Kalglass based in Godalming, Surrey, was looking to expand its business by adding window fabrication to its range of services. For a number of years the company had manufactured high quality glass sealed units. They also manufactured high quality glass and aluminium roofs for supply into the building and home refurbishment sectors. In an effort to drive business forward, Kalglass wanted to offer a complete service including window fabrication to its trade customers who were already buying its conservatories and roofs.
Martin Quick Sales Director of Kalglass explains the reasons behind their decision to go into window fabrication and how important it was to find the right profile supplier: “It was a natural progression to move from fabricating conservatories and roofs to also producing windows and doors. We are focused on supplying into the trade sector including the fabricator and installer markets and in an effort to maintain our reputation for quality we set about finding a profile supplier that could help us achieve our goals. In some respects it helped that key members of our team had previous experience in window fabrication, so had a fairly good idea of what we were looking for. In the past we had purchased a small amount of profile from another supplier but we were never that happy with either the way the product went together or the back up we received. When it came to actively promoting into this area, our thoughts were that if we were going to service this area of the market properly it had to be in partnership with the right company.
When we began the process of selecting a profile supplier, one of our key criteria was that the company had to be capable of supplying more than just the basic product. We knew, from supplying glass sealed units into this area for a number of years just how tough the industry is. That’s why we were certain we had to find a company that offered product innovation and marketing expertise to make sure we launched an offer that gave us a competitive edge. This was also important to our customers, who predominantly sell into the domestic market.
Our supplier selection process was extremely rigorous and we made sure that we evaluated all the leading names in the market. We even tried fabricating some profiles as we felt maintaining the efficiency of our factory was critical. In what turned out to be an inspired decision we also asked for input from our existing installer customers because we knew that they would have a good handle on the best profiles available. As it turned out, this was a great way of making them aware of our new service and, because we had kept them involved throughout the process, it made sure that the end result was a product that they really wanted. In the end, we had a choice between two leading profile suppliers but what tipped the balance was that one stood out from the rest because of its high quality and recognise name within our local market. Ultimately, the decision therefore was to go with Eurocell and now after several months we are confident we made the right choice. Their 70mm Eurologik system is well regarded by our trade customers and the feedback they gave us was that their customers preferred the aesthetics of this system.
The fact that it is also available in cream means that we have an offer that allows them to offer their customers a new choice. In terms of future growth opportunities for the business, we continue to be focused on the trade sector supplying into fabricators and installers. The fact that we make our own sealed glass units means that we remain extremely competitive on price. We also sell a large number of cavity closers which indicates a growing trend amongst our customers of targeting new build work. Again, the fact that we can buy the cavity closer from Eurocell also makes our sourcing operations quicker and easier. Another factor in our decision to use Eurocell was the easy access to their national network of EBP depots for installers to pick up roofline and accessories, which complemented the rest of our range. Since working with Eurocell, and our continued focus on quality our window fabrication business has exceeded all expectations and we are very optimistic about the future. Success in this competitive industry is a combination of many factors and Eurocell’s support in helping us develop our window fabrication business is invaluable. We are already considering gaining an energy rating on our windows and again Eurocell have already offered to help us with this process.”
For more information contact Kalglass on 01428 684478 or visit their website: www.Kalglass.co.uk To find out how to become a Eurocell fabricator, contact Eurocell on 0300 333 6525 or fill in our contact form here.