Icopal’s Intelligent Membrane Association (IMA) welcomed representatives from several of its member companies to its latest Annual General Meeting to discuss issues affecting the flat roofing sector, and reward good work with a series of awards.
Held on June 26 at One Great George Street in the heart of Westminster, the annual event is designed to inform the Icopal-approved roofing contractor members of the advances the association and Icopal have made over the last year, as well as plans for the future.
The theme of this year’s event was ‘the winning partnership’, which Simon Woods, UK & Ireland sales director for Icopal, said “allows us to reflect on the core purpose and the roots of this unique collaboration” between Icopal and its approved contractors.
Mr. Woods added: “The partnership should allow us to explore new ways of looking at our market, and create new opportunities and ways of working together. The strength of this partnership provides us with the opportunity to do this.”
Training was high on the briefing’s agenda, with Simon Ashworth, product manager for Icopal, claiming that there has been a higher take-up among IMA members of the free training offered as part of membership.
Mr. Ashwood also drew attention to the growing importance of the CSCS card, and the Government’s push to ensure it is adopted across the industry. Speaking to the IMA members, Mr. Ashwood said: “This is quite a big initiative; they’re really pushing to get everyone up to an NVQ Level 2 status. I think they’ll do it personally; they’ve really set the stall out well and I think it’s been really driven and supported by the CITB with the financial incentives.”
It was also made clear that this is being done in conjunction with the Single Ply Roofing Association (SPRA) and the Liquid Roofing and Waterproofing Association (LRWA), who are accrediting manufacturer training courses – such as those provided by Icopal – to move workforces towards the relevant skill level.
Mr. Ashwood added: “They are doing a lot of positive and meaningful work within the associations to drive the professional outlook of the industry forward.”
Neil Harrison, technical director for Icopal, then outlined key product advancements that have been made in 2014, as well as those coming down the line, before introducing 2015’s IMA Awards.
With over 60 entries spread across the eight categories, the 2015 awards were the biggest in the events history. The winners in each category were:
Reinforced Bitumen – G Baker Roofing for Lordswood School in Kent
Eco-Activ – Roof-Link for the Ford Plant in Dunton
Green Roof – McCormick Flat Roofing for the Bentinck Street development, London
Single Ply – Allander Roofing for Kings College, Aberdeen
Liquid-Applied Waterproofing – Mitie Roofing for Heathrow T3
Decra Tiles – HCS Roofing for Gilbertfield Road Cadet Centre
A special international award was also presented to McCormick Roofing recognising the company’s involvement overseas working on the Foreign Commonwealth Offices in Bamako, the capital city of Mali, West Africa.
Finally, the coveted IMA Craftsman of the Year award went to Justin Halford of Capital Roofing, recognising his efforts in the last year to contribute positively to the roofing industry and reflect the quality and ambition of IMA members.
The IMA also welcomed two guest speakers to its AGM in the form of orthopaedic surgeon and disaster relief volunteer Richard Villar, and blind long distance runner, Simon Wheatcroft. The association also raised £800 for the Christie cancer charity through a raffle.
