Synseal Times Issue 20

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er storie

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products

news

ISSUE NO.202006

SYNSEAL EXTRUSIONS LIMITED, COMMON ROAD, HUTHWAITE, NOTTS. NG17 6AD

TEL: 01623 443 200 FAX: 01623 550 243email: [email protected] www.synseal.com

© Synseal Extrusions Limited 2006

If you would like extra copies of The Synseal Times

for your sales teams, showrooms etc.call Phil Else on 01623 443 200

the the times timesthe timesand finally.....

WITH THIS ISSUEA sample of our

35mm polycarbonate - visitwww.synseal.com/

insulationkit

productionincreases by

At Glassex 06 there were even more

exhibitors bringing conservatories and

conservatory components and accessories

to the exhibition, a reflection of the

importance of this market to our industry.

When we launched the Shield roof system in

2002, we recognised the potential of

conservatories in the market. But we could

also see there was a different market

evolving and we could play a part in the

change by introducing next generation

products. The market continues to change

as the replacement casement window

market becomes saturated – according to

the latest pocket marketing book 83% of

households now have double glazing –

conservatories are the new core market. And

as the market has grown customers’

expectations have grown too.

Today homeowners are

more discerning and

demanding. They want

more. We have a

complete conservatory

system, where the roof

and walls match. Not

only in the shapes of the

profile, but a perfect

colour match too. And we constantly look

for new ways to make our products easier to

install. We achieve this by listening to our

customers and spotting trends in the market

so we can keep our customers ahead of their

competition.

To make this happen, Synseal is committed

to new product development and

innovations coupled with continuous

investment. Since January there have been

big changes in Huthwaite. We’ve added

seven new extrusion lines and another

injection moulding machine. Production

levels have increased by 79% in the last

three years. We’ve made massive changes

in production – see page 4 for more details

of how we get deliveries to customers in full,

on time, every time. We understand that

every department has to work together. It’s

important for our customers’ growth, and

when they grow, so do we.

seven more extrusionlines added

kevinharveybecomessalesdirector

Synseal has added seven more extrusion lines,taking the total to 36. Another two will beadded soon. “The new lines have been used toproduce Legend70,” explains ManufacturingDirector Steve Musgrave, “and we've taken onanother 20 people in the extrusion hall to copewith the increase.

“We have also been looking at our systems tomake sure we are getting production 'right firsttime'. It makes sense to maximise productivity soour customers get what they want, when theywant it.

“In the three years since I joined we haveincreased production and now we are the largestuser of PVC in the UK in windows.” Steve adds:“Over the next few months there will be lotsmore change: we'll be moving into the newbuilding and we'll be looking at bringing theproduction of more products in house. But wedon't compromise on quality. New tooling forLegend will start arriving in May. And the systemswe've put in place will make sure we're getting it'right first time'.”

Synseal has invested £50,000 in its fifth injectionmoulding machine. The 160 tonne machine isnow fully employed as production volumes haveincreased by a third since January.

“Moving the production of Legend70 to Huthwaitehas obviously increased output,” explains SteveMusgrave. “We were able to take a look atproduction methods and improve on them. We arein the process of switching from outsourcing

Legend70 components to making them in-house.This new machine is already being used to makeover eighty components, in four different coloursand more will follow.

“We can also maintain the high quality ourcustomers expect from all our products. Ourcustomers also benefit from in house production aswe can optimise stock levels, so they get what theywant, when they want it.”

new injection moulding machine for Legend70

Synseal Extrusions Ltd announcedKevin Harvey as Sales Director atthe opening of Glassex 06. “Kevinhas worked with Synseal for threeyears and has played a significant rolein the massive growth of thecompany,” explains Nick Dutton.“This position recognises Kevin’scontribution to our continuingsuccess. Kevin is a key member of theteam and his place on the boardreflects this.”Kevin adds: “I am delighted to acceptthe position as Sales Director. Thewhole sales team has worked hard toget Synseal to number one in thewindow and conservatory markets.And I am looking forward toconsolidating this lead in my new role.We’ve done this by listening to whatour customers want, and delivering itto them on time, every time. But tomake it work we have to have theback up of every department, andeveryone at Synseal understands thatcustomers come first. ”

glassex 2006new products launched

pages 4 & 5

review page 7

Nick Dutton Sales & Marketing Director

79%

stories

allure conservatory systemis the customer's choice

Between the two of them they have first handexperience of all the major roofing systems and agreethat Synseal rivals everything that's on the market.“Global is a superb system,” explains David. “And forinstallers looking for a complete conservatory system,nothing can beat Global and SynerJy.”

Steve agrees: “It's important to give our customersthe right back up and support. I arranged to visitsome installers on site on the first day of theinstallation of a Georgian conservatory. The basework was complete, so I thought I would meet upwith them later in the afternoon. Imagine my surprisewhen I arrived at 4pm to find no-one onsite but theconservatory finished! When I called the installersthey told me the 16m square conservatory wasfinished by 3.30pm and they started at 10am. Timeon site is a major factor for all companies, and thefact that a team of installers can complete aninstallation in the day is impressive. Our customerswere impressed too; when they arrived home theirconservatory was complete.”

David adds: “It's funny how things go round. In myprevious job for a leading conservatory roof companyI was responsible for bringing Synseal on board as acustomer. It was clear to me they were serious aboutconservatories. It wasn't long after that they startedmanufacturing their own system and now they arethe number one conservatory roof company. That'swhy we see a great future with Synseal.”

sheffieldtrade frames

switch toLegend70

Getting the right window isessential for fabricators. That'swhy Sheffield Trade Framesswitched to Legend70. TheForeman at Sheffield Trade FramesDavid Hynes explains why themove has been good forcustomers: “We had alreadyswitched once and that was adisaster. The profile was dull andour customers didn't like it,encountering problems with theinstallation too. But havingswitched once, we needed to besure we were making the rightmove this time. So when I saw thewindow I knew it was right one forus. The chamfered design is rightfor our customers. I was impressedby the toughness of the single legbead, and the finish is shiny so itcleans off well.

“Our customers are happy too.They like the design of theLegend70 profile and how easy it isto install. We specialise inconservatories and a bigproportion of the 120 windows wefabricate each week go under aroof, and with Legend70 we expectthat to grow.”

Customers uninspired by so many similar PVC-U conservatories are not prepared to settlefor a make-do purchase. But Chase WindowCompany is finding that by offering thealuminium Allure conservatory system,exclusively manufactured by Synseal fabricatorQRS, it's able to tempt an increasing numberinto investing in an altogether differentconservatory.

Gary Woodhatch, Director of Chase WindowCompany, explains: “When visiting potentialcustomers we like to give them a range of options.This helps us reach those who have already turneddown other installers offering standard products.But not only are we reaching those who wantedsomething special, ever since we've offered Allureit's become the preferred option for most of ourcustomers. Being able to compete with the

premium range of conservatories on looks andquality but also offering the ease of installationthat comes with it being based on the marketleading Global roof is giving us a real edge. And allof this is at a price which the customer appreciatesis great value for money.”

David Tulett has a design company in London andrecently had an Allure conservatory installed byChase. “As a Designer I was very exacting aboutthe look I wanted so I invited three installers toshow me their selection of conservatory roofs. Assoon as I saw the Allure system I knew it wouldmatch perfectly. The conservatory had toincorporate existing features from the house butChase's installation team worked hard to ensure itwasn't problem. The result is stunning. I wouldcertainly recommend both Chase WindowCompany and Allure to anyone.”

first choice forconservatoriesDirectors Steve Hacking and David Worden have over 30 years experience in the conservatoryindustry. When they joined forces to start up their own company, PVC Solutions, they knew exactlywhat they wanted from a conservatory roof system - and they found the perfect solution in Global.

Kevin Harvey, David Worden, Nick Dutton and Steve Hacking

customer

“Our two day Showcase held on 16 and 17 March was a resounding success,”

comments Newstead's Managing Director Adrian Locker. “We wanted to demonstrate

the depth of Newstead's product range to existing and potential customers. And

we've already had orders directly from the open day.”

In addition to Newstead's already extensive range of windows, doors, conservatories and

building plastics, installers saw first hand its energy efficient C rated window, the global600

roof and a range of Permacell's PVC-UE cellular profiles at the Showcase at its Stoke-on-

Trent headquarters.

Adrian continues: “Customers tell us that using Newstead as a one-stop-shop saves them

time and money, and generally makes their lives easier, leaving them more time to install

and sell. Our groundbreaking Selling Made Easy (SME) scheme really does make it easier

to get leads and win more business at better prices and our Showcase enabled us to show

the full extent of the range and service we can offer.

newstead launches global600at a two day spring showcase

Teeside fabricator installers Budget Windows

has seen huge changes since the

management buy out on New Years Day

2005. After completing the first year under

new ownership the investment and changes

are paying off. “We started by investing in

new machinery - part of the overall plan to

modernise and streamline the fabrication

side of the business,” explains Paul

Callaghan, General Manager. “And we took

the opportunity to switch to Synseal's

SynerJy suite. We already have a strong

domestic business but we wanted to

strengthen our trade fabrication side. So we

have re-branded the trade fabrication side as

Eden Trade Systems and brought the

operation into the 21st century. The three

businesses together cover retail, trade and

conservatories. We are pleased with the

changes we've made and we're fast-tracking

ISO9001. We knew we needed to make big

changes to compete in a tough market.

Once the keys changed hands we started

making the changes we'd wanted to for so

long. We have a strong retail base - on

average 65 window installations and 20

conservatories a week. And 2006 looks to be

another successful year.”

21st century investment pays off for

eden trade systems

synseal is number one at glassex

Synseal has announced another fantasticshow at Glassex. “There were ten peoplefrom Synseal on the stand this year thatwere kept busy all day, every day,”explains Nick Dutton. “Glassex is a great

opportunity to show customers and

potential customers new products. It was

the first time Legend70 has been exhibited

at Glassex and we had lots of interest in it.

Especially as now we also announced all

profile is now available in five new colours -

black, grey, red, blue and green. Many

commercial projects like schools and

hospitals use coloured profiles, and offering

these colours off the shelf means our

customers can get what they want, when

they want it. And the colours are available

for all our customers, so domestic installers

can offer homeowners a choice too.

“global600 was also a big hit. Launched in

the autumn last year, the low pitch roof

topped one of the two full sized

conservatories on the stand. “The stand was

designed to make it easy for visitors to see

exactly what we have to offer and the

position of the stand was great too. Being

the number one stand as visitors walked

through the door means we've spoken to

virtually everyone who came to Glassex!”

EVii was an integral part of the standdesign. Access was created from theliving room seating area though theside of EVii straight into the SynerJy-

Global display areas.

Nick Dutton, Sales and Marketing Director of Synseal Extrusions, says celebrate our differences, but be flexible in the market…

NICK’S IN THE CHAIR

glass age/2006

Are you a Europhile or a Europhobe? Doyou love them or can't you wait to leavethe EU. It's easy to argue at length aboutenforced homogenisation orharmonisation but are we really underthreat of losing our heritage?

As a European nation and part of thelargest trading group in the world the UKhas the responsibilities of adhering todirectives, but we also have the freedomto celebrate our culture. No-one's tellingus to drive on the right or to use two pinelectric plugs. Yet.

French lorry drivers, one of the mostmilitant groups in Europe embrace ourtraditions and drive on the left in the UK.Most of us sensibly pack an electric plugadaptor before jetting abroad.

It's good to celebrate our differences, butwe need to be flexible enough to adaptto their differences too. Beer may be soldin pints but milk is sold in litres and itdoesn't cause a problem in the pub or athome.

Euro-muddleYou wouldn't have thought it possible butthere has been a quiet evolution in thehome over the past decade as metric andimperial have integrated. Euro-muddlemay be, but flooring is now sold by thesquare metre, not the square yard,although you'll be quoted a price in both.A standard sized bath that once was 5' 6”is now 1700mm (about 5' 8”) althoughyou can buy smaller. The noticeabledifference has been in the variety of sizesoffered to accommodate the transition tometrification. Kitchen and bathroom unitsare often available in both 500mm and600mm widths.

The construction industry is a goodexample of harmonious integration.Roads may be measured in miles, andTransport Secretary, Alistair Darlingdoesn't want the £700 million expense ofrenewing UK road signs in kilometres. Butlengths of plastic, wood and glass aremetric. Metric has been embraced by ourindustry because it has obviousadvantages: it is more accurate thanimperial, with linear measurements inmillimetres, finer and easier to use thanthe old fractions of an inch. Importantly,

manufacturing in metric lengths makessense in a global market and givesspecifiers and installers unrestrictedpurchasing opportunities throughoutEurope.

Metric madnessThe argument for using metric inwindows is evident, but existing UKhousing stock is imperial. Doors andwindows remain roughly the same size -our architectural heritage is based onmultiples of two feet - about 600mm.Most modern construction componentsare made in 500mm units and are noteasy to match up in a practical andaesthetically pleasing way.

Adding a low pitch conservatory to aproperty makes the point. To make it fitin with the existing building thecomponent parts need to match up withwhat's already there. For windowinstallations the measurements anddesign of the main house need to bereplicated to fit, but then theconservatory roof doesn't line up.Existing low pitch roof systems aremeasured in 500mm centres andwindows look 100mm out of kilter. Sofar, only one major player in the glassindustry has realised the potential andcome up with a solution.

Kerb appealSynseal saw the problem and went backto the drawing board. The result wasglobal600, a product with global qualityand 600mm flexibility. It was a directresponse to a perceived practical need.No doubt other companies will follow soinstallers can align the glazing bars, usea pair of 1200mm French doors andmatch the glazing bars to mullions.They'll follow because it looks right.

The installer has a product that is abetter fit, is simpler and quicker to installand the customer has a property that iseasier on the eye. But kerb appeal is alsoimportant in maintaining and realisingthe true value of a property. There'snothing so damaging to property valuesas poorly designed, inappropriatewindows, doors or conservatories. If itdoesn't look right, it won't sell right.global's versatility in size and style fromonly one system has transformed it intothe fastest growing conservatory systemon the market.

The best of bothWhether you are a Europhile or aEurophobe having a system that's basedon imperial sizes, but measured inmillimetres, is a perfect solution for lowpitch conservatory roofing. Perhapsother industries could learn from us.

EUROPHILE OR EUROPHOBE?

Nick Dutton, Synseal’s Sales and Marketing Director

Existing low pitch roofsystems are measured in500mm centres and windowslook 100mm out of kilter. So far, only one major playerin the glass industry hasrealised the potential andcome up with a solution.

product updateproduct update

Anthracite Grey7016

Black Brown8518

Dark Red(Burgundy)

3081

Steel Blue(Oxford)

5150

Dark Green(Brookland)

6125

synseal offers perfectly colour-matched

window trimsFabricators can now get perfectly colour-matched trims for allSynseal window profiles. “We are offering our customers acomprehensive range of trims and window boards to match our windowprofiles,” explains Nick Dutton. “They are available in white, as well aslight oak, rosewood and mahogany. We've even made ordering anddelivery easy. Our customers can place one order and trims will bedelivered together with the profile order, so it saves time too.

“Synseal constantly looks for ways to make our customers' lives easier,

whether by providing new products and innovations or by giving better

customer service to keep our customers ahead in the market,” adds Nick.

five new coloursGone are the days when Henry Ford stated you can have any colour you want as long

as it's black. Windows have been available in white and woodgrain for many years.

But now we've added even more. Synseal has announced all its profiles are available

in five additional colours: black, grey, red, blue and green.

Colours are increasingly important in the specification market. Many schools and hospitals

like to use different colours, but until now colours were available only as a special order in

big quantities. Our customers now have the choice of white or blue-white, rosewood,

light oak and mahogany or any of the five new colours straight off the shelf.

“But we haven't restricted these to commercial contracts. Our customers who supply the

domestic market can enjoy the colours too,” explains Kevin Harvey. “We are always

looking for ways to help installers attract new customers and it's an ideal choice for

homeowners who want to add individuality to their homes. We launched the new colours

at Glassex and the feedback from visitors to the stand has been great.”

the newSynerJy

brochure letsyou add yourpersonality

“The new SynerJy brochure isdesigned to let you add yourpersonality,” explains designerof the new brochure,Marketing Manager Phil Else.“We wanted installers to be ableto personalise it by adding extrapages, so we designed it withscrew fixings. The 40 pagestandard brochure simplyunscrews and extra pages can beinserted.

“We asked our customers whatthey wanted for homeowners.And everyone we talked towanted something different andpersonalised too! So we haveproduced everything you askedfor. There are twenty pages foryou to choose from. There are upclose pictures of windows anddoors to show the simplicity ofthe sculptured bead, as well asfinished installations in bothtraditional and modern homes. Infact there's something foreveryone. And there's a gallery ofconservatory pictures too.

“But the real beauty of the newbrochure is that making it yourown has never been easier,” addsPhil. “The 210mm squarebrochure lends itself to addingwhat you want. Whether abespoke front cover, pictures ofyour own installations orinformation about yourcompany, you can simplyunscrew the brochure and addwhat you like.”

continuous improvementManufacturing Director Steve Musgrave has

worked at Synseal for three years. In that time

production levels have raised by 79% to a record

high in 2006. In fact Synseal is now the largest user

of PVC in the UK according to leading industry

journal Plastics and Rubber Weekly. Steve discusses

how his experience in the automotive industry has

helped Synseal achieve such growth in production.

“I worked in the motor industry for six years before I

came to Synseal. And in manufacturing terms, this

sector is ahead of the game compared with most other

sectors. With global competition, car manufacturing is highly automated and hugely

pressurised. As a supplier, if you supply parts late or incorrect, you get fined. If a car

production line stops the supplier responsible gets fined the total cost of a car for the

number of minutes the line is stopped. So there's a massive incentive to get it right

first time. Suppliers are rated on quality in parts per million and it covers everything

from the product itself to service and delivery. And to get an acceptable rating you

have to deliver on time, every time for 20 weeks without problems.

“So when I came to Synseal I wanted to make sure we could produce what our

customers wanted. And deliver it to them on the same basis as if we were in the car

industry. It's not easy getting it right first time. You need to have the backing of

everyone who works within production. That's why we explain the total process to

new staff. Everyone starts on packing, and then works up through the factory as their

experience and understanding increases. We constantly look for ways to improve our

systems. It's an ongoing process.

“Since January there have been big changes in Huthwaite. We've added seven new

extrusion lines and another injection moulding machine. Now all Synseal's window

profile is manufactured at one site. We have taken on an additional 20 staff in the

extrusion hall. Already we have started to make some Legend70 components in house

rather than outsourcing. Eventually all components will be made here. The seventeen

new tools for Legend70 are due to start arriving in May, and the new 100,000 square

foot warehouse will be ready about the same time.

“Big changes can mean big upheaval. We've tried to keep it to a minimum by keeping

the culture stable. We are working towards a right first time principle. And we're

always looking for ways to improve. The best people to ask are those working on the

shop floor. They work with a process every day and they see things that would make

the process easier. The trouble is that of the 90% of people who come to work who

have a good idea - only 1% will say. But anyone who knows Synseal will tell you that

they listen to customer suggestions. And we listen to our staff too.

“No part of our business is exempt from our commitment to continual improvement.

Investments in highly productive state-of-the-art manufacturing equipment have paid

off. Delivery times have been significantly improved. And by changing sales order

processing, IT and manufacturing management systems, days have been cut from

delivery times. Now our customers can have a roof from order to delivery in just three

days. In the time saved Synseal's customers can make more, sell more and improve

their own delivery times - the benefits are passed down every link of the chain. We

are committed to keeping ahead of the market by working together as a company

and in partnership with our customers.”