8 | UK News
TTJ Awards 2026 moves to Mayfair for anniversary
The London Marriott Grosvenor Square will be the new location for this year’s 30th anniversary TTJ Awards 2026. The Timber Trades Journal (TTJ) Awards is moving to the Mayfair location for the September 18 event, which celebrates good quality products & service, as well as achievements in innovation, career development, environmental accomplishments, marketing and timber merchanting development.
The London Marriott Grosvenor Square was the very first Marriott property to open its doors in London and the third in Europe. Located in the heart of Mayfair, the historic hotel combines a unique blend of heritage and luxury.
The hotel’s recent refurbishment marks a significant transformation at the Marriott, featuring an uplifted lobby now filled with natural light, a brand-new lobby lounge and other new features, blending Art Deco elegance with a contemporary edge. It is within walking distance of Hyde
Park, Oxford Street, and Bond Street. “We are excited for the TTJ Awards to reach its 30th anniversary,” said TTJ editor Stephen Powney.
“From its start in 1997 until now, the event has focused on shining a spotlight on achievements in the timber trade. Whether that is in importing, distribution
The London Marriott Grosvenor Square will host the 30th anniversary TTJ Awards in 2026
and merchanting, or in sawmilling, manufacturing and timber construction, the TTJ Awards is designed to celebrate all that is great in the UK wood industries.” Designed as a fun, rewarding lunchtime event for the entire timber and wood product industries, the main Awards categories recognise service excellence and product quality and are voted for by customers/timber product buyers in an online voting exercise starting on March 18. Judged categories span a wide range of areas and are judged by expert panels. Organisations backing the event include Timber Development UK – sponsor of the TTJ Timber Trader of the Year – the Builders Merchants Federation, the Structural Timber Association, and the British Woodworking Federation.
UK plywood trader gathering hears about timber’s future
The future for timber products is bright, declared outgoing Plywood Club of London (PCL) chairman Miles Kember at the Club’s 71st annual dinner on January 30. Mr Kember, of James Latham, addressed about 120 members of the plywood trade at the event held inside The Brewery, central London.
“The future for timber products, whether they be decorative or strength-based, is brighter than ever,” he said.
“Timber is the ‘best’ building product when tackling targets like the UK Net Zero by 2050 Government policy. New innovations also mean timber is not just the cheap option any longer but the correct solution.” Mr Kember also remarked on the ‘special’ camaraderie in the timber products industry, referring to dinner attendance of a mix of suppliers and customers, with many in competition with each other. “We feel as one, working together and not against one another. This is something other trades and possibly even other areas of the country are envious of.”
Mr Kember will be stepping down as Club chairman after five years at the upcoming AGM, following five years in the post. Rob Cushen of Decor Solutions is nominated to take over.
PCL dinner raffle prizes were presented to guests as thin birch ply vouchers.
Offsite timber housing factory LoCaL Homes set to close
A loss-making Midlands offsite timber frame factory is to close after its owner GreenSquareAccord (GSA) failed to find a buyer for the operation.
LoCaL Homes’ impending closure is the latest in a string of offsite company failures in the past few years, as poor housing market conditions and high costs impact the sector.
The LoCaL factory is based at Airfield Drive, Walsall and has the capacity to manufacture 1,000 units annually, offering 140mm or 195mm closed Eco panel timber frame systems, with an on-site installation service, using Structural Timber Association approved installers. “We are moving ahead with the closure of the business after being unable to secure a viable sale,” said GSA. Housing provider GSA announced exit plans in September 2025, in line with its strategy to focus on core social landlord services.
TTJ | Spring 2016 |
www.ttjonline.com
“As previously outlined, LoCaL Homes has been operating at a loss, and we cannot continue to subsidise this,” said Mona Shah, chief finance and investment officer at GSA.
“At the same time, GSA faces a challenging financial landscape and must prioritise investment in existing homes over new development.”
Timber frame wall on a butterfly table at LoCaL Homes
UK News
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