Back in 2003, the use of glass in front of gas fires, was used only as a way of improving efficiency, and was widely seen to “detract” from the visual aspect of a gas fire. Therefore, to introduce the concept of glass as a “decorative fascia” was met with some scepticism by the UK fire OEM’s.

One company thought differently, Focal Point Fires looked outside-the-box and realised that by “designing” glass in, was a way to create the look that would shape the next generation of wall mounted gas fires featuring flueless catalytic technology.

With already strong supply relationships between Focal Point and SKAN, built up over many years of successful supply of ROBAX high temperature functional glass elements (to seal the combustion box and provide a “picture window”), SKAN’s business looked set to develop rapidly to include the supply of “decorative glass” fascia products also.

The “plasma TV” look for flueless fires was launched under the “SUPERIOR FIRES” branding, on an exclusive retail basis, and set the tone for the future high-end sales success of these products.

The success of this working partnership between Focal Point and SKAN derived from the further development of already strong relationships, but at all levels with the Focal Point organization:

Firstly, gaining a complete understanding of the styling cues created by the creative design team. Then, working alongside their technical counterparts, to understand the thermal loads, and other functional aspects to the design.

From the point of supplying prototypes, close consideration was paid to empirical test data, both from the manufacturing side as well as final product testing prior to launch, to ensure both processes and products to be robust.

It’s fair to say that the RADIUM and NEON products ran according to plan with few issues. Both the VERTIGO and SCANDIUM products did however create some unforeseen manufacturing issues during the ramp-up phase and during the move into full production.

Although the SCANDIUM was a strong and robust product right off the drawing board, some unforeseen downstream metalwork / assembly issues required further development. By working together with Focal Point several design iterations were tried and running changes affected, which made the manufacturing supply chain more stable over a very short time frame.

Following this, and working within tight production schedules, local buffer stocks were set-up to cover the rapidly fluctuating customer demands, reflecting real world reaction to the ongoing comprehensive promotional activity that was being undertaken by the sales team.

Focal Point worked closely with the team at Skan. “Through the project, we identified a number of issues and worked to resolve them. Hindsight is a wonderful thing, so here are the top four items that have been the pivotal areas of our success. Without these, I can safely say, the whole project would have been a lot tougher, and probably taken a lot longer:

1. Strong inter-company contacts at all levels,
2. Clear management direction and focus,
3. Open-dialogue at all supply chain levels coupled to
4. Clear communication

In the final analysis, Focal Point managed to create very quickly a robust series of high quality products that befit the title of “Superior Fires”. “We were delighted with the support we gained from Skan. Not only in this project, but their assistance will help us shape future projects with far greater ease.”

With the expansion of “decorative glass fascia” technology across the Focal Point business, the future use of glass in this area looks set to grow still further.

Focal Point Fires plc is the UK's largest manufacturer of fuel effect fires with both electric and gas fuel effect fires featured in an extensive product range, which includes catalytic flueless gas fires and stoves.