Our Factory
The factory first opened back in 1991, when the upvc window industry was still in development. Over time the industry has changed considerably and so have we. The factory being located behind residential properties in Southport gave a restriction on space, but after many years of planning and experiment we developed the maximum usage of the building.
In 2005 we up graded the machinery to allow us to manufacture internally beaded frames as well as our award winning externally beaded frames. In order to achieve this the whole floor plan of the factory had to be changed .The key feature in the factory became the urban sv430 which is a cnc corner cleaner, this machine is responsible for shadow grooving the frames and also for taking hard spots out of the glazing sections which can cause units to crack due to the build up of pressure.
An automatic bead saw line was also installed to enable the mitres on the sculptured glazing beads to be correct without human error causing any problems. We added a couple more machines in the form of a new transom Grover which performs a similar task as the urban, as it shadow grooves the transoms or mid rails depending on what you are welding.
A single headed welder was installed so that we can reverse butt weld; this is needed to manufacture internally beaded frames as you need to turn the rebates on the profile around. This then allows the sashes to open and for the fixed sections to be beaded on the inside, hence the phrase internally beaded.
A variable angled water slot router was also purchased; this was needed for the new internally beaded system to be made as the drainage is spread over several different profile sections, each at different angles so a fixed angle water slot router wasn’t suitable any more.
In order to add the internally beaded frames to our range we needed to store more profile, We got in touch with our local steel fabrication company who came to the factory and manufactured us a custom made racking system for the extra stock.
As well as upgrading the machinery, we also took time to look at different ranges of products from door panels, sculptured glazing bead.
We are more than pleased with what the changes meant for the factory. We where in a much stronger position in the market place by being able to offer the best frames with the most up to date machines, but more than that, we have staff that care about what they make for you the customer.
In 2011 we acquired a new factory in Southport at 3 Slaidburn Crescent Marshside, this was a huge investment for the company and has proven to be right choice.
We now have more internal space for the storage of stock, we also have a full showroom for our clients to visit and see the range of products we offer.
Since the move we have increased the range of products we offer from flush sash windows to the new colours such as Pearl Grey, Anthracite Grey, Black and many more. We have invested in a new 4 headed welding machine to enable more complex frames to be produced and a new saw to help enable accurate cutting of profile every time.
The extra space has also allowed us to store old upvc windows and doors that we remove so we can send them away for recycling in order to add to our aim of reducing the carbon footprint of the industry.
All in all the move was a huge success and saw us able to offer a warmer welcome to clients, a better finished product, a better range of products and space to employ more people locally.
