Colt Group
Encyclopedia
The Colt Group is a family owned business, founded in 1931, that designs and supplies climate control, smoke control, natural ventilation
, solar shading and daylight technology.
The company is present in over 75 countries around the world through subsidiaries, license
and joint venture
agreements. The Colt Group's headquarters are in Havant
, United Kingdom
. The Group has manufacturing sites in the UK, the Netherlands
, Germany
, Singapore
, China
, Brazil
and Saudi Arabia
. It has approximately 950 employees and an annual turnover of GBP 146 Million (2010). Chief Executive Officer
is Antoine Ligtvoet.
ventilators to ensure ventilation
in blacked out buildings. These ventilators were adopted by the Government and many public authorities in the United Kingdom
.
In 1945 the UK Government started a massive rehousing programme using prefabricated houses. These houses were designed without fireplace
s to save space, which created the need for an alternative source of ventilation. Colt designed its Constant Flow ventilator to meet this need.
The post-war
years also saw the reconstruction of the British manufacturing
industry and the erection of new factory
buildings across the country. At this time, Colt designed the Sloping Roof ventilator, which lay along the roof slope, reducing installation and maintenance costs. Colt also designed the Clear Opening ventilator for industrial buildings such as foundries
. This ventilator design ensured cooler working conditions and natural daylighting
inside the factories.
In the 1950s, the advent of large single-storey industrial buildings in the automotive
sector required a new approach to fire safety
. Colt introduced the concept of fire ventilation
for this type of building and designed the world’s first smoke ventilation system, which was installed in 1954 at the Vauxhall
factory in Luton
, UK. Colt has since sponsored and participated in research programmes to develop the science of smoke control. These programmes have spanned many decades and Colt’s involvement continues today.
In the 1960s Colt began to expand operations to continental Europe
, initially through a joint venture
in the Netherlands
. In the following decades the company has continued to expand into new markets and it is now present in over 75 countries around the world.
In 1978 the O’Hea family gifted Colt shares to establish the Colt Foundation, a registered charity
that funds research
projects in the field of occupational
and environmental health
, especially those aimed at discovering the causes of illnesses arising from conditions in the workplace. In its first 30 years of operation it has awarded more than £12.1m in grants
to over 170 projects and supported almost 200 students.
In the 1980s Colt adapted its ventilation products to commercial buildings
and entered the solar shading market. In the 1990s the company invested in research in the control of daylighting
levels and solar power
. This led to the design of Shadovoltaics, a combined solar shading, daylighting and electricity
generating system for facade
s and roofs of buildings. In 1990 Colt designed, built and installed the distinctive steel
pyramid
on top of the skyscraper
at One Canada Square
in Canary Wharf. In 1993 Colt Virtual Reality
was founded to devise computer-based solutions to fire emergency planning in buildings. The same year, it launched its ‘Colterra’ aluminium alloy
for ventilators made from 100% recycled material.
In 2002 Colt introduced a new air conditioning
concept in its Caloris Water Source Heat Pump
System, which combines the advantages of VRF (Variable Refrigerant Flow) and heat pump technologies with a safe and highly efficient water based system. In 2009 Colt was the joint winner with Geothermal International of the H&V Environmental Initiative of the Year Award for developing a hybrid system that combines air
and ground source heat pump technologies.;
systems, smoke containment)
b. Climate control (including ground source heat pump technology, HVAC
systems, acoustic louvres
)
c. Natural ventilation
d. Solar shading (including sun protection louvres, brise soleil
, glass louvres, aluminium louvres)
e. Cladding
and performance louvres
f. Glazing
systems
g. Daylight enhancement systems; heliostat
s
h. Design support and project management
i. Servicing and maintenance
j. Training
Natural ventilation
Natural ventilation is the process of supplying and removing air through an indoor space without using mechanical systems. It refers to the flow of external air to an indoor space as a result of pressure or temperatures differences. There are two types of natural ventilation occurring in...
, solar shading and daylight technology.
The company is present in over 75 countries around the world through subsidiaries, license
License
The verb license or grant licence means to give permission. The noun license or licence refers to that permission as well as to the document recording that permission.A license may be granted by a party to another party as an element of an agreement...
and joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
agreements. The Colt Group's headquarters are in Havant
Havant
Havant is a town in south east Hampshire on the South coast of England, between Portsmouth and Chichester. It gives its name to the borough comprising the town and the surrounding area. The town has rapidly grown since the end of the Second World War.It has good railway connections to London,...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
. The Group has manufacturing sites in the UK, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, Brazil
Brazil
Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people...
and Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia , commonly known in British English as Saudi Arabia and in Arabic as as-Sa‘ūdiyyah , is the largest state in Western Asia by land area, constituting the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula, and the second-largest in the Arab World...
. It has approximately 950 employees and an annual turnover of GBP 146 Million (2010). Chief Executive Officer
Chief executive officer
A chief executive officer , managing director , Executive Director for non-profit organizations, or chief executive is the highest-ranking corporate officer or administrator in charge of total management of an organization...
is Antoine Ligtvoet.
History
Colt was founded in 1931 by Jack O’Hea. In the 1930s Colt's principal business activity was the development of ventilators for industry. During the Second World War Colt developed a series of blackoutBlackout (wartime)
A blackout during war, or apprehended war, is the practice of collectively minimizing outdoor light, including upwardly directed light. This was done in the 20th century to prevent crews of enemy aircraft from being able to navigate to their targets simply by sight, for example during the London...
ventilators to ensure ventilation
Ventilation (architecture)
Ventilating is the process of "changing" or replacing air in any space to provide high indoor air quality...
in blacked out buildings. These ventilators were adopted by the Government and many public authorities in the United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
In 1945 the UK Government started a massive rehousing programme using prefabricated houses. These houses were designed without fireplace
Fireplace
A fireplace is an architectural structure to contain a fire for heating and, especially historically, for cooking. A fire is contained in a firebox or firepit; a chimney or other flue allows gas and particulate exhaust to escape...
s to save space, which created the need for an alternative source of ventilation. Colt designed its Constant Flow ventilator to meet this need.
The post-war
Post-war
A post-war period or postwar period is the interval immediately following the ending of a war and enduring as long as war does not resume. A post-war period can become an interwar period or interbellum when a war between the same parties resumes at a later date...
years also saw the reconstruction of the British manufacturing
Manufacturing
Manufacturing is the use of machines, tools and labor to produce goods for use or sale. The term may refer to a range of human activity, from handicraft to high tech, but is most commonly applied to industrial production, in which raw materials are transformed into finished goods on a large scale...
industry and the erection of new factory
Factory
A factory or manufacturing plant is an industrial building where laborers manufacture goods or supervise machines processing one product into another. Most modern factories have large warehouses or warehouse-like facilities that contain heavy equipment used for assembly line production...
buildings across the country. At this time, Colt designed the Sloping Roof ventilator, which lay along the roof slope, reducing installation and maintenance costs. Colt also designed the Clear Opening ventilator for industrial buildings such as foundries
Foundry
A foundry is a factory that produces metal castings. Metals are cast into shapes by melting them into a liquid, pouring the metal in a mold, and removing the mold material or casting after the metal has solidified as it cools. The most common metals processed are aluminum and cast iron...
. This ventilator design ensured cooler working conditions and natural daylighting
Daylighting
Daylighting is the practice of placing windows or other openings and reflective surfaces so that during the day natural light provides effective internal lighting. Particular attention is given to daylighting while designing a building when the aim is to maximize visual comfort or to reduce energy...
inside the factories.
In the 1950s, the advent of large single-storey industrial buildings in the automotive
Automotive industry
The automotive industry designs, develops, manufactures, markets, and sells motor vehicles, and is one of the world's most important economic sectors by revenue....
sector required a new approach to fire safety
Fire safety
Fire safety refers to precautions that are taken to prevent or reduce the likelihood of a fire that may result in death, injury, or property damage, alert those in a structure to the presence of a fire in the event one occurs, better enable those threatened by a fire to survive, or to reduce the...
. Colt introduced the concept of fire ventilation
Ventilation (firefighting)
In firefighting, ventilation is an important part of structural firefighting tactics, and involves the expulsion of heat and smoke from fire building, permitting the firefighters more easily and safely find trapped individuals and attack the fire...
for this type of building and designed the world’s first smoke ventilation system, which was installed in 1954 at the Vauxhall
Vauxhall Motors
Vauxhall Motors is a British automotive company owned by General Motors and headquartered in Luton. It was founded in 1857 as a pump and marine engine manufacturer, began manufacturing cars in 1903 and was acquired by GM in 1925. It has been the second-largest selling car brand in the UK for...
factory in Luton
Luton
Luton is a large town and unitary authority of Bedfordshire, England, 30 miles north of London. Luton and its near neighbours, Dunstable and Houghton Regis, form the Luton/Dunstable Urban Area with a population of about 250,000....
, UK. Colt has since sponsored and participated in research programmes to develop the science of smoke control. These programmes have spanned many decades and Colt’s involvement continues today.
In the 1960s Colt began to expand operations to continental Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
, initially through a joint venture
Joint venture
A joint venture is a business agreement in which parties agree to develop, for a finite time, a new entity and new assets by contributing equity. They exercise control over the enterprise and consequently share revenues, expenses and assets...
in the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
. In the following decades the company has continued to expand into new markets and it is now present in over 75 countries around the world.
In 1978 the O’Hea family gifted Colt shares to establish the Colt Foundation, a registered charity
Charitable organization
A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization . It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A charitable organization is a type of non-profit organization (NPO). It differs from other types of NPOs in that it centers on philanthropic goals A...
that funds research
Research
Research can be defined as the scientific search for knowledge, or as any systematic investigation, to establish novel facts, solve new or existing problems, prove new ideas, or develop new theories, usually using a scientific method...
projects in the field of occupational
Occupational safety and health
Occupational safety and health is a cross-disciplinary area concerned with protecting the safety, health and welfare of people engaged in work or employment. The goal of all occupational safety and health programs is to foster a safe work environment...
and environmental health
Environmental health
Environmental health is the branch of public health that is concerned with all aspects of the natural and built environment that may affect human health...
, especially those aimed at discovering the causes of illnesses arising from conditions in the workplace. In its first 30 years of operation it has awarded more than £12.1m in grants
Grant (money)
Grants are funds disbursed by one party , often a Government Department, Corporation, Foundation or Trust, to a recipient, often a nonprofit entity, educational institution, business or an individual. In order to receive a grant, some form of "Grant Writing" often referred to as either a proposal...
to over 170 projects and supported almost 200 students.
In the 1980s Colt adapted its ventilation products to commercial buildings
Commercial property
The term commercial property refers to buildings or land intended to generate a profit, either from capital gain or rental income.-Definition:...
and entered the solar shading market. In the 1990s the company invested in research in the control of daylighting
Daylighting
Daylighting is the practice of placing windows or other openings and reflective surfaces so that during the day natural light provides effective internal lighting. Particular attention is given to daylighting while designing a building when the aim is to maximize visual comfort or to reduce energy...
levels and solar power
Solar power
Solar energy, radiant light and heat from the sun, has been harnessed by humans since ancient times using a range of ever-evolving technologies. Solar radiation, along with secondary solar-powered resources such as wind and wave power, hydroelectricity and biomass, account for most of the available...
. This led to the design of Shadovoltaics, a combined solar shading, daylighting and electricity
Electricity
Electricity is a general term encompassing a variety of phenomena resulting from the presence and flow of electric charge. These include many easily recognizable phenomena, such as lightning, static electricity, and the flow of electrical current in an electrical wire...
generating system for facade
Facade
A facade or façade is generally one exterior side of a building, usually, but not always, the front. The word comes from the French language, literally meaning "frontage" or "face"....
s and roofs of buildings. In 1990 Colt designed, built and installed the distinctive steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
pyramid
Pyramid
A pyramid is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge at a single point. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilateral, or any polygon shape, meaning that a pyramid has at least three triangular surfaces...
on top of the skyscraper
Skyscraper
A skyscraper is a tall, continuously habitable building of many stories, often designed for office and commercial use. There is no official definition or height above which a building may be classified as a skyscraper...
at One Canada Square
One Canada Square
One Canada Square is a skyscraper in Canary Wharf in the London Borough of Tower Hamlets. It is the tallest completed building in the United Kingdom since 1991, standing at above ground level and containing 50 storeys...
in Canary Wharf. In 1993 Colt Virtual Reality
Virtual reality
Virtual reality , also known as virtuality, is a term that applies to computer-simulated environments that can simulate physical presence in places in the real world, as well as in imaginary worlds...
was founded to devise computer-based solutions to fire emergency planning in buildings. The same year, it launched its ‘Colterra’ aluminium alloy
Aluminium alloy
Aluminium alloys are alloys in which aluminium is the predominant metal. The typical alloying elements are copper, magnesium, manganese, silicon and zinc. There are two principal classifications, namely casting alloys and wrought alloys, both of which are further subdivided into the categories...
for ventilators made from 100% recycled material.
In 2002 Colt introduced a new air conditioning
Air conditioning
An air conditioner is a home appliance, system, or mechanism designed to dehumidify and extract heat from an area. The cooling is done using a simple refrigeration cycle...
concept in its Caloris Water Source Heat Pump
Heat pump
A heat pump is a machine or device that effectively "moves" thermal energy from one location called the "source," which is at a lower temperature, to another location called the "sink" or "heat sink", which is at a higher temperature. An air conditioner is a particular type of heat pump, but the...
System, which combines the advantages of VRF (Variable Refrigerant Flow) and heat pump technologies with a safe and highly efficient water based system. In 2009 Colt was the joint winner with Geothermal International of the H&V Environmental Initiative of the Year Award for developing a hybrid system that combines air
Air source heat pumps
An air source heat pump is a heating and cooling system that uses outside air as its heat source and heat sink. Under the principles of vapor compression refrigeration, an ASHP uses a refrigerant system involving a compressor and a condenser to absorb heat at one place and release it at another.In...
and ground source heat pump technologies.;
Products and services
a. Smoke control (including fire ventilation, smoke extraction, car park ventilation, corridor ventilation, staircase ventilation, pressurisationPressurization
Pressurization is the application of pressure in a given situation or environment; and more specifically refers to the process by which atmospheric pressure is maintained in an isolated or semi-isolated atmospheric environment .-See also:* Cabin pressurization* Compressed air* Decompression* Gas...
systems, smoke containment)
b. Climate control (including ground source heat pump technology, HVAC
HVAC
HVAC refers to technology of indoor or automotive environmental comfort. HVAC system design is a major subdiscipline of mechanical engineering, based on the principles of thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, and heat transfer...
systems, acoustic louvres
Louver
A louver or louvre , from the French l'ouvert; "the open one") is a window, blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain, direct sunshine, and noise...
)
c. Natural ventilation
d. Solar shading (including sun protection louvres, brise soleil
Brise soleil
Brise soleil, sometimes brise-soleil , from French, "sun breaker"), in architecture refers to a variety of permanent sun-shading techniques, ranging from the simple patterned concrete walls popularized by Le Corbusier to the elaborate wing-like mechanism devised by Santiago Calatrava for the...
, glass louvres, aluminium louvres)
e. Cladding
Cladding (construction)
Cladding is the application of one material over another to provide a skin or layer intended to control the infiltration of weather elements, or for aesthetic purposes....
and performance louvres
f. Glazing
Glazing
Glazing, which derives from the Middle English for 'glass', is a part of a wall or window, made of glass. Glazing also describes the work done by a professional "glazier"...
systems
g. Daylight enhancement systems; heliostat
Heliostat
A heliostat is a device that includes a mirror, usually a plane mirror, which turns so as to keep reflecting sunlight toward a predetermined target, compensating for the sun's apparent motions in the sky. The target may be a physical object, distant from the heliostat, or a direction in space...
s
h. Design support and project management
Project management
Project management is the discipline of planning, organizing, securing, and managing resources to achieve specific goals. A project is a temporary endeavor with a defined beginning and end , undertaken to meet unique goals and objectives, typically to bring about beneficial change or added value...
i. Servicing and maintenance
j. Training