An audience of more than 70 architects, contractors and manufacturers gathered at the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining in London at the end of January to listen to a series of presentations launching the 2011 edition of the Directory of Specialist Leadwork Contractors.

LCA Chairman David Martin opened the event by asking what price architects, specifiers and main contractors were prepared to pay in order to save money? He warned that trying to save money by not using a specialist leadworker could prove a false economy, with dire consequences for their client.

Nigel Miles of NDM Metal Roofing and Cladding then described the trials and tribulations of painstakingly restoring eight decorative lead lion cartouches from the Regent Palace Hotel refurbishment project.

His team of carpenters spent 64 man/days restoring the timber carcasses, before two teams of lead craftsmen, working in pairs, spent an average of ten days on each lion, fabricating each section and then “float” welding the individual pieces of lead together.

Standing 1.16M high and 1.25M wide, some 5M² of Code 7 lead sheet was used for each cartouche, which weighed 300kgs when finished.

“I think these are incredible pieces of lead craftsmanship and I am very proud of my teams for the exceptional quality of work they have produced” said Nigel.

Caleb Cross presented an in depth case study on Richardson Roofing’s refurbishment work at Cardiff Museum, emphasising the amount of care that had to be taken in reproducing the stonework design of the lower levels in lead for the vertical panel sections of the roof.

The attention to detail demanded by the architect was obvious throughout the project and the effort was rewarded by the project being selected to feature on the front cover of the new LCA Directory.

The next warning was then provided by the Chairman of the LCA Technical Awareness Committee Carl Bream, who showed leadwork that LCA vetting officers were sometimes presented with by contractors wanting to join the Lead Contractors Association.

Carl used slides to show simple errors in design, setting out and fixing which had caused (or would shortly cause) the lead to fail. “The real problem” he said “is that these contractors genuinely believed there was nothing wrong with what they had done and in some cases they were quite proud of their work.”

Showing numerous examples of poor design and lack of knowledge, he emphasised the longevity of performance of lead sheet, but only if the installer knew what they were doing. “We all know lead sheet lasts for more than 100 years” he said “provided it is designed and fitted correctly at the outset.”

This theme was picked up by LCA Secretary Ray Robertson in highlighting the advantages of using a member of the LCA for leadwork design and installation.

LCA members have their work regularly inspected as part of an annual vetting programme and if faults are found they must be immediately corrected without cost to the client or the contractor’s LCA membership would be forfeit.

“All lead contractors are not the same, so who checks your contractor’s leadwork if they are not members of the LCA?” he asked.

As well as vetting being mandatory, LCA members were required to offer a 25 year Guarantee of their work as further evidence of their commitment to quality standards and peace of mind for the client.

Just as all contractors were not the same, Lead Sheet Association Technical Officer John Woods warned that all lead sheet was not the same, as many architects, specifiers and clients mistakenly assumed.

Only rolled lead sheet was made to a European Standard, BSEN12588 and formed the basis on which the recommendations in the “Lead Sheet Manual” were made.

The historical long term performance of traditional sand cast sheet was also recognised and John showed how this oldest of roofing metals was still made in the traditional manner today.

LSA General Manager Nigel Johnston then announced the Young Leadworker of the Year Award, sponsored by the Lead Sheet Association.

This new competition was using LCA members as guinea pigs in its first year and was open to anyone aged 25 or under on the closing date for entries of March 31^st 2011.

Work would be inspected on site regionally before six finalists were invited to a Grand Final at the LSA in September. The eventual winner will receive a training bursary worth £3,500, plus £500 in tools.

The final presentation from Rod Bexson of Associated Lead Mills featured the ultimate accolade in leadwork, the Murdoch Award, which his company was proud to have sponsored for the past seven years. The Murdoch Award had started in 1996 and Rod showed all the previous year’s winners.

In 2006 Associated Lead started the Murdoch Sponsors Award to recognise the smaller project (less than 5 tonnes) and both Awards were now vigorously contested each year.

To conclude the event, Steve Hempstock of Northwest Lead was called forward to be presented with the Murdoch Award for 2010 for his work on Dewsbury Town Hall.