One of the UK’s fastest growing window and door manufacturers, which sells to installers through its expanding network of trade counters, is optimising product quality by using Rapierstar fasteners in all its fabrication operations. Window Supply Company, which was established in 2019, manufactures 1,500 units every week at its 105,000 sq. ft factory in Whitburn, located midway between Edinburgh and Glasgow in Scotland’s central belt.
Despite the impact of the pandemic in the company’s early days of trading, it bounced-back strongly to serve the booming post-covid home improvement market and has been growing rapidly ever since, with output recently increasing by 50% as a result of the new factory relocation.
All its windows and doors are manufactured using the Liniar profile system in state of the art facilities. The team works to an ISO 9001:2015 quality management system to help ensure products are manufactured to a consistently high standard, including to BS7412 and, where specified, the enhanced security standard PAS24 for its Secured by Design licensed products.
One of the ways Window Supply Company achieves quality consistency is by using Rapierstar StarPVCU branded fasteners in all aspects of production, which it has done since day one. These are used throughout the factory which, coupled with Window Supply Company’s dedication to staff training and efficient in-house fastener stock management processes, means the risk of incorrect fasteners being used is minimised.
Rapierstar supplies more than 100,000 specialist screws every week to Window Supply Company, including stainless steel fasteners for use in windows and doors for installation in more demanding environments. Our team conducted a comprehensive fastener health check in 2022 which recommended a number of ways to optimise fastener use throughout production, and Window Supply Company is already benefiting by implementing some of these recommendations.
Lee Harding, Production Director at the Window Supply Company said: “One of the most important factors in our rapid growth has been our reputation for quality and we can only achieve this consistently by using high quality hardware in all areas of manufacture – and that includes the fasteners. Rapierstar’s StarPVCU screws give us everything we need to produce finished windows and doors that our customers can rely on, and they give us excellent continuity of supply to keep our product on track, backed by all the technical support we require.”
Window Supply Company has a major strength in its ability to serve installers through its network of trade counters, which is continuously expanding. Its initial branch network in Scotland, including Aberdeen, Bellshill, Dundee, Kilmarnock, Livingston and Loanhead, has recently expanded south of the border with recent new outlets opened in Sheffield and Lincoln. An additional Scottish trade counter has just opened in Inverness and further sites in England are planned for later in 2023.
This fabrication plus distribution model helps the company keep close control of the supply chain to maintain quality and service and, importantly, respond quickly to special customer requests or any issues raised.
Working closely with Window Supply Company from the outset has been Rapierstar Technical Consultant for Scotland and Ireland, Paul McAuley.
Paul added: “Window Supply Company has made incredible progress in the space of just four years which reflects the team’s focus on getting every detail right. We are delighted to support them to ensure their fastener specification and application is optimised, and through our deep UK stocks, we can help the team maintain excellent factory productivity through good continuity in fastener supply.”
Now in our 30th year, Rapierstar is the UK and Ireland’s largest supplier of specialist window and door fasteners, with more than one billion individual components held in stock at its Cheshire HQ and distribution centre. We work closely with fabricators and all leading PVC-U profile companies, including Liniar, along with hardware manufacturers to ensure the most technically appropriate screws are available to create high quality windows and doors efficiently and safely.
To find out more about how we can support your business to create superior windows and doors, please contact us.
