03/12/2015

3 December 2015
3 December 2015, Comments Comments Off on NEC Birmingham
NEC Birmingham

Record sales at the UK’s leisure vehicle show

A huge buying audience was delivered to the The Motorhome & Caravan Show 2015. Record sales and an industry going from strength-to-strength!

The Motorhome & Caravan Show 2015 opened with a bang and the setting of a new  Guinness World Record for the largest ever caravan made from interlocking plastic LEGO® bricks. Many of the 400 exhibitors have reported record sales at what is the UK’s biggest leisure vehicle launch show. Yet again a huge buying audience was delivered to the NEC, for example the UK’s largest dealer network Marquis enjoyed its most successful indoor exhibition on record with orders in excess of £10m being taken at the Show. Lowdhams exceeded its expectations with a 50% growth in sales and Swift Group reports sales from the show being so good its order book is almost full for the year, with its Sprite range 10% up on the incredible performance of 2014.  Once the event closed its doors earlier this week (Sunday 18th) 94,514 people had visited. It drew its biggest crowd on Saturday 17th, with 25,308 people through the doors and interestingly 48% of all advanced tickets booked to the Show were by people new to the event. This success is indicative of a leisure vehicle market that is on the up, with new registrations for motorhomes up 25% to 10,461 and new caravans despatched to dealers up 5% compared with this time last year. At the Show live product showcases took place each day in the revamped Experts’ Theatre from leading UK and European leisure vehicle manufacturers including Adria, Auto-Trail, Hillside Leisure, Hymer, Knaus, Lunar, Roller Team and Swift Group. Footage of the LEGO brick caravan has already clocked up more than 325,000 views on YouTube with it featuring, to name but a few, on the BBC, MailOnline, The Sun, Evening Standard, Mirror.co.uk, Metro, Yahoo!, mashable.com in The Sunday Times, regional media and generating a massive social media and online impact with millions of  Twitter accounts reached and thousands of article shares on Facebook. It also featured around the world on Discovery Channel Canada, Foxsports in America, German national newspaper Bilde.De and as far away as Australia. Anthony Trevelyan, Chairman NCC Events, said: “The outstanding number of caravans and motorhomes sold at the show and the high visitor attendance underline the success of the industry and the benefit of providing people with an enjoyable, low cost day out. The key is in delivering a top quality show at a super-competitive price, which we will continue to do at the Caravan, Camping and Motorhome Show in February 2016.”

The largest caravan made from LEGO® bricks

The world’s largest caravan built with interlocking plastic LEGO bricks has been unveiled at the Motorhome & Caravan Show 2015 to celebrate 130 years of leisure caravanning this year. The LEGO brick caravan was certified the world’s largest by an official Guinness World Records.
Built by a team of 12 LEGO Certified Professional Builders over more than 1,000 man hours, the 2.2m tall and 3.6m long model caravan features a full interior with working electric lights, sink with running water, fridge, simulated cooking facilities, a bed and seating – just like the real thing. It’s been decked out with plenty of items made of LEGO bricks that you’d find in a real caravan, including chess set, toothbrushes, frying pan, and even milk in the fridge!
The model is based on the ‘teardrop’ style caravan T@B.

The mid-mounted titan bed system

British based Titan Leisure Products are yet again set to lead the way in the M1 pull tested seat bed system industry, with their new mid-mounted seat bed. ‘This is a very exciting design for us with many unique features,’ say Malcolm and Mark Evans, Directors of Titan Leisure Products, and founders of the Titan Bed range. Titan are now going to offer a new mid-mounted seat bed system, with important and unique elements to the design such as:

UNIQUE 12 recline positions for maximum seat comfort

UNIQUE 5 back rest settings when in bed position

UNIQUE – Detachable from the vehicle floor to free up load space

It also has under bed storage for a portable toilet. And by being mid-mounted in the van, it ensures maximum luggage space to be available. ‘We have designed the seat bed to maximise living and storage space which is important to us all when using our vans,’ said Malcolm. ‘In seat position the whole system is shorter so not losing space, and we have maximised the headroom space in the vehicle as well.’ And of course, with this seat bed, just like the others in Titan’s range, it has been designed without the need for support legs in the bed position. This ensures floor coverings won’t be damaged, and storage space is again maximised. ‘We put a lot of thought into our designs, and whilst considering a new system, is very important that we listen to our customers, and implement their requirements into the Titan Bed as well, says Malcolm. ‘If we incorporate their needs, together with our own high standards of quality, comfort and above all safety then we can be sure we have something for everyone’.

Swift command app

Swift Command App is the new Mobile App for Android & Apple iOS devices to allow Bluetooth Connectivity and remote control of the new 2016 Range of Swift Caravans fitted with the new Smart Control Panel.

With the new system you can:

• Jump to the live website to locate your caravan or motorhome and to access remote functions and features.
• Control your lighting and adjust dimmer levels.
• Control the water pump and view tank information
• Manage your system power, select the battery or enable the current limiter.
• Control the heating, set the timer and configure the power source.

Heater + cooker all-in-one

XC Duo is a simple cooking and heating solution, designed for camper use.
In one unit a ceramic stove and an effective heater – running on diesel fuel.
Closing the lid, air starts blowing between the lid and the ceramic cooktop. The blower blows hot air from the cooker, transferring the heat into the cabin. When the lid is in the up position it is a great ceramic stove. The cooker has controllable power, which can be easily adjust from the control panel. The ceramic glass top is easy to clean, and the operation is quiet. The Wallas XC Duo, heater + cooker, is a unique solution for campers. This safe hob heater includes a modern ceramic cooker and an effective heat blower lid to warm the camper fast. The heat blower lid has a flat design profile and controllable heating power. Despite high power capacity, the upper surface of the lid is only warm to the touch. The diesel stove heater combination is an excellent solution for small campers. Unlike hazardous propane systems, it uses diesel from camper’s own diesel tank.
The combustion process takes place in a closed loop with the help of a combustion fan. The process is fully automatic and tolerant of the changes in air pressure. Combustion adds no moisture or odor to the living areas; no need to keep windows open.

Dreamsleep bed make up system

Belfield Furnishings were offered to develop the latest Baileys Pegasus model, a partnership that has produced a unique patented design that has pushed forward innovation to provide improved comfort and ease of use for the Pegasus range. When Belfield were handed the design brief, the prototyping department started creating concepts. Conventional front end seating areas require “slab” style back rests, they are this shape to give the dual purpose of making the mattress. This is a common design that has been used for many years. The “slab” backs work fine as part of the mattress, yet limits options on foam used and back rest shape due to this dual purpose. The result of the Baileys and Belfield working in partnership resulted in a unique patented design that eliminates the need of the backrests in making the mattress. This allows the backrests to have any shape, and to be filled with softer fillings to provide a more comfortable domestic feel. The Dreamsleep bed make up system is a patented design that uses mattress inserts underneath the seat that are used solely for the mattress. Because they are used for this one purpose, they are upholstered in a fully breathable anti-allergenic fabric that is used in the domestic mattress market. The transition from seating to mattress is simple and quick, as the backrests are not needed. The underneath of the seat is also upholstered in the mattress material, with the underlying foam matching the inserts to make a full mattress surface. With the backrests not needed to from the mattress of the front end, they can be shaped in filled purely with comfort and aesthetics in mind. The rounded design of the backrests lends a softer look to the front end. Upon launch, the DreamSleep bedding system has received critical acclaim from trade and public, winning Practical Caravan magazine Innovation of the year. It has also received the highly commended innovation award from Caravan magazine.