NEWS IN BRIEF NEWS | Round-up
• Symphony Kitchens in association with The Used Kitchen Company has named Andrew Eldon Designs as the winner of its ‘Symphony Retailer of the Year – Most Recycled Kitchen 2021’ award. The award is to recognise the retailer who goes the extra mile to be sustainable and exceed their recycling targets. The family-run business in Norwich sold the most ex-display Symphony kitchens through TUKC during 2021.
• The new Roca Ona Collection basin design has won an iF Design Award 2022 and two ‘best in show’ awards for ‘best basin’ and ‘best vitreous china product’ at the Sao Paulo Expo Revestir trade show. The Ona basins are designed in collaboration with Noa Design Studio and is made using its exclusive Fineceramic material, which is said to allow a more sustainable production process.
• Wetherby-based kitchen furniture manufacturer Moores Furniture has announced a new partnership with local independent charity Yorkshire Cancer Research as part of the brand’s 75th anniversary celebrations. It has pledged its support to help fund vital cancer research and trials in the region.
• Gemini Worktops has launched its exclusive Gemini Pro community for fi tters, designers, architects and developers. It is free to join and offers members exclusive prices on worktops, a dedicated account manager, nationwide installation, fast turnaround, a 25-year materials and fi ve-year installations warranty, free quotations and sample packs, and free use of its showrooms for customer meetings.
• Sanitaryware manufacturer Lecico Bathrooms has become the latest corporate sponsor of the British Institute of KBB Installation (BiKBBI). The company produces 6.2 million pieces of sanitaryware a year and exports to more than 50 countries. It said that, as a corporate partner, it was “looking forward to working closely with the BiKBBI to improve our industry”.
• Whirlpool UK Appliances has launched a sustainability challenge that tasks secondary school students with redesigning a popular appliance to be more environmentally friendly. Entrants will be given an insight into the inner workings of appliances. The fi nal of the Purposeful Innovation competition will be held at its Peterborough HQ this month, and one winning team will receive a new kitchen appliance of their choice for their school and each one of the fi ve team members’ homes.
• Kohler Mira is to partner with Dementia UK to raise awareness and funds for the charity that supports families living with dementia. The charity provides dementia nurses and Kohler Mira will look to raise funds to support families impacted by the disease when it is needed most.
• Bathroom products distributor PJH has upgraded its Partner Portal e-commerce site with new functions to further support its retailers and merchants. The portal now accounts for 70% of PJH’s sales. The improvements will give partners access to a suite of marketing resources and easy ordering of POS and swatches, as well as ‘How To’ guides and downloads of product data, pricing and photographs. It now also offers a Live Chat function.
14
Construction industry revises growth forecasts for 2022/23
CONSTRUCTION SECTOR growth forecasts have taken a knock for 2022 and the sector is not expected to return to pre-pandemic levels until 2025.
In its latest quarterly forecast, The Construction Products Association (CPA) has drastically revised its predictions for the year ahead in light of global events and predictions for the UK economy. The CPA previously
forecast that construction
output would grow by 4.3% in 2022 but is now predicting growth of just 2.8%, with a further fall to 2.2% in 2023. It said that current order levels would sustain activity until at least Q3 of 2022. The residential sector is the largest segment in the construction industry and the CPA forecast suggests that despite housebuilders reporting good levels of demand, private housing starts are expected to rise by just 1% in 2022 and 2023 against forecasts of 3% three months ago.
In private housing repair, maintenance and improvements, the CPA predicted a fall of 3% in 2022 and 4% in 2023, as consumer spending begins to feel the squeeze of the rising costs. Commenting
on the latest forecasts, CPA
economic director Noble Francis said: “The major challenge is creeping uncertainty. The immediate picture is one of resilient demand and healthy pipelines. Longer-term, the current inflationary pressures, if sustained, will have an increasingly depressing impact, while the continuation, or potential escalation, of conflict in Europe presents an existential risk. “Specialist subcontractors are feeling the effects particularly those
first, working to fixed-price contracts. For future projects, contractors will be
forced to reprice, add fluctuation clauses and introduce risk-sharing arrangements to deal with the uncertainty over potential cost inflation.” Figures from IHS Markit broadly agree with the
CPA predictions, suggesting 2.1% growth for 2022 and 2.8% for 2023. IHS Markit said it does not expect the construction industry to regain the levels of 2019 until 2025.
IHS Markit also said that the number of construction firms
reporting supplier delays fell from 47% in November to 34% in December. Looking at regional trends in the UK, IHS Markit said that the North and North-East had the highest levels of growth over the past five years, closely followed by London. The East of London and the Midlands, it said, were poised for strong growth and the outlook for Scotland was a sustained growth of 4% to 5% for the medium term.
Beko’s regional sales manager for independents Tony Breislin retires
TONY BREISLIN, regional sales
manager for the
independents at appliance brand Beko, has retired after seven years of service. Breislin began his career in 1974. He first worked for Yorkshire Electricity Board, then moved to Friedland Doorbells, then BSH, before joining Beko in 2015. He has had several key achievements in his time at Beko, including winning IER “Best Company Representative Award” in 2018. Channel manager for the Independents, Steve Naylor, thinks highly of him and said that Breislin had helped to play a pivotal role in the development of Blomberg and all other Beko brands within CIH during his time with the company.
Naylor said: “On behalf of
everyone in Beko, we would like to wish Tony the very best of luck for the next chapter in his life.” Naylor described Breislin as an integral member of the team, and his contributions to the company and to the wider industry will be
valued by many. Breislin has many retirement
plans, including spending more time outdoors and with his family, watching more of his “beloved” Sheffield Wednesday, and potentially taking up beekeeping in his spare time.
· June 2022
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