social rewards beckon

Public sector business is booming with increased construction in education and health, as well as commercial and domestic sectors for national regeneration projects. Funding to support ongoing initiatives like The Decent Homes Standard offers business opportunities to fabricators and installers as local authority and housing association Registered Social Landlords (RSLs) update and build homes across the country.

In July 2000 the Government announced a significant increase in resources for social housing. A ten-year target was set with the aim of bringing all social housing up to a decent standard by 2010. Growth will be significant in new build as well as refurbishment because public sector housing, whether for rent or through shared ownership schemes, will equate to almost 50,000 homes out of the total 250,000 new homes needed in the UK.

Leap of faith

The first step towards this lucrative market is recognising the opportunities, but attempting to win work from public sector organisations can feel like a leap into the unknown. To win business you’ll need to understand public sector culture, which means knowing the criteria for Best Value and the requirements of standards like The Code for Sustainable Homes, which is mandatory for social housing builds.

An initiative overload, public sector vocabulary and endless bureaucracy may be off-putting, but the important benefits of security and regular payments make up for time spent on paperwork. Time has to be spent on relationships too. Effective, long-term relationships underpin contracts, especially as many partnerships last at least five years. There has to be trust, understanding and continuous communication to get the most out of social housing business.

Traditionally, social housing has had a reputation for buying lower quality products. Now, with the demand for higher standards and increased choice for residents, products need to work well and look good. In particular, energy efficiency and high security have become standard.

Suppliers may be asked to provide PAS24 doors and windows with A to C energy ratings in a range of colours and finishes. Some local authorities are demanding only the highest specification products in order to stay ahead of future legislation. The Code for Sustainable Homes already requires 40 per cent more energy efficient homes than were being built just two years ago.

You can see their point. It pays to do the job well, once, rather than repeat work unnecessarily and expensively. It is estimated that at present kitchens, bathrooms, windows and doors in social housing have a life of 10 to 12 years. This is the minimum guaranteed lifetime for products supplied to the public sector. Ideally, the products should last longer.

Extended life

Rockdoor aims to be fit for purpose for the public sector, with products with a suggested lifetime of 16-18 years compared to many products with less than 10.

10 years ago Rockdoor launched its ultimate composite door. Since then it has been updated but essentially it’s the same, an engineered door system that combines looks, long life and security, with the low maintenance performance of PVC-U.

Security is important so the door has an inner PVC-U frame and outer frame, which are reinforced. It weighs a solid seven and a half stone and has a 3mm outer skin. CFC-free polyurethane foam is injected for added strength,

stability and thermal efficiency. Rockdoor aims to be four times more thermally efficient than a wooden door as well as being Part L compliant.

The standards for market entry are high but the possible rewards make the effort worth it.