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JANUARY 2016 PRO INSTALLER
PRO NEWS
www.proinstaller.co.uk
Designer Look
Reynaers at Home’s
range of hypoallergenic
designer handles, Purity,
is proving more popular
than ever thanks to
stunning aesthetics,
durability and innovative
material and coating.
Obituary:
Andy
Gibbons
A message from VBH
MD, Peter Rowlands
It is with great sadness to
announce that Andy Gibbons,
one of our longest serving team
members, has passed away.
Andy, who was only 44, suffered a
severe heart attack in April and had
been undergoing treatment towards his
recovery at hospitals in Birmingham
and Leamington. With constant support from his family, he battled bravely
for eight months but finally succumbed
on 12th December, 2015.
A true hardware man, Andy worked for
Laidlaw Thomson and City Fix before
joining VBH (then known as Wagner)
in 1993 in the role of Sales Office
Liaison. He was an expert in hardware
for aluminium windows and doors and
worked his way up to the position of
Aluminium Product Manager, which
allowed him to shape the company’s
product range for the aluminium
sector.
The bulk of Andy’s work involved dealing with the aluminium systems houses and fabricators throughout the UK
and Ireland and he was well liked by all
who knew him, as he brought his down
to earth, friendly style to his work.
The directors and staff of VBH send
our heartfelt sympathies to Andy’s family and friends, in particular to his wife,
Jo, and their three young sons.
We will miss our colleague and friend
dearly.
For the design and development
of Purity, Reynaers at Home joined
forces with the Italian designer Leo
De Carlo, who worked for Philippe
Starck’s agency in Paris for several
years. He drew inspiration from his
home town of Venice for Purity’s
innovative and minimalist design.
Leo De Carlo said: “Reynaers is known for
its technical competence, attention to detail
and environmental awareness.
“The material used in Purity is a compatible alloy, which doesn’t contain any toxic
elements, such as lead, nickel or chrome.
What’s more, it is made using a production
process that ties into Reynaers’ environmental credentials.”
Purity handles are crafted using a recently developed, highly durable alloy called
PURA™ and advanced technology makes it
possible for it to be protected. The handles
are coated using an innovative production
process called BIOV™ (Bioecologic Ion
Overlay). This is an evolution of the old
PVD coating process, which requires no galvanic chrome, doesn’t produce toxic waste
and means the designer handles are 100%
recyclable.
The surface hardness is more than double
that of a standard surface treatment and the
corrosion resistance is on a par with that
of the highest quality stainless steel. Even
more impressive is the fact that the coating
is hypoallergenic.
Available in a range of three standard
colours and five more on demand, the
Purity handles are suited across a range of
Reynaers at Home doors.
www.reynaersathome.co.uk,
email [email protected]
or call 0121 421 9707
More than 400 jobs lost
at Leaderflush Shapland
More than 400 jobs have been lost at door and
architectural ironmongery specialist Leaderflush Shapland.
A handful of staff have been kept on
to wind down the company. Parent
company Laidlaw Interiors fell into
administration before Christmas.
A deal was struck to save parts of the
business with four divisions bought by London-based investment house Valtegra.
The firm snapped-up Longden, Fitzpatrick,
Komfort and Cubicle Systems.
But administrators at Deloitte failed to find
a buyer for Leaderflush Shapland and the
workforce was told the factory will not be
re-opening.
Leaderflush Shapland employed 426 people with 394 now notified of redundancy
and 32 retained by Deloitte to assist with
the wind down of the company.
‘Despite the best efforts
of the company, and
ourselves it was simply
not possible to secure a
buyer for this division’
Richard Hawes, partner at financial advisory firm Deloitte and joint administrator,
said: “It is with regret that we announce the
closure of Leaderflush Shapland.
“Despite the best efforts of the company,
and ourselves it was simply not possible to
secure a buyer for this division.
“The group has been under financial pressure for some time, restructuring in 2014,
and Leaderflush Shapland has suffered
significant on-going losses making trading
unsustainable.”
Source: Construction Enquirer