The world has changed and keeps changing rapidly. Mentalities are playing a stronger role than ever, in the evolution of our world. The construction industry cannot be left out of these changes, as consumers go forward. Sustainability is at the top of their agenda, and so it should be as
Timber and panel product import volumes continued to show a steady decline in Q4 2021 as more ‘regular’ demand returns to the market, according to the latest Timber Trade Federation (TTF) statistics. The latest TTF statistics found the volume of timber and panel products imported into the UK declined by
Concrete admixture manufacturer Oscrete UK has heralded a new chapter following its investment in a standalone company within the Christeyns group this month. Oscrete, one of the UK’s leading specialist construction chemical suppliers, manufactures and supplies a range of high performance super-plasticising admixtures, waterproofing agents and efflorescence controllers for the
The West Fraser (formerly known as Norbord) Inverness plant was in the spotlight this week when it featured in Michael Portillo’s Great Coastal Railway Journey series where the processes of wood panel production were highlighted to the broadcaster and former MP during a guided tour of the plant. The manufacturer,
A technically advanced, high-performance, hybrid roofing membrane from global building product manufacturer Sika, provided the watertight finish for a new school which was built using innovative offsite construction techniques. The newly-constructed King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls in Birmingham, which was designed by architect Atkins Global on behalf of
Builders’ merchants represent a key part of the UK construction industry and account for up to 85% of the UK’s built environment, by supplying a wide range of building materials. Builders’ merchants and their suppliers contribute over £40bn to the economy every year. Builders’ merchants who are within the end
Five ceiling products from Zentia feature at Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg school. A plethora of products from leading UK ceilings manufacturer Zentia met a multitude of challenges at a redeveloped Welsh school. Five square-edged mineral products from Zentia were used on the £20 million regeneration of Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg
City Plumbing, part of the newly formed Highbourne Group, is pleased to announce a continuation of its relationship with the UK’s largest energy and home services provider British Gas. The specialist heating and plumbing merchant has signed a multi-year contract to supply British Gas with boilers and parts to support
BSW, the UK’s largest integrated forestry and sawmilling group, has unveiled its new brand, with an expanded vision of ‘seeing timber in new light’. The brand launch sees the group uniting its capabilities under a new, overarching, BSW Group brand, forging an integrated supply chain to create value and sustain
The COP-26 summit in Glasgow has led the world to think more deeply and more urgently about climate change, and how we must all live and work more sustainably to combat it. Clark-Drain is no exception – and we are stepping up to the mark, as we have done in
The world has changed and keeps changing rapidly. Mentalities are playing a stronger role than ever, in the evolution of our world. The construction industry cannot be left out of these changes, as consumers go forward. Sustainability is at the top of their agenda, and so it should be as well, when it comes to construction materials. Becoming eco-friendly It is certainly not a new topic in our lives. For decades we have heard leaders of the world promising changes. However, the new generations have decided that it was time to do more than just talk. Actions are being taken, in every industry sector, in order to secure the future of our world. That means, for the construction industry, that it has to rethink the materials it is using. The eco-friendly ones, like aluminium, need play a larger role. Aluminium doors and windows such as the ones found at https://aluprof.eu/en, have proven through their durability and their energy-saving capacities that it is the material for a sustainable construction industry. If there was any doubt of the will of the people to continue working on a les polluted environment, and a safer world for humans, plants and animals, the latest MasterCard data is proving it wrong. More than half of their consumer think that it is more important than before (pre-pandemic time) that companies act in a sustainable and eco-friendly way. They expect this from all industry sectors, including housing, which is even more important than other fields, since it is where they live and spend time with their family. Where Improvements can be made Choosing the materials that will be used to build a house, is the first and most important element that the industry can work on, in order to become more eco-friendly. There is no doubt that aluminium is and will be part of this revolution. That is because this material is a much better choice for the environment then others, such as PVC and timber. If you study the life of aluminium, you will come to learn that more than 75% of what has been extruded from the ground, is still being used today. Its capacity to be recycled is unequal to any other materials used on houses. When you put it back to work, you also need less energy than to create new products. Finally, it is a very light material. That means it costs less to ship and that it emits fewer emissions in the process. Energy saving When you replace old doors and windows by aluminium ones, you save energy. That is because they are built to keep the cold or warm air inside. Therefore, you don’t have any waste, either going out or coming in. With double pane windows, the sun coming through is being regulated so that the house doesn’t become an oven in summer time. It works the same way in winter, by ensuring that the cold weather doesn’t find its way inside the various rooms. Sustainability, in the construction industry, is to be taken seriously. The whole world is moving forward in order to create a better world, and housing needs to do its part.
Timber and panel product import volumes continued to show a steady decline in Q4 2021 as more ‘regular’ demand returns to the market, according to the latest Timber Trade Federation (TTF) statistics. The latest TTF statistics found the volume of timber and panel products imported into the UK declined by 158,000m3 in November 2021 as compared to October 2021. Despite these declines, with 768,000m3 of timber and panel products imported into the UK in November 2021, the total volume of imports reported in 2021 exceeds 11 million m3. Most products categories are also nearing record import volumes in 2021 even as they enter more regular trade patterns – including the usual winter decline. Softwood import volumes fell to 471,000 m3– a 90,000 m3 reduction from the previous month – and this trend was carried across product categories ranging from particleboard to OSB and MDF. TTF head of trade and technical policy Nick Boulton said: “It is normal for timber and panel product imports to tail off towards the winter months as construction demand slows amidst the festive season, and as colder weather deters home and garden renovations. “The fall in the volumes of imports in Q4 2021 also likely reflects the state of supply lines in the structural softwood market which appeared to be largely saturated at that time. “As the weather improves and demand for timber climbs, we can expect to see timber imports rebound in our trade statistics, which is a regular pattern for the timber industry. “Over the coming year we expect to see a comparatively stable market – but this doesn’t mean there won’t be any squeeze on the supply chain particularly amidst rising international demand. “We will be exploring all these trends in full in our next Market Statement, which will come out next month.” Members can read the full report and more on the TTF Statistics Hub: https://ttf.co.uk/statistics/
Concrete admixture manufacturer Oscrete UK has heralded a new chapter following its investment in a standalone company within the Christeyns group this month. Oscrete, one of the UK’s leading specialist construction chemical suppliers, manufactures and supplies a range of high performance super-plasticising admixtures, waterproofing agents and efflorescence controllers for the precast and ready-mix concrete and the ready-to-use mortar industries. It has operated within the international Christeyns group since 1983. In a move designed to supercharge the company’s construction supply, customer service and new product development, Oscrete has announced its new chapter of independence which it says, will facilitate a period of intense investment and a renewed focus on core markets. Director Scott Wilson, who has more than 25 years experience in the construction sector, said: “The pandemic brought considerable challenges in the construction sector, quickly followed by substantial growth and we’ve recognised we need a bespoke business model dedicated entirely to our industry to facilitate growth, NPD within our inhouse development lab and specialist recruitment. “Operating independently will also allow us to develop systems which complement those of our customers, to place even greater focus on our specialist areas of technical support, chemistry, engineering solutions, admixture manufacture and supply. He added: “This an exciting time for the construction sector with its strong emphasis on sustainable growth and continuous improvement. We’re looking forward to taking the Oscrete values and expertise into a new era of growth, partnerships and of embracing the challenges of this thriving building sector.”
The West Fraser (formerly known as Norbord) Inverness plant was in the spotlight this week when it featured in Michael Portillo’s Great Coastal Railway Journey series where the processes of wood panel production were highlighted to the broadcaster and former MP during a guided tour of the plant. The manufacturer, referred to by its previous name Norbord in the documentary series, showcased how the mill created the wood panels from planted woodland, which are then used in construction to create walls, floors, and ceilings. Portillo was given a guided tour by Steve McTaggart, who has worked at the mill for 35 years, and was shown the inner workings of how timber is treated and how the facility produces 16 million boards per year. Located next to the railway, the show also highlighted the West Fraser mill’s plans to build sidings to allow for freight train deliveries to the site. Stuart Hendry, General Manager at West Fraser’s Inverness mill, said: “We were delighted to invite popular broadcaster Michael Portillo for a guided tour of our Inverness plant and showcase how we continue to provide vital and sustainable wood panelling to key suppliers and operators across Europe. It was fantastic to see the hard work of our Inverness manufacturing team highlighted and we’re thrilled that the beloved broadcaster and documentary presenter found our industry both fascinating and hugely important for Scottish industry.” For further information, call 01786 812 921 or visit Uk.westfraser.com
A technically advanced, high-performance, hybrid roofing membrane from global building product manufacturer Sika, provided the watertight finish for a new school which was built using innovative offsite construction techniques. The newly-constructed King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls in Birmingham, which was designed by architect Atkins Global on behalf of client Acivico Group, replaces Turves Green Girls’ School. The original establishment was in a poor state of repair and following consultations with the local authority, it was agreed constructing a new school building represented a cost-effective alternative to refurbishment. The new school includes contemporary classrooms, a dance studio, sports hall and a purpose-built library. The building’s airy feel is created by its wide corridors and stairways which are filled with natural light. This will help to inspire a calm and pleasant environment for staff and students. To meet performance and programme goals for the building’s construction, a hybrid design was devised by offsite construction and modular specialists, Innovaré. Such innovation was recognised at the annual Offsite Awards, with Innovaré – in a joint submission with Sika – winning the ‘Best Use of Hybrid Technology’ category for its successful Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) delivery of the King Edward VI Northfield School construction project.Innovaré’s hybrid system included integrated BBA-Certified i-SIP panels, hollow core concrete plank floors, and a lightweight timber cassette roofing system. This hybrid method of construction, which meant most of the new school structure was manufactured offsite, offered a radically quicker speed of build, reducing preliminary and overall costs. It also ensured the building’s performance and programme goals were met. As a global building product manufacturer with a wide range of products and technical expertise to offer, Sika is ideally placed to support offsite construction projects. Its Modern Methods of Construction (MMC) Division is specifically tasked to work with offsite manufacturing and assembly companies to consider how Sika products could be used as part of the building process in this fast-growing sector. Sika’s 4mm elastomeric and plastomeric bituminous hybrid membrane, SikaBit Pro 940®, provided the watertight finish for the new building’s energy-efficient roofing system, which integrates timber cassettes with i-joists.SikaBit Pro 940® combines the advantages of APAO and SBS-modified bitumen, allowing two different compounds to work together. The upper layer comprises APA-modified bitumen, offering excellent heat resistance and durability. The under layer is SBS-modified bitumen, providing increased elongation, improving flexibility and excellent resistance to thermo-oxidative aging which will last longer than traditional membranes and reduce ongoing maintenance. SikaBit® has been developed to comply with the NFRC’s Safe2Torch Guidance to help specifiers prioritise safety at the design stage of roofing projects. The specification of SikaBit Pro 940® as part of the school’s energy-efficient roofing system contributed to the building’s fabric achieving required levels of thermal, airtightness, acoustic and maintenance performance. In terms of the roof’s construction, Innovaré manufactured large-format structural timber roof cassettes, ensuring that the structural members and deck went into place quickly. RLW Roofing, one of Sika’s Certified Roofing Contractors, were responsible for the design and installation of the roofing system. In addition, RLW Roofing completed façade works, using Sika Parex Historic Mortar KL. “We are proud that in collaboration with RLW Roofing, our products and expertise were used to successful effect in the delivery of this wonderful school, RLW’s skill and expertise were instrumental in delivering a technically robust solution” Simon Griffiths Head of Sales, Offsite Construction at Sika, said. “The hybrid method of construction implemented by Innovaré for this project aligns perfectly with Sika’s promotion of sustainable development within the construction industry.” Now fully opened, the King Edward VI Northfield School for Girls will begin its purpose to serve as a catalyst to transform opportunities, build aspiration and further develop academic success for its 750 students. It’s a huge ambition that Sika is delighted to help fulfil.
Builders’ merchants represent a key part of the UK construction industry and account for up to 85% of the UK’s built environment, by supplying a wide range of building materials. Builders’ merchants and their suppliers contribute over £40bn to the economy every year. Builders’ merchants who are within the end use sector have fared differently to other product sector areas over the last 5 years. Some experienced a sharper downturn in demand during the pandemic and subsequent lockdown rules that were imposed, however many received a much quicker rebound in sales once the lockdown measures were eased. Many are still noting that this was due to many consumers having money saved during the pandemic and wanting to improve upon their living standards whilst spending so much time in their homes. The main product sectors that saw a downturn during lockdown measures were kitchens, bathrooms, roofing and insulation products, HVAC equipment, plumbing and drainage products. These all experienced a double-digit decrease in market value during 2020. However, the downturn in sales was less evident for building materials such as timber and glazing, cement and plaster and bricks and blocks. The number of overall outlets within the builders’ merchants’ sectors continues to shrink further. Online outlets should start to account for a greater share. For builders’ merchants, physical outlets will still remain a part of the central strategy, as consumers will still require items immediately or will want to physically see and touch items prior to purchase. There will likely be more emphasis placed onto the online channels, such as apps, which will offer a better experience for trade customers, where they will be able to manage their own business account with the merchant. In 2020, builders’ merchants accounted for 8.5% of UK construction output, up slightly from 8.2% the previous year. This was down to the reopening of builders’ merchants when many other stores were still closed during the height of the pandemic. Builders’ merchants were able to bolster the demand for construction projects as they resumed, even when they faced many struggles such as product shortages, notably timber and structural steel. The pandemic caused the builders’ merchants market value to decrease by 11% in 2020. We are forecasting a steady recovery of 2-3% annual growth up to 2025. During this period, we are expecting to see more companies consolidate their networks. Some will be moving from small branches which may have been underperforming at late, to a focus on larger outlets, in the hopes that they will be better suited to the modern consumer’s needs. The report comes from Builders Merchants Market Report – UK 2021-2025
Five ceiling products from Zentia feature at Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg school. A plethora of products from leading UK ceilings manufacturer Zentia met a multitude of challenges at a redeveloped Welsh school. Five square-edged mineral products from Zentia were used on the £20 million regeneration of Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg school in Barry, Vale of Glamorgan, South Wales, that included additional BB93 accommodation for 300 pupils. The modernisation and upgrade of facilities at the school saw the construction of five new extensions, including a design and technology teaching block, a new sports hall, and a reception area and dining hall. Zentia’s Perla tiles, which feature light reflectance of 86%, were used in the corridors and circulation spaces while sister Perla dB tiles, which perform to sound absorption Class C, featured in the classrooms. Anti-bacterial Bioguard Acoustic tiles, which also perform to sound absorption Class C, were used in the food technology classrooms, and Bioguard tiles, which are clean room classified to ISO 5, in the kitchens. Finally, Hydroboard tiles, which are 100% humidity resistant and perform to sound absorption Class A, were used with a Prelude non-corrosive suspension grid in the changing rooms and toilets. They were selected by Austin Smith Lord architects, who have specified Zentia many times before for school projects, as they met the aesthetic and acoustic requirements of this particular 11,000m2 steel-framed scheme. Architect Matthew Wray said: “Our valued client, Vale of Glamorgan County Council, was extremely happy with the project overall and it’s something we’re really proud of’.” Specialist sub-contractor Richard Kemble Contracts, who are a member of Zentia’s Pinnacle partnership scheme, had a team of up to 10 working on site, installing a total of 7,168m2 of Zentia products, for 28 months. Richard Kemble said: “This project was challenging as we were just starting when the pandemic hit which caused materials and labour shortages. It was also part phased refurbishment and that meant working around the school children and teachers during term time.” He added: “Zentia provided technical backup as some classrooms needed to have additional acoustic rating so further calculations were carried out and the Perla dB tile was specified and used in the majority of classrooms to maintain the optimum levels of acoustic performance.” Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg brings to life the school’s vision to create an exemplar environment on a single campus, where pupils start in primary school and finish sixth form all within one site. IT and the remodelled sixth-form area are now at the heart of the school, promoting Welsh language learning post-16. Main contractor ISG won the contract on the influential SEWSCAP capital works framework as part of the Welsh government’s 21st Century Schools and Colleges Programme, designed to transform and upgrade the country’s education estate. Externally, ISG delivered six new multi-use games areas and a floodlit 3G all-weather rugby sports pitch, which is available for community use out of school hours. Zoe Price, group director for public sector frameworks at ISG, explained: “Important capital frameworks like SEWSCAP provide the space and early involvement that enables contractors to problem solve creatively and develop innovative solutions that prove transformative to programmes, budgets and social value outcomes for our local communities.” Ysgol Gymraeg Bro Morgannwg won a ‘Highly Commended’ across the Value and Sustainability categories in the 2021 Constructing Excellence Wales awards. It was also a finalist in the Digital Construction and Innovation awards. The Vale of Glamorgan were also a finalist in the ‘Client of the Year’ award category and the council’s 21st Century Schools programme was also a finalist in the Integration and Collaborative Working and Value’ categories. The distributor was SIG Cardiff.
City Plumbing, part of the newly formed Highbourne Group, is pleased to announce a continuation of its relationship with the UK’s largest energy and home services provider British Gas. The specialist heating and plumbing merchant has signed a multi-year contract to supply British Gas with boilers and parts to support complete installations, annual services, repairs and maintenance for thousands of homes across the UK. Covering British Gas customers for boilers and central heating as well as plumbing, drainage and electrics too. The new contract will see City Plumbing and British Gas work together to use digital innovations to streamline processes, enhance customer experience and deliver products to British Gas’s customers when they need them. Dave Evans, CEO of Highbourne Group said: “I am delighted to announce the continuation of the long established relationship between City Plumbing / PTS and British Gas. Over the last 10 years, our business has evolved to deliver great customer service to British Gas customers, and I look forward to working with the British Gas team in the future as we develop digital solutions to enhance both their customer and their engineers experience” For more information about City Plumbing supplies and the services it offers, visit: www.cityplumbing.co.uk
BSW, the UK’s largest integrated forestry and sawmilling group, has unveiled its new brand, with an expanded vision of ‘seeing timber in new light’. The brand launch sees the group uniting its capabilities under a new, overarching, BSW Group brand, forging an integrated supply chain to create value and sustain long-term growth. Tony Hackney, CEO, BSW Group, said: “As the sector’s biggest integrated business, with capabilities including tree nurseries, forestry management, harvesting, production and energy, we believe we have a responsibility to drive positive change. “Following a period of intense acquisition activity, we commissioned a robust, independent review of our brand and market positioning to guide the actions needed to support a more sustainable future. The feedback we gained has been invaluable. It has inspired our vision to become the most innovative, technologically advanced and sustainable timber business in the UK.” As part of the launch, BSW Group is committing to ensuring a seamless, circular supply chain, to investing in innovation and education, and to giving people more stability and choice. “By growing markets, increasing efficiency and resilience, and elevating our craft, we can help secure the future of our industry and our planet. We have a shared will to create value and achieve sustainable growth,” added Tony. The brand launch follows BSW Group’s acquisition by Binderholz, which completed on 5th January 2022, strengthening the brand’s positioning in the value-added timber market. Our businesses – Maelor Forest Nurseries, Tilhill, Dick Brothers, BSW Timber, BSW Timber Solutions, Bayram Timber and BSW Energy – will continue to operate in their own specialist areas under the new overarching BSW Group brand, with a shared vision to create value and achieve sustainable growth. For more information, visit www.thebswgroup.co.uk.
The COP-26 summit in Glasgow has led the world to think more deeply and more urgently about climate change, and how we must all live and work more sustainably to combat it. Clark-Drain is no exception – and we are stepping up to the mark, as we have done in the past. We are proud to announce that we signed up to the Government’s Climate Change Agreement (CCA) scheme back in 2018, which commits us to environmental targets over time. It was an important step forward, and complements the many other measures we have already taken, and continue to take, to reduce resource consumption, pollution, and climate change impacts. From the market’s first fully recycled and recyclable channels and chambers, to efficient drainage that increases hydraulic performance using less material, to lightweight designs that use less fuel to transport and install, Clark-Drain has always put sustainability high on its agenda. And with our CCA commitment, our long-established, family-run business is shifting its environmental conscience up a gear. So, what exactly does CCA deliver, how, and what are the benefits? Measure, report, hit the mark – consistently Primarily, CCA is about reducing our energy use and carbon emissions to agreed levels. Energy consumption is the cause of much of the world’s carbon emissions, and carbon itself makes up 80% of the greenhouse gases that accelerate climate change, so cutting down on both energy use and carbon emissions is a no-brainer. As part of our commitment to CCA, we must measure and report our energy consumption and emissions over periods of two years, until the end of March 2025, and must hit the agreed targets throughout that time. The measuring and reporting are rigorous, comprising both absolute and relative measures of energy consumption and carbon emitted. The targets, which are defined by the Government based on the industry sector we operate in, are calculated relative to a past “base year”, and are both absolute and – necessarily – challenging. In short, with the CCA scheme we are doing in environmental terms what we have always done elsewhere in our business: championing transparency, learning lessons, aiming high, and delivering a better outcome. But what’s in it for us – and our customers? CCA: making environmental and economic sense Like all the best environmental initiatives, CCA incorporates sensible financial incentives to help offset the costs to the business of managing the scheme, and potentially deliver some residual economic benefit, both of which ultimately drive uptake. By hitting the CCA targets, businesses like Clark-Drain benefit from significant reductions in the Climate Change Levy (CCL) that we currently pay as part of our electricity and fuel bills. Ultimately, we are free to deploy any surplus however we think it will benefit our customers most – in new product development, operational and customer service investment, price or quantity incentives, and so on. It’s the proverbial win-win situation, three ways: we reduce our impact on the environment, we lower our costs, and we free up funds to better serve our customers. Transparency and credibility: going public One thing that COP-26 has taught us all is that lip-service just doesn’t cut it anymore. Environmental commitments must be visible, and they must have teeth. The CCA scheme addresses this not only through its extremely specific targets, conditions, and measurement, as described above (a much fuller explanation of which is given in the various technical documents here), but also in the fact that it maintains a completely public register of businesses that continue to meet the targets and be eligible for the CCL discount. This register (called the Reduced Rate Certificates spreadsheet) is available to download here, and makes successful CCA commitment a matter of public record. Our customers can therefore be sure they are dealing with a business that has not only signed up to the CCA scheme, but is actually delivering on it. Critical changes, manageable progress As the great and the good head off from Glasgow, leaving a legacy of urgent environmental action in their wake, the ball is very much in our court – the millions of expert, specialist businesses that, across the globe, sell the things the world can’t do without, but at an environmental price it soon won’t be able to afford. Our commitment to the CCA scheme is one more demonstration of our determination to deliver products and to work in ways that are more sustainable, bit by bit, day by day. At Clark-Drain, we’re proud that what we produce is, as we always say, “grounded in expertise”- but now, more than ever, we want to make sure that how it is produced is grounded in environmental good sense.
