Acceptable but unspectacular order levels during the fourth quarter have rounded off what on average has been a fairly good year for the UK joinery sector. On the downside, the final three months have maintained a trend established throughout the rest of the year in presenting little scope for price increases amid a generally competitive market place. More encouragingly, however, many firms have already booked reasonable business volumes for next year and appear to be looking forward to 2004 with cautious optimism.

Most of the major mass production joiners appear to have hit their sales forecasts for the fourth quarter, although activity began to slow early in December and lead times have halved in some cases. No major price changes are reported to have been introduced in the final three months of the year, prompting several contacts to bemoan the poor level of profitability in relation to turnover. One blamed “general pressure from international markets and suppliers – particularly in commodity items such as internal doors and even some external doors too”. The year had also brought significant increases in other unavoidable costs, notably labour and glass.

Doorset demand grows

Timber window manufacturers reported continuing demand for sliding sash as well as increased interest in wider sashes. And while top-of-the-range feature doors have held on to the catalogue price increases introduced by many companies earlier in the year, doors nearer to the commodity end of the market have struggled to maintain any gains.

Leading manufacturer Premdor has responded to the increased demand for doorsets by raising its production capacity. In addition, from the beginning of next year the company is introducing a new banding system across its entire range of timber windows in a bid to simplify the order procedure and also to reduce lead times.

The staircase market has also witnessed some competitive pricing of late, although 2003 in general appears to have brought a solid sales performance. According to one contact, the market has also seen a move away from softwood in favour of, for example, oak “because people are trying to match the stairs with their floors”. There has also been a growing call for more pre-assembly and factory-finishing of stairs, with one contact observing: “They are asking for pre-assembled balustrades and first coat finish because it cuts the cost of having chippies and painters on site.”

A leading timber manufacturer that has provided installation services for its timber windows acknowledged pressure from clients to extend this facility to its staircases. In this vein, two recently-published surveys from the British Woodworking Federation (BWF) strongly reflect the huge shift towards fully-finished timber window and door products – a trend which has helped to reduce the need for on-site skills. The BWF says timber window manufacturers were experiencing a generally high level of growth, particularly in the social housing sector. They had shown a willingness to back their “incredible confidence” in future prospects by investing heavily in new and often upgraded machinery.

Fire door sales

The BWF fire door market survey also pointed to strong sales growth and manufacturer confidence as well as a trend towards doorsets, with even the merchant sector reporting increased sales. The survey also flagged up the importance of buying a doorset package rather than piecing the various elements together from different sources.

The BWF intends stepping up its drive to create federation-approved fire door centres as a means of improving the quality of information and advice offered to customers in the retail setting. Currently standing at 26, the aim is to increase the number of centres in the UK to 100 by the end of 2004 through a variety of initiatives, including targeted mailshots.

Next year will also bring the addition of new modules to the BWF’s practical timber selection and application seminars, which are designed to overcome common misconceptions among joinery manufacturers. The first module – ‘Understanding softwoods and hardwoods’ – has been “very well received” and will be repeated in 2004 as part of a 15-seminar programme for the year. In the spring, a second module will be introduced on getting the best out of timber and later in the year there will a further module on innovations in timber.

Looking at wider issues, the BWF expects the revision of Part L of the Building Regulations to be a major focus over the coming year and lists the following key issues: the potential for tighter U values; the potential for different U values for new build and replacement; and a possible move towards the energy rating of windows. A BWF spokesperson said: “The Government is aiming to have something it can implement by mid-2005 and so consultation is likely to take place in the middle of 2004.”

Already on TRADA‘s itinerary for 2004 is a day-long seminar on May 12 to cover practical experience of CE marking and other hot topics. According to a TRADA spokesperson, recent key issues have included the growing interest in chain of custody certification schemes such as FSC and PEFC. “A lot of this has been customer driven, but the industry, too, seems to be appreciating the importance of going this way,” he observed.

TRADA has also noted increasing interest among architects in using unfinished timber windows containing in both domestic and commercial applications.

Many architectural joinery companies have been busy into December although much of this activity has centred on fielding enquiries and tender documents rather than on clinching deals. “We have a lot of bids outstanding and so we are fairly optimistic, but people don’t seem to want to make any decisions at this time of year,” said one contact.

Profit margins

While many companies questioned this week were relatively happy with the volume of work completed and/or booked this year, it was unanimously agreed that 2003 had provided little opportunity to enhance profitability. “If you want to remain busy, you need to keep your rates competitive – unless you have found a particular niche,” said one source. Another added: “Labour rates have gone up and we have added this on to our rates, but that doesn’t improve your profit margin.”

Finding and retaining skilled labour remains one of the most vexed issues for the sector. “It is extremely difficult to get joiners – they are top of the wish list with plasterers and roofers,” TTJ was informed. “We have gone past the point of paying more to attract new ones because they are just not there. Ultimately, you have to train up your own, but that’s a three-year cycle.”

Some companies reported reasonable success in limiting turnover of their factory staff but were highly critical of the rapid churn and overall quality of site staff. “The level of skills on site is quite appalling sometimes,” said one contact.

Not for the first time, several contacts complained this week about the time taken for project approvals to come through, as well as the poor quality of the initial information on which joiners were often being asked to base quotes. “Joinery companies are reluctant to have too much input until all the approvals are sorted out because of the risk that it will all fall through,” said one contact.

Timber prices have mirrored joinery rates by showing little change in recent months. Meanwhile, trends have continued to favour lighter species such as maple, although many companies have been reporting strengthening demand for oak. Tender documents have increasingly featured timber certification requirements, although this has raised concerns among joiners over consistent availability and the unwillingness of customers to pay more for certified wood.