Door Industry Journal - Spring 2021

Also online at: www.dijonline.co.uk 32 THE door industry journal spring 2021 Industry News A New Home for Alutech Sectional Garage Doors Alutech has recently added an additional 17,000 sq. ft. of warehousing to its West-Yorkshire premises, taking their facilities to 62,000 sq. ft. for both garage door and aluminium systems. The expansion was prompted by the unprecedented growth the company experienced last year, which saw sales volumes increase by 50%. The new 17,000 sq. ft. facility will aid all parts of the business to continue their expansion, specifically housing Alutech sectional garage doors and storage of garage door automation. Thus, allowing aluminium profile systems and roller garage door components to further grow in the existing space, particularly as new products are launched over the coming year, such as the hotly anticipated new window system. Alutech Managing Director, Steve Hudson, explained: “One of our biggest USPs, in addition to customer support, has always been our ability to hold huge amounts of stock in the UK. This, and our own fleet of delivery vehicles, is what allows us to offer an industry-leading delivery times on stocked product. “As the business has grown, thanks to our hardworking team and the support of our customers, it is essential that we continue to be able to hold stock of the products our customers want and make way for the exciting new products that are in the pipeline.” Alutech recently welcomed two new business development managers to the team and are currently recruiting two new sales coordinators, to ensure they maintain the high levels of customer service they have become renowned for. For more information, please call 01924 472924, email sales@jdukltd.co.uk , visit www.jdukltd.co.uk or Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn. SWR Helps Out During the Pandemic It’s been a challenging time for young people – especially with regards to their education and employment training. At SWR, we’ve been helping out where possible by collaborating on several joint initiatives with local schools in Hemel Hempstead. Take a look below for an overview of what we’ve been up to: Belbin GetSet Sessions In October 2020, we arranged a special workshop at Astley Cooper School to help Year 12 students identify those individual strengths that will help them thrive in the workplace. The session included some fun exercises focusing on teamwork, communication, and employability skills. The day was a complete success with students enjoying the experience. One young person said: “I now know I am more confident than I thought and can successfully work within a team.” Work-based Learning This is a long-term programme that helps students into the workplace through on-the-job experience supported by study at school. It acts as a pre-apprenticeship or traineeship for school leavers giving them the skills they need to succeed in employment. We’re passionate advocates of Work-Based Learning and many SWR staff members started with us via the scheme. In November last year, we took on our newest trainee: Charlie from Astley Cooper Schools. He’s already made sa big impact! Video Interviews With schools closed and the many Covid restrictions, students have been unable to visit businesses for work experience. Instead, we were asked by Hertfordshire County Council to present an overview of our company followed by 10 recorded interviews with staff members explaining their job roles. The videos are now used in online classrooms to give students an understanding of our business and the different positions within it. We hope that this will help them with career ideas further down the line. CEO of SWR, Jason Lee, said: “Part of our company mission is to enhance lives in the local community so it’s great that we can still contribute during such a difficult time.” “The feedback from students and staff has all been very positive.” swrtradespares.com