30 | APRIL 2017

Read online at www . proinstaller . co . uk

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR

It ’ s the latest marketing buzzword sweeping the tech world , and it ’ s starting to make inroads into the wider economy too . It ’ s gamification – and unlike a lot of airy marketing concepts , it ’ s got real potential to help you get more leads , make more sales and grow your business .

Gamification is a simple idea . Taking inspiration from the multibillion-pound video gaming industry , it essentially involves taking aspects of games and incorporating them into your sales and marketing efforts – engaging your potential customer with more fun , satisfying , interactive ways of getting them to do things you want them to do , whether that is to register their details , submit an enquiry or complete an order form .

One of the easiest and most powerful ways you can make use of gamification in glass and glazing is with a bifold builder – a quick and relatively inexpensive way to let customers enter their hardware , size and colour preferences before sending it through for a quote .

At Warwick North West , our own bifold builder has proved incredibly successful . Specifically designed to significantly speed up the quoting and purchasing process and maximise convenience for trade clients , the builder offers installers a quick and easy way to input their preferred specification , including size , colour and hardware , before sending it through to us for pricing .

Our client base has been incredibly receptive . Installers are busy – they don ’ t work a standard nine-to-five shift , and days often start early and finish late . As such , the bifold builder has been a resounding success on two fronts – firstly , by providing installers with a much more engaging , satisfying and intuitive alternative to the conventional quoting process , but also by allowing them to do it whenever they like , including outside office hours . We ’ ve boosted our conversion rates , and we ’ ve made our customers ’ lives significantly easier .

The builder isn ’ t just useful for streamlining the relationship between fabricators and installers , though . We ’ ve also seen some of our trade customers using the builder as a sales aid when it comes to working with end users , too . Consumers are much more enthused and excited about a purchase when they ’ ve played an active part in designing it , and transactions involving the bifold builder are much more likely to result in a sale .

We ’ d thoroughly recommend investing in an online sales tool like a bifold , door or window builder to any fabricator – and strongly encourage any of our customers who aren ’ t already using ours to head to our website and try it out today .

Yours sincerely , Greg Johnson , Director Warwick North West

In his recent report on the window , door and conservatory markets in the Housing report , Palmer identifies significant growth and opportunities in bi-folding doors , and highlights growth in patio doors . Strong forecasts of sales growth mean greater demand for larger sealed units in bi-folds and sliding patio doors . But , some have asked , what sort of spacer is best suited to these large units , soft and flexible or a rigid spacer bar ? Do heavy window and door frames put more pressure on sealed units , so they deflect , making a flexible spacer bar better at dealing with the deflection ?

But it ’ s not a question of soft or rigid . It ’ s not the job of the window or door to support the weight of the building above , nor the job of the sealed units to support the weight of the window or door ; still less the job of the spacer bar to support the sealed unit , door , window or masonry above . If we built like that we ’ d all be living in piles of rubble from collapsed buildings !

Appropriately sized lintels are fitted above door or window openings to support the weight of the masonry and building above . They don ’ t rely on the windows or doors to support the building . Structural engineers calculate the load above precisely and , with a good safety margin , specify the strength and size of the lintel required to support the frame . If they didn ’ t , the building would fail regulatory requirements , and probably fail itself . Property owners would rightly be concerned !

A window or door frame is strengthened with reinforcement to support its functioning and its own weight . Correctly constructed , the sealed unit withstands

lateral movement in production , transit and handling during installation so it performs as designed for its lifetime .

A warm edge spacer bar is designed to keep the panes of glass apart , provide structure and surface for the primary and secondary sealants , and hold the desiccant . They are also a crucial insulating barrier for energy efficiency . It ’ s the secondary sealant ’ s job to keep the unit ’ s structure together and bear the load in production , transit and installation , and withstand the wind loading once installed .

an aesthetically pleasing finish

Rigid warm edge spacer bars like SWISSPACER are designed for large IGUs . They give precise edges and clean , crisp parallel lines for an aesthetically pleasing finish . They ’ re strong enough to cope with the weight of the extra glass without modification . You can see warm edge rigid spacer bars in action worldwide in large sealed units in very exposed conditions e . g . New York ’ s iconic Museum of Modern Art ( MOMA ), London ’ s 30 St . Mary Axe ( The Gherkin ), The Prada building in Tokyo , Madrid ’ s Torre de Cristal and The Turning Torso in Sweden all have SWISSPACER inside . Rigid warm edge spacer bars work well in these buildings , so I don ’ t think Mrs Brown will have a problem with her bi-folds !

Yours , Karl-Theo Roes Head of Market Development , Europe , SWISSPACER