The need for an improvement in timber education was highlighted at BM TRADA’s inaugural BM TRADA Talks Timber conference, which took place in London at the start of July.
Based on a popular BM TRADA training course, the conference drew an audience of structural and consulting engineers, architects, developers and project managers, and covered timber technology knowledge for every part of the timber building journey.
The ethos behind the conference was to provide technical information, driven by the lack of knowledge in this area across the supply chain.
“We find people are really interested in our training course, as somehow they feel they don’t know enough about timber,” said Phil O’Leary, section leader – Timber Technology Investigations. “Many timber events cover the benefits of building with timber and display the beautiful buildings it can create, but very few cover the technical detail that satisfies an audience of engineers.
“We’re here to cover as much as we can, from principles of design right down to the important drawing details to consider when using all forms of structural timber. Basic timber technology knowledge is seriously inadequate across the supply chain, and we’re working to correct that.”
This shortfall in timber education was further emphasised by Gary Newman, chief executive of Woodknowledge Wales, who delivered a presentation on building with wood in a climate emergency.
Citing that global demand is set to triple over the next 30 years (based on global economic growth predictions) and the fact that greater use of timber could actually mitigate climate change, Mr Newman stressed the very real opportunities for forestry and timber – and the challenges involved. Speaking from a Welsh perspective, but applying it UK-wide, he said:
“Forestry is part of the climate solution on a global level, and I believe wood will become the most important industrial resource for a sustainable economy. Yet despite this, students still receive much more teaching on steel and concrete and there is significantly less technical support for timber.
“Timber is available at scale; it is advanced and can grow on land you wouldn’t want to grow food on. It is imperative that education and regulation are changed to focus on this. We need to create consistency of demand to drive manufacturing, through carbon emissions reduction legislation through multiple policy levers such as planning, building regulations and land use change. We certainly need a much stronger relationship between forestry, manufacturers and housing.”
Mr Newman also discussed the challenges facing the structural timber sector.
“Timber is a fragmented industry; unlike steel and cement, there are a lot of SMEs. And, of course, there is always inertia when it comes to challenging the status quo. Timber has warranties and risk management to consider, and people don’t like change. However, there is a genuine opportunity to create a carbon store through the built environment, which would almost double the impact of forestry.”
Other speakers included Richard White, expert consultancy lead from BM TRADA discussing the essential nature properties and characteristics of timber for successful design; Phil O’Leary talking quality; and Nick Clifford, senior technical consultant at BM TRADA, covering the fundamental relationship between moisture and timber. Dr Keerthi Ranasinghe, senior lecturer and programme director, civil engineering at the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, addressed the differences and associated challenges of timber engineering design in comparison to other materials. The final session saw Robin Lancashire, senior timber frame consultant at BM TRADA, highlighting the contemporary importance of using structural timber and avoiding costly errors.
“Moisture in timber is crucial and an area where more education is needed” said Mr O’Leary during his presentation.
“We’re receiving a rise in calls about the challenge of trapped moisture in timber frame buildings. Developers are being encouraged to manufacture as much as possible offsite, yet the reality when the components arrive on site can be challenging.
“Everyone on site needs to know how these materials should be handled so that moisture stops being an issue for current and future buildings.
“This is an education issue and the solution may have its hurdles (thanks to our British weather), but the basic message is simple – arrive just in time, lift straight into position and protect on site. We need to make sure these messages are being delivered.”
There are challenges ahead for timber and for the environment, but as Mr Newman said: “Timber is the only industrial material that the more you use, the more you help to mitigate climate change, so it’s our duty to use it.”
