profile
Derrick McFarland
Derrick has been integral to the success of Keystone Group for almost 25 years. Moving from the company’s base in Cookstown, Northern Ireland, to set up its operation in Swadlincote, Derbyshire, two decades ago, the move was a natural fit and rapid growth quickly followed.
Derrick is passionate about the building trade. His focus is on delivering excellent customer service through good people and great products. Working with an amazing group of colleagues, Derrick ensures clients are welcomed to Swadlincote in a way that has become customary for Keystone Group.
Keystone Lintels
Keystone Lintels Limited is a leading manufacturer of steel lintels, founded in 1989. The short history of Keystone has been one of relentless expansion and continuous innovation whilst redefining the meaning of service in the lintel industry.
Production facilities in Birmingham, Cwmbran, and Cookstown provide an efficient, flexible and ergonomic working environment, which is part of the culture of quality and service at Keystone.
Keystone Lintels offers a comprehensive range of standard and special steel lintels, and recently developed its ground breaking Hi-Therm lintel, to address the thermal requirements of new building regulations.
Hi-Therm is up to five times more thermally efficient than a standard steel cavity wall lintel. Its GRP outer leaf acts as a thermal break, whilst the galvanised steel inner leaf maintains support for the heavier loaded internal leaf.
Hi Therm is a multi-award winning product, winning Best Eco Product at the Build It Awards 2013, Product of the Year at the Housebuilder Awards 2013, and Best Building Fabric at the 2013 and 2014 Housebuilder Product Awards.
Find out more at www.keystonelintels.com or visit the Group website at www.keystonelintels.com. Follow @KeystoneTweets
Launched in 2015, the award winning monthly Builders Merchant Building Index (BMBI) report is the only reliable measure of repair, maintenance & improvement (RMI) activity in the UK. Filling an important gap, it can be widely used in construction, and by economists, Government, national media, commentators and influencers outside the industry.
Keystone Comment: Q2 2024
The second quarter of 2024 has brought out the sunshine after a wet Q1, however in terms of volumes there’s no excitement, rather the market could be described as stable. That said, House Building is a significant contributor to the UK economy, and with the new government’s ambitions of delivering 1.5m homes over the next 5 years, these are (or seem to be) exciting times.
The focus on the planning system, which I am sure all housebuilders will welcome, is a well needed boost, and the speed of change will be closely followed. Along with support for SME’s, affordable housing, and the environmental agenda, the government will have its work cut out.
The mortgage rate is forecast to go down again in 2024. Although further cuts may take longer to arrive than liked, they are, as the CPA puts it, the catalysts for a recovery in the two largest sectors of construction, private housing and private housing RMI, and they will help support any future uplift in house sales.
The new building regulations now offer home buyers a distinctive choice in terms of energy efficiency compared to older properties. New home buyers are more likely to put the environment as the keystone of their decision making.
With a continuing and severe skills shortage in construction, destined to get worse in the coming years as an older cohort of the workforce retires without being replaced, opportunities to meet demand within manufacturing will rely on continued investment in automation, something we have been doing for years.
Innovation in joined up forecasting, stock ranging etc. working with our merchants in best partnerships to be prepared for the builders’ demands will be critical for a modern supply chain.
We have to be forward thinking and optimistic for the future, tinged with a fair degree of patience.