Installers: Selling green
PVC is not only low maintenance but fully recyclable and energy efficient.
That’s a powerful consumer proposition. Installers should not simply acknowledge their environmental responsibilities but fully commit to them.
If they do, there is still plenty of money to be made.
‘Mr and Mrs Jones’ are already re-using their supermarket bags, putting their glass and paper out to recycle and very will want to know that their old windows are disposed of responsibly and even better, that their new energy efficient windows can not only help them to reduce their carbon footprint but also contain recycled content.
And if the green message doesn’t immediately pull on your heart strings perhaps the financial costs will.
Landfilling waste PVC currently costs between £40 and £100 per tonne but what should be of more concern to installers is that landfill tax – currently £32 per tonne – is expected to rise by £8 per tonne each year to at
least 2010/11.
If you do the maths, it means landfill tax alone and excluding the actual handling charge, will cost around £48 per tonne by 2010/11 – heading towards almost double the current rate and a sizeable bite into profit margin for any business.
By contrast being able to demonstrate to the social, new build or retail sectors that you handle your waste responsibly and that your company is sustainable can give your operation the edge in a market increasingly driven by the green agenda.
And energy efficiency can also help you sell. First you have an opportunity to attach a ‘feel good’ factor to your product and service by emphasising the saving they’re making on their carbon footprint by selecting energy efficient windows.
And there are also financial savings. Based on current energy prices fitting a minimum performance c rated window compared to an old single glazed window will cut the cost of heat loss to around £30 per year from £188 per year – a potential saving of £158.
‘Windows that pay for themselves’ are guaranteed to have consumer appeal.
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