4 • FROMTHEEDITOR
Winter is upon us , albeit mild so far . Never-the-less , Allegion is waging war on winter on page 44 , highlighting the safety and security issues that the season brings . The shorter days and darker evenings mean that properties become more susceptible to break in and this is something that Home Security month in October aims to bring to the public ’ s attention . On page 22 , Master Locksmith Approved Company , Lockmaster1 , reveals some of the most commonly made mistakes that homeowners make and on page 46 , Winlock Security reveals the nation ’ s home security howlers from the findings of its nationwide survey .
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ON A MORE PRACTICAL NOTE , A useful guide from the RAC explains how best to demist your windscreen quickly , on page 54 .
Looking forward to the New Year , on page 56 , Suresh Peri , Electromechanical Product Manager for Mul-T-Lock , discusses the impact of the Technological Revolution and the rise of the Smart Home , asking the question ; what does this mean for locksmiths and how can they benefit from these opportunities ?
But as the world goes digital , it raises new opportunities for crime and fraud , something which many locksmiths have experienced in the form of online click fraud . See page 14 to find out how Google is attempting to combat this and , on page 63 , Click Guardian offers its proactive approach . Furthermore , on page 62 , Chancellor Philip Hammond , discusses the government ’ s National Cyber Security Strategy for the next 5 years .
One important aspect of cyber security is data protection , so , if you hold data on individuals , you will be affected when the Data Protection Act ( DPA ) is replaced by the General Data Protection Regulation ( GDPR ) in 2018 . This change will bring significant implications to any businesses processing personal data , particularly those with e-commerce , marketing , retail and wholesale business operations . Therefore , any company that stores names and addresses is likely to be required to comply with this regulation . Find out more on page 66 .
And as this year draws to a close , all that ’ s left if for me to do is thank you , our readers , contributors and advertisers , for your continued support throughout 2016 . Have a very merry Christmas and our best wishes for a prosperous New Year .
Becky , Editor
UK public finding it harder to source skilled tradesmen
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THE CONSTRUCTION SECTOR IS being urged to create more apprenticeships and find ways to attract workers to the sector after new research found that over half of the UK population are struggling to hire a tradesperson .
The study by IronmongeryDirect , surveyed 1,000 people who have required the services of a trade professional over the past year . Results showed that for one in six people ( 16 %), it took more than three weeks to find a suitable tradesperson , while 13 % said it took up to two weeks , and almost a quarter ( 24 %) had to search for a week to get someone on board .
Two thirds of respondents noticed a shortage of skilled professionals when trying to find a person for the job . A third ( 33 %) of which said they noticed a shortage but eventually were able to find someone , while 3 % admitted they noticed a shortage and as a result couldn ’ t find anyone suitable to undertake the job required .
‘ important that the sector takes immediate action to bridge the skills gap ’
Even for those that didn ’ t notice a shortage , over a quarter ( 26 %) still said they had to ring around to find a tradesperson as many were busy - perhaps because resources are stretched due to the shortage of workers in the sector .
The research was undertaken as part of IronmongeryDirect ’ s ‘ More Skills Required ’ report to find out what effect the skills shortage is having on the UK ’ s ability to find qualified tradespeople . Furthermore , it sets out to provide suitable solutions to attract more people to the industry , and skill-up the existing workforce so they can service more people .
Wayne Lysaght-Mason , managing director at IronmongeryDirect , said : “ From our research , we can already see that the shortage is having an impact on the UK ’ s ability to source skilled tradespeople . However , it did indicate that it ’ s not too bad yet , as 48 % of people are generally able to find a suitable tradesperson within a couple of days .
“ However , Britain ’ s impending departure from the EU is likely to have an effect on the labour force so it ’ s important that the sector takes immediate action to bridge the skills gap , and prevent the issue from getting worse .”
www . IronmongeryDirect . co . uk / research
LOCKSMITHJOURNAL . CO . UK | NOV / DEC 2016