AluFold Direct reveals Xenlite lantern

AluFold Direct has launched a new, slimline aluminium roof lantern called Xenlite.

According to AluFold Direct, Xenlite is ‘strong, slim, safe, and competitively priced’. It is said to give installers everything they need in terms of sales appeal for homeowners and developers and incorporates clever design and engineering features which make it safer, simpler, and quicker to install.

Xenlite is amongst the slimmest lanterns on the market with a 38mm frame. With thermally broken hip beams, it meets the requirements of the new Part L which comes into force in June, and it has been designed with high performance seals to ensure optimum air and weather performance.

What really sets Xenlite apart, says AluFold Direct, is the ease of installation. It has been designed so that the glazing clicks into the flange on one side of the ring beam as soon as it placed into position, with no danger of the glass slipping while the other three sides are secured. A pressure plate with integrated cover caps then makes it easy for one person to clip in the glazing all the way round so there is no need to reach across or around the roof to screw in the fixings. Neat, fast-fit end caps are simply screwed on to complete the installation.

The lantern comes with a fixed 25° pitch regardless of size so there is never any obstruction to the outlook from the floor above. This is designed to ensure that it fits perfectly into the mainstream home extension and orangery market and gives customers already fitting aluminium bi-folds, sliders or windows an exciting opportunity to upsell.

Xenlite is the first brand new product to be launched by AluFold Direct since managing director, Russell Yates, joined the team from Aluk. Russell is said to have led the design team responsible for all of Aluk’s most familiar products, including the BSF70 bi-fold, and he has ensured that the new lantern is just as fitter and fabricator friendly.

Russell said: “Xenlite is made the way that we believe roof lanterns should be and addresses all the things that installers told us they don’t like about the competition. Everything, from the four-sided glass retention to the profile-shaped cover caps, has been designed to suit the needs of the installer. It’s not just about making the product easy to fit, it’s about protecting installer margins by minimising time on site and eliminating costly call backs.”

Xenlite is supplied in kit form, with standard stock sizes available on a fast five-day lead time and bespoke sizes available to order in around two weeks. It is being manufactured on a dedicated assembly line at AluFold Direct’s state of the art, highly automated factory in Blackburn using brand new machinery to ensure consistent, precision output.

Russell added: “Xenlite is the first opportunity we’ve had to really show our customers the benefits of our investments in industrialised fabrication and in-house design. Essentially, we’ve been able to develop a truly innovative product manufactured to precision quality standards but with a competitive price tag – and that is all down to the scale and efficiency of our factory.”