I fully endorse your prediction for colour, Tony.

It is hard to dabble in colour and make progress which is why many window systems companies and trade fabricators have been reluctant to commit to it. But once a company does commit to colour and makes it easy for its customers to buy and sell it, colour sales surge as we found. Homeowners love the choice and possibilities and once an installer starts to offer it they sell a lot more colour, convert more sales and make a much better margin.

One prediction you omitted, I believe, is the industry being much more committed to defending PVC-U and its own interests. For 10 to 15 years the industry has reacted passively or not at all to attacks from well meaning but woolly minded environmental lobbyists with half the facts and half the story and timber's shock troops telling lies about PVC-U and stretching the truth about timber.

The industry was complacent for too long believing that the material would sell itself and homeowners and specifiers would distinguish fact from fiction. But if no one stands up for PVC-U, the media and the public will believe what it hears and reads. And the proof has been in timber's increasing share of a shrinking market and a falling share for PVC-U.

Over the last two years the industry has realised it has to defend itself to stop this trend. After the scrapping of the BPF's separate Window Group Marketing Committee a number of leading figures in the industry are getting together to begin the fight back with a more sustained, proactive and industry wide campaign. Your industry needs you!