Top Tips on Fitting Kitchen Units

Fitting your own kitchen units is not just economical but can be much easier than you think, so the key to success is planning and a cool head – and of course the best kitchen units and tools for your kitchen including the best band saws for sale.

Whilst most people would agree that fitting your own kitchen units can save money, most people are also wary of doing so, seeing it as complicated and time consuming.

However the job of fitting kitchen units can be much easier than you think, providing you take some time to sit down and plan the installation and get some expert advice of the size and spec of the units you’d like to fit.

One of the first things to consider is whether your kitchen floor is level – check with a spirit level of the appropriate size if you’re not sure. Place a level on the floor in a series of places around the area where the units will be fitted.

Next, measure the height of your units (not including the feet), measure the height of your plinth and add 5mm for clearance. Measure from the floor at the lowest point and put a mark on the wall, then draw a level line around the room.

You can now start to mark out your kitchen as per the plans. Remembering to mark out all clad on end panels (if supplied). Measure about 500mm off your datum line; this will give you the bottom line of your wall unit. Then simply measure the height of your wall units and continue. At this stage it is recommended to mark out where you are going to need electrical or plumbing supplies. Please note all integrated appliances will need these supplies inside the nearest unit as electrical plugs and pipe work behind the appliance will often prevent them pushing back into place.

You are now ready to start fitting your base units. If you have one, always fit the corner unit first and work off this unit as a point of reference. The neatest tool to use for cutting out holes in base units is the hole saw - select the correct size for the cut out in question whether it is for pipe work or electric cables. When leaving spaces between units for appliances, a small amount of clearance is required to enable ease of fitting. This is also helpful for future maintenance and servicing of the appliance.

Once all your base units are fitted it’s time to fit the wall units. Please refer to your instructions manual to find the dimensions for fitting wall unit brackets.

The last task is to fit the doors onto the units. The reason this job is left until the end is due to the potential damage caused by completing the previous tasks. Once all the doors are fitted it’s time to fit the handles. You should now have a fully working, perfectly fitted kitchen.

Engineering jobs in Scotland

You’ve decided that you’d like an engineering job in Scotland, but how do you go about landing that perfect job?

There are hundreds of engineering jobs in Scotland, but it’s a big area to cover when you first start looking. It can be difficult to know where to begin and what will be the most constructive use of your time. Here are some useful tips to help you with your job hunt

Recruitment agencies

This is perhaps the best and most popular way of finding a job. It is convenient and saves you time, because someone else is dedicated to looking for a job on your behalf. All you have to do is make sure that your CV is up-to-date and then you have to find the right recruitment agency. There are lots of general recruitment agencies in Scotland, but far fewer who will specialize in engineering. When you do find the right specialist recruitment agency, they will probably ask you to send in your CV, before coming in to make an appointment. As specialist agencies they have access to a wide range of clients and are, therefore, best placed to put you forward for a suitable position.

Internet Search

A large proportion of job seekers use the world wide web to look for their next job. Engineering jobs in Scotland are advertised on the internet and it is common to be able to apply directly online, or at the very least, to be able to send a covering email with your CV attached. New jobs are added everyday, sometimes more frequently, so it’s a good idea to make regular checks back. Similarly, jobs will disappear daily, as the deadline expires, so going to the website regularly will ensure that you always no how long you’ve to apply. Many internet job sites allow you to sign up to email alerts. This is a handy time-saving device, since you can receive email notifications of recently posted new jobs in your inbox that are relevant to you.

Press/Trade Magazines

Lots of companies use local, regional, national and trade press to advertise their positions, so it pays to keep an eye on the recruitment adverts. If a particular advert catches your eye, get in touch with the company or agency. Even if you don’t exactly match the profile that they’re looking for, the likelihood is that they will keep your details on file in case another more suitable position comes up.

Networking

The power of networking is often underestimated. Attending organized events, such as trade fairs, allows you to meet a wide range of people from lots of companies which are relevant to you. The more people you get acquainted with, the more likely it is that your name will be remembered when they have a vacancy to be filled by someone with your skills. http://jobsearch.about.com/cs/jobsearchhelp/a/jobtips.htm

Executive Recruitment - Engineering

Some of the largest companies in the world need an ongoing supply of well-qualified engineers.

Engineering is a broad sector, often including mechanical and civil engineers as well as electrical and electronic engineers. A dictionary definition of engineering states “The application of scientific and mathematical principles to practical ends, such as the design, manufacture and operation of efficient and economical structures, machines, processes and systems”. This definition, like the sector itself, can and does include a wide range of professions.

This means that, for the executive recruitment consultant, there are a number of disciplines within engineering and they need to have very specific information from the client to ensure that they are looking for the right types of engineer, with the required skills and qualifications.

Large manufacturing, building, construction, telecommunications, media and other industrial companies all need large teams of engineers, and many smaller businesses rely on them. Despite the need for engineers, there is usually quite a small pool of available talent, which is why many companies use executive recruitment agents to find the best candidates.

Good engineers are usually very mathematical, or scientifically-based and, as with many other professions, not all good engineers make good managers or senior executives. Companies may have to invest in training in order to get the most out of their employees, and many choose to ask executive recruitment agents to search the country, or even internationally, to find suitable senior managers who have the appropriate engineering background.

In order to progress from the lab to the boardroom, many engineers have decided to obtain an MBA or other management qualification. These qualifications can be very valuable, as they show that the applicant has a good theoretical knowledge of business management and, because these qualifications are usually taken whilst the person is working, they should also have practical management experience, which will be extremely useful when applying for a new position.

At Burns Carlton, our executive recruitment consultants have experience recruiting candidates across the whole engineering spectrum, from civil engineers for road-building projects, to electronic engineers for the latest mobile telecommunications. If you are skilled with engineering plans or a Hydraulic Bottle Jack get in touch.We help you to source the right people for your executive roles, making sure that they have both the technical and managerial background to offer added value to your business. For more information on how we can help, call us or email us today.

Double Glazing– Going Green

Making your home energy efficient is vital to helping the environment – make a difference with double glazing.

More and more people are understanding the importance of going green at home, and are taking small steps like switching the lights off when they leave a room, having showers instead of baths, and only boiling as much water as you need in a kettle. But one big change you can make is to install double glazing. Homes can cut heat loss in half by replacing old windows. This is how it works.

Energy Efficient
With global warming taking such a prominent position in the media, now is the time to make changes in your home to make it as energy efficient as possible. You might not think that making a few adjustments to your house can make a big difference, but if everyone took energy saving steps then it would. One of the most effective and long-lasting of these steps is to install double glazing – homeowners can reduce heat loss in any size room by half with new windows. And even if you can’t afford to replace every window in the house, you can still make a huge difference in the rooms that cost you the most to heat.

How it Works
Double glazing is so energy efficient because it traps air between two panes to create an insulating barrier that reduces heat loss. Rather than old style windows with one pane of glass, double glazing keeps out draughts as well as noise and condensation.

Energy Savings
If you’re interested in saving pennies as well as the Earth, you will be interested to know that you can save around £110 a year on your heating bills with double glazing. On the environmental front, new windows can save each household about 720kg of carbon dioxide a year, and if all the homes in the UK that needed double glazing Britain would save the equivalent of 770,000 households’ CO2 emissions. This is clearly a huge reduction from such a simple product as double glazing. Homeowners who want to be eco warriors instead of credit crunch worriers would benefit from the services of a reputable double glazing company – but always look for the Energy Saving Recommended logo when choosing your new windows to be sure of maximum energy-saving efficiency.

Solar film to help the environment

Solar film helps to cut costs and reduce emissions.

If you’re having trouble controlling the sunlight that comes through your office windows, consider installing solar film. It gives you a number of benefits, not least the fact that you can reduce your air-conditioning costs and thereby help the environment.

Solar film for your office windows

Solar film has been specially developed to allow light through your windows whilst stopping harmful UV rays and heat from penetrating your building. Solar film is easy to install and produces an immediate effect, helping you to control your office temperature and make your building a more comfortable place to work.

We all know how annoying it is to work on a bright day when the sum streams through the windows. Fiddling with blinds to help reduce glare, opening windows and running fans or air conditioning in order to reduce the heat and worrying about whether any harmful rays are coming through the glass are all common problems in many offices. Solar film can solve all these issues quickly and efficiently:

• Harmful rays – no employer wants to expose his or her staff to harmful rays from the sun, but these rays don’t stop when they hit a window – unless that window is protected by solar film. The film prevents UV rays from getting through the window, providing your employees with protection from sunburn and your office equipment from damage.
  
• Heat – it can be so uncomfortable to work in an office that’s too hot. Air conditioning is expensive and is harmful to the environment, whilst desk and pedestal fans result in papers blowing about and have to be exactly positioned in order to provide cool air in the right direction. Fitting solar film allows the majority of the sun’s heat to rebound from the glass, helping to keep your office at a reasonable temperature without increasing your electricity bill.
  
• Glare – you are required to look after your employees’ well-being when it comes to using computer monitors or other equipment. Whilst in most cases this means providing them with ergonomic seating and other accessories that make their working life more comfortable, you also need to think about the consequences of glare from the windows. Continued problems with glare can cause eye-strain and neck problems, so using solar film to reduce glare will also improve the way your employees use their computers.
  

Solar film is tested to high standards, is easy to fit and makes everyone’s lives safer and easier, whilst also allowing the employer to help the environment by reducing air conditioning use. Find out more about how solar film can help you by talking to us today.

Solar PV and Underfloor Heating for a Green Home

Environmentally friendly homes come in all shapes and sizes – but underfloor heating seems to be common to all of them

Environmentally friendly homes come in all shapes and sizes, with all kinds of solutions built in to combat ecological problems. But underfloor heating seems to be a common factor in most of them.

Solar photovoltaic or PV installers can also help you go green by reducing your carbon footprint.

The energy efficiency of a good underfloor heating system makes it a firm favourite with eco-warriors – and a brief survey of the green homes making the news shows the builders prefer underfloor heating to traditional systems.

Green houses use underfloor heating
An award-winning eco-friendly house in Lewes, East Sussex, made the BBC news in October 2007 when it was sold by its owners. It counted underfloor heating among its environmental benefits.

An “Eco Depot” in York was also singled out for environmental praise. It used underfloor heating alongside straw-bale wall construction and “breathable” lime render to reduce heating costs by up to 76 per cent.

And another BBC story reported on a couple in Fife who wanted to create a “green” bungalow for their retirement. They too plumped for underfloor heating.

Underfloor heating uses less energy
The environmental benefits of underfloor heating are based on a simple fact, which is that underfloor heating systems do not need to generate as much heat as traditional radiators, and consequently do not need as much energy to run them.

Radiators are much smaller than floors and so need to generate relatively enormous amounts of heat to warm a room.

Floors have the double benefit of being large enough to be able to heat a whole room with surface temperatures of around 21 degrees celcius, while their position at the bottom of the room ensures no heat is wasted (because heat rises, radiators produce a lot of heat that just goes up to the ceiling; heating the parts of a room people sit and stand in with a traditional heating system involves a lot of wasted energy).

Underfloor heating can take power from renewable sources
The knock-on effect of the low energy requirements of underfloor heating is that an underfloor heating system can often be powered by solar panels – something that cannot be said about traditional heating systems.

So not only does an underfloor heating use less energy – 40 per cent less in the case of the York Eco Depot – but it can take its energy from a green, renewable source.

Steel Buildings – Child’s Play

According to a report on Reuters, one of the world’s most famous steel buildings, the Rockefeller Centre, has been replicated with the children’s toy mechano to create a spectacular scaled down version of the steel building.

Steel buildings are generally typified by the grandiosity but, according to a report on Reuters, a million pieces of stainless steel toy parts have been used to make a faithful recreation of one of New York’s most recognisable steel buildings, the Rockefeller Centre. The construction of the scaled down steel building was the brainchild of American artist, Chris Burden and reached seven storeys in height when it was completed this summer. Steel buildings are a particular feature of New York, with many of its most famous structures, from the Chrysler building to the Empire State building, incorporating the use of steel in their construction and this artistic representation was in honour of that.

Steel Buildings – A Grand Project

The accurate recreation of the Rockefeller Centre in New York with the steel toy mechano was no small feat and the construction on one of the most unusual steel buildings in the world actually began in 2006. According to the report on Reuters, the finished miniature Rockefeller Centre weighed in at an impressive 16,000 pounds (7,250kg) and was over 20 metres in height. Speaking to Reuters about his ode to the steel buildings in New York, the artist behind the piece, Chris Burden, points to the debt owed to mechano creator, A.C Gilbert, and states, “He was inspired by the steel buildings to build this toy system and I used this toy system to build a building. It's a poetic interpretation of 30 Rock; it's not a model of it. It references all the tall steel buildings in Manhattan.”

Steel Buildings – Life Imitating Art

It’s not only in the art world that steel buildings are popular. Steel is used in more and more construction projects throughout the world as it one of the most flexible of materials when it comes to the number of functions that it can perform. Just some of the steel buildings to have hit the headlines recently include the superbly renovated Wembley Stadium, home of the English football team and the T5 terminal at Heathrow which was, without doubt, one of the most ambitious construction projects in the history of steel buildings. There is likely to be a surge in the number of projects that use steel is their core material as its innumerate benefits become apparent.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Steel