Pro Installer December 2015 - Issue 33 | Page 10

10 DECEMBER 2015 PRO INSTALLER PRO NEWS www.proinstaller.co.uk COLOUR ROOFLINE SALES SEE 47% BOOST Trends are changing for external building products particularly doors, windows and roofline. Colour has now become a viable option, with doors and windows available in many shades and finishes. Colour roofline specialist Freefoam reports a rise in sales of colour roofline products with anthracite grey showing a 47% increase closely followed by sable and black. These figures mirror market place trends with specifiers increasingly choosing grey and black for windows and doors. Traditionally colour is achieved by applying a top coat, either by spraying or foiling. Freefoam set out to overcome fading and cracking and developed ColormaxTM – its own patented technology. A master-batching process with a special blend of natural PVC-U compound is dosed on-line and co-extruded with specific concentrations of pigment for the required colour. This means that the colour skin and the foam core are intrinsically bonded together creating colourfast products. Freefoam is the only company to manufacture ten colours as standard and the Colormax technology enables the production of any Katrina Strengthens Epwin Team Epwin Window Systems continues to go from strength to strength by added Katrina Earl to its team following its recent appointment of South East Specification Manager Andy Smith. ny’s sales operations will be run. Wolfgang added: “We have ambitious plans for each of our brands includ- ing some tremendous new products.” www.epwin.co.uk Willmott’s win new business. Freefoam has a colour option to suit all styles of home from traditional Tudor to more contemporary designs where storm grey, anthracite grey and dark grey fit the bill. The company has also seen increased demand for colour from commercial developments, where its range is seen simpler, and more cost effective than traditional powder coated aluminium products. Call 01604 591110 or visit www.freefoam.com Tradesmith’s French door win Tradesmith has become one of the industry’s first companies to gain the PAS 24 security standard on a low-threshold French door. PAS 24 is only achievable by submitting products for certification with a UKAS-accredited testing house. It represents a significant, sustained effort from the manufacturer to reach the required levels of protection. Tradesmith Managing Director, Mark Hutchinson said: “Tradesmith has become the first fabricator to achieve PAS 24 on a low-threshold French door using The VEKA UK Group’s Halo profile. “We presented the completed door for independent assessment off our own bat, Coming on board as the new Northern Key Account Manager, Katrina joins the Epwin window, door and conservatory systems stable after 13 years at Rehau as one of its key Area Sales Managers. Responsible for selling all brands under the Epwin Window Systems umbrella, Katrina has extensive industry and systems knowledge. She said she was excited about the new products and investments Epwin has planned for the next couple of years and added: “The FIT Show in April will be a great place for us to showcase our new products.” She previously worked for many years with Epwin’s Sales Director Wolfgang Gorner so understands the ethos by which the compa- colour for special projects quickly and effectively. Confidence in the ColormaxTM technology and extensive weather and laboratory testing allows Freefoam to offer its ‘ten guarantee’ showing customers that they can rely on colour performance. It also allows Freefoam to offer most colours ‘off the shelf’ complete with matching trims and fixing pins – so improving lead times. George Petts, sales and technical support at Freefoam customer Willmott’s of Reading Ltd, added that the range helped without needing to piggyback on the test results of components that make up the design, and it’s great to be able to display the PAS 24 logo alongside our Secured by Design accreditation, the official police initiative aimed at ‘designing out crime’ in physical security measures.” Tradesmith also collaborated with other highly respected suppliers including Paddock, Yale and Winlock to ensure the door reached the necessary standard. Achieving PAS 24 certification is a particular challenge when related to a low-threshold French door that must be able to offer unhindered mobility access. www.tradesmith.co.uk