From adjustable steel railings to aluminium framing systems, F.H. Brundle’s managing director, Michael Brundle, outlines how the business continues to evolve in step with installer needs and industry trends in Pro Landscaper’s November issue.

What’s one feature of your products that installers love once they experience it, but might overlook at first glance?  

I think it must be the adaptability of our products – we’ve spent years figuring out what challenges installers face, so that we can design and produce products that alleviate these challenges.  

For example, our Fortitude steel railings range – that particular system was introduced to benefit landscapers and installers who don’t want to fabricate solutions or have to weld off-the-shelf solutions to meet their needs; the system is adaptive and the adjustable raking panels mean that they can fit railing on slopes and steps with complete ease; and it’s compliant with part K of the building regulations. It’s so popular, it’s now one of our biggest selling products.   

What steps has F.H.Brundle taken to position itself as a true one-stop shop for deck installations?  

Mainly, this is in our foresight; we take the time to assess where the industry is heading by listening to deck installers, to customers and industry experts, and finding the right mix of solutions to meet those trends and expectations head on.  

One such example was identifying the growing need for decking to be more sustainable – the average timber and composite deck will last around twelve years in the UK and then it has to be replaced.  

In other parts of the world, deck installers have been moving away from traditional materials like timber and polymer lumber. Materials like steel and aluminium are becoming more routine; that’s why we took the considerable effort to become the exclusive distributor of Outdure QwickBuild in the UK.  

That particular system – and I may be biased – is the best non-timber framing solution available anywhere because of how it has been engineered around the requirements of deck installers.   

We want to make sure that we cater for all needs, so we do offer a full range of solutions; from framing, to bracketry, to surfaces, to balustrade and railing – you can get it all from one expert supplier.   

What innovations or unique features do your framing, surface, and handrail solutions offer compared to others in the market?  

 That’s a question that could take up a lot of column space to answer. But, the key word there is ‘innovations’. We take real pride in offering products that can make a difference; whether that is in reducing installation time, reducing waste or improving safety and compliance.  

As the readers will know, no one job is the same, so having a solutions like Fortitude railing or Outdure QwickBuild, that allow installers to pivot with ease, is an essential – and when all those solutions can be used together, then it makes purchasing for projects easier, quicker, and often, more cost effective.   

As an independent family-owned and run business, we’re also not restricted to who we work with and what brands we stock, so we can be much more agile in providing solutions and products that deck installers actually want.  

What materials or design principles set your systems apart from traditional or competitor solutions?  

 I’ve mentioned a few already – Fortitude railing, there’s no other system out there that’s as flexible and compliant and the quality of the product in relation to how little it costs is incredible, and that’s not just me saying it, our customers and partners tell me that.  

If you take our Pro-Railing range of stainless steel and glass balustrading – this is one of the best-selling ranges in the UK, and this is not necessarily because of the product itself, but how we supply it.  

We provide free, simple-to-use, design software to help installers configure it (complete with 3D drawings), we provide toughened glass in a number of specs and dimensions, from stock, and the system is sold with multiple components to make it incredibly adaptable.  

Then we have Outdure, this is a solution that really excites me, you look at what this system can achieve, and you don’t have to wonder why so many installers in the UK are now telling me they will never go back to timber.  

It’s a one-for-all solution, whether you’re installing an ultra-low-level deck with porcelain tiles, or a raised deck with mineral board – it does everything.  

What’s your long-term vision for how the deck installation industry should evolve, and how do you fit into that?  

It’s important to look at what’s happening elsewhere in the world – and ultimately what we see are two things, sustainability and durability. I don’t think we’ll ever get away from timber as the predominant material for decking, but in places like the US, where decking is huge business, installers are rapidly migrating to materials like aluminium.  

And I appreciate there is another challenge with the emissions involved in producing products from aluminium, virgin aluminium, and then shipping across the planet – we don’t do that with Outdure (or our Synergised range).  

All aluminium elements are extruded here in the UK using a minimum 67% recycled material to create a structurally secure 6063 T6 grade aluminium.   

 The industry should be looking for longer term durable solutions, not just to limit the impact on the environment, but also because of the impact that the changing environment will have on the decks – far more unpredictable weather; more rain, hotter summers, colder winters – this will reduce the longevity of timber and low-quality composites even more.  

Therefore, durability will become even more of a factor when selling your solutions to customers, particularly in commercial environments.  

What’s next for F.H.Brundle’s product range; are there new categories or expansions on the horizon?  

 Well, the last 18 months has been a busy period for us introducing so much more innovation into our Landscaping offering, but we never stay still. We’ll be looking to further enhance our ranges, not just for deck installation, but for landscaping and property development in general.  

We’ll be doing more to highlight our incredible range of railing and balustrade – our latest addition to the Pro-Railing family for instance, is a classy powder-coated black solution which is fast becoming as popular as our satin stainless-steel range.   

We’re very excited about Outdure and the potential that it has to improve deck installation for installers, and we’re making this simpler with the introduction of tools like DeckPlanner to plan, configure, price, and purchase solutions built with Outdure.   

Our aim is to help installers build faster, build stronger, and build better.