Hatcham job

Funded by the government’s Condition Improvement Fund, The Window Company (Contracts) has just completed a window replacement project at Hatcham College in south east London, part of the Haberdasher’s Askes’ Schools Federation.

The award-winning commercial installer was appointed as the principal contractor by Arcadis Consulting, working on behalf of the school for 3-18 year olds.

Parts of the historic Hatcham College date back to 1890, so the challenge for The Window Company (Contracts) was to supply and install windows which were in keeping with the age and character building but still represented best value.

Because it is independent, the company was able to identify a range of different products from a number of different suppliers that matched the different elements of the specification.

This included six 4,600mm(h) x 2,000mm(w) bespoke sapele hardwood double glazed sash windows for the school hall from NJL Joinery in Essex, painted white on the exterior but left varnished in the natural wood on the interior to match the hall’s existing panelling. These were fitted with Guardian SunGuard SuperNeutral glass to minimise solar gain and even feature the original openers that The Window Company (Contracts) restored and refitted.

In other parts of the building, the comapny installed a mix of arched head vertical sliders and tilt and slide windows with Astragal bars, fabricated by Glazerite in Veka’s Matrix profile, which matched the external appearance of the timber being replaced. The company also created a new opening in the dining hall and fitted a new set of Comar Commercial aluminium double doors.

The Window Company (Contracts) has extensive experience in the education sector and its team are all CRB checked and fully trained to work on school sites. It has the flexibility to be able to deploy fitters at short notice to work during school closure times.

Mary Williams, business manager at the school, said: “What we liked was that The Window Company (Contracts) did exactly what we wanted on the project and not just what suited them best. We are delighted with the products they recommended, particularly the new timber sash windows, and with the attention to detail they showed on every aspect of the project.”