SHEERLINE WINDOWS, DOORS AND LANTERNS FROM GARNALEX, THE ALL-BRITISH ALUMINIUM EXTRUDER

Glass News’ Editor, Chris Champion, joins one of the Garnalex Open Days to see the recent developments at the Firs Works site at Nether Heage, talk to CEO Roger Hartshorn and his team, and learn about the ongoing developments of the Sheerline system.

It’s easy to think of Garnalex as being a system company, particularly as the Sheerline brand of aluminium windows, doors, lanterns and bi-folding doors has become known in its own right, but Garnalex is much more than that.

Roger Hartshorn, the owner and founder of Garnalex, recognised the opening for a modern UK based aluminium extruder, and so with an investment of upward of £15 million and the installation of the state-of-the-art SMS HYBREX aluminium press, Garnalex became a company that proudly boasts that it’s a ‘Made in Britain’ extruder of aluminium. However, it doesn’t stop there. All raw aluminium logs are sourced from Wales which saves time, unnecessary carbon road miles and minimises the uncertainty of supply and quality.

Was Roger taking a risk investing in this way? On the face of it the risk is huge, but Roger has form! 40 years of experience in the fenestration industry and founding and then selling two leading PVC-U systems companies, Eurocell and Liniar Systems, means he has experience in spades! Most people would look to early retirement and the good life after very successful sales of valuable companies, but Roger is still a young man and, amazingly, still has the drive and ambition to begin a new venture.

It's one thing to have the drive and the finance to launch something this big but you can’t just do it on your own. Having been a leading figure and employer in Amber Valley for a very long time finding the expertise locally was not a real problem as many who now form the management team have worked for Roger before in either Eurocell or Liniar, or in some cases, both companies. One can only imagine the disquiet caused at those companies when Roger raised his head again and was looking for local experts to join his team! A good example is Dave Watts who started his career in windows at LB Plastics in 1982 and Garnalex now operates from LB’s former site at the Firs Works at Nether Heage. LB Plastics had become the first UK based systems house when Anglian Windows had asked them to extrude window profiles for them. Interestingly, when former employees of LB Plastics set up a new company in 1974 called HL Plastics, a little later, in 1977, Roger joined the team as an apprentice toolmaker. By 1988, Roger was part of a management buy-out and in the early 1990s his team launched Eurocell, with a popular roofline fascia and soffits range, and in 1993 with the Eurocell Ultimate 70mm PVC-U window system. The company grew and now Eurocell is a publicly listed company and one of the largest, most successful PVC-U systems houses in the UK employing over 1,000 people. Roger left Eurocell in 2005. He bought back the trade extruder HL Plastics and set up Flamstead Holdings in Denby, launching Liniar systems in 2008. Liniar was one of the fastest growing systems companies in the UK and another leading PVC-U systems company. Roger sold it to the Quanex Corporation in 2015, staying on for three years until he left in 2018. He then set up a new group, Garner Holdings, Garnalex, an aluminium extruder, and launched the Sheerline window and door system. Roger bought Firs Works site and LB Plastics to make plastic components, mouldings and ancillaries for trade customers and Garnalex’ own systems.

And so, in 2018, Garnalex was formed and extensive research and development was under way to develop what has become the Sheerline product range. The idea was to develop an aluminium system that was both easy to fabricate and to install but, more than that, Roger wanted the service and delivery levels to rival those of the of the best PVC-U systems companies. The hard work that went into designing this new system paid off when Sheerline passed PAS24:2016 security testing with outstanding results, exceeding the required load by more than three times! Its uniquely balanced, peerless aesthetics also make it a dream to sell. With aluminium extrusion commencing in 2019, so did a variety of supporting functions. New injection moulding machines were installed to give the company control over the production of the system’s moulded components and £2 million was invested in new extrusion lines and the moulding machines to manufacture thermal breaks as well as other ancillaries.

What a time to launch a new system! It’s 2020 and the time of the first lockdown of the coronavirus pandemic. The first of Sheerline’s products is launched, being Classic, the ultra slim, beadless window system and this enters the market with six launch partners. At this point it becomes clear where Roger’s thinking was: providing a system that had common components to reduce stockholding, patented corner construction that gave higher quality and less waste for fabricators, and their patented Thermlock® thermal breaks offering unrivalled performance, as standard. By 2021 it was clear that Sheerline was providing what it refers to as ‘agile’ lead times and service and this was proving to be a core advantage to customers. In January of that year the Prestige beaded window and door system was unveiled allowing fabricators to supply unglazed frames and, in June, the S1 lantern was added to the range. With its thermal efficiency and stylish aesthetics, the S1 has become one of only two SBD accredited lanterns on the market.

2021 was certainly a year of innovation and the introduction of the robot that carries 1.5 tonnes of dies around the shopfloor is impressive to say the least! It is fascinating to watch it work and to see it respond to its surroundings, avoiding stray people - and all controlled by radar.

September saw the bi-folding door join the Prestige range and, of particular interest to fabricators, sharing many common components with the rest of the range. Demand has increased significantly as the Classic and Prestige ranges has caught the eye of both the trade and the buying public such that the first night shift is introduced on the aluminium press.

2022 sees the addition of a composite door frame that enables ‘whole house’ solutions and an investment of a further £1.3 million in a powder coating plant that reduces the carbon footprint and increases the control of supply. Part L of the Building Regulations comes into force providing further opportunities for Sheerline as, with the Thermlock® technology, the products are already compliant with the regulation.

All this progress has also meant that additional team members have now joined the company in sales and operational roles. Additionally, increased technical documents and sales material is available such as the Thermal Calculator that allows easy U Value and Energy calculations.

What is planned for 2023? We still have the Russia/Ukraine conflict to contend with that has resulted in an energy crisis, and we have price hikes and Part L, too. However, Sheerline continues its product and system development helped considerably by its vertical integration that gives control over the supply chain. It has consistent design across all ranges so that colours, aesthetics, styles and performance match perfectly and all products have an SBD option. While the benefits of the Classic range, with its beadless design providing for perfect corners with mitres running through the internal joints, ultimate security, and the fact they are so quick to install, makes much sense, how about a beaded version? Classic now has a clip-in beaded option. This gives the option of being versatile with opening and fixed light combinations, and picture windows. There is also the option of 36mm triple glazing and beading allows for the supply of frames and glazing separately.

Part L is still very much an issue in the market, but Sheerline has this covered such that the whole Classic range is compliant, achieving a WER of A with double glazing, perfect for refurbishment, and a U Value of 1.5 W/m2K for new homes and commercial installation. Triple glazing gets down to A+ WER and 1.1 W/m2K.

The introduction of Georgian-styled bars allows for traditional as well as the modern look and there is also a beaded door system being developed for the Classic range. The S1 lantern now has an SBD option and a three-way system for the lantern will be released in Spring 2023. The three-way crown moulding is compatible with the existing M8 coach bolt the SRM108 hook moulding, too, and a threeway top cap and rafter will be available.

The Prestige range welcomes a lift and slide patio door with two interlock options and boasts flush jambs with no protruding pegs and retracting hook drive gear – and PAS24 as standard. As in all Prestige products, double glazing provides 1.4 W/m2K and triple glazing 1.0 W/m2K. There is also a complete easy-to-fabricate threshold range – a 25mm low threshold with ramp for Part M, a 38mm standard threshold with a clip-on cill nose option and finally a ‘zero’ threshold option.

To sum up, Sheerline’s range is impressive. There’s Classic in beaded and beadless, Prestige, Prestige Bi-Folding Doors alongside the new Lift & Slide, Prestige Composite Door Frames and the S1 Lantern. All ranges have fully matched styling and these products are backed up by a wide range of marketing collateral with a new website, a specification guide and product brochure planned for 2023.

What’s not to like?