6 | UK News
Roof battens come under increased scrutiny with warning of sub-standard products circulating in UK
“These sub-standard goods are becoming an increasingly serious issue for merchants, roofing contractors and their clients,” it said.
Above: Established roof batten supplier SR Timber’s battens on a building site
A fresh industry warning of increasing proliferation of sub-standard, counterfeit roofing battens circulating in the UK has been sounded by the National Federation of Roofing Contractors (NFRC). The NFRC’s warning has been joined by Timber Development UK issuing advice to its members on how to ensure their roof battens are compliant.
Several leading industry roof batten suppliers are also believed to be joining in discussions to help combat the problem. The NFRC’s latest warning was issued on February 20 and saw the organisation warning that an “abundance” of sub- standard battens being marked coloured and sold as BS 5534 compliant, “when in fact they are counterfeit”.
NFRC said marking alone is not proof that the batten has been graded correctly or that it is of the correct standard. Guidance on this can be found in the NFRC safety alert “Substandard roofing battens”. “Using non-compliant battens may result in the contractor having to strip and re-roof a property should the battens be proven to be substandard, and a significant health and safety risk is created by the contractor using non-compliant battens as a foothold as this is in contravention to the guidelines set out in HSG33: Health and Safety in Roofwork.”
Shaun Revill, trading director of batten specialist SR Timber, told TTJ that the circulation of imported sub-standard battens was increasing and a serious problem. Issues included undersizing, lack of kiln drying, and lack of thorough strength grading, all which could lead to quality, safety and longevity issues for roofs.
Use of a dye to colour the wood and BS marking wasn’t sufficient evidence to prove fit for purpose, he said. But how to police the supply of battens on
UK timber import volumes up 0.5% in 2024
UK import volumes of the main timber and panel products finished 2024 up by 0.5% on the previous year, according to the latest statistics from Timber Development UK (TDUK).
The slight increase, helped by a strong Q4, 2024 for import volumes, equated to a 45,000m3
rise.
TDUK said import volumes had steadily improved since Q3 2022, with the final quarter of 2024 showing volumes 13.1% higher than the same period the year before, although Q4 2023 was a historically weak comparison period.
The small overall volume increase in timber and panel imports in 2024 was led by modest growth in softwood imports, supported by small increases in the volume of plywood, OSB and engineered wood products. Volume reductions were experienced by
TTJ | March/April 2025 |
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hardwood, particleboard and MDF imports. Solid wood imports for the year were 1.2% higher than in 2023, while imports of panel products were 1.0% lower.
TDUK says overall volumes from the top five softwood supplying countries reduced slightly, with only Latvia and the Republic of Ireland growing by 7%. Norway, Lithuania, Austria, France and Canada all enjoyed higher volumes, and the combined growth from all countries outside of the top five in 2024 was an impressive 26%. The overall value of softwood imports in 2024 was 1.5% higher than in 2023. Whitewood values were 1.7% lower in 2024 and redwood values rose by 6.2%. All hardwood imports in 2024 were 2.2%, (or 10,000m3
), lower than in 2023.
Main contributors to this were the US and Cameroon, but higher volumes came from France, Latvia, Estonia and Romania.
construction sites was a difficult question, he said.
Mr Revill said SR Timber was looking to meet with other longstanding reputable suppliers to discuss how to tackle the issue, but admitted education was key. “If you are going to buy roofing battens, then buy from a responsible source but still examine the batten to make sure they are up to standard,” Mr Revill said. TDUK said it takes all claims of substandard timber product entering the UK market “very seriously” and has issued a note to members on how to check roofing battens are compliant The TDUK Trade Note ‘Tile Batten Quality Control’ provides guidance on how everyone in the construction supply chain can protect themselves against any potentially fraudulent or substandard tile batten which may be present on the UK market.
“Do not purchase any tile batten with varying percentages of BS.5534 available, this may also be offered to you at different price points,” TDUK said.
“There is only one grade of tile batten for roofing, and it should be 100% BS 5534 compliant.
“This means your supplier should only be offering one price point.”
Garden office manufacturer restructures The manufacturing assets of a Suffolk
garden office manufacturer are being auctioned off after a company restructure. The Thurston-based manufacturing business SMART Offices Limited, established in 2006, entered liquidation on February 5.
The move does not affect the business of Smart Modular Buildings Ltd, which is engaged in sales and marketing functions and is now sourcing its buildings via a third-party partner.
Matt Moss, CEO of Smart Modular Buildings, told TTJ that a strategic decision had been made recently to end in-house manufacturing due to a number of factors, including increased NI contributions and withdrawal of R&D tax credits.
UK News
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