Aluminium
HOW A LAUNCH WAS INSPIRED BY A FINISH
In a somewhat unorthodox product development cycle , Apeer has launched a range of slimline aluminium casement windows under its Silka brand , the name under which the company originally introduced its top-selling range of GRP-faced residential doors .
The move comes , says the firm , following demand from homeowners after being impressed with the surface coating to be found on all Silka residential doors and who asked if it could be matched on a range of windows . Extending the unusual product development protocols still further , the name Silka originally referred to the special coating developed by the company to catch the eye of homeowners looking for a residential door that looked good with their new aluminium windows , but who were unable to find an attractive or reasonably priced solution .
Since then , Silka has been developed into a significant sub-brand of Apeer , with a wide range of door styles , its own dedicated factory space and now , a complementary range of Silka aluminium casements and a Lift ‘ n ’ Slide garden door , to offer a suite of matching windows and doors in the unique Silka finish .
The Silka window brings a number of design elements in addition to its super smooth yet distinctive Silka finish : at 50 mm , the Silka window is set to offer one of the slimmest sightlines on the market for a double-glazed sash , but the designers believe it is the slimmest to offer triple glazing .
Profile thickness is 66mm with the aluminium foam-filled profiles powder coated in the 60-micron thick , fine textured ‘ Silka ’ finish as standard ; marine grade power coating is an option . Thermal performance will improve upon Building Regulations for double glazed whilst comfortably achieving an ‘ A ’ rating with triple glazed units . Colour will be anthracite grey or black and with white internally as an option . A wide colour palette is available but with longer lead times .
The Silka Lift ‘ n ’ Slide door comes with the package : 144mm Aluminium profile thickness , standard or 25mm extension cill , 5-point locking , and high security Siegenia hardware , and heavy-duty rollers good for
300kg are the key numbers , with thermal performance matching the Silka window .
Apeer ’ s managing director Asa McGillian says that the success of Silka has been a surprising but welcome addition to his company ’ s door and window offering : “ When we developed the Silka finish it was for one or two door styles that would become part of our larger range ,” said Asa , “ but it was so popular immediately with all door buyers , not just those with aluminium windows , that we had to ramp up production and add new styles .” Enquiries for a complementary casement window style soon followed , adding irony to the original premise for developing Silka : to create a door that emulated aluminium . “ It ’ s not lost on me of course , the irony that we developed Silka to emulate aluminium and now we have a range of aluminium windows of our own ,” added Asa . “ But this comes from demand , from significant numbers of homeowners that are asking if we supply aluminium windows to match Silka doors . So , we have obliged them .”
www . apeer . co . uk
CLEARVIEW-UK . COM SEPTEMBER 2022
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