A long-standing partnership for TWR
Window and door installer, Total Window Repairs (TWR), has been a continuous Sternfenster customer for the past 13 years.
Run by husband-and-wife team Darren and Georgie Andrews, the company services the Blandford Forum, Shaftesbury, Gillingham, Dorchester and the surrounding areas.
“TWR is a family run business with family morals, and the fact that Sternfenster is also a family-business is one of the main things that attracted us to them,” said TWR co-owner Darren Andrews.
“We see a real mix of projects around here. We’re quite rural, so we do lots of cottage installations, and for those projects, the Heritage flush PVC-U window is a winner – it replicates the original style of the building whilst providing all of the durability benefits that come with PVC-U.
“But equally, we’re also seeing some character properties wanting to add a modern twist, and the aluminium bi-fold is one of our favourite products to recommend for that. It’s such a simple system to install and use, and it works every time – we’ve never had a problem with one, even after years and years of installing them!”
A helping hand
“We’re a relatively small company: we have one team of fitters who are on the road installing, and then there’s just me and Darren, so it’s really important that we’re organised and know when everything is coming in,” continued co-owner Georgie.
“I use SF+ every single day – as soon as I log on to the computer, it’s the first thing I load up. I can check what orders we’ve placed and the delivery times, and I can then keep our customers updated too.”
Around 75% of Sternfenster’s customer base currently takes advantage of the trade fabricator’s pioneering SF+ system, that shows the live status of quotes, contracts and deliveries with the touch of a button.
It is also home to an extensive library of downloadable training and marketing material, accreditations and technical data, plus a live production capacity feed. This provides real time data on the capacity of individual products, across Sternfenster’s aluminium and PVC lines, and gives installers a unique overview of the fabricator’s production schedule from the moment an order is placed.
“We also use EasyAdmin everyday too. It shows us lots of different reports so we know where we are with our sales and profits, and we can also use it to input quotes and get a speedy price back to the customer,” Georgie said. “We love it!”
Delivering success
One of the simplest steps in a sale, but one of the easiest to get wrong, is the delivery process. But according to Darren, Sternfenster’s delivery team only enhance their experience of working with the fabricator.
“The delivery team is fantastic. The day before a delivery is due, we get given a two-hour slot, and then on the day, the driver will call half an hour before he reaches us.
“What’s on SF+ as coming that day is always on the truck, so we always know that we can plan things in to be installed, as we trust the picking process.
“The drivers are all great; they’re always helpful, like if I need a hand unloading, they will always help. They bend over backwards, which is something you don’t get from many companies these days.”