Door Industry Journal - Spring 2021

Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk 30 THE door industry journal spring 2021 Industry News JD (UK) – Who We Are and Where We Came From JDUK is well known in the market as a supplier of roller door components and the renowned Alutech range of Sectional Garage Doors – but where did it all begin? JDUK was established in 2001 by Eric Royd as a supplier of Deprat roller door parts. In 2010 they teamed up with Alutech to incorporate insulated roller door components into the product range – all from a warehouse in Heckmondwike, West Yorkshire – the small team consisted of Eric, Pat, one driver, a couple of warehouse staff and one office dog. By 2013, having outgrown the warehouse, the operation moved down the road to larger premises in Batley, and Eric decided to retire and enjoy the fruits of his labour. In stepped Steve Hudson and Andrew Nurse, who were running a successful roller door manufacturing company in London, who struck a deal to buy the company. Growing the Business At the time, JDUK had around 10% of the market share in roller door components. Steve saw an opportunity for growth with a combination of increasing roller door products and diversifying the product range – today JD (UK) is the largest stockist in the UK. The delivery fleet quickly grew from juggling one van, to a healthy fleet of 12 delivery vehicles, ranging from long wheelbase flat backs to 18-ton curtain siders. The Alutech Classic sectional door known at that time was a good product, but not quite suited to the UK market – improvements were firmly on the radar. Steve, in conjunction with Alutech in Belarus, undertook detailed market research to design and develop a brand-new product specifically for the UK market. 12 months down the line, and the Trend Sectional Door was born! The Trend range incorporated new improvements and features such as: • Encapsulated rollers complete with ball race bearings. • Polyurethane paint finish. • 4 weeks made to measure lead times. • A versatile frame set more suited for the UK. • Side extension springs for double doors. The Trend Sectional Door now has over 20% market share in the UK and is still growing in popularity with installers and homeowners alike. With around 250,000 trend doors sold per year worldwide, and now over 30,000 Sectional Doors sold in the UK, the Alutech Garage Door brand is ever increasing in popularity and recognition. In recent months, the range of sectional doors has been complemented with the launch of the Panoramic & Prestige range of doors – specifically interesting is the printed finish of the Prestige, which can be specific to clients tastes, for example a photograph of their favourite landscape or more commonly a specific natural wood finish, it can also cater for luxurious designs such as copper or marble finishes.