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Posted On - 13/04/2022
With inflation predicted to peak at 7% this month by the Bank of England, and with the cost of living crisis dominating the headlines, it’s perhaps not surprising that consumer confidence has taken a big hit. According to PWC’s 2022 Spring Consumer Sentiment Survey, we are currently witnessing the biggest one-year decline in confidence since the global financial crisis. That’s...
Posted On - 06/04/2022
A survey of directors and employees of Cambridge based companies is reported to have found ‘widespread concern’ among workers about the long-term consequences of remote working. Four out of five of those polled said they were now spending less time in the office than before the pandemic. The survey revealed a variety of positive reasons for remote working, including cost...
Posted On - 30/03/2022
I visited Drake Circus in Plymouth recently, the city’s large, centrally located shopping centre, and it was as busy as I’d ever seen it. The multi-story carpark was brimmed, the shops bustling. Considering the recent headlines on the increase in the cost of living, of fuel and energy price hikes, I found this a little surprising. If the good residents...
Posted On - 23/03/2022
Consumers are in for a bumpy ride this year, as fuel, food and energy prices – which were already on the up before the war in Ukraine – continue to rise. According to Martin Lewis, financial journalist and founder of moneysavingexpert.com, fuel and energy prices are causing ‘absolute panic’ and he was ‘virtually out of tools’ to help people. So,...
Posted On - 16/03/2022
A post on LinkedIn caught my eye recently as it was highlighting a product that could potentially solve a problem for a number of system companies ahead of the introduction of new rules on Part L that come into force in June. To recap, the new stricter Part L regs mean that windows and doors with a glazed area of...
Posted On - 09/03/2022
The Resolution Foundation has forecast that a typical household income will fall by about £1,000 this year, the biggest reduction in income since the mid 1970s. Many households were already bracing for a hike in energy costs from April and from National Insurance contributions, but the war in Ukraine is likely to inflict a much greater squeeze in the cost...
Posted On - 02/03/2022
After becoming the first glass manufacturer in the world to fire up its furnace with hydrogen last year, Pilkington, the ‘founding father’ of float glass has made history once again by becoming the first to run on bio-fuel. The St Helens based company successfully powered its furnace on a fuel made from organic waste materials for four days, and made...
Posted On - 23/02/2022
Despite pressure from some big corporations and government to revive empty city centres post pandemic, it seems that a lot of office workers are ‘digging in’ with regards to working from home. A recent poll, conducted by YouGov, has revealed that nearly two in five people working from home say they will never return to the office. Carried out in...
Posted On - 16/02/2022
The increased ‘cost of living’ is starting to bite. For some families that means deciding between food or heat, for others it could mean a closer look at household finances – where to shop, how much to buy and thinking twice about ‘luxuries’ such as eating out. Even those who are better off are looking at ways of cutting costs....
Posted On - 09/02/2022
The word ‘innovation’ is a popular one in the glazing industry press. But how often is it used to describe products and services that are genuinely innovative or game changing, when they are really just ‘new’? Our lead story this week raises the topic of innovation – or rather the lack of it – in the UK industry. In an...
Posted On - 02/02/2022
There is no doubt that the industry will have a greater focus on sustainability as we emerge from Covid. Thanks to Deceuninck UK’s latest independent consumer research, we’ve already seen compelling evidence that homeowners are prepared to pay more for greener products, specifically those that have a higher recycled content and which have less of an impact on the environment....
Posted On - 26/01/2022
It’s been a strong start to the year as installers make their way through the backlog of orders that were placed at the tail end of 2021. Most installers went back to work at the start of the month with enough in the pipeline to see them through to the end of Q1 and from what I hear, January has...
Posted On - 19/01/2022
Would you pay a premium for products that are more sustainable? And would you be prepared to fork out extra for ‘green’ windows and doors? A new independent survey by Deceuninck UK has revealed that 68% of consumers would choose windows and doors with a higher recycled content and 38% would pay more for the privilege. If your mindset is...
Posted On - 12/01/2022
One of the most significant trends of the last 18 months has been the increase in demand for higher value products. Thanks to a surplus of savings, consumers have had the money to really push the boat out on their home improvements, and installers have reported a marked increase in sales of premium windows and doors, including flush, heritage style...
Posted On - 05/01/2022
A Happy New Year from Glass Times as new editor, Luke Wood, looks ahead to 2022 As we begin a new year, it might be tempting to assume that the chaos of 2020-2021 is behind us and that we can look forward to a return to normality for 2022. At the risk of starting the year on a downer, the...
Posted On - 22/12/2021
Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell presents the last newsletter of the year, and his last as editor. As I write this, The UK population is scratching its head, wondering what will happen between Christmas and the new year. Will there be a lockdown? Will kids return to school, or learn from home instead? Will there be support for businesses adversely...
Posted On - 15/12/2021
Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell considers our state of readiness for any future lockdown. Omicron. It sounds a lot more sinister than either ‘the coronavirus’, ‘Delta’, or (the one I find really irritating) ‘Covid-19’. It has ‘disaster movie title’ written all over it, don’t you think? Maybe that’s why we’re starting to tire of the never-ending attempts to slow the...
Posted On - 08/12/2021
Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell believes the green credentials of glass and glazing products need to be pushed to the homeowner. Endurance Doors has achieved an audited zero landfill mark, the company announced this week. The company said that it was part of a wider sustainability programme, but as a piece of news to share with customers, to be cascaded...
Posted On - 01/12/2021
Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell reports on a breaking news story. Promac is going into administration, according to a statement released by the company to Glass Times this morning. “Window Machinery Sales Ltd (Promac) has suspended trading and the employees have been informed,” it said. “Formal appointment of the administrator is expected over the next few days.” Founded by Derek...
Posted On - 24/11/2021
Glass Times editor Nathan Bushell welcomes a new supplier of garden rooms. I’ve been speaking to a new company this week – Pod on a Pallet – which is ramping up production of its garden rooms. These are available in a limited number of options, and arrive to site ready to assemble within two weeks of ordering. Since the construction...
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