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www.universitybusiness.co.uk | T: @UB_UK
PROMOTION | TAPL ANES | 31
Great expectations
Taplanes’ Andy Wilkinson tells us the top priorities for universities considering refurbishing student living spaces
What are the top priorities for universities when considering refurbishing student living areas? Universities prioritise cost-effective accommodation that yields low maintenance and cleaning requirements. The main priority to their client (student/conference team) is cleanliness, safety, proximity to facilities, internet connections and reasonable rent. The main priority to the University Estates and Accommodation Office is to have adequate time to deliver the refurbishment.
What are the advantages of a university installing a pod system compared to other options available on the market? In a nutshell; speed of installation, ease of maintainance and ease of cleaning.
Are you able to produce bespoke pods to order so as to fit in with the theme of a room? Yes, Taplanes are the only pod manufacturer working with ‘listed buildings’ which to any estates department gives an indication of the pedigree that Taplanes bring to the table. Typically Taplanes' response to an enquiry is to arrange for one of our regional specification engineers to visit site and in return give the client several options relating to their building refurbishment.
Meeting deadlines is paramount when working on education contracts;
TAPLANES – SHOWERING SOLUTIONS
Along with his twin brother John, Andy Wilkinson is the joint-Managing Director of Taplanes and have been involved with the education sector for 30-35 years. In the early days, Taplanes decided to approach every university with a view to installing shower cubicles within their accommodation. This acted as a form of introduction to Taplanes expertise but also acted as a benchmark to what is required within these establishments. The company then move forward into en suite pods and minipods by listening to the requirements of the cross-section
how long does a typical installation take? It depends on the type of pod or shower that is to be installed. A sectional shower cubicle will take between 2–3 hours to install; a minipod (private shower/ changing area) will take approximately 4–5 hours to install and the en suite pod between 6–8 hours. Meeting deadlines is also about receiving orders or commitments from the universities and I speak on behalf of most manufacturers that this is where a lot of the delays start. Especially during the summer period, where every education establishment is requiring our services.
Sustainability is a big issue for the higher education sector, how are you catering to this?
of University engineers and University accommodation people. In those days the main requirement was a leak-free, clean showering environment which Taplanes quickly established.
Taplanes score very highly on this issue as not only do we hold ISO14000 approval, but our material is completely recyclable. Taplanes have already been taking shower cubicles out of university buildings and returning them to the factory to be reground and re-thermoformed back to its own reusable material. This has recently happened at both Aberdeen and St. Andrew’s Universities. In both cases, the buildings were being refurbished to take en suite or minipod units from Taplanes. As Taplanes have been manufacturing
since 1979. We are more than confident that our product meets longevities and lifespans which have been apparent when visiting sites in Cambridge and Oxford where units have been installed since the early 1980s, and in heavy usage areas.
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