Pro Installer March 2016 - Issue 36 | Page 9

9 PRO INSTALLER MARCH 2016 PRO NEWS @proinstaller1 Fire door warning following fatal tower block blaze Fire doors were central to a case in which Lewisham Homes was fined £40,000 for breaking fire safety laws, following a fatal blaze in a Deptford tower block in which two women died. Lewisham Homes was sentenced at Woolwich Crown Court after pleading guilty at an earlier hearing to failing to properly maintain fire doors and failing to review an existing fire risk assessment. Sentencing the housing manager, His Honour Judge Justice Christopher Hehir said the prosecution should act as a ‘wake up call’ to the risks of not maintaining fire safety features in residential high rise buildings. Lewisham Homes manages a significant proportion of the housing stock owned by the London Borough of Lewisham. The prosecution was brought by the London Fire Brigade following the blaze in February 2011. More than 100 fire fighters were called to the fire at Marine Tower on Abinger Grove in Deptford which started in a flat on the 16th floor. Crews rescued two women from another flat on the same floor but both were pronounced dead at the scene. The fire was started deliberately and in 2012 Sandra Clarke, a resident in the flats, was prosecuted and convicted of two counts of manslaughter at Woolwich Crown Court. An investigation by fire safety officers revealed serious safety failings relating to the failure to maintain fire doors, which directly contributed to the spread of the fire. The flat in which the fire started was fitted with a metal security door which prevented the existing fire door behind it from being closed. The severity of the fire and the lack of protection between the flat where the fire started and the building’s communal areas meant fire and smoke rapidly entered the lobby and also the adjacent flat in which the two women who died were trapped. Speaking after the sentencing in January Assistant Commissioner for Fire Safety Neil Orbell said: “This tragic incident is a stark reminder of the potentially lethal consequences of failing to maintain the vital safety features, such as fire doors, which are built into them to give you protection from fire.” Source: www.london-fire.gov.uk New website for Caldwell Group USA based international hardware giant Caldwell Group has appointed British digital agency Purplex to develop a new website portal that is technically rich in information for its customers and specifiers alike. Caldwell Group, which includes UK manufacturer Cotswold Architectural, needed a solution that operated across desktop, laptop, tablet and mobile devices. The resulting new website has not only been designed and built by the team at Purplex but the team also provided support with writing technical web copy, photography and a video shot. The end result is a content rich and engaging website that supports Caldwell and its stockist network with a sales and marketing hub, packed with its latest innovations - backed up with high quality images, in-depth product information, details, datasheets, manuals and sales support documents. Purplex’s specialist knowledge of the window industry coupled with its array of marketing skills ensured the delivery of this web project to the highest standards. Tim Ferkin, Sales and Marketing Director at Caldwell, comments: “We have a gargantuan product range and we needed a site that was big, technical and put the user first. Purplex delivered on all three points and we now have a best in class website that is great for us and our customer base. It wouldn’t have been possible to deliver such a site without deep industry and technical knowledge, which the Purplex team had.” Contact Purplex on 01934 808132, or visit www.purplexmarketing.com Is your supplier letting you down ? from only £365 per leaf £ ££ GET A PRICE COMPARISON TODAY pro installer half pg inner - bifolds.indd 1 Aluminium Bi-Fold Doors Tel: 01642 610798 Fax: 01642 671026 www.madefortrade.co 15/01/2016 13:29