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SPN OCT 2012 IndustryNews
www.swimmingpoolnews.co.uk ESSEX POOL LIGHTS UP ITS SUCCESS
blends well with the surroundings of the pool.
Sill was specified by M & E contractors, Emcor UK. The demanding specification included challenging structural features, together with lighting switching options to meet a variety of usage levels.
Allan Read of Emcor UK commented: “The project required a special approach with luminaires and bespoke brackets that were suitable for the environment. We are very happy with the results.”
Basildon Sporting Village, the £38m project which was the London 2012 training camp for the Japanese Olympic and Paralympic swimming team has won international praise for its eco lighting systems. The Village is part of £1bn being invested in Basildon town centre and is equipped with a 50 metre international size pool and much more, offering a wealth of activities and services for all.
The lighting scheme combines two high performance features –
Sill’s 467 twin halide lamp projectors and Pracht Apollo ‘O’ ring sealed linear fluorescent luminaires closely integrated on a well designed trunking system.
The lighting scheme for the pool uses 36 of Sill’s 467 and 15 of Sill’s 453 plane projectors using 400w and 150w ceramic metal halide lamps respectively for excellent colour rendering. The luminaires were chosen as they are precision made, high quality and high IP rated and are a clean, modern design that
The Apollo luminaires present a slim, elegant range of fluorescent luminaires with sealed adjustable reflectors, designed for more aggressive environments as they are waterproof, dust proof and chemical proof. The Apollo range has luminaire housings made in white, fibreglass-reinforced, flame-resistant polyester resin which is also resistant to acid and alkalis.
i FOR FURTHER INFORMATION
F SILL LIGHTING UK ( 01844 260006 :
www.sill-uk.com
BITTER POOL INSULATION DISPUTE SET FOR FINAL RULING
The long running dispute between two UK suppliers over a patent registered in 2003 for swimming pool insulation systems is set to reach a conclusion at the end of October. Polypool Ltd and Topic UK Ltd, trading as Thermapool, have been in deadlock over two specific pool systems, the commercial importance of which was raised significantly when the Government introduced its Part L building regulations aimed in part at tighter energy efficiency controls. Thermapool have seven different swimming pool insulation systems on the market – two of which are the subject of the dispute. The panel pool system is used as the structure when constructing either a new liner of tiled swimming pool from scratch and does not require using traditional construction methods. The Patent Office initially confirmed a patent registered nine years ago by Polypool Ltd on 3
November 2003 and still in force had been infringed by Thermapool. In May, John Grant MBE, heading the legal team acting for Nigel Rose, raised a number of issues relating to the validity of the original Polypool patent. In a Patent Office ruling Lyndon Ellis, the examiner, said that “Showing that a patent is invalid can be a legitimate defence against a claim to infringement of that patent. However this opinion request relates solely to the question of infringement. Hence I will say no more about any observations relating to validity. If the observer or anyone else wishes to have an opinion on validity then a new request to that effect should be made”.
Nigel Rose has now confirmed he has formally challenged the credibility of the Polypool Ltd patent showing some 12 prior patents registered before the Polypool patent application.
Polypool have requested a one
month extension to deal with Thermapool’s challenge of patent validity. The Patent office is expected to give their opinion for a final ruling almost immediately. For Polypool it means a further delay despite being told their patent had been infringed. In an increasingly bitter dispute Polypool through its legal team asked for the withdrawal of marketing material relating to the two systems. Nigel Rose has said that as they are challenging the credibility of the original patent Thermapool would go on selling their systems. Thermapool’s UK distributors, Plastica Ltd have since stopped selling the system.
Thermapool have two patents registered for the design and installation of insulation within the swimming pool structure and says they will continue to use and licence their patents pending technology worldwide.
SCP ANNOUNCE WAREHOUSE AND STAFF EXPANSION PLANS
Leading pool and spa industry distributors SCP has announced expansion plans which includes key new members of staff and over £100,000 investment in their two warehouses.
The new members of staff at their Gatwick Sales office are Geoff Nunn who takes up the role of sales manager for SCP Gatwick having been in the industry for eight years managing a local retail company. Geoff’s sales management experience totals 19 years having spent the 12 previous years successfully managing Virgin Megastore’s business at various levels. “Geoff is responsible for managing the sales team and growing the sales of all the customers at SCP Gatwick, raising customer service standards”. Dean Cartwright joins the team on a permanent basis as sales executive having been at SCP Gatwick on a short term contract. Dean’s attention to detail and follow up, proactive sales skills and dedication to raising Customer Care standards shine through on a daily basis. SCP has also just completed a £100,000 investment which includes the installation of RF Wireless Scanning Equipment at both warehouses. This allows quicker and accurate receiving of goods and ultimately picking of customers orders for despatch. This investment enables SCP to reach their customer service goal of paperless transactions from order entry to despatch. A complete re rack of SCP’s Gatwick warehouse has also been completed providing increased shelf space plus an additional two mezzanine floors were also installed to cope with future expansion plans. SCP is to recruit two new sales staff over the next two to three months by adding a hot tub product specialist and a new field sales executive at SCP Basildon.
Geoff Nunn (Left) and Dean Cartwright
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