member profile
timber-pegged joinery,” Dr Wakefield says.
“I also use the company’s show home to
display Plustec’s uPVC windows.”
Dr Wakefield was prompted to enter the
window industry by her perception of a gap
in the market. “Being a residential builder for
24 years building energy-efficient homes, I
found the energy performance of Australian
windows disappointing. I built a home for a
client using imported German timber ‘Tilt &
Turn’ windows, which were expensive…but
the efficiency gain was amazing. A few years
later, the client showed me a sample timberlook uPVC Tilt and Turn window – and the
rest is history.”
reveals. “Our aluminium BAL 40 cover
profile is extruded in Australia, and we have
begun looking at extruding high strength
aluminium reinforcement as well.”
The New South Wales government made a
significant contribution to helping Plustec
develop a solution to the lack of window
profile extrusion in Australia. “This was an
Innovate New South Wales Collaborative
Solutions Grant, where we worked with APP,
Chemson, Australian Vinyls and Wilkins
Windows to assist us in developing the
window profile system as an innovative newto-market solution,” says Dr Wakefield. “They
contributed up to 25 per cent of project
costs, to a maximum of $100,000.”
Plustec has flourished under Dr Wakefield’s
leadership. “In our first year, we learned how
to make uPVC windows, purchased stateof-the-art equipment, and established our
current factory in Emu Plains. We are now
operating independently after buying out
our partners and have six employees, plus
a salesperson from the other side of the
business. My husband, Dr Paul Wakefield,
is also a shareholder in the company, and
now provides Plustec with business strategy
expertise.”
The equipment to extrude arrived last
December. All trials are now complete and
the profile is now available. “We’re working
with Australian Plastic Profiles (APP),”
says Dr Wakefield. “New South Wales
government assistance has helped develop
the composition for Australia, design and
make dies, import equipment to extrude,
and make prototype windows from our own
extrusion, which we then successfully tested
at Azuma.”
Plustec currently makes windows using
imported profiles, reinforcement, seals and
hardware with Australian glass and labour.
This is about to change with their own uPVC
profile extrusion in Australia. “We will only
have the main profiles until the market
improves to a level where we can extrude all
profiles and design new ones,” Dr Wakefield
“APP has the necessary infrastructure for
extruding the profiles, and enables us to
extrude small ancillary profiles used for
installing windows,” she continues. “We’ve
currently developed a three-chamber system
for the Australian market, using less PVC at
lower cost while retaining excellent u-values
and insulation properties.”
Plustec is developing a training scheme
with the aim of expanding the use of uPVC
window profiles throughout Australia.
“We are planning to develop our window
manufacturing facility into a training centre
for our profile customers to learn the
process of manufacturing uPVC windows
with our profiles,” Dr Wakefield explains. “As
uPVC windows are currently a very small
part of the market, it will be a steep learning
curve for new entrants. We will support our
clients with training, resources, and product
development.”
The training scheme will see Plustec begin
training other companies to establish
themselves as uPVC window manufacturers.
“We’re contemplating franchising, which
will help many small to medium enterprises
manufacture windows to European
standards. We provide collaborating
companies with the best testing equipment
in Australia, which can be used for
developing new window and profile designs.”
The market presents many other
opportunities. “Working with APP means
we can use our combined experience to
create highly efficient profiles for Australian
climates,” Dr Wakefield concludes.
It’s an exciting initiative that defines Plustec
as an Australian company to watch.
For more information visit www.plustec.com.au
1 The ICP is available on the uPVC Windows
Alliance website: www.upvcwindows.org.au
Windows Magazine Spring 2016 19