A Look Back on the CFJ/CFA Awards 2023!
On Friday 8th September, it was that time of the year again where team members attended the annual CFJ/CFA Installation of the Year awards, as we looked to add to our impressive haul of winners from the last few years.
We had a record seven finalists over two categories, and we are extremely proud to announce that we had a winner in both!
The first of these awards was in the ‘Flooring in Offices’ category, for BP Project Samoa, on behalf of Overbury.
The detail was incredible, there were vast amounts of rugs cut into size, and also timber curved into various paths. The moon features of the rugs were particularly unique. We also had to ensure that the mastic installation looked like an extension to the timber and vinyl floor.
On this project, we installed 3,750m2 of timber, supplied by Havwoods. These were installed from the Mezz all the way up until level 8 in the corridors and lobbies. We installed over 10,000m2 of Interface, Tarkett and Shaw carpet tiles on all levels in areas such as the open plan, focus rooms, corridors, client suites, phone rooms, innovation space, sanctuary, south lobby and cocoons. 550m2 of Forbo vinyl was fitted to the mail rooms, security rooms, BOH areas, lobby, first aid rooms and pantry on levels 1 and 2. We applied around 190m2 worth of My Inside Guide rugs on every level to the south lobby, north lobby, north staircase, meeting rooms and sanctuary.
This project was BREEAM. All products procured for this project were low embodied carbon, low VOC, high recycled content. All products had environmental product declarations. All adhesives had EC1 certification. All timber products were full chain of custody. All from responsibly sourced businesses, with either ISO 14001 or FSC accreditations. All products met the BREEAM outstanding requirements. All products were low embodied carbon with high recycled content. All products can be taken back to the supplier at the end of life for recycling or uplifted for re-use elsewhere.
It was a revolutionary project in every sense of the word, and a worthy winner of this prestigious award!
The second of our awards was in the ‘Flooring in Residential Developments’ category for our project at Broadway, Westminster, on behalf of Multiplex.
The project consisted of six buildings – ranging between 13 and 19 storeys tall – surrounded by extensive public realm works. It sits on a 1.72-acre triangular site between Broadway, Dacre Street and Victoria Street and contains 268 luxury apartments designed by architects Squire and Partners.
During the design, phase we worked closely with our partner CMS Danskin to look at the environmental heat output with the different floor coverings. Following several workshops we chose a chipboard sub-floor to give the best output for the end user. We followed a strict Quality Assurance process to guarantee the UFH was installed correctly and functioned prior to floor finishes being installed. The installations were sequenced floor by floor and our team needed to meticulously plan in delivery of materials, quality check the UFH and ensure all transitions happened seamlessly to a compressed programme of works.
All adhesives were low VOC and all timber products were FSC accredited. To reduce our carbon use on this project we worked closely with our supply chain partner Protec. As well as receiving our protection, produced from recycled material, we also worked with the contractor and Protec with their closed loop scheme. All our used protection was removed from site and recycled back into new protection for us. As a result we had an atmospheric carbon saving of 76.12 tonnes of CO2, which is the equivalent of 1554 trees!
An amazing project which we will always look back at with fondness, capped off with this huge award!
Cheers to the Loughton Contracts Summer Party!
This time last week saw the Loughton Contract’s team set sail down the River Thames for our Summer Boat Party!
We were able to take in the sites and also point out many of our completed projects as we viewed London from the water. Food, drink, music and plenty of fun was had by all!
Thanks to everyone who attended the event, it was great to see all departments across the business come together and celebrate what has been a challenging but successful first half of 2023!
As an employee owned business we promote a “One Team” approach across all divisions, with every member of the business now fully focussed on smashing the second half of the year!
The Queen (Of Flooring) Retires!
After 38 years of dedication and passion to the flooring industry, Beverley McFarlane, our very own ‘Queen of Carpet’ has hung up her hard hat and said farewell to Loughton. Her story is one of unwavering commitment, unparalleled expertise, and a lasting impact on those that have had the pleasure of working with her.
Bev’s long-term relationships helped us win such prestigious projects as Battersea Power Station (all three phases!), The Broadway, 251 Elephant Road and many, many others. Loughton Contracts has enjoyed much success over the last ten years and Bev has played a huge part, making a positive difference in all aspects of the business, she will be missed by everyone, and we are sad to see her go, she’s one in a million and impossible to replace.
Over the years, Bev honed her skills, transforming from an eager apprentice into a seasoned professional. Through countless architect’s consultations and main contractor installations, she became known for her meticulous attention to detail and unwavering commitment to customer satisfaction. Bev’s expertise in selecting the perfect flooring solutions earned her a deserved reputation as one of our industry’s finest.
What truly sets Bev apart is her genuine care for the people she worked with, be the clients, colleagues, suppliers, installers, labourers or site security guards. Every project she undertook was not just a job; it was an opportunity to enhance someone’s home or workspace. Her empathetic approach and ability to truly understand her clients’ needs made her a trusted advisor and friend. She takes immense pride in transforming spaces and bringing joy to those who walked on the floors she provided.
Loughton Contracts Mark National Apprenticeship Week!
Over the course of this week, we have been giving our staff who are in the process of apprenticeships some much deserved recognition, as National Apprenticeship Week commences!
We currently have four members of staff in training courses which will give them valuable skills to ply their trade in the construction industry, and hopefully becoming long standing members of staff at Loughton Contracts.
George Green, Lauren Norman, Alex Hayes and George Burnett have been with the company for a sustained period of time and have proven to be huge assets to their respective teams.
George Green is currently studying for his HNC in Quantity Surveying. He is keen to develop his range of knowledge and skills in the construction, to really take him to the next level in his career. He said: “HNC was right for me because the course is part-time, one day a week making it easy to fit around working at Loughton’s. I chose Quantity surveying in order to develop my knowledge commercially and use the skills I have learnt to help the Sales team to get jobs over the line.”
The course is a challenging one, which gives valuable experience going forward. “I have studied a range of modules that has given me a broad and balanced knowledge of Quantity Surveying role within the Construction industry. I’ve developed practical skills relating to construction technology and sustainability, health and safety, quantity surveying, measurement, project, and risk management, and much more. I have enjoyed it so far, great experience and recommend anyone to do It if they want to improve their knowledge and skills within the construction industry, not only commercially but as a whole!”
The company have really taken a hands on approach to help George with his development, and he certainly was happy to share how helpful Loughton Contracts has been, “The company has always been very helpful with my progression and development, I cannot thank them enough. I can always speak to anyone with queries and everyone takes there time to help. Directors within the company take a real interest in my academic growth, pushing me as far as I can go. This course has developed my roles within the company in the last year or so massively. I have been given greater responsibilities within the company such as estimating my own tenders, getting involved with the sales and winning my own projects. On top of now stepping up working with my own clients and having the responsibility of updating the Construction and Residential sales Forecast.”
George has ambitious plans going forward, which are exciting for himself and also the company! “The plan for me is to get my HNC in the summer, and then focus more working at Loughtons winning more work, improving and progressing up the company.”
Lauren has just completed her Level 3 Business Administration NVQ! A huge amount of work went into this, which has now given her a much wider range of skillsets. She said: “Over the course I had to learn all about administration of the business such as types of stakeholders, company values, finances such as invoices and payment types, HR information such as GDPR and all Laws and Regulations that companies follow and adhere to. My new qualification gives me an opportunity to show my knowledge and skills of admin based roles.”
The company really tries to make sure that we have a regular number of people within the company developing their skillsets to give them the platform to succeed in the future. Lauren witnessed that first hand and said: “The company helped with this as all departments helped me with certain stuff I didn’t know about due to not working in the department and the company also gave me one day a week to complete all my coursework so I never fell behind.”
Lauren isn’t planning on stopping there though. In the next year she hopes to gain even more qualifications to take her to that next level: “In the next year I am hoping to start a Level 3 NVQ for a Health, Safety and Environmental Technician to improve my knowledge and skills within the department that I work under.”
Alex is currently working his way through his ACCA exams which, once complete, will qualify him as a chartered accountant. When asked about his aims for the next year or two, Alex said: “My aim is to have finished my exams in 2 years from now, and with Loughton’s full support and flexibility, I think this is achievable. The syllabus looks at a vast number of topics such as “performance management”, which goes hand in hand with my role of assisting our Head of Finance to look after our profit margins. It also covers areas which I hope to be increasingly involved with at Loughton, such as financial and management accounting.”
As a company, we do our utmost to support our staff with anything that they need in their development, and Alex was definitely in agreeance when asked his opinion: “Over the last year and a half, my position here has allowed me to develop my knowledge in a variety of areas, such as Sales & Estimating, Commercial and of course, Finance. It has been great to learn a lot from many different people here, as I now have an improved insight into how the company runs as a whole. My Excel knowledge has greatly broadened too, giving rise to many useful reports such as a tracker for the labour department to use as a tool to control spend across the divisions. I am enthusiastic to keep furthering my knowledge and skills, to one day oversee the entire expenditure across all of our projects myself.”
George Burnett is currently in his 2nd year of studying a level 3 course in The Construction Built Environment.
It’s a course that he wanted to do, as it covers more of construction showing the start of a project going all the way through with each trade until it is handed over to the client. He said: “So far, I have been taught the standard Building Regulations in the UK and how to gain permission to start a build. Also, this course covers the first steps of a project with the foundations and early works before the construction of the building has started. We have also covered architectural design and have planned our own builds with marking out our own design/construction drawings on CAD and by hand. I am really enjoying this course as it has opened my eyes to how a carefully a project must be managed and planned with all different trades and shows we are a small piece of the puzzle when it comes to a journey of a project. It has made me more mindful of jobs I am working on and am now looking into more detail on projects and noticing more risks that may affect us as a business.”
We like to think we are doing all we can to help anyone trying to make a career in construction, and it is good to hear that George supports this, “Loughton’s have helped me along the way whenever I have needed assistance with allowing me to have time to complete assignments during working hours, any questions or queries I have may have members of staff have shared their experience and expertise in giving their advice. Loughton Contracts have also given me a clear plan going forward, once I have completed the level 3 course, I will have the option to then go on and study a HNC in the Construction Built Environment, or in another construction course. I am thankful for the opportunity given to me and look forward to the future with the potential to study more courses.”
We are very proud of all of them for the hard work that they are putting into their respective careers, and its bound to result in a very successful one going forward!
Award Winning Submissions!
With the CFJ Awards entries now open for 2023, we thought it was a good time to share our 8 page feature in January’s edition of the Contract Flooring Journal.
This very insightful piece, focus’s on how we scooped four awards at last years ceremony, including the overall Install of the Year Award 2022 for our project at The Theatre Royal, Drury Lane.
The editors choice article delves into the process of submitting a project into the annual flooring industry awards and what makes a good or bad submission. Elliot Buckley, a member of our Marketing Team, features in the article and discusses the Loughton process for selecting a project and compiling our submissions.
Having scooped four awards in 2022 and more in previous years, Elliot is clearly doing something right! The big challenge now is which of our amazing projects do we enter in the 2023 Awards?
To read the article in full, click on this link.
Team Loughton complete the ISG ‘Move for Charity’ Challenge!
Over the course of a single week, ten members of Team Loughton took part in the ISG Move for Charity event, in aid of Mental Health UK. Move for Charity is an annual initiative, where teams from around the world are invited to get active in any way they like, to raise funds and awareness for selected charities.
The team covered a phenomenal 1,817km combined, which is further than London to Madrid! They also raised £1,195 along the way. A brilliant effort.
Well done all, you did everyone at Loughton Contracts proud!
Team Loughton Scoop Four Trophies at the CFJ/CFA Awards!
We are extremely proud and excited to announce that we won FOUR awards at the annual CFJ/CFA Installation of the Year awards!
Our award winners were:
Overall Installation of the Year (across all categories) – Theatre Royal, alongside CAT Limited, Alarwool S.L., Altro Limited, nora by® Interface, Luke Irwin, Shaw Contract and Jaymart.
Flooring in Visitor Attractions & Holiday Resorts – Theatre Royal, alongside CAT Limited, Alarwool, Altro, nora® by Interface, Luke Irwin, Shaw Contract and Jaymart.
Flooring in Residential Developments (Refurbishments) – Battersea Power Station, alongside Domus Group, nora® by Interface, PARKSIDE Ceramics, CMS Danskin, Mapei UK Ltd, Dutch Floors, Wood Floors and Accessories Limited, Strata Tiles, Humidity Devices, CAT Limited and Protec International Ltd.
Flooring in Healthcare (Hospitals and Medical facilities) – Cleveland Clinic, alongside nora® by Interface, Shaw Contract and Protec International Ltd.
We are unbelievably proud of our amazing team, who all worked so hard across these projects to make them as special as what they were!