REAL And Virtuoso In Tie Up To Create Unique Aluminium Framed Composite Door

This is a sponsored review post by DGB on behalf of REAL Aluminium

As a Marvel comics and film fan, I tend to see other parts of the world within that view point. For example, the window industry. Like the Marvel Cinematic Universe (MCU), the window industry is made up of a whole gamut of different characters and arcs. Take the composite door market and the general materials sectors. Both perform well. But like a good Marvel film which brings certain characters together to create something special, it occasionally happens in the fenestration industry as well.

This is what we have with REAL Aluminium and Virtuoso.

Composite door, aluminium frame

Many will already be aware of both REAL Aluminium and Virtuoso as separate brands of products, but both under the Customade Group banner. Virtuoso produce aluminium textured Virtu-AL composite doors, available in a wide range of colours. They are now available in REAL Aluminium outer frames, which gives the company the choice of providing both PVCu and aluminium outer frame options.

Why is this key? It’s key for a couple of reasons. First, it gives the installer and home owner a chance to have a true match between door outer frame and door slab, and their aluminium windows. Second, this is an industry first. To my knowledge there isn’t another option available on the market like this right now. It’s worth noting that the PVCu outer frame options come in a choice of REHAU, VEKA and Duraflex.

After being kindly sent a corner sample of the product from the company, there is a nice synergy between the two materials. The door slab as some of you know already looks like aluminium, so to add an aluminium outer frame to the slab creates a seamless look to the whole product. For home owners looking for the aesthetics of aluminium, but on a budget more alike to composite doors and PVCu, this provides a nice option that slides right into the whole of the composite door market.

Speaking on the launch, Tony Craggs, Managing Director of Virtuoso doors said: “We have passion for doors and this industry as a whole so we’re really excited to launch this new aluminium frame, which gives installers and homeowners even more reasons to love our incredible collection of crafted composite doors.

“This new frame is all about bringing style with no restrictions. Demand for aluminium is growing rapidly and more people are choosing it for windows, but they don’t necessarily want to buy a composite door in a PVCu frame – especially if they are installing aluminium throughout their property. For the first time ever, homeowners can match their aluminium window and composite door frames to achieve the complete aluminium look on their homes.

“As the aluminium trend peaks, we’re proud to be working with the team at REAL Aluminium to drive the industry forward with products that deliver the contemporary look that modern homeowners are so eager to buy. We’ve already been inundated with enquiries from installers for this new frame and we know that it will be a terrific product to help them set themselves apart from their competitors. And, as part of Customade Group, we go further by connecting our customers with

our full product portfolio so they can immediately take advantage of new opportunities and win more business.”

The point of the product

This isn’t a product aimed at dethroning other products on the market. It wouldn’t, it’s too different. What it is designed to do however is to give installers and home owners another choice.

Existing composite doors come with a wood grained skin externally, and sits in a PVCu outer frame. Those frames can be smooth or they can be grained in a foil. The grain between the two are different. What you can’t do is having a matching texture and finish.

What this new tie-up between REAL Aluminium and Virtuoso does is to give home owners and installers that option. Their door slabs already give that smooth appearance of aluminium without it being aluminium. Their new outer frame offering in aluminium means that installers can now go to home owners and say that they can indeed provide a composite door with all the best bits of a composite, but all the aesthetic advantages of aluminium.

Cost is also a factor here. A high end aluminium door costs many levels more than a composite door. And that is fine if you have a home owner with the disposable income to throw at it. However, many don’t. So, the new Virtuoso door slips right in to help bridge the gap between high-end aluminium and the rest of the composite door market.

This new product offering between the two companies will become a popular option for installers who are customers of REAL Aluminium and Virtuoso going forwards. I anticipate that others in the industry will also follow in this combination path to expand their own product portfolios and provide more choice to home owners and installers alike.

For more information please visit: https://www.virtuoso-doors.co.uk/news/virtuoso-launches-first-aluminium-frame-for-composite-doors/