Industry-leading spacer bar manufacturer Edgetech, a Quanex company, took visitors back to the classroom as they showcased the ‘science of warm edge’ at the FIT Show 2017.
Offering one of the most interactive stands at the FIT Show, Edgetech shared just a taste of the thirty years of fastidious research, constant development and thorough scientific testing used to create the ground-breaking Super Spacer flexible foam spacer bar.
The stand also featured live demonstrations of Super Spacer application, showing how glazed units can be manufactured efficiently and cost-effectively using Super Spacer. To complete the science theme, visitors were also able to pick up a test tube of Super Spacer branded M&Ms.
“We had a brilliant time at this year’s FIT Show taking visitors back to the classroom and behind the scenes of our unrivalled Super Spacer,” comments Edgetech’s Head of Marketing, Charlotte Davies. “Behind all of our products, there is a wealth of research and countless hours of testing to ensure every single parameter delivers only the best performance. Our stringent and thorough research and development programme provides the evidence we need to verify the quality and performance of our products, in addition to over three decades of real-life experience outside the laboratory.”
“As experts and pioneers of warm edge, it was great to come to the FIT Show and share the facts behind the technology through our fun, interactive stand. As veterans of the FIT Show, appearing every year since the event began, we can safely say it has been one of our most successful appearances in terms of quality leads. We were able to leave the NEC having established new relationships with installers looking to gain a greater understanding of the quality inside their products, fabricators who are looking to manufacture IG and leading, established IG manufacturers who want to use the best-in-class spacer bar. With such success, we are already looking forward to FIT Show 2019!”
Founded in 1989, and today forming part of global building products group Quanex, Edgetech revolutionised the industry with the introduction of the game-changing Super Spacer flexible warm edge spacer bar. Currently celebrating a decade of manufacturing at its Coventry headquarters, the company offers a comprehensive range of components for warm edge windows.
For more information on Edgetech call 02476 639931 or visit www.edgetechig.co.uk
As Head of Marketing at Edgetech UK, Charlotte is responsible for communicating who we are and what we do into the markets. Here she talks about her role and Edgetech’s product range.
I have been working at Edgetech, the driving force for energy efficient glazing, since 2007, when I joined as Marketing Assistant. In 2014, I moved up to Marketing Manager and was made Head of Marketing at the FIT Show 2016.
I’m passionate about marketing. It can have a very fluffy reputation but I take a statistical approach to what we do. In our strategy, we use measurable marketing methods so that we can gauge our successes and see where there is room for improvement.
We plan everything ahead and have found some really clever marketing automation systems that help our small marketing team (just Krishma and me!) to work smarter and get better results.
We work very closely with our sales team. I was responsible for implementing the Salesforce system in the UK office and have been the driver for us continuing to develop what we can do with it.
I read an article in the Harvard Business Review recently about the importance of sales and marketing teams working together. Studies have found that aligning these two departments can ‘improve sales efforts at closing deals by 67% and help marketing generate 209% more value from their efforts’.
We have seen improved results and return on investment since we have been working more closely with the sales team, and better return on investment is definitely what I want to see happening as Head of Marketing.
Edgetech, Warm Edge Technology and WERs
During my role in marketing at Edgetech, we have brought warm edge technology, Window Energy Ratings and triple glazing to the top of the agenda in the glazing industry press.
By being the driving force for energy efficient glazing, we have been able to build our reputation in the industry through communicating our key brand messages through strategic PR and advertising with the glazing press.
Having a product like Super Spacer® gives us so much to talk about in our marketing. As well as its impressive thermal performance, the flexible spacer bar gives so many more benefits to IGU manufacturers, like increased productivity.
I look after all external communications, to make sure that everything we say to the outside world is said in the best way, via the best channels possible.
We create a bi-annual printed newsletter and email our customers regularly to keep them up-to-date. A quarterly customer survey is conducted to make sure that we are offering the very best product and service to our customers.
With the massive increase in online activity, social media and website management has become a huge part of my role. We make sure that we are creating interesting, SEO-rich content on our blog and use Twitter and LinkedIn to engage with our customers and the wider industry.
Three Reasons to Choose Super Spacer
Marketing a product becomes easier when it’s as good as Super Spacer. When you have a truly unique and successful product it’s inevitable that it will be copied. And although we have some competition now, we still have plenty of inimitable selling points that make Super Spacer the number one choice.
Testing – Super Spacer may only be a small component of a unit, but it is a very necessary one. It has been tried and tested globally in the field for over 25 years and is backed up with our unrivalled 40-year guarantee of product performance.
Secure Supply – We stock Super Spacer at our manufacturing facility in Coventry and our UK distribution centre. We also manufacture in Germany and the United States which gives an extra supply back-up so customers can trust us to deliver consistently.
Innovation – Edgetech really invests in research and development, both in products and IGU machinery to help companies to future-proof their businesses. High speed machinery and our flexible spacer bar continue to push the boundaries for productivity.
Organising Events and Trade Shows for Edgetech
Before I started, Edgetech held the first Window Energy Ratings seminar in 2006. The event, ‘Increase your Profits: Energy Efficiency in Focus’ brought together 223 key industry decision makers. It was a real success, fuelled with debate and predictions.
Three years later, we held another seminar – ‘Edgetech: Energy Efficiency in Focus: Revisited’. It was the first one I was involved in and looked at how things had changed since 2006. It included discussions on what had changed with WERs, the 2010 revision to Part L of the Building Regulations and how the industry would cope with the looming recession.
We held a series of ‘Journey to C’ workshops across the country in 2010, which helped companies to get ready for the revised regulations, where, as predicted by the 2006 seminar, ‘C’ WER became a route of compliance for replacement double glazing.
In 2014, we launched the Triple Glazing Question to the industry. Another Edgetech event that brought together key industry figures to talk about a growing trend and how it would influence the market. The event dominated the trade media for six months afterwards.
Edgetech at The FIT Show
We’ve always been big supporters of the FIT Show. Edgetech, the driving force for energy efficient glazing, exhibited at the FIT Show 2013, 2014 and 2016. In 2013, we joined the inaugural show with a bang! We were celebrating our acquisition by Quanex as well as launching our new rigid spacer bar, TruPlas. We had a double-tier stand which worked perfectly for us – keeping business downstairs and hospitality upstairs.
The most recent event was the best yet as we had a product to offer for everyone who visited. I was pleased with how our stand turned out, with lots of interactivity and live demonstrations which drew lots of visitors to us. It was a successful event for us, especially our TruFit® tongue-in-cheek Gun Amnesty which was a real hit with window installation companies.
At the FIT Show 2017, TruFit expanding foam edge tape will be featuring as part of the Master Fitter Challenge in association with Glazpart.
2017 is also the 10th anniversary of Edgetech manufacturing in the UK, so at the moment we are busy making preparations for our celebrations!
Being Part of a Worldwide Team at Quanex
I’m proud to work for Quanex because it is a dynamic organisation with great products for energy efficient glazing and a talented and passionate team. It also brings lots of variation to my role. I work closely with my marketing colleagues at Edgetech in Germany and across the pond in the US on larger joint projects. We then take those plans and ideas and localise them so that they are relevant in the UK.
What’s Next?
I was promoted to Head of Marketing in April 2016, so this year is the first time that I have had total responsibility for the marketing strategy going forward. I have spent lots of time analysing the success of past years and planning our activities going forward so that we can get even better results in 2017.
One of the first things I was involved with as Head of Marketing was the launch of our new website in April. The work hasn’t stopped yet and we’re working on phase two of the site, so that we can bring more support to our sales team and to all our customers, so watch this space!
A highlight of The FIT Show calendar, The Master Fitter Challenge is well known for incorporating the latest market trends, helping to raise installation standards across the board. As such, the inclusion of TruFit®, expanding foam edge installation tape from Edgetech UK is a perfect fit.
TruFit® is part of the Glazpart Trade Counter product range and is being promoted by the distribution company as “filling the gap in the installer’s toolkit”. Master Fitter competitors will be told: ‘Don’t just fit it, TruFit it!’ and tasked with fitting a window more efficiently, quickly and cleanly with the pre-compressed foam installation tape.
Dean Bradley, Sales & Marketing Manager at Glazpart said: “TruFit is a perfect fit for the Glazpart trade counter product range which has been developed to supply the installer with high quality products that save time and money by making window installation easier, faster whilst meeting the highest standards.”
“These benefits and more will be demonstrated LIVE during The FIT Show 2017 as the Master Fitter Challenge competitors use the simple 5 step fitting process.”
Edgetech’s Technical Services Manager Karl Jones added: “TruFit was a huge hit at FIT Show 2016 and it has helped installers to raise their fitting standards to maintain the energy ratings of the windows they are fitting.
“It fills the gap between the wall and the window frame to deliver a consistent air and weathertight seals that leaves a clean straight line for a distinctive finish.”
Glazpart will be exhibiting TruFit on stand E50 at the Fit Show 2017 so installers can take a closer look at the neat modern finish and discuss time, cost and efficiency savings.
For more information on TruFit, visit www.trufit-it.com
“The best show in years.” That was the verdict on FIT Show 2016 by Edgetech UK and visitors alike.
“It was the first time at an exhibition that Edgetech had products and services for all visitors, from IGU manufacturers, to fabricators and installers,” says Chris Alderson, Managing Director of Edgetech UK. “We had a lot of very good quality discussions about our core products. Driving many of the conversations was a desire to increase production numbers and Super Spacer® is the first choice.”
The leading voice for energy efficient glazing was well placed to meet the needs of customers looking to increase production output, quality and efficiency:
“Edgetech has always led the market for production efficiencies and automation alongside better energy efficient glazing. I spoke to several machinery manufacturers at the show and there’s a real appetite for growth,” Chris adds.
Edgetech’s stand saw a record number of people ask for information about the entire product range. As well as warm edge spacer technology, the expanding foam installation tape TruFit® was a big winner. The tongue-in-cheek silicone gun amnesty went down really well with installation companies visiting the show to swap old silicone guns for a reel of TruFit. Alistair Inglis from manufacturing partner Tremco Illbruck was on the Edgetech stand to offer expert advice on the quick, clean and easy fitting method. Changes to BS8213-4:2016 installation standards have come just in time as there’s a big movement of companies looking to switch to TruFit.
Experts for the award-winning Dealership Plus business support scheme were also in high demand on the stand. Again it was a good opportunity for the whole supply chain to access information about the comprehensive package which covers crucial services for businesses. Members have access to simplified WER creation, easier CE marking, a competent person scheme and insurance backed guarantees. It offers some big cost-savings for business, as well as lead generation and full marketing support packages.
Chris concludes: “Companies in the glazing industry created the biggest and best UK trade show for many years and for Edgetech, FIT Show outperformed our expectations.”
Edgetech UK parent company, Quanex Building Products, will return to Glass Performance Days and China Glass in April in Shanghai, China, as both a presenter and an exhibitor. Quanex has been a proud participant at both shows for the past nine years.
“We have always been committed to the Asian market, but with our focused sales team, regional technical support and warehouse location in China, we’ve solidified that dedication,” said George Wilson, President, Quanex Insulating Glass Systems. “Our customers mean everything to us, and we’re able to provide customized support right in their backyards.”
Quanex’s Tracy Rogers, director of industry relations & advanced technology, will present at the Glass Performance Days Conference on April 9. As a glass and sustainability expert, Rogers will present the benefits of interior installed high-performance insulating glass (IG) for commercial retrofit applications.
Quanex will also exhibit at the 27th China Glass Expo (China Glass 2016) at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre (SNIEC) April 11-14, in Hall W1-491. The team will be on hand to showcase the latest in its 35-plus-year history of warm edge spacer technology.
“The last 35 years have brought much advancement in IG systems,” said Wilson. “We at Quanex take pride in being the industry innovators. We are always striving to help our customers find the latest and best technologies that will not only improve performance, but will also allow them to operate more efficiently.”
Quanex will be displaying its TruPlas™ Spacer, a rigid, glass reinforced thermoplastic spacer technology, and a wide range of other thermally efficient solutions, including Super Spacer®, Super Spacer® TriSealTM, Duraseal® and Duralite® warm edge spacer systems.
