2025

Sabine Groeneveld uses Baden-Württemberg, a south-western federal state in Germany, as a case study to illustrate how to help promote the local timber industry whilst reaching out internationally. “Our focus is on making the timber innovation potential visible and to…

The UK’s timber construction sector is entering a new phase—where manufacturing capability, carbon data, and design excellence align. Anna Lisa McSweeney highlights why a new national centre, new metrics, and new partnerships are driving mass timber forward. In 2025, the…

Timber frame construction has moved from niche to mainstream. David Himmons explains why factory-built timber systems are vital to meeting regulatory, environmental and housing challenges—and what’s needed to scale them further. “Off-site timber isn’t just sustainable— it’s precise, scalable, and…

Focusing on materials alone won’t deliver the carbon savings we need. Here, Clara Koehler explores how early-stage thinking—before design is fixed— can unlock the greatest opportunities for embodied carbon reduction. Whilst the construction industry has been widely championing the performance…

Timber performance depends heavily on managing moisture. Andy Pitman explains why understanding, measuring and controlling wood moisture content at every stage— from manufacture to installation—is essential to avoid decay, delays and design failure. As timber consultants, much of our work…

Timber has long played a critical role in sustainable construction. Now, it is beginning to receive stronger recognition at the policy level, with formal government frameworks designed to expand its use across the built environment. The UK Government has set…

On 3 July, over 200 built environment leaders met at Hamilton House, London, for the UK Timber Design Conference 2025, exploring how timber can accelerate low-carbon transformation through innovation, policy and practice. Returning with support from Swedish Wood and PEFC…

Reclaimed wood carries environmental, heritage and social value—yet its full potential remains underused. Sara Morel explores how the sector can overcome challenges to play a crucial role in building a circular, low-carbon future. The UK’s reclaimed timber market has seen…

Dr Diana Waldron explores how the Bontnewydd School project in North Wales is pioneering structural timber reuse—testing the limits of circular construction through careful deconstruction, glulam innovation, and collaborative design thinking. In North Wales, the Bontnewydd School and Community Centre…

Phil O’Leary explores the complexities of strength grading reclaimed timber, drawing on real-world case studies and longstanding expertise to highlight both the opportunities and persistent barriers to structural reuse in modern construction. The practice of specifying and utilising reclaimed materials…

As demand grows for low-carbon housing, new research highlights timber’s untapped potential. Helen Hewitt discusses the urgent need to challenge outdated myths in both housebuilding and homeownership. “Housebuilders want measurable, credible, and transparent sustainability data. Timber, with its inherent renewability…

David Hopkins looks at why embracing sustainability and circular economy principles is smart business for timber merchants—offering greater resilience, customer loyalty, and cost efficiencies in a carbon-conscious, resource-constrained construction sector. I n a world increasingly shaped by climate regulations, shifting…

UK Construction Week (UKCW) is the UK’s largest built environment event— bringing the supply chain together to showcase innovation, share knowledge, and accelerate the transition to low-carbon construction. UKCW is the UK’s leading showcase of structural timber, offsite solutions, and…

Gary Newman explains why wood in construction must be treated as a greenhousegas removal (GGR) mechanism, and what this means for policy, carbon accounting,and the future of our industry. As the UK Government ramps up its investment in carbon capture…

Heddwyn Bye explains how terrestrial LiDAR scanning offers a breakthrough in assessing timber quality and carbon stocks in complex UK woodlands—unlocking economic potential and supporting climate-smart, precision forestry. Across the UK, hundreds of thousands of hectares of small, irregular and…

Tom Henderson believes a strategic circular timber economy can unlock climate, housing and economic benefits for Wales—but only if we align forest policy, processing, and procurement. As global efforts to decarbonise accelerate, timber is back in the spotlight—not just as…

John Healey discusses the case for domestic wood production, as outlined in a Nature Communications paper co-authored with Eilidh Forster, Research Associate at Bangor University, and David Styles, Associate Professor at the University of Galway. “Only a strategy that combines…

Woodland creation is central to UK land use, balancing climate goals, biodiversity, and rural livelihoods. Kate Palmer explores how policy, natural capital, and market innovation reshape the landscape for a resilient future. As 2025 unfolds, the UK faces a pivotal…