Promoting the advantages of PVC-U

PVC-U is one of the most sustainable products available but the PVC-U industry is failing to communicate this.

Sam Kennedy, Managing Director of Spectus Window Systems complains that there is a huge amount of disinformation in the market place on PVC-U and more must be done to promote the advantages of the material.

"If the PVC-U industry does not set right the confusion in the media surrounding PVC-U, we will all pay the price.

From systems companies to installers, we need to start communicating with the public.

We all need to use every opportunity to tell a strong, clear story about PVC's sustainability and why PVC-U is the material of choice for the construction industry.

Everywhere you look there are anti-PVC smears.

For example, The Sunday Telegraph's Home and Living supplement (23rd March) suggested '50 ways to improve your home'.

Two of these included replacing PVC windows with timber to add value, and painting timber windows to protect them from the rotting effects of rainwater and the drying effects of the sun.

The article states that "unfortunately, many modern homeowners cannot be bothered with this, and prefer to believe the salesman's hype that replacement plastic windows are maintenance free".

"Strange, then, that all the major paint manufacturers are now selling PVC paint, to restore and protect the degrading plastic".

How daft and misconceived is this? Homeowners often don't have the time or money to paint their windows every five years, and if they don't they must repair them which is much more costly and time-consuming.

PVC paint is of course not used to protect or repair PVC-U, but to change its colour.

The timber industry is investing millions of pounds every year to promote its Wood for Good campaign, but much of its claims against PVC-U, and for timber, are false or exaggerated.

The campaign is working, because people believe it.

So why isn't the PVC-U industry shouting about the benefits for PVC, and vigorously challenging the factually incorrect claims of the timber industry?.

For too long the PVC industry has either ignored the jibes, convinced that superior products tell their own story, or reacted quietly some time later.

That has to change.

PVC shouldn't just be promoted to counteract silly claims by the anti-PVC brigade.

We should all be making the case, all the time".

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