Two in one kitchen conference from KBBreview

Posted on by Posted in Bathrooms and Kitchens

motormuseumKBBreview has launched a new look and format for its annual industry conference.

For the previous four years, organisers have put together the ‘kbbreview Kitchen Conference’ a single programme of content aimed at anyone in the UK interested in the kitchen sector. For its fifth birthday, the format has been completely revamped to split the conference in two with one programme specifically for independent retailers and another for kitchen suppliers and manufacturers.

The retailer conference will be focused on case studies, information, practical tips and advice they can take away and use in their business, while the supplier conference will concentrate on the wider market with overview case studies and presentations on marketing, business strategy and influences.

Speakers already confirmed include BSH UK CEO Michael Steinle, Poggenpohl Global Sales Director Martin Gill and Kitchens International director Paul O’Brien. Confirmed Conference Partners already signed up are KBSA, Smart Systems and Britannia Living.

Andrew Davies, host of the event and managing editor of kbbreview publisher Taylist Media said:

“We’ve learned a lot in the four conferences we’ve organised,

“As successful as they were it was clear that there were two groups of people who wanted different things from the event so we’ve now come up with a format that we believe more than delivers that.”

The event will take place on September 24 at the Heritage Motor Centre in Warwickshire.
www.kbbreview.com/conference

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Plenty of Scope for Bathroom Origins

Posted on by Posted in Bathrooms and Kitchens

plentyofscopeEssex based supplier of bathroom products Bathroom Origins has worked in conjunction with Glasgow’s Scope Bathrooms to provide a range of accessories for the Michelin starred restaurant The Peat Inn’s luxury suites.

Scope Bathrooms regularly specifies Bathroom Origins products for hotels, and this most recent project has seen eight individually designed luxury suites supplied with items from the Sonia Tecno Project collection.

The Peat Inn near St Andrews, Fife which dates back to the 1700s is owned by award winning Chef and columnist Geofrrey Smeddle and his wife Katherine.

Scope Bathrooms managing director, Derek Miller said:

“Bathroom Origins is our preferred accessories supplier for hotel projects as their wide range of styles suits almost every type of design specification.

“The sheer simplicity of the Tecno range complemented the other items specified for this particular project.”

www.bathroomorigins.co.uk
www.scope-bathrooms.co.uk/
www.thepeatinn.co.uk/

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Heating oil enjoys price drop

Posted on by Posted in Heating

markaskewThe latest quarterly data from the Sutherland Tables, the provider of comparative home heating costs for the most common fuel types in the UK and Republic of Ireland, has shown heating oil has had the biggest price drop in the last year and has also dropped below the four-year average. 

Mark Askew, chief executive of oil distribution industry trade association Federation of Petroleum Suppliers (FPS), said:

“Compared to how much it cost the 1.5 million off-grid energy users to heat their homes using oil last year, it’s now a lot cheaper – which is obviously great news for consumers.  While the UK average prices for gas, electricity and oil have come down since the last quarter, oil users have gained the most, regardless of their location and types of boilers being used. Wood pellets prices have risen in every area, while prices for solid fuels and LPG have on the whole remained the same.” 

When looking at the last 12 months, the gap between the cost of oil and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) has grown larger with the decreasing oil prices. Furthermore, all other domestic fuel types have risen in costs over the past 12 months with wood pellets increasing the most.

LPG, used by 170,000 off-grid households, still remains the most expensive fuel, costing a three bedroom home with a condensing boiler £1,923 per annum compared to electricity at £1,587, oil at £1,228 and gas at £1,119.

Jeremy Hawksley, director general of OFTEC, said:

“This is very welcome news. Three years ago, based on condensing boilers, oil was 60% more expensive than mains gas but that gap has now narrowed to less than ten per cent. If current trends continue with gas and electricity prices increasing, oil is set to become even more competitive which is good news for our industry and our customers.”

The data also highlights that oil is the only fuel to have dropped in price over the last four years as electricity costs for a three bedroomed home using Economy 7 have risen by 27.78%, costs for a gas condensing boiler have risen 34.01%, while costs for an oil condensing boiler have dropped by 12.22%.

Mark said:

“The newest figures from the Sutherland Tables highlight what the FPS and OFTEC has known for some time – that heating oil is an extremely competitive choice right now.
“Plus, consumers can further benefit from other options when using oil to heat their homes, including the ability to buy at a time when the price is lower due to less demand, such as during the summer.  It is also a good idea to set up monthly payments with your local oil heating distributor in order to manage your energy needs more effectively. This means you should avoid being hit with bigger bills during the winter months and can plan for your energy expenditure more easily.”
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Get Girls Plumbing Launched

Posted on by Posted in Plumbing Industry News

getgirlsplumbingGet Girls Plumbing, recently launched by WaterSafe, will see support from CHOICE Training, in Dagenham, having announced it will be offering four women the chance to take up a career in plumbing.

Further helping to dispel age-old gender stereotypes, CHOICE, a boutique training centre providing courses in trade sectors, is giving away four of its City & Guilds Level 2 diplomas in plumbing studies to women interested in taking up the trade.

To be in with a chance of securing one of the four free places, female plumbers-to-be simply need to write 100 words outlining why they would like to win a place on the course. The fantastic four will then be selected by a judging panel made up of the board of directors from the college, with the winners announced in time for the next full term.

The activity follows in WaterSafe’s ‘Get Girls Plumbing’ research-led campaign which has shown that over a third of homeowners would actually prefer a female plumber. Despite this, however females remain severely underrepresented in plumbing, constituting just one per cent of the industry as a whole. Testament to this, of the 150 students currently placed at CHOICE, just six are female.

Julie Spinks, director of WaterSafe, said:

“It’s fantastic to see our ‘Get Girls Plumbing’ campaign is helping to spark industry debate, with CHOICE coming on board to actively inspire women to enter the plumbing industry with these four free placements.

“Not only are we giving CHOICE Training our full backing but we will be offering these women a free Water Regulations Guide as well as some WaterSafe goody bags to help get them started.”

Robert Tye, business development director for CHOICE Training, said:

“We wholly support the ‘Get Girls Plumbing campaign’; with just one per cent of plumbers currently female, it is time we all come together to help dispel the gender myth one and for all.

“More so, we are increasingly seeing a strong interest in the market for female plumbers and have found that, for the few female plumbers we have trained, they have had a really good success rate in finding employment after the course.  We would encourage any women in the local area thinking of a career in plumbing to get in touch now – together we can really help to get girls plumbing.”

All four selected winners will not only receive the chance to become City & Guilds Level 2 qualified but will also receive training including marketing and business tools.

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Big capacity continues to drive washing machine growth

Posted on by Posted in Useful Resources

GFKPicWashing machines remain one of the most consistent performing markets within the home appliance sector with value sales increasing two percent for the past twelve months (May13-Apr14), says Daniel Fearnley, UK Lead, Home & Living at GfK. Total value sales are edging up towards £950million as the movement towards bigger capacity products continues to drive growth.

Washers with a capacity of 7kg are now the most significant segment with value sales accounting for a third of the total market. The greatest uplift however is coming from the 8kg+ sector which enjoyed growth of nearly 30% over this period.

The extra capacity has helped consumers reduce the number of washes per week thus lowering both the time spent on household chores and the cost of their energy bills.

For washer dryers the larger drum sizes have enabled both the washing and drying functions to be more economical and efficient. Value sales have increased 4% on the year as a result and they now account for 14% of total sales.

With house prices on the rise and property sizes dwindling, these 2-in-1 products such as washer dryers reduce the need for an extra appliance, thus becoming a valuable space saving option.

www.gfk.com

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