Timber Update November 2021

• The COP26 climate summit, along with the UK and other governments renewed commitment to quicken the move towards being net zero, will have a major impact on construction markets. COP26 has added fresh urgency to the construction industry to cut emissions, whilst also highlighting the need for work in sectors such as housing repair and maintenance, building refurbishment and electricity generation and distribution.
• More than 100 global leaders have pledged to end deforestation by 2030, in the COP26 climate summit’s first major pledge. The deal includes almost £14bn of public and private funds.
• The boss of shipping firm Maersk, which handles almost 20% of the world’s shipping containers, has told the BBC that Christmas trading will be safe from supply chain problems. The firm is chartering more ships, keeping ports open for longer and opening more warehouses in order to help alleviate issues.
• The Construction Products Association (CPA) has amended their construction output growth forecast from 13.7% to 14.3%, but they have also revised down growth for next year from 6.3% to 4.8%. With more demand for construction products so far in 2021, constraints on the supply chain are expected to hamper growth for the rest of the year and into 2022.

To read the full CPA article, click here.

• After multi-week rises, most North American softwood timber prices have flattened according to website Global Wood Markets Info. Following the plummet this summer after unsustainable highs in spring, timber prices have been recovering during September and October. In the week ending 29th October, most framing timber prices flattened out, to finish the week at close to the levels of one year ago.
• The latest statistics from the Timber Trade Federation (TTF) show that import patterns shifted rapidly in Q3 of 2021 to meet the high demand for timber products. Demand for timber products during the summer months of 2021 reached record breaking levels, with import volumes over 3.2 million m3 in these three months alone.
• Following the first ever Built Environment Day at COP26, Timber Development UK is calling for more world recognition of the ever increasing need to use wood in construction. With the built environment responsible for close to 40% of global CO2 emissions, low carbon materials such as timber are essential for limiting global warming. Within the ‘Time for Timber’ manifesto, many of the reasons for using wood in construction have been outlined.

To download the 'Time for Timber' manifesto, click here.

Have you got your composite decking supply sorted for Spring 2022?

With the end of the year fast approaching, now is the time to get stocked up on products, point of sale, samples, brochures and organise training, ready for next year.

If you would like to secure your stock for 2022, or find out about becoming a Composite Prime stockist, click here.

Our new office in Redbourn, St Albans is now open for timber and facades sales. This new location means we are best placed to assist our clients and supply partners in North London, the Home Counties, East Anglia and the Midlands, alongside our existing offices.

To contact the St Albans branch, click here.

Did you know that as a natural thermal insulator, timber performs up to 15 times better than masonry and 400 times better than steel? Therefore, when timber is used to construct a building, less energy is then required to heat it.

Wood works well as an insulator because of the empty space that it holds in its cells. This means that the wood can retain heat, as opposed to metal which transfers heat easily due to being a conductor.

To find out more about the benefits of using timber in construction, click here.