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An international monitering group, headed by Sir Richard Branson, has warned for a second time that within 5 years, the country, and the planet will be at risk of severe ‘oil crunches’, as they put it. In simple terms we are running out of the black stuff, and fast.

What could this mean for the double glazing industry? Well seen as though most PVCu is produced from polymers direct from oil, were going to have problems. This puts emphasis on putting money and investment into the development of polymers produced from sustainable crops used to produce oils. And we don’t have a choice in the matter. In five years, if the country hasn’t detached itself from the dependancy of oil, we will be suffering from random power outages and much higher fuel costs. If this catches the industry by surprise (and it shouldn’t now we have had plenty of warning) we’re going to have major problems. Oil will run out, so we have to find and use the alternative now.

The other emphasis we should be focussing on is solar energy. There is going to be a point where every home will need a solar panel, and we all need to be looking into the possibilities of selling and installing them.

We have to use the impending energy crisis as a selling point, more specifically for energy rated windows. Companies need to get the message across to customers that energy efficient windows will lower their energy bills. Add on the fact solar panels could be installed and that message gets even stronger.