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Above: BSW’s new eased edged screening battens are ideal for both residential and commercial landscaping projects
encouraging, but we need to keep banging that drum because, ultimately, producing pallets is only half the battle. The initiative is essentially built on the return, reuse and redistribution of those pallets.”
This time last year British Gypsum had just come on board with Pallet LOOP and since then three more manufacturers have joined – Isover, Wienerberger and Superglass. Pallet LOOP and fellow BSW business
Scott Pallets have both been shortlisted for the Sustainable Materials Award at the 2025 Supply Chain Excellence Awards, which take place on November 6.
BSW hasn’t let the grass grow when it comes to product development either and in July it introduced a range of additions to its portfolio.
These include decorative micro cross- laminated (CLT) timber panels. A partnership between BSW Timber and Binderholz this line of decorative micro CLT is a first for the UK market and provides alternative products for builders and DIYers alike, showcasing the versatility and quality of timber as a construction material.
This new product is a 3-layer solid wood spruce panel with tongue and groove connections on all four edges or as a larger panel in square edge. It provides a highly decorative finish for a multitude of high- quality interior construction and DIY projects. The new multi-layered panels have a planed, finished surface, which is easy to stain or paint, and come ready to fix, using hidden fixings for an aesthetic finish. Also new, and expanding BSW’s already vast range of fencing components, are eased edge screening battens. Perfect for creating garden zones, privacy screens, or decorative fencing, these battens are ideal for both residential and commercial landscaping projects. Each batten is planed and pressure-treated, with rounded corners,
ensuring a splinter-free smooth finish and long-lasting durability. They are suitable for vertical or horizontal installation and can be stained or painted.
Two UC4 decorative pine products have also been introduced. These planed, eased edge pine posts and pine sleepers are manufactured from kiln-dried pine, both products are planed all round with eased corners to deliver a clean, refined finish that’s ideal for visible applications.
The decorative pine posts are available in 2400, 3000 and 3600mm lengths, with a section size of 100 x 100mm, making them perfect for structural garden features such as pergolas, trellis systems, and outdoor frames. The decorative pine sleepers, measuring 195 x 75mm, come in 2400mm lengths and are ideally suited to landscaping applications like edging, retaining walls, steps, and raised planting areas.
Looking ahead, the prospect of an increase in demand for timber construction purposes presents both opportunities and challenges. “Demand hasn’t materialised in terms of new houses and construction output as the best-case scenario would have suggested it could – but equally I think most of the construction sector agrees that there isn’t currently enough labour in place to fulfil that best scenario,” said Mr Brennan. “We need to bring more people and skills into the industry before it can really grow, but I think regardless of that, demand for timber is going to increase. It is the most sustainable building product on the planet. Some forecasts say that by 2040/2050 demand will triple or even quadruple – it’s just a case of when and how government and legislation adapt to facilitate that.” Over at Gordon Timber, Scott Gordon agrees that encouraging young people into the industry is a vital investment in the future. It has been very supportive of careers
events at local schools in order to showcase jobs in manufacturing and timber processing. It has its first apprenticeship under way on the engineering side and is looking to roll that out into other areas of the business. The company has also created its own opportunities for career progression. Earlier this year Scott Gordon and his brother Rod stepped back from their positions as joint managing directors and appointed Johnny Dean as chief executive officer. In their new roles as executive directors, Rod now concentrates on strategic priorities while Scott continues with his responsibility for capital expenditure and sales. “It has worked very well,” said Scott Gordon. “Johnny has been with the company for almost 18 years so we very much knew what we were getting. He has run his own haulage before and was with us leading the harvesting side of the business and playing a lead role in the senior team.
“He is well respected and making a real difference on the operational side. It also creates its own opportunities, so with Johnny moving up we have appointed Scott Grant as head of harvesting. Scott has been with us for 20+ years and that has allowed him to progress.
“The CEO creation has been a key part of succession planning, allowing the development of other people in the company,” said Mr Gordon. “We have a new head of finance who has been with us nine months, and a new engineering manager who came on board in March.
“They are great examples of people who have come into the business with a wide variety of skills and fresh ideas and made a difference, building on what was already a successful business. “As the saying goes, you don’t have to be bad to get better – and we want to keep building.” ■
www.ttjonline.com | September/October 2025 | TTJ
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