Industry News
GAI EDUCATION AWARDS SHOW AN
INDUSTRY FACING A CONFIDENT FUTURE
The door and window hardware industry’s rising stars were celebrated at the
40th annual Guild of Architectural Ironmongers’ (GAI) Education Awards.
» HELD AT THE ROYAL LANCASTER
hotel, London, on November 7 2019,
the awards celebrated the architectural
ironmongery professionals who have
achieved their GAI Diploma and
recognised the highest achieving
students. The awards were sponsored
this year by ASSA ABLOY Opening
Solutions UK and Ireland.
This year, exams were sat by 390
learners across all three stages of the
GAI education programme. Students
came from 26 different countries, with
just under half of them based outside the
UK. There has been a particularly high
number of learners from United Arab
Emirates (UAE), China and India.
At the awards, Gold, Silver and Bronze
medals were awarded to the highest
achieving students at the GAI Diploma
level and there were also prize awards
for the top three students from the
Certificate in Architectural Hardware
(CiAH) level.
This year, the Diplomas and awards
were given to students by former Top
Gear Stig, Ben Collins.
The full list of Education Awards
winners in 2019 is:
The Pinnacle Award, sponsored
by Eurobond Doors:
• Bala Vignesh, ASSA ABLOY Opening
Solutions Middle East
GAI Diploma:
• Gold – Bala Vignesh, ASSA ABLOY
Opening Solutions Middle East
• Silver – Craig Birch, ASSA ABLOY
Opening Solutions
• Bronze – Bernadeth Prometidos,
Consort Middle East LLC
CiAH Prize Winners:
• First place - Andrew Marshall, ASSA
ABLOY New Zealand
• Second place - Ian Tisdale, Carlisle
Brass
• Third place - Michael Hunt, More
Handles
22
Dave Timson, technical sales director
at Eurobond Doors, presented this
year’s Pinnacle Award to Bala Vignesh,
specification consultant at ASSA ABLOY
Opening Solutions Middle East.
Bala Vignesh said of his career and
Diploma success:
“I had been working in the door and
ironmongery industry for eight years
and wanted to get to grips with all the
essentials of architectural ironmongery.
I wanted to be able to walk into meetings
with customers with confidence, knowing
that everything I’m specifying is up to
code and is the best choice of product.
“At the moment there are technical
and regulatory changes everywhere.
Locks are changing from mechanical to
electrical, 2D drawings are becoming 3D
models, and the way that we specify is also
evolving. It is important that we stay up
to date, and the GAI Diploma programme
has prepared me for this.”
Julian Newman, president of the GAI,
said:
“The scrutiny of the skills, qualifications
and competence of everyone in the building
industry has never been higher, and each
part of the supply chain needs to prove its
worth. The GAI Diploma makes this possible
in our sector. It is the only recognised
programme in the world that leads to a
qualification in architectural ironmongery
to British
and European
standards.”
The awards recognised
the industry’s rising stars at each stage in
the GAI education programme.
While the Diploma is the primary
qualification for professional architectural
ironmongers, the Certificate in Architectural
Hardware is particularly useful for those
working in related warehouse and trade
counter roles, procurement, scheduling
and estimating, customer service, technical
support, sales and administration.
Comprising two stages with 24 online
education modules, the Certificate covers the
product knowledge required by these roles.
Following completion of the Certificate
in Architectural Hardware, students
can progress to the GAI Diploma. The
Diploma builds on product knowledge and
enables the writing of accurate hardware
specifications and quotations. This
qualification is particularly suited to those
in customer service, contract management,
scheduling and estimating, technical and
sales. To become a full GAI member, a
company must have at least one employee
who has passed the GAI Diploma.
ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions
sponsored the GAI Education Awards.
www.gai.org.uk
JAN/FEB 2020
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