SECURITY DOORS AND WINDOWS
design, manufacturing, and installation procedures and processes. It also ensures that we meet the stringent security and fire-rated standards we have to adhere to in many of our projects.”
JB: “Can you tell me briefly about some of the other most important and biggest- selling Crittall Fendor windows in the mental healthcare sector, and outline their key selling points and benefits (particularly any recently launched ones)?” GE: “The CleanVent is the most popular Crittall Fendor window; it offers a range of very good features. For instance, it can be made from steel or aluminium, offers ample ventilation, is safe and secure, and is easily cleanable without having to take elements of the window apart. There are also lots of options for ironmongery.”
JB: “How much are your designers of new security windows, doors, and other glazing at Crittall Fendor, learning from doors and glazing supplied to the custodial / prison sector?” GE: “Design features flow both ways between these sectors, and while the custodial market had the first barless window, the window in question is now used exclusively across the mental health estate, which aids the rehabilitation and recovery of the service-user. Conversely, features seen in the prison sector are being taken on board from developments in the mental health arena.”
JB: “How well do the different products of Crittall and Crittall Fendor complement each other?” GE: “Excellently, evidenced by the growing number of opportunities we have of working with clients who require products from both of our ranges – a good example being specialist fire-rated products, alongside traditional Crittall W20 steel windows and screens.”
JB: “Are there any particular changing trends or especially notable demands for windows, doors, and other glazing, from your clients in both the acute and mental healthcare sectors?” GE: “While the demands and requirements for the type of products we manufacture tend to remain predominantly the same, in recent years – as in many business sectors – ‘value engineered’ solutions have assumed ever greater importance; thus, for instance, designing more thermally efficient, secure windows to afford a whole life cost saving is something we continue to work on, in tandem with our clients.”
JB: “Presumably, anti-ligature design it still very much a priority in your design and manufacture of windows for mental healthcare?” GE: “You’re quite right; it is extremely important within most mental healthcare settings, where minimising patient risk and opportunities for self-harm are paramount.”
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Aluminium curtain wall with projecting top-hung windows with standard hardware at Junction 17, a specialist CAMHS unit in Prestwich for young people aged 13 – 17 who require assessment and treatment for a range of complex mental health difficulties.
JB: “Are you seeing much investment in new-build or refurbishment schemes in the UK mental healthcare sector, and, if so, are there any particular types of mental healthcare facility (i.e. by service-user type) where this is especially notable?” GE: “A steady flow of new-build and refurbishment projects continues to be tendered and awarded. The most significant for us recently have been two major projects at the Lansdowne Secure Children’s Home in Hailsham, East Sussex, and at Ashworth Hospital in Maghull on Merseyside – two medium to high security environments where we have key products installed, that meet the most stringent standards.”
JB: “How much of an impact has the ongoing uncertainty over Brexit had on the Crittall Fendor business, and do you have any feeling for whether the business is better ‘in’ or ‘out’ of the EU?”
GE: “This is quite a tricky question to answer, but I feel that there has definitely been an uncertainty across the economy, so it would be naïve to assume that this industry has not been affected, especially where tens, if not hundreds-of-thousand- pound investments, are being considered. Are we better off ‘out’ than ‘in’? I think the NHS will withstand either decision, and operate much as before. The private healthcare clinics and facilities – a number of which are run by European businesses – may initially struggle with us being outside the EU, but providing the scenario remains commercially attractive for them, I don’t think it will be a barrier to them continuing to operate in the UK.”
JB: “I know the US is now a major market for Crittall Fendor. How much success is the company enjoying in America?” GE: “This is more a medium-term goal, where we hope and anticipate that the
Junction 17 replaced the existing McGuinness Unit and attached School (Cloughside College), and was designed by Gilling Dod Architects, with intensive service-user engagement.
JANUARY 2020 | THE NETWORK
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