Why going local is essential to sustainable glazing
By Nigel Leivers, managing director at Frame Fast UK.
Sustainability is no longer a buzzword in construction – it’s a requirement. Whether you’re working on a new-build housing scheme or replacing windows in a period property, energy efficiency, carbon impact and responsible sourcing are now central to specification decisions.
Glazing plays a huge role in that conversation. Windows and doors are key contributors to heat loss in a building, and upgrading to high-performance glazing can cut household CO₂ emissions by up to 4 tonnes a year. But to achieve truly sustainable results, it’s not just the product performance that matters – it’s how, and where, those products are made.
That’s where local fabrication comes in. Choosing a local glazing manufacturer doesn’t just make logistical sense – it’s an environmentally responsible decision that supports a more circular, accountable and transparent supply chain. At Frame Fast, we’ve been championing local, high-quality manufacturing in the East Midlands for nearly 30 years, and we believe its importance has never been clearer.
Transport is one of the biggest contributors to carbon emissions in construction. Moving heavy, fragile products like windows and doors across the country – or even internationally – increases the carbon footprint of a project significantly. Choosing a local fabricator like Frame Fast, based in Derby, cuts down those transport miles considerably, reducing emissions before a product even reaches site.
It also means faster lead times, fewer delays, and a better service experience overall. But the environmental benefit is the headline act: sourcing closer to home is a simple yet highly effective way to bring down embodied carbon in glazing.
Local means traceable
With sustainability comes the need for accountability. More and more homeowners, developers and contractors want to know where their products come from, how they’re made, and whether the claims being made stack up.
When you buy from a local, established fabricator, you’re not just getting a finished product – you’re getting full visibility of the supply chain behind it. At Frame Fast, we manufacture all our PVC-U and aluminium products in-house at our Derby facility, as well as DGUs, with strict quality control and traceability built into every stage.
Our materials are sourced from reputable UK-based suppliers, and we recycle aluminium, PVC-U and glass waste wherever possible.
It’s a model that minimises waste, maximises resource efficiency, and gives our customers confidence that what they’re installing genuinely supports sustainable construction goals.
As the industry moves towards stricter energy regulations – including the upcoming Future Homes Standard – the pressure is on to achieve ever-lower U-values. That puts even more importance on the quality of the glazing products themselves. A poorly fabricated window or door, even if made from premium components, will struggle to perform to spec.
Local fabrication isn’t just about geography, it’s about standards. At Frame Fast, we don’t outsource or batch jobs to distant hubs. Everything is made to order, with a focus on precision and reliability. We’ve invested in a dedicated aluminium department and two on-site showrooms – one for aluminium, one for PVC-U – where customers can see first-hand the quality and performance of what we produce.
That local control means consistency, compliance and confidence, not just in meeting today’s sustainability requirements, but in being ready for tomorrow.
For us, being local is part of a wider belief in doing things properly. We don’t take shortcuts, we don’t mass-produce, and we don’t compromise on materials or manufacturing. That ethos has always served us well, but it’s especially relevant now, as more people recognise the environmental and economic value of buying closer to home.
If sustainability is a priority on your next project – and it should be – choosing a trusted, local fabricator should be top of your list. It’s a straightforward decision that reduces carbon, increases quality, and strengthens the supply chain from start to finish.