A decade of success
 Two men who moved from the South
African sun in search of a better, safer life are celebrating 10 successful
years in helping homeowners to keep warm!
Simon Pickering-Copley and Robert
Longhurst chose the south of England to set up the first UK arm of electrical
underfloor heating business Speedheat in 1998.
They arrived from Cape Town with
their young families and very little else, except the ambition to turn the
innovative underfloor heating concept – which was developed in South Africa –
into a successful British business venture.
With business growing by some 25
per cent each year, they have certainly realised that ambition. They have
installed the system under the floors of more than 1,000 conservatories, in
entire houses and apartments, countless individual rooms, the luxury Chewton
Glen hotel and country club on the edge of the New Forest, a teddy bear shop
and even up the walls of a former Wesleyan chapel.
Based in Winchester, they cover
West Sussex, Hampshire, across to Bournemouth, Poole and West Sussex, up to
Reading in Berkshire and to Salisbury in Wiltshire.
“It is the perfect place to be,”
explained Robert. “There are good road and rail links, close to Southampton
Airport and it is one of the best areas to live.”
When they began, heating in
conservatories formed the bulk of their business. Over the years, the
increasing popularity of stone, tile and wood floors has seen a growing demand
for underfloor heating in other rooms, particularly bathrooms and kitchens.
With the current trend to improve
rather than move, the coming decade will see lofts and basements coming into
their own, say the two men.
Looking further ahead, Robert and
Simon predict a much wider use of electricity for heating in the next 20 years
as greater supplies from renewable sources come on stream and oil and gas
become more expensive and more difficult to bring into the UK.
“And we are also looking forward to
continued success with our business in this fantastic part of England,” they
said.
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