search.noResults

search.searching

saml.title
dataCollection.invalidEmail
note.createNoteMessage

search.noResults

search.searching

orderForm.title

orderForm.productCode
orderForm.description
orderForm.quantity
orderForm.itemPrice
orderForm.price
orderForm.totalPrice
orderForm.deliveryDetails.billingAddress
orderForm.deliveryDetails.deliveryAddress
orderForm.noItems
| 29


without the peaks we usually see,” he said. “If we have a period of good weather we may recover some lost ground.”


The merchant pointed out the “unbelievable demand” during the Covid lockdowns was the anomaly. “The underlying demand is still there but it’s more back to normal,” he said. A sawmiller added that although, overall, the UK timber market was described as mediocre, the number of artic loads leaving his yard every day indicated things weren’t too bad.


“There’s still a lot of wood going out,” he said. “We are pretty upbeat. We’re running at full tilt and we’re not overstocked; we are at as good a place as we can be in this market. It’s not brilliant but it’s not the gloom and doom some people are saying.” The current, less volatile market may also be a reflection of the changing ownership structure in the timber industry. Now many companies are owned by private equity firms where accountants keep a tighter rein on where money is held.


“It’s probably the new normal,” one contact


told TTJ. “Private equity businesses dominate merchant chains now. They’re not going to lash out a lot of money and put stock on the ground just in case. They operate differently


and the industry has to get used to it.” One independent supplier admitted he was carrying more stock than his accountant would probably like but as most of his customers ordered on a daily basis, rather than pre-ordering, he had to ensure he had available the timber of the right quality and treatment for those orders. “We have to hold enough stock to keep going for six to eight weeks, plus a buffer,” he said. To what extent the cost of living crisis will affect fencing sales this summer is unclear. Some contacts believed foreign holidays and the promise of sun and sea might lure people away from their gardens, and the impact of the major national housebuilders’ plans to reduce output this year will trickle down to fencing.


Those with generous disposable income, however, may continue to spend it. One supplier said demand was still strong for his top-end product of automated hardwood gates but a shortage of labour for installation meant they were on a five to six-month lead time.


A sawmiller said inconsistency was the only consistency in feedback from his customers.


“One major garden buildings supplier said he couldn’t shift fencing panels but he was selling value sheds at a rate of knots but some fencing panel manufacturers are saying people are no longer buying the £60-80 panels and going for £20-30 products instead,” he said.


While inflationary pressures might shape buying behaviour, they are also a burden for business. “Our costs have shifted from timber being the biggest cost to overheads such as fuel and energy,” said a supplier.


The restrictions on red diesel use introduced in April last year had doubled the cost of running diesel fork lifts, and made electric fork lifts more economical. He recently added three electric machines to his fleet of 15 and would consider more electric fork lifts as replacements were needed.


Now OPEC’s decision to cut oil production by 1.6 million barrels a day is likely to raise the price of oil and therefore the cost of most products and services.


“If inflation lowers it doesn’t necessarily mean prices lower and OPEC reducing production could mean all costs go up and we’re back in a vicious circle,” said a supplier. ■


economic pressure. With around 40% of the annual production of new pallets used somewhere in the construction sector, the downturn here has obviously impacted on our business. Users say they are running between 20-40% behind their forecasts. The independent Afry index has shown


a decrease of around 15% in the price of timber during the past 12 months but it has had no real effect because of the slower demand for finished goods. TIMCON continues to monitor developments and to work closely with our customers to minimise the impact of these pressures.


Meanwhile, as more workers have left the market because of illness or to pursue new careers, clear communications are essential for sectors such as ours to tackle the difficulties in recruiting and retaining good quality staff. TIMCON has begun lobbying the government to ensure that any new legislation to help bring foreign workers to the UK – for construction work, for example – includes provision for wooden pallet and packaging workers. The message is clear: if there are not enough pallets and packaging being produced, it could significantly impact on expectations for increasing UK housebuilding. We also are working on a communications


initiative that will highlight pallets and packaging specifically, and wood- based industries in general, as dynamic, exciting places to work. This campaign will communicate our environmental credentials to the supply chains and wider public, including the reusability of wood products, the role of wood products in the circular economy, and the overall sustainability of our business. After years of lobbying, the industry was delighted when Defra announced it would explore options for setting reuse obligations on wooden pallets, rather than recycling targets (and setting recycling targets for all other wood packaging), with a reuse scheme. This will ensure pallets are kept in service as long as possible, avoid higher recycling targets disincentivising reuse loop systems for pallets, and help meet government sustainability goals. Many consumers still don’t understand how wood-based businesses work. Every part of a harvested tree is used, trees are replaced with new plantings and, with the example of pallets and packaging, they are usually repaired and reused many times before being recycled.


The wooden pallet and packaging sector is one of the world’s most sustainable industries, and one that keeps international supply chains moving. It is a business full of


great people, featuring opportunities to travel and work with colleagues around the globe. We are encouraging our colleagues from


other forest-based businesses to help us promote these messages, which are vital for us, but also vital for the development of an economy that has the environment at its heart. As one politician told TIMCON last year: “If we don’t deliver on forestry, we won’t deliver on our climate objectives”. ■


Above: Around 40% of the annual production of new pallets is used somewhere in the construction sector PHOTO: PAUL NEMETH


www.ttjonline.com | May/June 2023 | TTJ


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72  |  Page 73  |  Page 74  |  Page 75  |  Page 76  |  Page 77  |  Page 78  |  Page 79  |  Page 80  |  Page 81  |  Page 82  |  Page 83  |  Page 84  |  Page 85