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Synseal - Committed to Sustainable Development
An of a Conservatory!
Mark Hatfield, owner of Hatfield’s, fabricated and installed the conservatory for his house. "The benefits of the new Shield Conservatory are endless," comments Mark. "The way it bolts from the inside is a great idea because it means you don’t have to put pressure on the roof when installing it, as you have to with other roofs. Another good design feature is the box gutter. It does the job it’s supposed to do. I used to use another roof from another
Fighting off three competitors’ quotes Expressions won the contract for the 4m x 7.5m, 4m x4m white conservatory. The company is currently successful in the retail sector and is working towards BS certification with the aim of breaking into the Local Authority and New Build
Starting in this edition of The Synseal Times, we will be introducing members of different departments to you. First up we’d like to put faces to
There are two in the team in the Customer Services department who you’ll speak to if you should have any queries. Whatever the query is, it’s their job to make sure that you are dealt with effectively and efficiently by liasing with the appropriate departments. Once your query has been dealt with, a week later one of the members of the department will give you a call to check the solution was to your satisfaction.
supplier and I had to spend a lot of time getting the gutter to flow the right way. With Synseal I don’t have any problems. "I have been with Synseal for eight years now and their deliveries are on time and there are no stock shortages. Compared with the three other suppliers I’ve used, the ease of manufacturing Shield profile means we can fabricate an additional two windows per day. That may not sound like much but to a small company that makes a big difference." Mark established Hatfield’s Windows and Conservatories fourteen years ago. At the time the split between windows, conservatories and roofline for the retail market was 75%, 20% and 5% respectively. Now 70% of the company’s business lies in conservatories and 30% in windows. "I think the conservatory market has been and will continue to boom. Looking at the rate our conservatory sales have increased, I think the conservatory market could grow another 25% next year.
markets. "Synseal make our job much easier because they are so easy to work with," comments Paul Fenty, owner of Expressions. "They’re a credit to the profile industry because they’re so switched on to their customers’ needs.
Express Yourself Expressions, a Grimsby based Synseal fabricator and installer has recently completed a P-shaped conservatory worth £9,000.
Customer Services and Sales Order Processing Department
the names you talk to in the Customer Services and Sales Order Processing departments. There are six in the Order Processing department who are here to ensure your orders are processed as quickly as possible and deliveries are on time.
Hatfield’s Windows and Conservatories have recently completed an unusually shaped conservatory on the owner’s own home. Constructed from a Victorian and a Lean-to joined together in an L-shape, the price to a Hatfield’s retail customer would have been £24,000. Since the conservatory has been installed just a couple of weeks ago, although still waiting for a few finishing touches, Hatfield’s Windows and Conservatories have sold two conservatories by using it as an example of their work, together worth a total of £28,000.
Departmental photo...Departmental photo...
"Most of our business comes from recommendations but we do get a lot of people coming into our showroom because it’s situated in the high street. The two conservatories we have on show are of such high quality customers often make the comment that they don’t think
Synseal blend all their white compound themselves eliminating the ‘middle man’. Jacqui Hodges Jo Tomlinson Customer Services
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Nicola Hunt Office Manageress
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Bridgett Cowell Christine Moody Sales Administrators
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DID YOU KNOW….
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Andrea Wright Deana Scott Suky Begana Sales Administrators
Synseal welcome a new recruit Synseal welcomes Mark Carter into their fast-growing conservatory team as National Conservatory Technical Manager. Mark joins Synseal with an impressive CV. Having been an architectural technician for several years Mark moved into the glazing industry and with this combination of experience was well qualified to work for Everest for a total of five years in their conservatory division. Mark also has BTEC H.N.C’s in Building Law and Building Studies.
Synseal has its own Research and Development team that work full time to stay ahead of the market and ensure Synseal remain highly innovative.
DID YOU KNOW….
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"I approached Synseal for work as having done my research I found them to have a long-standing history of excellence", comments Mark. "My job is to interact with all departments and customers to ensure everything runs smoothly. It’s an exciting position for me because Synseal ar e allowing me to make my mark. Some companies are so set in their ways they aren’t willing to listen to new ideas, but Synseal are an innovative company that have already achieved headway in the innovation stakes. They have proved this with the launch of the new conservatory system which is installer and fabricator friendly as well as cost-effective."
Synseal is an ISO9002 quality assured company and implements a 24 hour quality control program to ensure we maintain all our profiles to the high standards of the British Standards Institute.
THE SYNSEAL TIMES Synseal Factory Quadruples In This in Size in Just Seven Years Issue As many of you know Synseal Extrusions Ltd acquired an extra 207,000sq ft in September last year in anticipation of increased demand for the Shield Conservatory System. Less than a year later and just a few months after the launch, we’re adding a further 100,000sq ft.
“YOUR SAY” “The profile supplied by Synseal is a well designed high quality profile. I can honestly say it’s the best profile I’ve used in the 22 years I’ve been in the industry.”
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Roger Chesterton, Owner, The Right Window Company
“YOUR SAY”
"We’re booked up until August and we’re really working at capacity at the moment," comments Mark. "I will soon have to decide whether or not to expand as a result of all the business we are getting. We don’t believe in pressure selling and I don’t think you need to with such a quality product to offer. We are a family firm and we’re well known for doing a good job. In fact 80-90% of our business comes from recommendations. I need to have confidence in the product I’m selling and I get that with Synseal."
GROWING BY NUMBERS Coming soon after the latest Plimsoll report put Synseal Holdings in the top ten biggest companies in the window industry with 35.7% growth last year, Synseal confirmed its sixth consecutive million pound week. The week beginning the 11th March was a red letter one for Synseal. Total orders that week were in excess of £1.1million. Turnover in the weeks since then has proved that this was not a flash in the pan with sales topping
£1 million a week, every week.
they can afford one. But thanks to Synseal’s competitive prices they can. "Once the sale has been made the installation of the new Shield Conservatory is so much easier than anything we’ve worked with before. There is very little drilling required, it’s structurally very strong and the end product looks so good because it’s a complete system."
Nick Dutton comments: "Synseal's growth was strong throughout 2001. Quarterly sales increases – compared with the previous quarter - were 18.9% in the first quarter of 2001, 19.5% in quarter two, 22.6% in quarter three and 17.9% in the last three months of the year. "Early indications for 2002 show Synseal’s growth continuing, with especially strong take up of the Shield Conservatory System. Aiming for a minimum of 40 roofs per day we have already peaked at 90 Shield Conservatories in one day." Synseal has installed their own polycarbonate cutting line to keep ahead of the extraordinary demand. "The new polycarbonate line is a Master Cut 2000 from Blackman and White Ltd," comments Vince Irving, Logistical Director of Synseal. "This latest acquisition allows us to do this by giving us more control over what we supply." "Naturally we have had to take on more people to support this growth, and we moved to a bigger factory last year," continues Nick Dutton. "The number of employees has gone up from 221 in April 2000, to 244 in April 2001, and is now in excess of 400. Growth has come from existing customers who are surging ahead and from new business. Eighty new fabricators switched to Synseal Shield in 2001 Fabricators seem to like our policy of innovation, quality and right first time service."
“For a short time when we first started fabricating synseal we were using it alongside another profile. But when 99% of our customers opted for Synseal we soon stopped using our original supplier.”
email:
(01623) 443200
FAX:
nickdutton@synseal.com
(01623) 550243 www. s y n s e a l . c o m
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"The now purpose built extension will be used for bulk warehousing enabling us to expand our conservatory department even more," comments Nick Dutton. "This latest expansion of premises is not surprising when you think that this year Synseal has been selling over £1million a week and sales of the new Shield Conservatory have hit 90 in one day and demand is growing."
John Morton, General Manager, QA Windows.
“YOUR SAY” “Synseal’s profile looks so much better than other 70mm systems as it has a chamfered edge which makes it look more narrow.” David James, Owner, Academy Windows
Several customers have asked us for extra copies of The Synseal Times to hand out to their sales team, and place in their showrooms. If you'd like to get extra copies of the newsletter to use in this way, call Phil Else on 01623 443 200
S Y N S E A L EXTRUSIONS LIMITED, COMMON ROAD, HUTHWAITE, NOTTS. NG17 2JL
TEL:
ISSUE NO.5 Summer 2002
DID YOU KNOW….
This newsletter was printed on material from a sustainable forest.
Synseal SHIELD Brochure for the Home Owner
The launch of the Synseal Shield Brochure for the home owner has been welcomed by Shield customers as the latest addition to what is already a comprehensive marketing support package.
Nick Dutton comments: "We identified the need for strong quality point of sale literature for our customers to use when they are selling in the home. Used on its own or in conjunction with our interactive Shield Conservatory CD this new brochure helps homeowners choose the style and type of conservatory to match their lifestyle".
Growing by Numbers Customer Services Did You Know? Formulus Advertise for less
FEATURE Customers:Expressions Harlequin
Hatfield
Nick Dutton, Sales & Marketing Director of Synseal Extrusions highlights critical issues in conservatory design and supply as printed in Glass Age magazine.
AND THIS QUARTER’S BEST SALESPERSON AWARD GOES
….Neville TO… Loveridge
for the most conservatory roofs sold from the day of launch to the end of the financial year.
NICK’S IN THE CHAIR
Designed to look good GOLDSTAR FOR QUALITY Goldstar Windows has recently completed the installation of a Shield Conservatory System, on the end of a stone built house. Fitting the conservatory itself took just two and a half days. "Using Shield saves us so much time because everything is interlocking," comments Ian Cooper, Partner of Goldstar. "This particular conservatory was 4.6m wide and had a projection of 4.8m. We got the job through the recommendation of a builder we do a lot of work with. He likes what we can offer so he recommends us time and time again."
Ian has worked in the window industry for sixteen years and set up Goldstar Windows eight years ago with partner Alan Brown. They have been supplying Shield profile for four years. "We started to have a few problems with our previous supplier so we looked around for something better. We got in touch with Synseal and we’re glad we did. They are so easy to work with, and when the new Shield Conservatory System was launched this year, we couldn’t wait to start using it. I have been really pleased with the amount of time we can save and with the look of the conservatory. It can’t be faulted - it’s just a better system."
Selling Conservatories Made Easy... Design software has become an essential tool for selling conservatories. Companies who actively use it are reaping the benefits, which is why Synseal has extended its already impressive marketing package, to include custom made software and a laptop to use it on, at an affordable price. Teaming up with Windowlink to supply Vector Sprint, this new piece of design software is specifically tailored for the Shield Conservatory System. Homeowners can see the benefits of the conservatory system on their own virtual house. To top this off Shield has also negotiated a discount supply of Pentium laptops. "Early indications are better than we anticipated," comments Nick Dutton. "At time of going to press we have received over 50 orders." Synseal customers can now take a complete conservatory system with branded hardware, packaging, brochures and bags along with professional design software on a laptop computer into their customer’s homes – that’s a pretty persuasive package.
Southern UPVC Sprint to Success "I’ve used conservatory software before and it’s definitely a useful tool to have," comments Rowland Coles, a Director of Southern PVC. "But the software I used to use took 45 minutes to take the customers through the program - they weren’t impressed. Synseal’s Vector Sprint software is tailored for the Shield Conservatory System and takes just 2-3 minutes with the customer. I’ve been using it for just two weeks and out of eight prospects I’ve got five orders for the Shield Conservatory. Customers like being able to see the conservatory on their own virtual house before they buy." "Synseal are very helpful, they’re a big player in the market but they maintain a personal touch," says Rowland. "Their package is superb and helps us grow. I’ve been in the business for twenty years and I only feel confident enough to expand the company now with Synseal’s support."
Good marketing, when defined, sounds suspiciously like good business practice, or even just common sense. Take this simple aim of marketing: selling products that don’t come back to customers who do. Stick to that principle and you won’t go wrong. Ignore it and trouble will queue at your door. But many prefer to live for today and ignore that principle. They turn a blind eye to the risks and install products that will come back in droves. Unless you’ve been living on a different planet you’ll know that discolouration has become a major issue for the industry. It’s not something that bothers people until they’re hit by discolouration themselves. Some large companies who were slipshod in manufacturing have had to spend millions replacing their customers’ windows and doors, and have set aside millions more to rectify what has yet to return. Discolouration is not limited to windows and doors. But four important issues make conservatories that discolour a particular problem.
Who carries the can? If you buy a conservatory in two halves, the roof from one supplier and the windows and doors from another, you could have a long supply chain. Compared with windows, where installers are rarely more than two steps from the manufacturing systems company, conservatory roof systems can be up to four steps away from the installer. More importantly most roof system suppliers, even the longest-standing, are assemblers not manufacturers and buy in the parts from other suppliers. If responsibility is disputed or companies in the supply chain take their time, the installer will have to choose between solving the problem quickly at his own expense or waiting for everyone in the chain to resolve their differences. Getting someone to own and solve a discolouration problem in conservatories can be harder than you think.
A mix of materials, a patchwork of colours Most conservatories are installed with a roofing system from one supplier and PVC-U windows and doors from a glass age/2002
different system. The chances of a close colour match between the two are small, when newly installed, although colour differences vary depending on the system. Each will weather differently and in time the gap will enlarge. More significantly the cresting, finials, end caps and ancillaries of most roof systems are made from different materials. Non PVC-U based polymers tend to be favoured for price and ease of moulding, but it tends to discolour quickly – within 46 years or so. Roofs with a mix of plastic materials discolour at different rates. PVC-U is more difficult and expensive to vacuum form and mould but Shield uses it because the PVC-U ancillaries and extruded profiles weather at a similar rate and resist discolouration so much better then non PVC-U based polymers.
When dreams turns sour People expect a lot from conservatories. Before theirs is up they imagine how they will live and entertain in it, how it will look and be admired. Dreams of a better lifestyle set higher expectations than distress purchases such as windows where need is more easily satisfied. But if the conservatory falls short of expectations, or the appearance is a bit of a let down dissatisfaction will be high. If it discolours within a few years and the roof turns various shades of pink and brown their dream will turn sour. Your reputation will suffer and word of mouth will give prospects cause to pause before Nick Dutton, they buy from Synseal’s Sales and you. Marketing Director
In designing the new Shield Conservatory system we challenged the design assumptions..
Neville comments on the virtues of the Shield Conservatory System at this years Glassex exhibition
for years. How much do you set aside for liabilities? Conservatories are buildings not frames, and problems such as discolouration that emerge after installation can be disruptive and costly to put right. Compared with windows and doors there is more to go wrong, and the likelihood of something going wrong over the lifetime of the guarantee is also greater. Given the swing to conservatories most companies need higher provisions in their accounts than they are making to cover their liabilities. While traditional roofing systems companies earn handsome profits, installers are making lower margins on conservatories than windows and funding this liability is a growing issue.
Designed to stay better looking In the early days having a conservatory roof that worked was an achievement. But markets mature and expectations rise as installers become aware of the compromises in designs, the cost of those compromises, and who has to pay for them (you).
In designing the new Shield Conservatory system we challenged the design assumptions to improve the way it looks, and the way it’s fabricated and installed. Installers assemble the conservatory from the inside, so it’s easier, quicker and safer to install. Designing a Shield roof to fit Shield profile makes a better-looking conservatory with common sightlines, common materials and a common colour throughout. It’s a true conservatory system not a conservatory roof system on windows. It’s also a better-looking conservatory that’s designed to stay better looking over the years. Further information Phil Else at Synseal 01623 443200
Neville has worked for Synseal for 11 years but has been in the industry since 1983. "I was the first salesperson taken on by Synseal to sell window profile. It’s not a difficult job because Shield profile is a superior product. It’s the only profile company to supply everything you need for a conservatory under the same brand umbrella: hardware, patio doors, windows and roofs."
SYNSEAL PV C - U P R O F I L E S YS T E MS FO R QU A L I T Y WI N D O W S, D O O R S , & C O N S E RVATO R I E S
Allabastau, the Managing Director stated this would not happen in the near future.
Advertising for less for
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COMING SOON…
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to Synseal customers, the launch of FORMULUS, a software programme Synseal have been developing for over a year. The package that will be FREE to all our customers will consist of several features that you normally have to pay extra for. The software will incorporate price lists, cutting sizes and a Georgian bar calculator amongst much, much more. All of these features work within Windows and can be used on as many computers as our customers need. In addition Synseal customers will receive free software support from Synseal and free upgrades as and when they become available.
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Competitive purchasing is critical to any organisation. As you will be aware Synseal have been actively securing competitive pricing in non-profile products for our customers now for 3-4 years. Products such as hardware, gaskets, security glazing tapes, in-line patio doors, and of course more recently the conservatory product. The latest development in this strategy is advertising costs. We have negotiated, with all of the industry's trade press, highly competitive advertising rates for all of our customers. As usual these packages are only available for Synseal customers. Feedback so far has been astounding. Existing customers have responded very positively as have new customers that see advertising as something they can now afford with the savings they’ve made by changing to Shield. For further information please contact Phil Else at Synseal who will gladly forward copies to you on CD ROM.
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WORDSEARCH How many times you can spot the word ‘Shield’ in the grid to the right? It may run up, down, across or diagonally, forwards or backwards.
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SYNSEAL EXTRUSIONS LIMITED, COMMON ROAD, H U T H WAITE, S U T TO N - I N - A S H F I E L D , NOTTS. NG17 2JL
TEL: (01623) 443200 FAX: (01623) 550243 email: nickdutton@synseal.com
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