Radiators still share the heat for around 90% of all heating systems in the UK and Stelrad continues to see its market share of the UK marketplace grow year on year. PHPD takes a closer look at what makes the company tick.
Stelrad has recently celebrated its 80th birthday and it’s fair to say the company entered its time as an Octogenarian in a very strong place in the UK heating sector. The business boasts more than a fifty per cent market share in the UK, and it continues to expand its offerings – it has more than 55 radiator ranges and more than 3165 different product codes.
The company manufactures and distributes a wide range of radiators for domestic and commercial heating systems, from standard steel panel radiators, to premium panel radiators, low surface temperature radiators, designer radiators decorative radiators and towel rails. “The Stelrad brand is recognised across the heating sector as a name that says high quality product, delivered anywhere in the UK at short notice – the majority within 72 hours of order – with arguably the best manufacturing setup and the most impressive logistics organisation in the heating sector,” said Chris Harvey, Head of Marketing at the Mexborough-based business. “Add to that the best customer service team in the industry and our ability to deliver a great value for money range of products that are designed to be easy to install and you get the picture as to where Stelrad is coming from.”
The heating specialist employs more than 1,000 people worldwide, with just over 270 based at the UK centre at Mexborough in South Yorkshire. The company is a major employer in the area and prides itself on having a large number of employees that have worked in the business for many years. Indeed there are many families that have two or more members working at Stelrad, which highlights the local nature of the business.
Recent acquisitions
With a turnover topping £70 million, Stelrad is a sizeable business, but it is always looking to grow to meet demand from the heating sector and to move into new areas of business. This is illustrated by the recent acquisition of Hudevad in Denmark. Hudevad is a premium radiator brand, regularly specified by architects and consulting engineers and represents the best of Scandinavian design combined with heating performance.
“Stelrad is a strong brand with strong brand values and these are recognised and valued by our merchant partners and by the people who specify and select our products,” said Chris Harvey. “Our success is down to our ability to deliver what we promise, when we promise it and always providing quality service.”
Designer shift
Although best known for its Compact radiators, the company notes the trend in recent years away from standard panel radiators towards the specification and installation of decorative and designer radiators, and the provision of a number of special application radiators. These have often been designed to meet a specific need and have been a one-off response to a customer requirement that has developed into a standard product benefitting a wider range of customers.
Those building prestige new homes have been at the forefront of upgrading the radiators in their homes, and now virtually every new home has a special bathroom radiator – usually a towel drying radiator. Increasingly, more and more people are looking to have feature radiators in their kitchens, the main living room and in entrance halls and corridors – which has seen an increase in demand for vertical radiators, capable of providing the necessary heat from a smaller radiator footprint.
Touch safe
The company also has a leading brand of low surface temperature radiators, designed to ensure that the casing of the radiator never exceeds 43 degrees C – where there is a need to meet NHS Guidance for ‘Safe Hot Water and surface temperature’. These are now common features in nursing and care homes, in hospitals, nurseries and schools and anywhere where vulnerable people live or congregate.
In addition Stelrad has added a number of other special application radiators, such as the Planar-HD – a heavy duty version of their popular flat fronted radiator, designed for uses where the radiators need to withstand robust treatment! They have also introduced Xtra-Protection versions of radiators for rooms that will experience increased humidity – showers, wet rooms and the like.
The latest trend that Stelrad is leading is the introduction of coloured radiators. Until recently you could have radiators in any colour so long as they were white! But now Stelrad offers radiators in up to 36 different colours and even offers a number of coloured radiators from stock within the usual 72 hours deliver time.
… and there’s store!
Stelrad’s National Distribution Centre (NDC) offers a total of 160,000 sq. ft. of warehousing, housing a mind boggling 17,000 pallet locations. The NDC and its team of 65 people, make 50,000 customer deliveries a year to more than 2,000 different customer locations around the UK.
The total weight of radiators moved in the NDC in a year is 54 million kilograms. To put that in to some perspective – that is 239 times the weight of the Statue of Liberty. That comes from 195,000 pallets delivered a year – and if all those pallets were stacked on top of each other, that would be 24.2 times the height of Mount Everest!
