction’ of Linked In as a more ‘social’ media platform rather than a business connection feed. Commercially speaking, online is gaining momentum and gives incredible power to marketers everywhere when looking to build brands and raise awareness. Those 15 minutes of fame now seem readily available to everyone on a daily basis, particularly with the advent of live streaming options. Strategising social columns and online newsfeeds has become more important than ever, to build into mainstream marketing and advertising packages.

Businesses and manufacturers have to keep pace if they are to succeed. The next generation of ambitious entrepreneurs has never been without technology and they harness it in ways that leave some of us completely confounded….. but learn we must.

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GENERAL

In terms of building design for commercial projects, there continues to be new challenges and rewards when it comes to making bold statements. Striking engineering projects, now dominate our city skylines, creating a lot of curiosity and much admiration for the architects and planners. Design and performance are inextricably linked and are expected to be more dynamic with every project. Architects and interior designers keep stretching the boundaries, with ever more creative challenges to create an aesthetic that addresses our modern desire to have something superb to live or work inside. Equally, there is a desire to create something new that offers a feeling of security and familiarity with the need to offer comfort. to the occupants taking a priority. Supplying to calls to produce the best of the past that combines perfectly with the desire to be part of something vital and new is becoming a priority for design professionals. Looking at recognition of innovation, Award season is virtually on us and there is already a very familiar buzz that’s taking hold of those in the glass and glazing sector. Finalists have now been announced for this year’s NFA Awards and with more categories, the competition is already heating up. The industry’s movers and shakers are once again under the spotlight, with their peers having acknowledged the successes and corporate achievements by virtue of nomination. Celebrating innovation in industry technology, engineering, design and quality standards is at the heart of the NFA awards, with peer- led support. Once voting has concluded, the event then honours notable industry leaders, the professional and personal achievements within their field. It’s edge of our seat time again as we look to celebrate quality and success across the glass and glazing industry.

When looking at architectural theming, product innovation and performance dynamics are critical aspects that will ultimately influence investment and must be readily available on the internet to view – so, even if it’s a retro design, acoustic glazing, toughened safety glass for a new build hospital, or a charitable cause that a product manufacturer or firm of architects wants to promote - it all has bearing for the sector and needs to be a part of the manufacturers online conversation today. We have to be relevant and focused.

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MORLEY GLASS & GLAZING SHORTLISTED FOR FENESTRATION AWARD

M orley Glass & Glazing has been Fenestration Awards.

this. Best of luck to everyone who has been shortlisted!”. Launched in 2013, and now into its fifth year, the National Fenestration Awards aims to be the fairest, all-inclusive fenestration event, rewarding the very best of the glazing sector. Voting for the winners of the 24 award categories is now open on the NFA website until Friday 26 October. Winners will then be announced online during the NFA 2018 ‘Winners Week’ from Monday 29 October – Friday 2 November and invited to a special Winners Event in the New Year. With the 2017 campaign seeing over 3,600 votes cast, organisers are confident that this year’s awards will be even bigger. For more information, and to vote for your favourite companies, visit: www.fenestrationawards.co.uk

nominated in the IGU Manufacturer of the Year category at the 2018 National

The nomination is the third award shortlisting for Morley Glass in 2018, after the business was also named as a finalist in the Yorkshire Business Masters Awards and in the Component Supplier of the Year Category at the G18 Awards. Ian Short, Morley managing director, said: “We may be coming to the end of our twentieth year, but we have no plans for slowing down and I think the awards nominations we’ve received this year perfectly reflect our ambitions for the future. “As the biggest part of the window and one of the biggest parts of the industry, the IGU sector continues to be one of the most competitive areas of the glazing sector, and the shortlist for the IGU Component Supplier of the Year award reflects

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IT’S A HIGH FIVE FOR SELECTA!

Birmingham based PVCu Window and Door Systems Company, Selecta Systems, are revelling in the success of being nominated as finalists in no less than five categories at the National Fenestration Awards. Sales Director Andy Green, talks about the nominations and why Selecta are beginning to win accolades and be firmly recognised as one of the fastest growing and most progressive PVCu window and door system houses. “Firstly, we are absolutely thrilled to have been nominated as finalists in five categories at the National Fenestration Awards 2018. The great thing about the NFA’s is that all the awards are nominated for by your industry peers, which for me, there is no greater recognition than from those that work in the industry, day in day out, so thank you again.”

defend our crown at this year’s awards as well as being nominated for PVC Company, New Product of the Year, Social Networker and Fabricator / Manufacturer. The nominations epitomise and recognise the amount of hard work that the team have put in over the last couple of years, as Selecta goes from strength to strength” says Andy. It is quite clear that Selecta’s presence and activity in the market has grown considerably over the last couple of years, as has the popularity of the Advance 70 Window and Door System and the service and support package of which Selecta provides. The NFA nominations endorse this, combined with perseverance, hard work and a positive swing in market perception.

The change in perception and positivity surrounding Selecta and the Advance 70

System, has not only resulted in Selecta being nominated finalists in five categories at the National Fenestration Awards, but it has also had

“Having been voted Systems Company 2017 at last year’s awards, we are delighted to be able to

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a major impact on the number of fabricators now converting to the Advance 70 System and choosing to #bepartofthefamily, as Andy highlights. “Over the last 18 months or so, over 80+ fabricators have been converted to our Advance 70 System. This is an amazing achievement when you consider that the industry as a whole is, reportedly, between 5 and 15% down over the year. We have really opened the industries eyes in to what Selecta has to offer whilst attracting a broad array of customers of all sizes. Having customers visit our site, meet and greet the Selecta ‘family’ and leave totally impressed with the state-of-the- art extrusion and distribution facilities has been immensely satisfying.” “Being nominated finalists in five categories, on the back of converting a record number of fabricators, really demonstrates the progress we have made and puts Selecta and the Advance 70 System firmly in the spotlight. I would personally

like to thank everyone involved in our recent achievements, which are already looking likely to continue in to the New Year with some exciting growth and expansion plans just around the corner.” Selecta Systems certainly look in to the future with optimism and enthusiasm as they look to build further on one of the industry’s biggest success stories of the last couple of years. Fabricators, installers and specifiers, it’s time to #bepartofthewinningfamily If you are looking for a PVCu window and door system supplier that can service and support your business or require further information, then contact Selecta on 0121 325 2100, email [email protected] or visit www.selectasystems.com

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2018 NATIONAL FENESTRATION FINALISTS ANNOUNCED

J ust in case you missed it, although we highly doubt you did, the 2018 National Fenestration Awards finalists were announced recently, which means voting is now open and you can expect your social media timelines and email inboxes to rightly be filled with a plethora of media and marketing materials hoping to garner your votes and generally spreading the NFA message. Not sorry!

BI-FOLDING DOOR MANUFACTURER: Liniar AluFold Direct Everglade Windows Folding Sliding Door Company Dutemann Warmcore by Synseal Origin Bifolds Sliders UK

Here are the nominees in each of the 24 categories:

COLOUR SPECIALISTS: Glazpart Kolorseal RegaLead Deceuninck TWR Bi-Folds Renolit

ALUMINIUM COMPANY: Bennett Architectural Origin Global Jack Aluminium AluK GB Sapa REAL Aluminium

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COMPOSITE/PANELLED DOORS: Hurst Plastics Solidor Ltd Distinction Doors

FrameXpress Kingfisher Windows Emplas Listers The Glazerite Group UK Ltd Abcell Bison Trade Frames Made For Trade GLASS SYSTEMS COMPANY Pilkington Saint-Gobain Guardian Glass HARDWARE COMPANY VBH (GB) Ltd Glazpart blu Performance Caldwell Security Ingenious Locks & Hardware

Endurance Doors (Rocal) Door-Stop International IG Doors

CONSERVATORY ROOF FABRICATOR: Prefix Systems Ltd Icotherm Roof Systems Premier Conservatory Supplies

Guardian Roofs Synseal – Global Korniche Ultraframe

DIGITAL SPECIALIST Balls 2 Marketing Purplex

MACO UK BJ Waller Carl F Groupco Yale Trojan Group CR Lawrence Brisant Secure

Business Micros Plane Perspective

FABRICATOR/MANUFACTURER Pratchett Joinery Unique Window Systems Ltd

IGU MANUFACTURER Double R

RJ Windows Ltd Selecta Systems Panoramic Doors UK Lancashire Trade Frames Solidor Conservatory Outlet Endurance Doors Pearl Window Systems Ltd Roseview Windows Ltd Masterframe Windows Exeter Trade Aluminium Everglade Windows

Morley Glass Clayton Glass Ecoglass Oakland Glass

INTEGRAL BLINDS COMPANY Between Glass Blinds

Morley Glass HiTech Blinds Swiftglide

AluFold Direct rame Fast UK

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MACHINERY COMPANY Promac Avantek Machinery elumatec HEGLA/Bystronic UK Stuga Machinery Haffner Murat Glass Machinery Company Timberweld®

Elina Perry – Pratchet Joinery Mark Walker – Selecta Systems Lauren Edwards – Glazerite

SPACER BAR MANUFACTURER: Thermoseal Edgetech (UK) Ltd SWISSPACER

NEW COMPANY OF THE YEAR Alumitech Ltd Architectural Aluminium Apertures Ltd Exeter Trade Aluminium Viiu Ltd NEW PRODUCT OF THE YEAR Masterframe Windows Ltd Selecta Systems Tremco / Illbruck Deceuninck aïr – aïr 80HI window

SYSTEMS COMPANY: Selecta Systems Liniar / HL Plastics Deceuninck Eurocell Jack Aluminium Synseal VEKA

TIMBER ALTERNATIVE COMPANY: Roseview Windows Masterframe Windows Ltd The Prestige Collection by Aztec Windows

PVC COMPANY: Masterframe Windows Ltd

Residence Collection Evolution Windows

Selecta Systems Unitfeature Ltd Eurocell Deceuninck

TIMBER COMPANY: Pratchett Joinery Glyngary Joinery Ltd Exitex Ltd TimberWindows.com West Port Windows TRAINING CENTRE: Fit For Trade Ltd PM Training IPS International Schueco UK West Suffolk College

SLIDING PATIO DOOR COMPANY: Viiu Ltd VueLite Quickslide Eurocell

SOCIAL NETWORKER: Lucy Jones – Solidor

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VERTICAL SLIDING WINDOW COMPANY: Pratchett Joinery Roseview Windows Masterframe Windows Ltd Glyngary Joinery Exitex Ltd Barnet Window Co Ltd Quickslide Ltd YOUNG PTERSON: Harry Sellwood – Alumitech Ltd Rob Hawthorne – Pratchett Joinery Joel Rhodes – Prefix Systems Jake Hodgkinson – Bennett Architectural Tej Naik – Unique Window Systems THE BIGGEST YET This is the fifth NFA campaign and is the biggest to date. In 2018 we wanted to build on the now permanent and influential reputation the awards had worked very hard for. We thought that one of the best ways to do that was to shine the NFA light on new areas of the industry that we hadn’t yet focused on, or was being missed out by other parts of the industry. So, we expanded the NFAs to cover 24 categories. This made the awards easily the most inclusive glazing sector awards in the industry. Something I am personally proud of. We had nearly 300 nominations cast over the longest nominations phase ever. It started Tuesday 16th January and closed Friday 14th September. Nine months. But for me, this isn’t the most impressive stat. The most impressive stat for me was that we had 110 different people and companies nominated. The aim of the awards is to be able to represent and show off as much of the very best people and companies in our industry. Owen Mullock – Solidor Ltd Grace Mullock – Solidor Ltd

You can only do that if you get more and more people and companies taking part, which is what we have had this year. Something that again I am very proud of. WHAT HAPPENS NOW Voting is now live and we have already had a deluge of early votes. In fact during the writing of this post we have had whopping 1135 votes. To put this into perspective, we get the most votes as the campaign nears the very end as companies get into 5th gear with their promotion. There’s nothing like a deadline to get people motivated! As we reach that deadline, which is 11pm on Friday 26th October we can expect the votes to flood in. When voting does close, Winners Week will return, a feature we have had for the previous two campaigns. This is a week in which we drip-feed the announcement of winners over the course of one working week. This year Winners Week will take place from Monday 29th October and will end on Friday 2nd November. There will of course be the 2018 Winners Event, and that will follow in early 2019. But for now, focus should be turned to the voting, and you can find out more about that by following this link: www.fenestrationawards.co.uk/2018-categories

Good luck to all those taking part!

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E xt year’s FiT Show is the biggest meeting of the industry’s people, companies and those with power to make changes.1 It is the single most important three days in our calendar and therefore is the three most important days in which to enact those changes and tackle some of the biggest problems our sector faces. Exhibitions are of course good ways for companies to launch and show off new and existing product lines, create leads and strike up new relationships. All of that is useful. But we’re at a pinch point in the window and door industry right now. A unique moment in time where we face a large number of threats, that if we fail to effectively tackle, we can expect chaos in the near term. 1. BREXIT – LABOUR I’m not talking about the Labour party and their stance on Brexit. I’m talking about any potential labour shortages as a result of Brexit. What I don’t think is helpful is to spend the exhibition talking about the referendum, getting bogged down in tribal politics and letting it turn into the kind of fruitless chatter than much of social media turns it into. I personally don’t think that there needs to be a shortage. The Government, whether you believe in their politics or not, have outright said on a number of occasions that anyone from the EU living here right now will absolutely get to stay. No one therefore is at risk of being kicked out. That being said, someone will feel a natural reaction is to go back to their country of origin, despite that guarantee. This is my list of ten topics that I want to see discussed at the 2019 FiT Show.

What I see being more of a problem is future growth. Most manufacturers will be planning for growth in the coming years, as most good companies should. The problem I see is companies being able to attract the staff to do the work. Human beings will be required to produce the windows and doors, deliver them. Who is going to do that? There’s a good chunk of Brits who believe that work to be beneath them, so they won’t do it. Therefore we’ll have to rely on outside help. I want to see our industry tackle this head on. Discuss tangible, actionable plans and help the whole sector get to grips with what could be a major issue in the years to come. 2. SKILLS SHORTAGE The first topic nicely segways into this one. This country is woefully understaffed when it comes to trades-based jobs. Our education system has for decades now neglected this

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area of employment, and encouraged as many as possible to go through the University system. What we have now is a situation where more people than ever before have degrees, and the least amount of skilled workers for a very, very long time. I don’t see those degrees building the homes and commercial spaces that are in very high demand. I want to see much more of the industry coming together to create plans, real plans and real schemes to help the sector attract more youth. To come up with ways to demonstrate to the outside world that good money can be made from a career in fenestration. The 2019 FIT Show shouldn’t be an exhibition of nodding heads all talking about how bad the problem is. We know it’s bad. It’s been bad for years. This very moment is the time to actually do something about it. The FiT Show seems as good a time as any to do that.

3. TACKLING PRODUCT QUALITY I am running a poll at the moment which paints a pretty poor picture when it comes to the general state of product quality and customer service within the industry. This, after 2017 was one of the worst years in a very long time for such things. This year seems like it’s no better. There are a number of reasons, all of which have combined to create the situation we are in now. Personally, I think parts of our industry are in denial as to the severity of the problems. Part of it I think doesn’t really know the best way in which to reverse the situation. But, there are going to be a lot of smart people and resourceful companies all within the same space for the best part of a week. This seems like as good as time as any to talk about it. Find out what are the root causes, and then come up with tangible solutions. There will be a lot of installers attending as visitors, where they will see a lot of their own suppliers. My

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RapidLam Shape: More Scope To Shape The Future.

Shape Cutting of Laminated Glass as a Compact Unit More possibilities to cut shapes and free forms on laminated glass. Can be integrated into an existing line, or as stand-alone machine. This compact machine uses synchronised turning cutting heads, providing precise results that match the cutting plan. • Automatic cutting of free forms in laminated glass • Can be used as part of a cutting line or as stand-alone machine • Laser foil separation can be installed at a later date

www.hegla.co.uk

22 NFA DIGITAL OCTOBER 2018 HEGLA Machinery (UK) Ltd. •Buckinghamshire•MK8 0AJ•E-mail: [email protected]

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ProudToBeNominated in FOURCategories!

Best Manufacturer / Fabricator VOTE

Composite / Panelled Doors VOTE

Social Networker Lucy Jones

VOTE

Young Person Grace Mullock Owen Mullock

VOTE

Every vote counts...

We hope we’ve got yours!

Cast your votes today: www.fenestrationawards.co.uk

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ALUMINIUM PRICES FALL BACK, IS THE PANIC OVER?

Remember not so long ago, when Donald Trump was handing out sanctions left right and centre? It was the sanctions on Russian companies, specifically the ones that make aluminium that caused a particularly worrisome spike in the cost of the industrial commodity. Something that had the aluminium window and door industry feeling rather uneasy about. There were concerns about supply, how far the price would actually go up. This was all on top of problems with some of the supply coming out

of the biggest aluminium exporters in the world, before Trump was handing down his tariffs.

That was back in April of this year, when prices spiked rapidly over $2500 per MT. Fast forward to present day and it’s a much different picture. Lets be honest, other than in April when sanctions was the viral word, we’ve heard next to nothing about it since. No retaliatory measures. No panic about supply. The reason may well be to do with the price:

CREDIT: BLOOMBERG

Look at mid-July, as it flirted with sub-$2000 levels. All in all prices have come down in a strong but steady fashion.

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Spiking periodically when markets look to be a bit rocky, but nothing on the scale of all that April madness. Prices have come down because the metal markets have digested what was said, what the new reality was, and most likely realised that the world could probably cope with whatever was thrown at them. In this case US sanctions on Russian companies and flaky supply. In most cases, when norms are challenged, as they have been here, the natural reaction is to panic. But more often than not, once the dust has settled and people realise the sun is still going to come up the next day, normality returns. For the window and door industry in this country, I do think that for now we can pay less attention to what is going on in the chart above. There may well be some residual price increases to work it’s way into the sharper end of the market. But that’s nothing we can’t handle. I think we can cross off lack of supply from the list of concerns for a while as well. That being said, we’re in the era of Donald Trump and policy by Twitter. Although at this very moment in time things seem calm, I would never discount another round of sanctions, just to keep other countries on their toes. ALUMINIUM GROWTH STRONG This seems like a good time to take stock of where we’re at when it comes to aluminium in the window and door world. I don’t see the growth trend in the residential sector backing down in the next few years. If anything it’s going to become stronger and stronger. Where I work in the UK the

demand for aluminium isn’t huge. But even here I can see home interest rising and more quotes are being done in aluminium. Admittedly most of those are slider and bi-folds. It’s not often we quote for a whole house of windows and doors in aluminium. That may change in time. You can also see the effect aluminium is having across other parts of the market. Composite doors for example, where you have the likes of Virtuoso and the newly announced range of contemporary range of door from Solidor taking design elements from the world of aluminium. Where I think we’re going to see the strongest growth in the next three to five years is the patio slider. Once consigned to the scrap heap, sliders have returned in a massive way. Offering home owners more glass, more view with a lot less frame. No arguments about it, when it comes to view vs frame against bi-folds, there’s only one winner. I’ll caution this however. I am still seeing certain companies offering their aluminium bi- folds at a certain amount per leaf. That amount per leaf seems to get lower and lower each time. We must remember not to do to aluminium what we did to the PVCu market many moons ago. We butchered what could have been a highly profitable, reputable and stable new sector. Instead we started a race to the bottom that cut out quality, profit and market stability. It’s only now that this part of the market has recovered. Lets make sure we don’t ruin residential aluminium in the same way.

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DYNAMIC, SHARP, AND ENGAGING

WITH OVER 3400 PUBLISHED ARTICLES, 6080 COMMENTS AND WELL OVER A MILLION PAGE VIEWS, THE GLAZING INDUSTRY'S FRESHEST, SHARPEST AND RELEVANT OPINION AND DISCUSSION IS ON DGB. During 2018 DGB is set to be read by over 225,000 people, with over 165,000 of those unique. They will generate over 300,000 page views this year alone. DGB continues to grow and expand, covering even more of the diverse sector that is UK fenestration. Join the industry's best conversation: www.doubleglazingblogger.com

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DGB BREXIT: THE INTERVIEWS – NEIL EVANS, SALES DIRECTOR VEKA GROUP

F ollowing on from the first DGB Brexit: The Interviews piece by Joe Martoccia, I am pleased to say that Neil Evans, Sales Director at VEKA Group has agreed to take part in this special series of posts. The same ten questions, his unique answers. Read, digest and discuss in the comments section below. 1. HOW DID YOU VOTE IN THE EU REFERENDUM AND WAS THE RESULT WHAT YOU THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE? I voted to remain on the basis that there was simply too much uncertainty on which to make a leave decision and that our economy was still in a fragile state whereby any further uncertainty, creating even small negative shifts in consumer behaviour, could have significant economic impacts. Neil Evans – Sales Director at VEKA Group

I am not sure that I thought the decision would be to leave but I certainly knew it was a good possibility, mainly because emotion seemed to be filling the void of good information or facts that could have helped individuals understand what it could really mean for them. 2. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW THE NEGOTIATIONS HAVE PROGRESSED AND DO YOU THINK A DEAL WILL OR WON’T BE DONE IN TIME? The basis of any good negotiation is that both parties go in with the intention of achieving a win/ win outcome and both place value on achieving that. I also suspect that most negotiations succeed when they are not played out in public! It is usually best that what has already been agreed is then ring-fenced so that it is no longer conditional on other elements of the negotiation. That is especially relevant as it is claimed that 80% of the proposed deal has been agreed. Included in the areas outstanding is the unique nature of the

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Irish border which is a massive political, social and economic factor. It is vital that is resolved. Commentators suggest that it will be impossible to negotiate an agreement on the future relationship within the two-year window provided by Article 50. That window closes on March 29th 2019 and given that most EU trade agreements take more than five years to negotiate (the EU- Canada agreement took over ten years in total), a consensus is emerging that a time limited transition agreement is needed. During that period, the two parties can negotiate the terms of a comprehensive agreement for their future relationship. But there is still disagreement about what such a transition agreement will look like, adding further complexity to an already complicated process. 3. HOW HAS THE EU REFERENDUM VOTE AND IT’S EFFECTS IMPACTED ON YOUR BUSINESS? In the immediate aftermath of the vote we have seen significant increases in raw material prices, partly driven by exchange rate. The day of the referendum the pound could buy you €1.31; it dropped 7% the day after and now sits around 17% lower. So, without doubt, that introduces significant impact on costs/margins when as much as 60% of our purchases are linked to the €. And only so much of that then gets absorbed by customers.

We operate in a town which is effectively at full employment and the availability of a skilled and engaged workforce, whether migrant or not, is vital. Anything that contributes to a reduction in the available pool of people is not good for business. In terms of demand, we are in an industry that already has very low expectations of growth (now forecasting decline) and increasingly sees consumers’ switching their discretionary spend from possessions to experiences. We are not sitting around waiting to see what happens and have accelerated our investment in our UK production, including the £1.5M acquisition of premises to extend our site and support the creation of a dedicated lamination plant. We also put in excess of £1m of cash into increasing stock levels to support all year long market leading OTIF on our whole offer. 4. HOW WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BUSINESS HAS PERFORMED SINCE THE TIME OF THE VOTE? Operationally we have performed very well this year, and ongoing investments will help secure and build on that position. Margins have taken a significant hit from the high point of 2016 but we continue to hold a high share of the available market. We’ve been manufacturing in the UK for 32 years. We plan to be for a very long time.

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5. WITH BREXIT DAY JUST A FEW MONTHS AWAY, WHAT PLANS, IF ANY, HAVE YOU PUT IN PLACE TO ENSURE A SMOOTH TRANSITION ON MARCH 29TH? We have taken discussions with key raw material suppliers to understand their plans and help them understand our requirements. We have a plan that will enable us to cope with any short term disruption that could occur beyond March 29th. We have never been afraid to commit to stock as part of our long term commitment to be the best partner for our customers and we are not afraid to make short term investments to provide our customers certainty of supply as Brexit happens. 6. PUTTING ASIDE YOUR OWN VOTING PREFERENCES, DO YOU SEE A PATH FORWARD WHERE YOUR BUSINESS AND THE UK AS A WHOLE CAN STILL CONTINUE TO BE PROSPEROUS? You have to. There is no point in being pessimistic. But of course we are dependent on knowing what the new rules under which we operate will be. Our only export market is Ireland and, like so many other businesses, we will need to make any new requirements work. We can only control what we do. Great businesses prosper in difficult times. That’s what we have to be. We have got great stability of ownership, a unique focus on pvc-u window and door systems, scale, and a level of reliability that will be vital during the transition. 7. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE A SECOND REFERENDUM ON THE TERMS OF ANY FINAL DEAL, INCLUSIVE OF AN OPTION TO GO BACK TO EU MEMBERSHIP? No. Irrespective of the fact that the vote did not go the way I wanted, and that some of the “realities” of the vote may now concern us all, I don’t think the referendum to vote to remain or leave had a promise of “don’t worry we will come back to you

just to check you are OK with how we do it”. We voted as a democratic country based on what we knew (which of course was very little). If I don’t have enough information to help me see that the potential reward would justify taking a big risk then the chances are I will stick with what I know. As a country not enough people either felt that or they were lured by a vision that my own roulette wheel did not include. 8. SHOULD THERE BE ANOTHER GENERAL ELECTION AFTER BREXIT DAY, GIVEN THE PRECARIOUS NATURE OF THE CURRENT GOVERNMENT? I think there will be. Either because the final deal on paper is much better than the current headlines and the Conservatives will look to press home that advantage or, with anything less as an outcome, the noise from the opposition will be deafening. If it happens I think it will at least create clearer political space, removing the recent history of coalitions. Either way it will be another distraction.

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9. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE BIGGEST IMPACTS OF BREXIT ARE GOING TO BE ON THE UK FENESTRATION INDUSTRY IN THE YEARS TO COME? The most obvious impact is driven by the wider economic future. Does Brexit really result in us being in control of our own economic destiny without the constraints of Europe, and help us nudge GDP by 1%+ ahead of what we would have achieved, or does it nudge it down by 1%+ and take us into recession. These are fine margins and I believe either outcome is perfectly possible. Recession would likely impact the players in the fenestration industry to a greater degree than 2008 did. That’s because some are not as strong as they were because they never fully recovered from 2008. We are largely in the area of discretionary spend and it is the 1st thing to go when budgets tighten. As I mentioned earlier, individuals have a greater propensity than ever before to put discretionary spend on experiences. That’s a trend I would see continuing.

A further weakening of the pound to a point of parity with the Euro would have significant impact on material costs throughout the supply chain. We might see a lag in innovation as investments are cut and we need to somehow ensure that, at a time when the industry already faces skills shortages, we can attract new talent in. And we might also see the anticipated increase in those businesses looking to exit struggle to secure the value for their business that they might have hoped. That said fenestration will still be a huge multi- billion pound market with many opportunities to secure business and improve the overall offer. 10. SHOULD THE UK FENESTRATION SECTOR SEE THIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP GROW IT’S OWN DOMESTIC INDUSTRY I.E. FABRICATION, TRAINING AND APPRENTICESHIPS, EXPORTS ETC. We should be doing that anyway. Act on what you can control and don’t worry about what you can’t. Market consolidation is already at play, will continue and likely accelerate.

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DGB BREXIT: THE INTERVIEWS – ROY FROST, CEO LISTER TRADE FRAMES

A s we continue our countdown to Brexit day, which is 29th March 2019 just in case you needed reminding, I continue my series of special guest interviews with business leaders from our industry. Two have already been published, and you can catch up with those by exploring the Brexit section of DGB: www.doubleglazingblogger.com/eu-referendum The third in the series is from Roy Frost, CEO of Listers and his new group of fenestration companies. The same ten questions, Roy’s answers. Enjoy.

Remain and no I really didn’t expect the result but neither did I think Donald Trump to be a good pick for leader of the Western World, what do I know?!

2. WHAT ARE YOUR THOUGHTS ON HOW THE NEGOTIATIONS HAVE PROGRESSED AND DO YOU THINK A DEAL WILL OR WON’T BE DONE IN TIME? It was always going to be tough going as it’s far from straightforward, that was one of my motivations for voting remain. This could be a press and politician ‘honey pot’ for at least 10 years! I think they’ll find a ‘fudge’ sometime soon to get through the Irish Border and Customs Union issue

1. HOW DID YOU VOTE IN THE EU REFERENDUM AND WAS THE RESULT WHAT YOU THOUGHT IT MIGHT BE?

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GO BACK TO EU MEMBERSHIP? No. Let the politicians sort out their own mess now. In my opinion the decision to leave or remain was one so complex that it should never have been decided by referendum in the first place. 8. SHOULD THERE BE ANOTHER GENERAL ELECTION AFTER BREXIT DAY, GIVEN THE PRECARIOUS NATURE OF THE CURRENT GOVERNMENT? Definitely not! Who else wanted Teresa’s job? Let them see out their term. I like her dancing moves too they make mine look great. 9. WHAT DO YOU THINK THE BIGGEST IMPACTS OF BREXIT ARE GOING TO BE ON THE UK FENESTRATION INDUSTRY IN THE YEARS TO COME? Access to labour. As an industry we’ve been pretty poor when it comes to developing young talent, particularly installers. Successive governments, red or blue haven’t helped, all intent on school leavers going to University rather than encouraging youngsters into industry through well managed funded training programmes. The industry filled the chasm with Eastern Europe workers. Skilled migrant workers will still be allowed to work in the UK, but it’s clear that many production operators and installers either feel unwelcome, or with their own economies developing, they’re basically going home in serious numbers. So, how are we going to fill the gap 10. SHOULD THE UK FENESTRATION SECTOR SEE THIS AS AN OPPORTUNITY TO HELP GROW IT’S OWN DOMESTIC INDUSTRY I.E. FABRICATION, TRAINING AND APPRENTICESHIPS, EXPORTS ETC. Of course and the government should be there helping with the training and development challenge.

and I think we’ll end up with Canada + on trade. No deal basically suits nobody.

3. HOW HAS THE EU REFERENDUM VOTE AND IT’S EFFECTS IMPACTED ON YOUR BUSINESS? Cost increases that seemingly never cease, the latest being glass because the European producers don’t want to export to the UK. 4. HOW WOULD YOU SAY YOUR BUSINESS HAS PERFORMED SINCE THE TIME OF THE VOTE? 5. WITH BREXIT DAY JUST A FEW MONTHS AWAY, WHAT PLANS, IF ANY, HAVE YOU PUT IN PLACE TO ENSURE A SMOOTH TRANSITION ON MARCH 29TH? Nothing in particular I expect business will carry on as normal. 6. PUTTING ASIDE YOUR OWN VOTING PREFERENCES, DO YOU SEE A PATH FORWARD WHERE YOUR BUSINESS AND THE UK AS A WHOLE CAN STILL CONTINUE TO BE PROSPEROUS? I’m not a clairvoyant and that’s a big tricky question. There is the potential for large scale job losses. Large employers like the multinationals Honda or Toyota for instance may decide to run down UK operations from 2020 onwards. The indirect result is the employees lose income and have less to spend on home improvements of course. 7. WOULD YOU LIKE TO SEE A SECOND REFERENDUM ON THE TERMS OF ANY FINAL DEAL, INCLUSIVE OF AN OPTION TO Absolutely fine so far anyway.

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DGB PASSES 1.5M PAGE VIEWS

I t doesn’t seem that long ago before I was celebrating the symbolic landmark of DGB passing the million page views mark. You know me. I like my stats. They help tell the story of the progression and growth of something. Well, stuck in a whirlwind of work, it appears I have missed another major milestone, in DGB passing 1.5m page views. It’s not as significant as the first one. Your first million is always the big one. But smaller milestones like this are stepping stones onto something bigger. So, I thought I would take this opportunity to go over the most read posts on DGB in those 1.5m page views, as well as some plans I have for bringing you a better news and opinion service for the window and door industry. These are the top ten most read posts on DGB since it’s inception: 1. FENSA vs Certass: What’s The Difference? 2. Should We Still Be Using Silicone To Seal Windows And Doors? Top ten most read posts

3. Tackling The Trickle Vent Issue 4. Top 10 Companies In The UK Window Industry (2015) 5. The Enduring Issue Of Trickle Vents 6. Sliding Doors vs Bi-Folding Doors: Which Is Better? 7. Lintels: Always Fit Them 8. Secure By Design – What Is It All About? 9. The Average Cost Of A New Conservatory Is £5300…Apparently 10. All About The Glazing Beads If ever there was an advert for good SEO it is this list. Every single one of these post was published between 2009 and 2016. That being said, the 12th most read post of all time was a Safestyle-based post published in April of this year. I suspect that as time goes on this post will climb up the list of most read articles of all time.

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MOVING FORWARDS As you have seen throughout the last year or so I have added various DGB services, including DGB Jobs, DGB People and DGB Events. All have been an effort to cover more and more areas of the industry. What I don’t want to happen is for DGB to remain static and be just a place for me to air my views on a single subject once per day. I like to write about a huge variety of things, but I also want to bring other areas of the industry into focus on here, which is what I am trying to do by diversifying the site as a whole. I’m happy to say that most of the new things that I have tried have worked and have since remained a permanent feature. But if you’re not moving forwards, you’re going backwards. So, I do have in the pipeline two particular projects to help DGB. One of which I am going to very briefly talk about today. It’s called DGB E.C.O. You’ve had your head in the sand if you haven’t found the changing attitudes towards plastics in our society. The window and door industry is not going to be immune to this.

DGB has become a publishing machine. Here are some stats that tell the story – accurate to the time of writing:

Articles published: 3434

Comments published: 6089

I’m making a safe bet that few other online fenestration sector has this much dedicated industry content published on their site. I’m also making another safe bet that at 6089 comments, this is top of the pile. It shows that since March 2009, there has been plenty to talk about. Up to press, this site has been live 3500 days. That is almost one article per day for nine and a half years. That is something I am very proud of. The comment count on DGB also demonstrates the level of participation from readers. The yearly comment count has gradually declines over the year however as the conversation has moved over to social media as sites like Twitter and Facebook have become bigger and more embedded in our lives. This is certainly not the time to stop and coast. I am already planning on ways to reach 2m and 3m page views in an even quicker time.

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That being said, there are some areas that are being very proactive when it comes to green business practices and environmentally friendly policies. Eurocell and VEKA are the most obvious ones. The aim of DGB E.C.O is to help cultivate the whole conversation between the window industry and the environment. The two have to be tied together. They have to. It will cover things like recycling projects, the benefits of using PVCu as a building material, how to use and re-use it in a responsible way. It’s not just going to focus on PVCu as a material. It will include tips and advice on how to run your business as green as possible. How energy efficient windows and doors matters to homes. I also have the backing of one of the biggest companies in our sector when it gets going, who will also provide ancillary content, including video, written articles and guides. Over time I want it to become a hub where the industry can go to get advice and catch up on the latest green industry news. If it can help nudge the conversation in the right direction then it’s doing it’s job.

I DGB E.C.O to be live before the end of the year. The E.C.O bit also stands for something The second project I am keeping under wraps, for now. I am hoping to go live with it in the New Year, but what I’m attempting is way bigger than anything I have tried before. So it could be a massive flop! But you don’t know if you don’t try. I’ll say this, if it works and it takes off, no other industry media outlet, be it print or digital, will have done this before. I have lots of ambition for DGB. It is, and will continue to be, a place that will tackle industry topics that other’s won’t go near. It will continue to be a place where I will speak my opinion, analyse the stories and publish window and door industry content that matters to everyone. The site will get bigger. It will attract more advertisers and traffic will grow. But it will always push the boundaries and standards of fenestration industry media.

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