The market for engineered wood products (EWP) continues to grow and diversify. Housebuilders are increasingly specifying
I-joists, glulam is being championed in a number of high-profile projects by the likes of Wilmott Dixon, while the Summer 2005 Serpentine Gallery Pavilion in London’s Kensington Gardens is to feature a Kerto-S LVL structure.
A recent wood. for good seminar attended by about 130 architects and engineers was told by Arup Research and Development that glulam and Kerto LVL were among the most exciting construction materials and finding applications in a growing range of building projects, with the much-publicised Scottish Parliament building one of the latest examples.
Even the high priest of self-build, Kevin McCloud, from Channel 4 Television’s Grand Designs, is publicly praising engineered timber materials.
He told architects at TRADA‘s In Touch with Timber conference: “I think they have had a profound influence on the usability of timber and the long-term viability of timber buildings.”
James Sweet, Trus Joist European division sales manager (structural business), gave a clue as to why when he spoke at a recent London Softwood Club meeting.
“When you approach a builder who is very cost-conscious it becomes a no-brainer for him to choose engineered wood products,” he said.
Mr Sweet added that engineered timber was being driven by traditional building skills shortages, material quality, new regulations, planning issues and build speed – with the installation of engineered joists in a four- or five-bed house, for instance, taking just four hours.
He also quoted recent National House-Building Council figures which show that 50% of new homes – around 65,000-70,000 houses – no longer used traditional timber joists.
James Jones Timber Systems estimates I-joists’ market share of the new build floor joist sector to be 55%.
The increased sales of what is a higher priced product is boosting profits at Travis Perkins, which highlighted the strong performance of I-joist sales in its 2004 annual results. Sales of TJI Joists also helped Denholme- based CR Taylor increase its turnover by 60% in 2004.
Finnforest‘s building and construction division, which includes LVL and glulam operations, comfortably outperformed the company’s sawn timber business, recording operating profits of €4.3m compared with €1.8m for timber.
Mainstream product
International Timber (IT), which supplies JJI-joists from James Jones & Sons from its facilities in Grangemouth and Newport, believes I-joists have “broken down the barriers” and become a mainstream product after being relatively unproven just four to five years ago.
Iain Torrance, IT’s sales director for Scotland, said: “The national housebuilders were the first tier to embrace I-joists and they have now cascaded down to regional and independent housebuilders.
“The whole mind-set among housebuilders has shifted regarding I-beams. We see more and more being promoted by them in the context of modern construction and for all the benefits that they offer.”
He said the product’s next development stage is to respond to the growing demand for environmental credentials.
On that note, James Jones recently became the first I-joist manufacturer to achieve Forest Stewardship Council certification.
“Achieving FSC certification has given us huge credibility and an increase in sales based on the direction of the [government’s] Central Point of Expertise on Timber and Defra guidelines,” said Tom Bruce-Jones, director of James Jones Timber Systems. He added that the company had also just secured an eco rating in the BRE‘s EcoHomes initiative.
Investment in the EWP sector is growing, with Finnforest spending €20m expanding production capacity of its Kerto LVL factory in eastern Finland to meet growing demand for wood-based building systems.
Capacity at the Punkaharju plant will be increased by 60,000m3 to 130,000m3.
The company estimates total annual production and building use of LVL in Europe to be less than 200,000m3, with Finnforest’s output about 170,000m3 annually at its Lohja and Punkaharju factories.
Meanwhile, glulam beams are now rolling off the production line at Stora Enso‘s new €13.3m mill in Estonia. The 80,000m3 capacity plant, Stora Enso’s biggest investment in value-added processing to date, is seen as a vital part in the company’s plans to meet Japan’s traditional housing needs, and will be capable of producing enough material for 15,000 Japanese homes a year.
Glulam applications
Glulam producer Versowood reports new markets opening up and is currently looking to build up a sales network in the UK.
Another growing application for glulam in Britain is in rim beams for floor cassettes.
Longfield-based Panel Agency Ltd has secured a number of contracts for its Panelam product, made by Lilleheden of Denmark, which is in direct competition with LVL and other EWPs.
Mark Wilson, director of Panel Agency Ltd, said glulam’s long span capabilities and visual appearance, combined with rising steel prices, had given it an advantage.
“Glulam sales figures in the UK show people are warming to it rather than steel. If you have to have a purlin, glulam is aesthetically pleasing compared to steel.
Mr Wilson expects to see more larch and redwood glulam being produced in the future.
New I-joist applications include whole house framing, where deeper walls can boost energy efficiency. A more expensive way of building, it is nevertheless a potential growth area due to pressure to meet Part L of the Building Regulations. Masonite Beams have been supplied for such applications since 1996 and now other I-joist manufacturers are following suit.
Roof systems are another EWP target market and Donaldson Timber Engineering (DTE) is currently developing an engineered roofing system because of government policy on modern methods of construction (MMC), changes in housebuilding patterns resulting in more flatted developments and changes in Standard Assessment Procedure (SAP) regulations for rating a building’s energy efficiency.
DTE is expanding its range of Finnforest EWP products later this year to include glulam, identifying markets in smaller applications, rather than the large scale “statement” architectural projects.
In July, Trus Joist will launch its Spatial Roof system, a new solution for attic roofs, designed to increase house space by 10%. It brings Trus Joist closer to the whole house approach favoured by parent Weyerhaeuser.
James Jones is also involved in R&D and testing of whole house framing and roof applications for its JJI-Joists to demonstrate their versatility. “House-builders are coming under greater pressure to look more at off-site construction,” said Mr Bruce-Jones.
The rapid pace of invention in the EWP industry is also creating opportunities for the connector industry, with developments at both Simpson Strong-Tie and at Cullen Building Products.
“All areas of timber engineering are making advances in products and systems, providing manufacturers such as ourselves with multiple opportunities for innovation,” said Doug Cullen, managing director of Cullen Building Products. “One of the most obvious drivers for this is the government’s commitment to MMC.”
He expects companies to continue their market growth during the next 12 months, launching innovative timber engineering systems to offer national housebuilders a greater choice in the use of timber.
“Because of the speed of product innovation within the industry, we are finding a much greater need to develop training programmes to ease the integration of these new systems.”
Ray Waite, Trus Joist’s timber frame business development manager, told TTJ at the recent OFFSITE2005 show that many people were looking at the company’s Parallam product, which is made of parallel strand lumber for high load applications. Recent projects using the material include a gents’ outfitters in London’s Carnaby Street and The Body Shop in the US.
Mr Waite said Parallam was first used in the UK for lintels about 10 years ago: “People used to hide it in the building structure, whereas now architects want to see the structure so it’s becoming more evident. Now they’re realising that when it’s sanded and dressed it looks really smart.”
