A ground-breaking initiative by the Northern Ireland Timber Trade Association (NITTA) has begun to pay off since its inception two years ago.
The association, which has 12 member companies, decided that doing nothing to promote itself, timber or the trade was no longer an option. Action was needed – but that required careful planning which, in turn, was going to require a significant injection of cash.
Far-sighted members of the association took the bull by the horns and, in just two years, have raised £115,000 to fund an innovative crusade to raise awareness among building professionals and consumers.
The first move was to appoint a public relations consultancy to mastermind the operation.
Belfast-based Donaldson Cockcroft was selected and its first advice was that market research should be undertaken.
Catriona Hailes of Donaldson Cockcroft explained: ‘We advised NITTA that it needed to be talking to both the trade and consumers. Consumers love timber, but they don’t know a lot about it – and we didn’t know what the architects and specifiers knew about it. The market research, conducted through in-depth telephone calls, helped establish that and also what their views were of the timber trade.’
The architects, builders and specifiers canvassed were asked their views on wood – both as a construction material and for internal use.
Their responses flagged up several areas which formed the foundation of the ensuing promotional activity. These included timber windows, environmental issues, timber frame, decking and external use, decorative uses of timber – particularly in flooring – strong recognition of TRADA, technical advances in timber, and the moisture content, maintenance and durability of timber.
NITTA chairman Maurice Brooks said: ‘One thing we discovered was that no-one had heard of our association, but they did know about TRADA.
‘We felt we needed to build a general awareness of what timber is and what it can do, and also about our organisation.’
To combat the lack of recognition among its target audience, NITTA decided to create its own logo. This now features on stationery, all promotional activity and, in some cases, individual members have included it on their vehicle livery.
The next step was the creation of a website. This allows people to search by product or individual member while also providing news information on the industry, technical information, a ‘frequently asked questions’ section, and links to other related bodies such as the Timber Trade Federation, TRADA, the Nordic Timber Council and the American Hardwood Export Council (AHEC).
Mr Brooks said: ‘We want to make information on timber as readily available as possible and architects are using the website as a way of gathering information and using it as a gateway to people like AHEC, TRADA and so on. We also use it to showcase the use of timber in interesting applications.’
However, NITTA felt it was not enough to talk solely to the trade – it was just as important to promote its work to consumers.
‘We wanted to create demand and, to do that, we have to provide the correct information,’ said Mr Brooks Northern Ireland has a higher than average number of self-builders, while the housing boom in the Republic of Ireland has made people turn to timber frame because of the skills shortage and because of the speed of erection.
NITTA set out to grab that Celtic Tiger by the tail. Among the consumer activity has been a series of articles in the Belfast Telegraph, headed up by the association’s liaison officer, Trevor Rankin. In a column entitled ‘Wooden it be nice’, Mr Rankin has answered a series of timber-related questions such as ‘Can I get wooden window frames repaired?’ and ‘Are timber frame homes safe in a fire?’.
The association also sponsored a glossy magazine – New Homes – a guide to buying a new home in Northern Ireland. Naturally timber featured heavily, with advice on everything from doors to decking plus a profile on NITTA and its initiatives.
Two AHEC seminars – one aimed at architects and specifiers and the other at joinery companies – have been run, one in conjunction with the Royal Society of Ulster Architects. Several other seminars have been run in conjunction with TRADA.
Mr Brooks said: ‘We have received tremendous support from these two organisations. The TRADA seminars focused on the benefits of using kiln-dried timber in construction. They were organised in close co-operation with the chief building control officers of the eight building control regions in Northern Ireland.
‘We expect that in excess of 300 specifiers and builders will have been persuaded of the risks associated with unseasoned timber and the fact that such timber does not comply with the requirements of the Building Regulations – either new or old.’
NITTA is determined to protect the investment of time and money by its members. Mr Brooks said: ‘We must not allow the present difficult market situation to undermine the excellent progress which we have made together. Nor must we allow the actions of the few to drag down the many. There is much hard work going on behind the scenes to ensure that those outside our membership are fully aware of developments. We must build on the framework so successfully established and we must maintain our credibility with all those with whom we have been promoting this concept.’
