James Latham, distributor of timber, panels and decorative surfaces (stand D55), today unveils its Futurebuild (March 1-3, Excel) activity which will showcase a suite of timber-based, sustainable construction and interiors options.

James Latham’s stand will be subject to a “take-over” from Kiss House, the innovative homes company, and Passivhaus offsite-manufacturer. Central to the experience will be two 3 x 3 x 3 m sections from the Kiss House residential construction system which visitors can explore in their own time, and that will double as a seminar space.

Bespoke tours will be available of this innovative and sustainable building system which has the potential to improve the quality and performance of residential housing. Experts will be on hand to outline the latest sustainable developments in timber and surfacing. The panel of specialists will include manufacturers Accsys Technologies and WISA along with Kiss House designers. 

In addition, the James Latham team will be on hand to showcase its innovative carbon impact calculator. Both carbon footprint and biogenic carbon content are now shown on key James Latham documentation such as quotations, delivery notes and invoices, meaning users can fully understand the carbon impact of the products they choose.

The distributor will also be celebrating some of the most exciting, sustainable surfacing and timber options on the market, including:

• Accoya – a FSC modified timber, developed by Accsys Technologies, with properties that match those of the best tropical hardwoods
• Finish Line Cladding Collection – a Latham’s exclusive with 12 unique colour options including the highly contemporary Slate Grey, Apricot and Charcoal finishes
• WISA Birch Premium Plywood – made from Finnish Birch this offers a beautiful light look with good strength properties, it’s a good base for lacquering, varnishing and staining
• Garnica Ultralight Poplar Plywood ­– an ultralight sandwich panel with XPS core, made from 100% European poplar from sustainable plantations. Its light-coloured faces and premium quality internal sheets make it ideal for painting and laminating/film coating.
• Garnica Duraply Poplar Plywood Panels ­– these offer exceptional durability due to an innovative ply-to-ply treatment which delivers fungi and insect resistance even under the most adverse weather conditions. The panel’s core and faces are made from sustainable European poplar. This is a Marine Plywood alternative with a great environmental story
• Valchromat MDF panels – engineered coloured wood, a wood fibre panel which is coloured throughout and offers high physical performance. The fibres are individually impregnated with organic dyes and chemically bonded by specifically developed resins.

Commenting on James Latham’s Futurebuild experience, Stuart Devoil, Group Head of Marketing, says “The climate crisis is the biggest challenge facing us, and so we’re using Futurebuild to focus on three key things. Firstly, sustainable innovation, with Kiss House bringing to life just what is possible to achieve on the low carbon front using timber to create wonderful homes. Secondly, we’re celebrating the very real materials innovation that is afoot within timber and surfacing. Lastly, to build more sustainably, data is absolutely fundamental and so we’re using Futurebuild as a way to introduce our carbon calculator to visitors.”

He added, “We wanted to collaborate with Kiss House as its broadly wood-based solution uses several grades of timber to produce high-quality, very-low embodied carbon homes. This perfectly illustrates how important timber will be in ensuring a sustainable built-environment, along with how this most traditional of materials is increasingly being used as a lynchpin element to very real innovation.”

You can find James Latham at stand D55. The distributor is also part of the Futurebuild Innovation trail which consists of 14 specially selected, future-focused exhibitors.