Long associated with the supply of commercial vehicle floor decking, Vincent Timber Ltd of Birmingham has witnessed considerable change over the past decade in a market that accounts for around 35% of its total turnover.
Most notably, there has been a move away from conventional solid hardwood floors – for example, in keruing – towards engineered products such as slip-resistant plywood and laminated hardwood.
‘There can be a lot of wastage with keruing and, because it is solid timber, it can shrink and swell,’ explained Vincent Timber’s commercial vehicle flooring manager Ben Fowles. ‘By using an engineered product, you know what it will do and what loads it will take.’
In the past five years, Vincent Timber has also seen a growth in demand for plywood and hardwood kit floors that are ready for assembly by the body-builder customer.
There has been a move towards one-piece floors for ease of laying, rigidity and improved sealing properties.
A customer benefit to the ‘kit’ approach is that Vincent Timber is able to quote a specific, whole unit cost at the outset.
‘The customer gets to know his costs better because all he has to do is add in the labour cost of fitting the flooring,’ he said.
For Vincent Timber, meanwhile, the trend towards kits and one-piece floors has meant carrying out more value-added work associated with decking manufacture at its Montgomery Street base in the Sparkbrook area of Birmingham.
The company has invested heavily in recent years in new tooling equipment, as well as in new product development.
Among the other recent additions to the range have been a one-piece ‘King Rhino’ scarf-jointed, mesh-faced plywood, as well as a high-performance aluminium-patterned sheet bonded onto a plywood substrate.
Vincent Timber was founded 77 years ago and has always been rooted in the vehicle manufacturing heartland of the Midlands. It was first based in Selly Oak, then moved to Sparkbrook in 1975.
John Vincent, grandson of founder Will Vincent, is the current chairman while Geoff Willetts is managing director.
Also a leading timber importer, Vincent Timber Ltd stocks western red cedar, hardwoods and softwoods, as well as an extensive range of panel products.
The emphasis is on added-value products and services which make use of its sawmilling and processing expertise.
Vincent Timber also supplies products to the furniture, exhibition and garden leisure industries.
The involvement with commercial body-building stretches back more than half a century. ‘We started by dealing with commercial vehicle body-builders in Birmingham and the West Midlands, and we have spread out to providing a nationwide service,’ said Mr Fowles.
In addition to decking, Vincent Timber also supplies a range of aluminium-faced, paper-faced and pre-primed door blanks for commercial vehicles using either Far East hardwood or birch cores.
Over recent years, the quality specification in decking manufacture has become ever more demanding in the commercial vehicle sector because of the extended warranties offered on vehicles by body-builders and therefore the need for raw materials to perform over a given period.
At the same time, the tough market conditions facing the UK haulage sector have resulted in a very competitive market place for decking systems.
According to Mr Fowles, new build continues to make up the considerably larger proportion of its commercial decking work, although repair and refurbishment is becoming increasingly prominent.
But in all areas of its business, he added: ‘Vincent Timber offers impartial advice on the best floor for the end application. There is no point in over-specifying but it is important not to under-specify.’
