Group News

After nearly an eleven year hiatus, John Poulin has rejoined the Rubb, Inc. sales team as the company's Key Account Manager. (Winter 2011)

John worked at Rubb from 1984 through 2000 in many capacities ranging from production and site installation to sales. John brings a quick wit, excellent customer skills and extensive product knowledge to Rubb's sales team and we are all thrilled that he has returned. John and his wife, Cindy, live in Berwick, Maine and have two grown children.

Welcome back John!

Rubb arena goes for gold at Irish athletics championships (Winter 2011)

The impressive Meadowbank Indoor Arena scored top points as the venue for the 2011 Woodie's DIY Irish Juvenile Indoor Championships.

This March saw the championships come to Meadowbank, in Magherafelt, Northern Ireland, for the second time and was met with approval from former Olympians, competitors, coaches and guests alike. More than 1000 athletes competed over March 19th and 20th at the top-class juvenile competition, showcasing their talent in a wide range of running, jumping and throwing events. Boys and girls competed in eight different age categories for national medals and titles.

Pioneering Irish Coach and Athlete Maeve Kyle was full of enthusiasm for the event and its venue. The inspirational octogenarian, of Ballymena and Antrim Athletics Club, has paved the way for Ireland's female sprinters having competed in three Olympic Games and by winning a bronze in the 400m at the 1966 European Indoor Athletics Championships in Dortmund. She also gained 58 Irish caps while competing for Ireland in hockey. Maeve said: "I love this facility. It is a marvellous indoor sports arena which shows that, with the right surface, both hockey and track events can take place under the same roof. It can be used for a wide range of sports. It has a lovely café, beautiful changing rooms – I like coming here – it has a nice atmosphere. "There is a track and field outside, so it is great for indoor and outdoor events. I think every province should have one of these. We didn't have anything like this in my day and if we did I would've thought I'd died and gone to Heaven."

John McClaughlin, Chief Executive Officer of Magherafelt District Council, added: "It is very satisfying to see sports associated with different political and religious backgrounds played here side by side. "We find one of the strongest facets of the building is its versatility. It facilitates a wide range of sports: athletics, tennis, badminton, volleyball, netball and basketball. Its principal use is for soccer and training for Gaelic football and hockey. The facility has obviously raised the profile of the district which at the end of the day is a small, rural area – but Meadowbank Arena is now seen as a regional and national facility."

The event was organised by Athletics Ireland and supported by Magherafelt District Council, Ulster Athletics Council and Rubb Buildings Ltd.

Building Specifications:

• Span: 70m (229.65ft)
• Length: 145m (475.7ft)
• Clear area: 10,150m² (33,399'²)
• Eaves height: 9m (29.5ft)
• Frame: Hot Dip Galvanised steel
• Outer Membrane: White translucent PVC coated polyester fabric with PVDF top layer

Rubb Pte Ltd (Singapore) has delivered the first FX Rubb building in South East Asia (Winter 2011)

The FX20x36m Flexihall was ordered by Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics Singapore, and is located at Jurong Port. The project had a very short timeline: the order was placed on 11 November 2010 and the building was completed on 30 January 2011. Rubb provided complete technical documentation on the building, on which basis all Local Authority permits were obtained by Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics and a local PE. The fast delivery and approvals of the FX20 to Singapore demonstrates Rubb's ability to supply our customers with building solutions where and when needed. For decades, Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics has operated in the vehicle production hubs of Asia in both mature and emerging markets. The company has developed a solid outbound logistics service offering to meet increased customer demand. Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics has a regional office in Tokyo, branch offices in Japan, Thailand, China, Korea and Singapore, and numerous agency representatives throughout the region.

Rubb International AS establishes an office in Singapore (Winter 2010)

Rubb International AS has established an office in Singapore to strengthen our Asian based logistical chain and markets in the region. Rubb Asia is a subsidiary of Rubb International AS which again is wholly owned by Rubb Group AS.

In the November 2010 Rubb Asia has started direct marketing and sales activities toward the Asian and Australian markets. These markets will be supported by the Rubb Groups world-wide engineering and production network, including Rubb's steel and fabric facilities in China.

Rubb has high expectations with regard to the expanding Asian markets and Rubb Asia is a bridge to handle the growing demand in this area.

At the present time Rubb Asia is quoting for several large aircraft hangar projects in Australia, the oil and gas industry in Mongolia, maintenance facilities for the construction industry in Singapore, and several general industry projects in India.

Rubb Group CEO, Truls Torgersen has been the main driving force behind the establishment of Rubb Asia. He has many years experience in relationship building in China and plans over time to make Rubb Asia a fully fledged operational company with focus on quality and customer service.

The General Manager for Rubb Asia is Rubb Group Chief Operations Officer, Robert Farrell. He joined Rubb after completing a job as project manager of REC Silisium wafer factory in Singapore. This was a 600 millioner SGD Greenfield project. Robert has over 20 years experience in project management including 5 years in the Hallmaker Group, as well as in Coca-Cola, Skanska, and REC. Robert is responsible for developing Rubb Asia in the coming years.

Rubb AS has employed a new Managing Director (Winter 2010)

Arnstein Torgersen started working as Rubb AS (Norway) Managing Director on the 1 September 2010. Arnstein is has many years experience with all the processes that go into the fabric building business. He has worked in production, installation, project management, costing etc. He is therefore very well suited to carry on the good progress achieved by Rubb AS in the last few years.

View the Article (Norwegian Language)

Bielawa, Poland - FX Type Building Completed (Winter 2010)

Rubb Poland has completed and installed the first Hallmaker FX Type building in Bielawa, Poland. The building measures 30m wide x 50m long with a 6m side wall. Both the steel and the PVC membrane were manufactured in Poland to Rubb AS specifications.

New Sales Manager Builds On Success (Spring 2010)

A SKILLED sales engineer has won a promotion to Sales Manager at Rubb Buildings Ltd.

Ian Hindmoor started out at the Gateshead based company in 1999 as a Trainee Design Draftsman, following an apprenticeship as an architectural technician. Just one year later, at the age of 22, he was given the responsibility of processing all of Rubb's Ministry of Defence contracts.

He spent the following six years working as MOD Project Engineer and the main point of contact for the RAF. In December 2006 Ian started using his knowledge and expertise to sell Rubb products to a string of respected clients. As Technical Sales Engineer he specialised in Sports and Military structures. In this role Ian has helped Rubb Buildings uphold its reputation for meeting Urgent Operation Requirements for the MOD. Rubb's Rapid Deployment Shelter range, also known as EFASS (Expeditionary Forces Aircraft Shelter System), has been well-received world wide.

The company continues to be a world leader in the design and manufacture of relocatable fabric structures. Ian said: "One of my main highlights as Technical Sales Engineer was seeing the 25m EFASS up and running after being involved from the design stage. We started working on the project behind the scenes after winning an MOD contract for fifty-two 20m hangars in 2003." Ian was proud to see the 25m EFASS project come to fruition in trials at Fort Campbell, USA, in 2007.

He successfully completed an HND in Business Management in March 2010 and secured his promotion to Sales Manager in April. Ian added: "After working on contracts over the years I know our products inside and out. This is something I have worked towards since starting at the company and I am over the moon with the appointment. I would like to see our products continue to get better and better through quality and expertise."

Rubb Inc. New Welding Facility - Sanford, Maine US (Spring 2010)

In Spring 2010 Rubb Inc. will move into its expanded U.S. steel fabrication facility in Sanford, Maine. This expansion will effectively triple the usable area for steel fabrication at the Rubb plant thereby significantly increasing production capacity.

This project utilizes a 110' span Rubb BVE range structure engineered to code standards for the high 70 pound per square foot snow loads present in Maine. This expansion includes significant improvements to Rubb's 16 acre site with paved storage and handling areas increased to 4 acres. The new facility is fully insulated and equipped with radiant in-floor heating and a state of the art air filtration system that will clean and recycle heated air, generating substantial energy savings. The facility has an architectural masonry and glass front and is provided with offices and mechanical rooms, an employee breakroom, a training room, locker rooms and a 5,000 square foot mezzanine.

Company President David Nickerson commented that, "The cooperation of local and state officials and the excellent work of local subcontractors and Rubb's own staff have resulted in a very successful project. This facility will provide a better and more productive work environment for our employees and will enable us to better serve our customer requirements for the large span structures that form an important part of our growing business."

Rubb Buildings Ltd Employee Retires After 32 Years (Spring 2010)

Rubb Buildings Ltd has bid a fond farewell to a man who helped lay the foundations and build the international company into the success it is today. Sales Manager Ray Colby has retired from Rubb's UK plant after 32 years of service. Staff from the business based in Gateshead had all the celebrations covered at Ray's retirement party at Pan Haggerty Restaurant in Newcastle on Friday, March 26. Colleagues paid tribute to Ray's loyalty, dedication and pride in his work over the years.

Ray began working for Rubb in 1978 and has been instrumental in helping turn the company into a world leader in the design and manufacture of relocatable fabric structures. Among Ray's greatest achievements was securing the Ministry of Defence as one of Rubb's regular clients. "I have worked with some great people over the years," said Ray. "Rubb is like a family and has grown up like a family - every single person is 100 percent for the company. Without every vital cog the engine simply wouldn't work." Managing Director Bill Wood thanked Ray for all his hard work, adding: "We have worked very well together over the years and I am sad to see him leave. Everyone wishes him well in his retirement." The married father of two sons is now looking forward to a life of leisure after his dynamic sales career with Rubb.

Hæhre Maskinutleie AS (Winter 2010)

This is an NV 12m wide 24m long with 5m side wall. This is the first traditional type Rubb buildings that has been fitted with the patented "Thermohall" insulated fabric. The buildings was purchased by Hæhre Maskinutleie AS which is a company that rents out technical equipment and machines. This particular building was chosen due to the high internal clearing that is needed for large machinery which will be used to make the "Toven" tunnel in Nordland in the North of Norway. The Hæhre Group is an important Rubb customer and we are very pleased that they continue to value Rubb buildings. Hære Maskinutleie AS have also purchased a Rubb Type FX structure for use on the same site. This structure measures 10m wide x 15m long with 4m side wall.

Rubb Merges with Hallmaker (Winter 2010)

The fabric building division of the Hallmaker Group and the Rubb Group are now well under way with their merger process. The sales teams in Norway have now been merged and we have a common product portfolio with both Rubb Buildings and the 'new' Rubb Buildings from Hallmaker. All Rubb buildings can now be supplied with the new patented Thermohall insulation system. This is the most efficient system for insulating a fabric building quickly. Rubb in Great Britain, USA, and Poland are also positive to the new merger and Truls and Jan Erik Torgersen are in place of the respective Board of directors. The Rubb Group now looks forward to further develop their fabric building concepts in Singapore, China, and Russia.

From left: Jan Erik Torgersen, Hallmaker Group Chairman, Finn Atle Haldorsen, Rubb Group Chairman, Truls Torgersen, Rubb Group CEO