Finishing - November-December 2023
Inflation is still high and we seem to be paying more for everything, especially cars. The most common way for people to buy new cars in the UK is PCP finance and with deals coming to an end and new interest rates on car loans higher, will this see a decrease in new car sales. So what will this mean for the car and finishing industry in the UK? My feeling is that car buying, especially in cities and big towns, will change. People will look at alternatives such as renting cars and using apps such as Uber, instead of buying a depreciating asset. Technology might be making personal car ownership a thing of the past. But I don’t thing this means there will be fewer cars on the road, just fewer owners. This issue has the winners of the BCF Awards, plus news of a win for the BCF itself!
Inflation is still high and we seem to be paying more for everything, especially cars. The most common way for people to buy new cars in the UK is PCP finance and with deals coming to an end and new interest rates on car loans higher, will this see a decrease in new car sales. So what will this mean for the
car and finishing industry in the UK?
My feeling is that car buying, especially in cities and big towns, will change. People will look at alternatives such as renting cars and using apps such as Uber, instead of buying a depreciating asset. Technology might be making personal car ownership a thing of the past. But I don’t thing this means there will be fewer cars on the road, just fewer owners.
This issue has the winners of the BCF Awards, plus news of a win for the BCF itself!
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30 GALVANIZING<br />
Brighton rocks<br />
Amajor development at Brighton Marina<br />
has been protected for the future<br />
thanks to the use of a durable steel<br />
finish.<br />
Wessex Galvanizers was called upon by<br />
steel fabricators ML (UK) to provide its hot-dip<br />
galvanizing treatment to 121 tonnes of steel,<br />
which has been used to support an existing<br />
structure forming the main sea defence at the<br />
marina.<br />
The existing concrete structure was showing<br />
signs of deterioration and ML (UK)’s<br />
strengthening work, delivered as part of a<br />
major development at the marina, will provide<br />
ongoing stability required to maintain the<br />
breakwater in what is often a hostile and<br />
corrosive environment.<br />
Graham Ferguson, engineering manager at<br />
ML (UK), explained: “This has been a huge<br />
reinvestment to ensure the longevity and<br />
structural integrity at Brighton Marina, the<br />
UK’s largest marina and one of the most<br />
popular harbours for yachts and motorboats.<br />
“We called on the team at Wessex<br />
Galvanizers to provide their protective<br />
treatment to over 120 tonnes of steel, which is<br />
required in an environment like this where the<br />
sea air and water can corrode steel faster.<br />
Once the galvanizing was complete, we added<br />
some paint to add another layer of<br />
protection.”<br />
The project to redevelop areas of the<br />
marina began in early April 2022 and was<br />
completed at the end of September.<br />
For over 40 years, ML (UK) has provided<br />
steel fabrication, welding, and structural<br />
engineering services from its base in<br />
Portsmouth Harbour. With full workshop<br />
facilities, the company is a respected supplier<br />
for major shipping and construction projects<br />
across the UK, and has – for over 30 years –<br />
used Wessex Galvanizers to hot-dip galvanize<br />
many of its projects.<br />
Richard Whiddett, sales manager at Wessex<br />
Galvanizers, added: “We’re pleased to have<br />
helped the ML (UK) team with such a large<br />
and significant project, and to know that the<br />
steelwork now in place at the busy marina will<br />
be structurally and environmentally protected<br />
for many decades to come.”<br />
<strong>Finishing</strong> - <strong>November</strong>/<strong>December</strong> <strong>2023</strong>
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