Anniversary Waltz

As Sash UK passes its 40th year joint MD Dave Ruzicka reflects on the 20 year relationship with the company’s principle supplier and concludes it is possible to maintain effective long term supplier/customer partnerships. During the mid Eighties the directors and staff at Sash UK Ltd used to sit in their offices in the Yorkshire mining town of Grimethorpe and watch the miners and police battle it out in what were some of the worst scenes of violence to characterise one of the sorriest periods in modern English history. Grimethorpe has also enjoyed the dubious accolade of being one of the most long-term deprived communities in Britain; in 1994, the European Union's study of deprivation named Grimethorpe as the poorest village in the country and amongst the poorest in Europe. Today whilst the High Street still bears the scars of years of closure and neglect a tour of the area reveals acre after acre of new development. Huge purpose and spec' built industrial buildings now pepper the landscape and even the giant slagheaps are being reclaimed. The noise of heavy earth-moving equipment provides the aural backdrop as the area is gripped by a rash of development after so many years of the surrounding land lying fallow. Much of that noise is generated by the groundworks preparation of a new manufacturing facility for Sash UK Ltd, consistently one of the UK's sharpest window, door and conservatory manufacturers and installers, but more importantly for Grimethorpe, one of the town’s longest established and most loyal employers. With more than 20% of its staff drawn from Grimethorpe more jobs will be generated by the new factory which, in its emerald-green livery will be far more valuable to the local community than any mere gemstone. The addition will allow Sash to expand its frame production still further whilst also reintroducing the luminatrium division back alongside the company's other divisions, and providing room for expansion for the burgeoning Fitrite decking & fencing initiative. Remarkably the 160,000 feet² (14,864 metres²) factory addition is being built just five years after its highly impressive, state-of-the-frame-makers-art present facility was opened, the honour going to the founder of its principle supplier, Heinrich Laumann of VEKA AG. Dave Ruzicka has long been the public face of Sash, now holding the reins of the business with Stephen Morrell with the talents evenly divided between Ruzicka's penchant for the deal, and Morrell’s for the detail. With Sash heading for sales of £27 million in the current period a 3 year plan to extend this to as much as £38 million does not seem too ambitious, given the evidence. Part of this growth plan is encased in a commitment to VEKA to increase Sash’s £3 million per annum spend with the company by a minimum of 10% each of the next three years. "VEKA has been our partner for more than 20 years," explains Ruzicka, "and much of our development as a company parallels VEKA's in the UK in that time. The word 'unique' is overused but in this case it is appropriate for the relationship between us: we are the only VEKA customer that has strong ties with the UK and US divisions of the company, manufacturing windows, doors, conservatories, luminatrium, and decking and fencing through our Fitrite brand. We also have a joint venture company in the 'States to supply luminatriums there, with some very impressive projects under our belts already." With Sash adding a suite from Spectus earlier this year there was speculation about the relationship, but Ruzicka is quick to stamp on any negative assumptions: "Apart from the fact that our trading relationship is cast in stone - quite literally in the monument outside Sash HQ reception that commemorates Herr Laumann's visit - we continue to work very closely with VEKA – they are core to our development. VEKA is one of the most widely specified systems in the commercial and public sectors, in which we are very successful and dependent upon for much of our projected growth. VEKA continues to be the choice of our customers who have created important niches for themselves to supply a premium home improvement product. "Our decision to take on another profile was purely pragmatic – it answered our needs to get into other markets and niches without compromising or affecting the markets we serve with VEKA products. But our service levels depend upon those provided by our suppliers and in that respect we must have world-class standards to meet the quality that our customers have come to take for granted from us. Few, if any other systems suppliers can offer anywhere near the resources that VEKA and Spectus provide; that is a key part of our offer – the reliance upon and dependability of our principle suppliers." The large and highly visible end panel of Sash's almost luminescent Grimethorpe factory carries evidence of just how the company has changed in recent years to face the increasingly amorphous nature of what used to simply be the 'double glazing' market. Whilst the manufacture of windows, doors and conservatories remains the company’s core output, commercial replacement is a close second. The newer but arguably more intriguing Luminatrium division has shown spectacular growth but is the more impressive for earning its spurs – almost literally – in the USA where some of the most extraordinary structures have been commissioned often by wealthy home owners to install structures of more than 3,000 feet² (279 metres²). The most adventurous departure from the core business is the Fitrite decking & fencing division which follows the principles of lateral diversification being pursued with mixed success by the big retail home improvers. For Sash this has been a remarkable exercise: whilst the product line has been embraced by hard-pressed installers seeking an extra string to their sagging bows, the professionalism and resource with which the company developed, launched and is now marketing the brand is impressive and shows just how far the company has travelled in its 40 years existence, but especially the last decade. Increasing sales are now paying dividends. Nonetheless Sash remains aware of its roots, both geographically and commercially: the company's commitment to Grimethorpe should, some may argue, persuade the locals to rename the town Sashthorpe or such, whilst the company understands, very clearly, that windows, doors and conservatories remain the bastion of its product offer.