Deep in the West Sussex countryside, timber frames are being manufactured for residential units across London and southern England.
In a leafy corner near Billingshurst, Guildford Timber Frame (GTF) is plotting further market growth to capitalise on the construction industry’s move towards timber frame.
Recently-appointed managing director Malcolm Graham-Wood has been charged with growing the business, started seven years ago by developer Milford Homes after it decided to switch from its existing timber frame suppliers.
In building its purpose-built factory, the company was keen to show it practises what it preaches, so a glulam frame and timber cladding were used. GTF showed its faith in the structure’s insulating properties by leaving out space heating.
GTF currently has dozens of jobs on its books at various stages. Flicking through the list, Mr Graham-Wood demonstrated how apartment building has taken over the construction industry. Until recently, most of GTF’s production was box shaped homes. Now 70-75% is apartments.
Mr Graham-Wood said a typical job will involve a developer pulling down a large Victorian building and replacing it with a block of about 20 flats.
Earlier this year in Purley, the company erected a six-storey building in just 47 days. Build speed is one of the reasons why Milford Homes specifies timber frame, along with greater design flexibility and fewer defects.
Other GTF developments have included 31 affordable homes for the Guinness Trust as part of a 500-house development in Surrey, plus the construction of 43 flats and 15 townhouses for the Horizon Housing Group in Croydon. But not all sites involve flats – one recent job was the erection of four detached houses for Winbrooks in Ifold. And GTF is currently working on a project for Grand Designs.
Short-sighted pricing
“It is good that timber frame is growing in the building industry,” said Mr Graham-Wood. “But I think timber frame companies are pretty short-sighted with pricing. Sometimes, there is too much of the ‘pile it high, sell it cheap’ approach.
“We do not do that. It is not as if this industry is short of work. Housing associations are increasingly using timber frame. Small developers are also using it because it gives them a return on their money a lot more quickly.”
GTF recorded a turnover of £3.8m in 2004. It is aiming for £5m in the current financial year ending August, with a target of £6m for the following year.
“We can see a significant long-term need for more buildings that we supply. Demand is still outrunning supply,” added Mr Graham-Wood.
But uncertainty in the UK economy has translated itself into delayed projects, with some developers not wanting to start new projects until they have sold existing developments.
GTF’s recent investments include articulated lorries, fork lifts and a crane, in addition to new production technology. However, director Brian Skilton said the company deliberately chose to keep its operation largely non-automated to ensure maximum flexibility.
He said multi-million pound automated plants are more for volume housebuilding churning out a standard house type, which is not GTF’s market. “That sector of the market is going to end up saturated,” he said.
GTF’s operation is based on open panel construction but it will fit insulation and internal plasterboard when required. But Mr Skilton does not regard such “closed panel” methods as being very innovative and believes they make it harder to install services.
He said: “I think it’s going in the wrong direction. I think there is a lot more value in achieving improvements to external finishes.”
GTF imports timber from Sweden and Finland and uses glulam as its rim board material instead of LVL.
The company has also used I-beams in wall applications ranging from 145-300mm thick. I-beams give lower U-values because of the deeper walls and less cold bridging, said Mr Skilton. But price is an issue – because standard timber frame walls are cheaper.
While Mr Skilton has noticed architects are becoming more receptive to timber frame he also has to deal with prejudice against it. One estate agent told him it would not be able to sell a timber house for a host of reasons including “they’re noisy” and the walls can’t support pictures and other objects.
GTF resolved each complaint one-by-one. Noise was solved by acoustic flooring while a layer of plywood was specified for the internal wall to support fixings.
Mr Graham-Wood firmly believes the government should do more to promote the benefits of timber frame and give incentives for building energy-efficient homes, such as a reduction in council tax.
Areas GTF would like to see the timber frame industry develop include external skin finishes, better use of materials and more designers coming into the sector.
Future developments for the company include its Palafito concept – a building solution which uses the space above existing ground level car parks in built-up areas to provide affordable housing. It has already generated enormous interest.
