Woodknowledge Wales

Woodknowledge Wales

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Project manager – Forestry and Timber 

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Join our growing team in Wales

Are you our future project manager – forestry and timber?

Make an impact as our Forestry and Timber expert

 Are you passionate about expanding the role of trees and timber in society? Are you committed to improving the sustainability of our built and natural environments? Would you like to work with us in Wales? You would be joining a small and highly motivated multi-disciplinary team. As our Project Manager for Forestry and Timber activities you will help to strengthen relationships across the forestry supply chain to build knowledge and trust and accelerate the transition to a zero carbon Wales. You will be instrumental in creating new insights into the links between land-use, forest management, timber processing, timber manufacturing and low carbon construction. You will be involved in all aspects of our work from forest creation up to completed buildings. 

Download job description

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Job description and person specification summary 

 JOB TITLE Project Manager – Forestry and Timber 
PURPOSE OF JOB To be responsible for the delivery of the forest industries aspects of the Home-Grown Homes Project and support the Woodknowledge Wales team in delivering on its wider mission and purpose 
REPORTING TO Gary Newman, CEO Woodknowledge Wales. 
SUPPORTED BY David Hedges (Home-Grown Homes Project Manager), Chris Jones (forestry advisor), Dainis Dauksta (wood science and timber processing advisor) 
LOCATION Predominantly home-based with an expectation to travel anywhere within Wales and the borders as required by the job 
AREA OF WORK Throughout Wales working with organisations in the timber supply chain from forest to end-product 
HOURS OF WORK Full-time. Some long days and weekend working may be required from time to time including occasional overnight stays 
SALARY Between £30k and £40k depending on experience 
DURATION This is a permanent job. However, funding for this post is currently secured until 31st March 2025. We expect funding to continue for a further 2 years to March 2027, after which time Woodknowledge Wales aims to be largely self-financing 
HOW TO APPLY Send CV with a covering letter stating why you believe you are suited to the post to gary.newman@woodknowledgewales.co.uk  
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION 17th April 2023 
DATE & LOCATION for INTERVIEW Provisional: 27th and 28th April 2023  Location: TBA (ideally in-person but possibly online via Zoom) 

About the Home-Grown Homes Project 

This opportunity is being supported through the Welsh Government funded Home-Grown Homes project. This multi award-winning project started in 2018 by encouraging Welsh Housing Associations (who build approximately 1 out of 3 new homes in Wales) to build with timber and working with the supply chain to help enable delivery. The project has led to many new low carbon timber-based housing developments and has inspired new Welsh Government policies across housing, the economy, forestry and timber sales from the state forest. Our work has been commended internationally and some of our best practice guidance has been recommended for use to the design community by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The Home-Grown Homes project began by creating a coalition of the willing. The purpose of this next phase of the project is in a large part to support Welsh Government meet its new policy objectives and aspirations across forestry, construction and land-use to help drive forward the low carbon, circular and foundational economy. 

Key Responsibilities 

You will be responsible for delivery of the forestry and timber aspects of the Home-Grown Homes Project (HGHP2) as described in the Woodknowledge Wales project proposal (provided on request). You will set the work programme, coordinating delivery partners, reporting on progress and take responsibility for delivery of outputs. You will be supported by the Chief Executive of Woodknowledge Wales, and the Woodknowledge Wales project team which includes experts in forestry, sawmilling, manufacturing, housing, wood science, timber construction, communication and systems change. 

This work includes: 

● Being able to work effectively with a diverse range of organisations from the forestry sector, the timber processors, timber manufacturers, trade bodies and academic institutes. 

● Identifying opportunities for innovation and change across the supply chain to help deliver on Woodknowledge Wales vision for Wales to become a high-value forest nation 

● Working with Woodknowledge Wales’s Communities of Practice 

● Managing subcontractors 

● Leading the relationship with the forestry and timber processing organisations 

● Preparing progress reports and contributing to the writing articles for Woodknowledge Wales newsletters and website 

● Producing written outputs for publication 

● In addition, the successful candidate is expected to contribute to the overall mission of Woodknowledge Wales and help design, organise and participate in events such as webinars, workshops and conferences (incl. the annual WoodBUILD conference and expo) 

Key abilities / experience 

We are looking for someone who can work closely with a small team in a flexible and supportive way across job boundaries. You must be able to engage with all relevant individuals and organisations in the supply chain from forest to construction sector. You must be able to do this in a way that promotes trust and supports the mission and purpose of Woodknowledge Wales as an independent for-public-good organisation. You must be able to communicate with empathy and clarity in discussion around complex challenges to landscapes and communities posed by climate change. 

Person Specification 

Essential criteria (Knowledge / Experience / Skills / Other) 

● Have a forestry qualification wood science or related qualification and/or relevant experience 

● Project management and decision-making 

● Financial management of programmes and projects 

● Evidence of effective partnership working 

● knowledge of timber products and their uses 

● Thorough working knowledge of Microsoft Office 

● An organised self-starter, able to manage own workload and work independently to tight time scales 

● Excellent communication and interpersonal skills – specifically the ability to work closely with partner organisations 

● Excellent problem-solving skills, coming up with ideas and solutions as issues arise. Able to use ‘critical thinking’ in examining complex, problems 

● Willingness to work in a flexible way and respond to changing circumstances 

● Able to discuss technical aspects of forestry and wood products clearly with a wide range of industry players, stakeholders, politicians, owners etc 

● Full, clean driving license and access to a car for travel throughout those parts of Wales where there is limited access to public transport 

Desirable criteria: 

● Have experience of land management issues and a robust knowledge of the competing interests of production forestry, biodiversity, access, recreation etc and the need to balance social and economic demands 

● Knowledge of the forestry timber processing and timber construction sector (preferably in Wales). 

● Working knowledge/experience in Government funding programme requirements and related audit criteria 

● Be up to date with changes in legislation etc which impact on the forestry supply chain 

● Understanding and experience of wider delivery of social value through investment programmes. 

● Public speaking skills 

● Welsh language skills 

About Woodknowledge Wales 

Woodknowledge Wales is an independent mission driven membership alliance. We are a charitable Community Benefits Society, which is a form of cooperative that exists for the benefit of society. We are governed by a voluntary board. We aim to create and share knowledge to accelerate change. We believe that timber demand and supply can be better aligned and more purposefully driven to deliver greater climate change mitigation and biodiversity enhancement across land use and construction. We are transparent and collaborative in our approach. We are a change organisation driven by impact rather than income. 

We are a small interdisciplinary team of driven individuals motivated to inspire, catalyse and accelerate the transformation to a regenerative zero carbon society through the growing of trees and the use of wood. We believe that the most effective way to do this is to build trust in the change agenda by supporting organisations involved in both timber use and supply. We seek to capture and share the knowledge gained by holding engaging events, by creating informative case studies, by developing new guidance and through inspiring communication. We support policy makers to create enabling policies and then help overcome barriers to implementation. 

How to apply

Send CV with a covering letter stating why you believe you are suited to the post. Send this information via email to Gary Newman

Click here to get in touch and apply

Communications & Events Manager

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Join our dynamic team in Wales

Could you be our future communications and events executive?

Apply your passion for purposeful communications with us!

 Are you passionate about creating a low-carbon future that allows people to thrive on a healthy planet? Do you enjoy developing creative ideas and communicating with different stakeholders across a variety of channels including social media? Are you comfortable taking responsibility and delivering tasks on your own as much as working in a small team? Then work with us in Wales! 

You will be part of a small, highly motivated, multi-disciplinary team dedicated to increasing the role of forestry and timber to support the decarbonisation of our built environment. 

As the communication and events executive, you will be a key driving force behind Woodknowledge Wales and its success. You will be instrumental in inspiring a positive can-do approach within our organisation and networks. Together with our project partners and a highly committed team, you will help to create a compelling case for timber construction, local manufacturing, home-grown timber and afforestation in Wales and thereby help to transform Wales into a low carbon, more resilient forest nation. 

Download job description

To download the PDF version

Click here

Job description and person specification summary

 JOB TITLE Communication and events manager 
PURPOSE OF JOB To support delivery of the communication, events and network management aspects of the Home-Grown Homes Project (HGHP2) and Woodknowledge Wales wider mission and purpose. 
REPORTING TO Gary Newman (CEO) and Christiane Lellig (Communications and Marketing Manager) 
SUPPORTED BY The Woodknowledge Wales team 
LOCATION Predominantly home-based with an expectation to travel anywhere within Wales and the borders as required 
AREA OF WORK Throughout Wales working with our stakeholders across the timber supply chain from forest to end product 
HOURS OF WORK Full-time. Some long days and weekend working may be required from time to time including occasional overnight stays. Part-time considered.
SALARY Between £25k and £35k depending on experience 
DURATION This is a permanent job. However, funding for this post is currently secured until 31st March 2025. We expect funding to continue to March 2027 
HOW TO APPLY Send CV with a covering letter stating why you believe you are suited to the post to gary.newman@woodknowledgewales.co.uk 
DEADLINE FOR APPLICATION 17th April 2023 
DATE & LOCATION for INTERVIEW Provisional: 27th and 28th April 2023  Location: TBA (ideally in-person but possibly online via Zoom) 

About the Home-Grown Homes Project 

This opportunity is being supported through the Welsh Government funded Home-Grown Homes project. This multi award-winning project started in 2018 by encouraging Welsh Housing Associations (who build approximately 1 out of 3 new homes in Wales) to build with timber and working with the supply chain to help enable delivery. The project has led to many new low carbon timber-based housing developments and has inspired new Welsh Government policies across housing, the economy, forestry and timber sales from the state forest. Our work has been commended internationally and some of our best practice guidance has been recommended for use to the design community by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). The Home-Grown Homes project began by creating a coalition of the willing. The purpose of this next phase of the project is in a large part to support Welsh Government meet its new policy objectives and aspirations across forestry, construction and land-use to help drive forward the low carbon, circular and foundational economy. 

Key Responsibilities 

You will be responsible for implementing the communications and stakeholder engagement plan of the Home-Grown Homes Project (HGHP2) by bringing its ideas to life in creative and engaging ways. The plan is available on demand. 

Content management 

Your tasks include coordinating, editing and managing our social media accounts, newsletters, publications and website as well as curating our image and video library. In short, you will be in charge of our online and offline content. 

Events management 

You will help organise and promote our conferences, workshops and training events. You will work with team members and external delivery partners to ensure the smooth running and delivery of a range of private and public facing activities. 

Stakeholder management 

You will be responsible for stakeholder management. In this role you will coordinate stakeholder engagement across the team and communicate with our networks and members. 

Monitoring and evaluation 

You will monitor and evaluate our communications activities across all channels. 

You will work with the communication and marketing manager and will be supported by the Chief Executive and our project team which includes experts in forestry, housing, manufacturing, wood science, timber construction, and systems change. 

Key abilities / experience 

We are looking for someone with the ability to work closely with a small team in a flexible and supportive way across job boundaries and who is comfortable working from home. You must be able to engage with all relevant individuals and organisations in the supply chain from forest to construction sector in in a way that promotes trust and supports the mission and purpose of Woodknowledge Wales as a for-public-good organisation. 

You must be able to develop an understanding of the complex challenges to landscapes and communities posed by climate change and to communicate with empathy and clarity in discussions around these. 

Person Specification 

  • Relevant experience in communication, marketing, event management 
  • Project management and decision-making skills. Ability to prioritise and manage multiple project tasks and deadlines. 
  • Stakeholder engagement and management skills. Evidence of effective partnership working. 
  • Journalistic skills and evidence of engaging content delivery across multiple formats. Ability to write in an engaging style 
  • Thorough working knowledge of Microsoft Office, online conferencing tools (e.g. Zoom, Teams) 
  • Working knowledge in the use of content and event management software (e.g. Mailchimp, Hootsuite, Eventbrite, WordPress) 
  • An organised self-starter, able to manage own workload and work independently to tight time-scales 
  • Excellent communication and interpersonal skills – specifically the ability to work closely with network organisations 
  • Willingness to work in a flexible way and respond to changing circumstances 

Desirable criteria 

  • Design skills and the ability to use relevant design software (e.g. Adobe, Photoshop, etc.) 
  • Welsh language skills 
  • Public speaking skills to deliver presentations and facilitate public meetings. 
  • Full, clean driving license and access to a car for travel throughout those parts of Wales where there is limited access to public transport 

About Woodknowledge Wales 

Woodknowledge Wales is an independent mission driven membership alliance. We are a charitable Community Benefits Society, which is a form of cooperative that exists for the benefit of society. We are governed by a voluntary board. We aim to create and share knowledge to accelerate change. We believe that timber demand and supply can be better aligned and more purposefully driven to deliver greater climate change mitigation and biodiversity enhancement across land use and construction. We are transparent and collaborative in our approach. We are a change organisation driven by impact rather than income. 

We are a small interdisciplinary team of driven individuals motivated to inspire, catalyse and accelerate the transformation to a regenerative zero carbon society through the growing of trees and the use of wood. We believe that the most effective way to do this is to build trust in the change agenda by supporting organisations involved in both timber use and supply. We seek to capture and share the knowledge gained by holding engaging events, by creating informative case studies, by developing new guidance and through inspiring communication. We support policy makers to create enabling policies and then help overcome barriers to implementation. 

How to apply

Send CV with a covering letter stating why you believe you are suited to the post. Send this information via email to Gary Newman 

Click here to get in touch and apply

Reflections Post COP26

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By Gary Newman

Was COP26 a big success or a missed opportunity? Viewed positively, the conference represented a significant ‘shifting of the dial’ with new pledges and targets. On the other hand, it was not the transformative moment that many had hoped for. In reality, we will only be able to judge the significance of COP26 with the passage of time. Today, the increasing consensus about what needs to be done to limit climate change is finally shifting the focus onto delivering the actions in reality.
In Wales, we have increasingly ambitious policies and accompanying funding for two key climate change mitigation solutions – the expansion of tree planting and the creation of low carbon housing from timber.

Making investment promises count

In terms of housing, Welsh Government are investing £250m a year for the next 5 years to deliver their target of 20,000 new low carbon homes. A further £150m is being made available  to improve energy efficiency and reduce carbon emissions by retrofitting existing homes. Furthermore, new standards for social housing introduced in October this year are encouraging low embodied carbon, the use of timber and proof of housing performance through measurement of outcomes. Our ongoing WoodBUILD 2021 programme is all about exploring how these new standards can be understood and implemented in a way that supports Welsh forestry and timber construction sectors.
In terms of tree planting, Welsh Government have a highly ambitious target of an additional 43,000 ha by 2030 and 180,000 by 2050. This would increase our forest cover from the current 15% of our land area to 24%. Financial support for new tree planting has increased from £1m in 2019/2020 per year to £5.5 million in 2021/22. Whilst certainly not enough to achieve our targets this is a definite statement of intent.
These promising policies are reinforced by a further 39 recommended actions emanating from the Trees and Timber Task Force led by Deputy Climate Change minister, Lee Waters MS. The development of a timber industrial strategy, which is hoped to be a significant turning point for the Welsh forest industries sector, features among these recommendations.

Turning good intentions into purposeful action?

More money and new policies and targets for tree planting, timber manufacturing and housing will undoubtedly help to create the conditions necessary for progress, but they do not in themselves ensure that change will actually happen and with appropriate haste. We all know reality is way more complex than that. There is no precedent or blueprint for the scale of the change that is needed.
Becoming a forest nation will require the participation and collaboration across all sectors from farming to housing and everything in between. This is what we’re striving to develop within the Woodknowledge Wales membership network, through our Communities of Practice and by enabling further knowledge transfer and shared learning through case studies, events and guidance documents that are freely available on our website. We firmly believe that collaborative approaches are essential to enable and accelerate change and we are very grateful for the active participation of our members.  But creating and maintaining such a coalition for change is not a simple task. The building of trust takes time, is hard won and easily lost. As with COP26 on a global scale, so with the participants in the forest nation agenda on a Welsh scale – to achieve a better outcome for all we have to understand the benefits as well as the nature of the compromise we are asking for.
With this in mind , we are increasingly focused not so much on the what and why but on the who and how within our work programmes. Who needs to be involved and how can good intentions be turned into purposeful action across all the relevant sectors of farming, forestry, wood processing, timber manufacturing and construction?

Overcoming social and economic land-use divides

Increasing the supply of timber means saplings not only have to be grown and planted, but also managed to ensure they survive and thrive. This means farmers, as custodians of 80% of Welsh land, also have to become informed foresters. In many ways the land-use debate of farming v. forestry has become an artificial divide which was maintained and exaggerated by the Common Agriculture Policy – which should perhaps have always been a common land-use policy encompassing both farming and forestry. Growing crops, managing cattle and sheep or managing woodland all require different knowledge, skills and equipment but are well within the capability of the Welsh farming and rural communities.
If we are to dramatically increase our forest cover in line with targets and provide timber for industry, then we certainly need to do this in a way that is embraced by our communities. That means trees grown by Welsh farmers and in a way that supports rural employment in forest management and wood processing. There is much work to be done to inspire farmers to grow trees and to make it economically viable for them to do so. We have recently produced a series of briefing notes on the economics of growing trees for timber that are designed to support farmers and their advisors in their decision making. We will run a webinar for the farming community on this topic in early 2022.
In the housing sector we continue to work with our members on new build and retrofit housing projects to reduce embodied carbon, increase building performance, and to advance the appropriate use of timber components and offsite timber solutions from the Welsh supply chain.
So, regardless of the global politics played out at COP26, our focus remains upon how we can better support our growing and committed membership to get good things done. For us, this means planting more trees, processing more wood into high-value timber products and creating more low carbon homes from timber. That way we can be confident that we are reducing Welsh carbon emissions whilst at the same time building a more vibrant and resilient forest economy for the benefit of current and future generations.

Communities of Practice: Harnessing the power of collaboration

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“Whatever the problem, community is the answer” – Margaret J. Wheatley

Over recent years, systems change researchers and practitioners have concluded that building coalitions and working collaboratively is the only way to face the complex issues of climate change, biodiversity loss and social injustice. Yet, most of our business interactions are coined by competitive culture.
Communities of Practice (CoP) promote an open and collaborative approach which enables the participation of a diverse network of organisations, both across supply chains as well as within trades. Our work on the Home-Grown Homes Project and beyond has demonstrated numerous times, just how important trust is among members of the supply chain and how much can be achieved, when we work together on common issues that impact all of us.
Since 2019 we have developed four CoPs to gather professionals of the same trade or supply chain around shared challenges and opportunities. The groups bring together Social Housing Developers, Architects and Designers, Timber Frame Manufacturers and small scale Timber Processors and meet on a regular basis. Depending on the needs of the group, meetings take place on a bi-monthly or quarterly basis.
These communities are an essential part of our work. The dialogue between members informs and validates our various project outputs, whether this be technical guidance, a policy briefing or a proposed training format. It extends the impact of what we do and accelerates shared learning within and across the supply chain. Our CoPs are centred around practical solutions and capacity building and are designed to give members the opportunity to collaborate on prototyping innovative approaches.
The Timber Frame Manufacturing group has been looking at procurement options to enable timber solutions that meet zero carbon requirements and deliver on performance specifications. This has resulted in a problem statement and discussions with the Welsh Government and the delivery of a Masterclass on Value Based Procurement for public procurers and specifiers in social housing (more information on this topic in our next newsletter). The Social Housing Development group is collaborating on approaches to implementing a net zero carbon strategy, while the Architects and Designers group focuses on overcoming barriers to low carbon development as well as supporting clients in creating roadmaps to deliver net zero whole life carbon developments. Our most recent community, the Sawmillers group, is exploring collaboration on timber sourcing from the Welsh Estate, using diseased timber and sharing technical knowledge.
Each community is independent and as such defines its own agenda and schedule of actions based on the needs of its members. Woodknowledge Wales ensures flow of information between CoPs, so that we can progress together. It is not unusual to discover shared interests and challenges between members of different communities of practice. This gives us impetus for further action in looking across boundaries and exploring solutions that fit the needs of multiple communities.
Find out more about our Communities of Practice on our website.

Learning to build better homes

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Since the formal end of the Home-Grown Homes Project in March we’ve been applying the learning from it with social landlords. We’re moving from research into implementation – inviting social landlords to identify projects we could support them on. We have also formed a community of practice for our member development teams which has so far focussed on the key challenges in creating net zero carbon housing solutions. Our WoodBUILD events programme has been focussed on supporting social landlords and their partners to meet the new Welsh Development Quality Requirements 2021. The events have mostly been held virtually and have brought together experts in the field to contribute their thinking on action each organisation can take to respond.

The 2021 WDQR – Creating Beautiful Homes and Spaces

For readers unfamiliar with the new housing standards social landlords have to meet, they represent a significant change of approach for Welsh Government, which both funds and regulates them. It’s been a long-awaited review and its outcome is ambitious. They set minimum standards but encourage something better. And it’s not just about the homes but the spaces created around them.

WoodBUILD

The Launch Event kicked off with a welcome from Shayne Hembrow of Wales & West who with Welsh Government are WoodBUILD sponsors. It brought together Deputy Climate Change Minister Lee Waters, Campbell Lammie, one of the new standard architects and Pobl’s Neil Barber.

Exciting people about trees

100 virtual delegates heard Lee express his admiration for Woodknowledge Wales’ contribution to the ‘deep dive’ into tree planting. Society’s view on trees, wood, timber and forests he described is atrophied and not mature. ‘We need to excite people about trees and what they can do for us’. He talked of an alliance for change to get things done on tree planting where we needed to plant 86 million trees in 9 years, the enormity of which he thinks we haven’t yet grasped and which wasn’t helped by the ‘alien’ perception farmers have of tree planting. He wants to build a wood economy at the heart of which is creating 20,000 homes using MMC and timber solutions. He also sees an industry needing to adapt and to ask what the best use of trees is – garden fences or homes that displace carbon? As far as he is concerned, we need to plant more trees and make better use of the ones we do plant, to maximise the economic value – a genuinely exciting and huge challenge which he promised to drive forward with the deep dive group.

Raising the bar for new developments

Campbell Lammie gave a quick summary of the WDQR 2021, the first change in standards since the launch of the Development Quality Requirements in 2005. He described them as ‘raising the bar’ in a non-prescriptive way which, he hoped would produce better designs and a dialogue with the sector, given the need to respond to the climate emergency, move away from fossil fuels, favour a fabric first approach and encourage the use of timber. Campbell outlined the opportunities for using timber, an approach which he felt was made more likely by the consideration of upfront embodied carbon assessment likely in his view to be something which would become mandatory in the future with Net Zero Carbon taking more of a ‘front seat’. He was aware of the ambition in England to introduce whole life carbon assessment and ‘Part Z’. The target for projects to reach EPC A, with a fabric focus and an end to the use of fossil fuels could Campbell acknowledged be at odds with the ambition to lower carbon and this is where alternative approaches like Passivhaus came into play. Space standards were being mandated for the first time, gigabit broadband and attaining Secured by Design Gold standard were also features which would be included in a review in 2023.

Dealing with increasing complexity

Neil Barber, in responding identified several positives including clarity of policy, significant funding and alignment of funding streams, ambition in scale and requirements on quality, space and sustainability.  He identified the role of social landlords: creating timber system coherence, confidence, certainty and demand for the supply chain, sharing endeavour and moving beyond pilots. He described opportunities in standardisation, designing for manufacturing and assembly (off site), apprenticeships and training, investing in local economies and communities and recognition of timber as a low carbon material along with sustainably managed forests as a carbon store. He acknowledged the need for urgency in saying ‘we’ve kicked the can down the road for too long’. The delivery challenges included increasing complexity in the development process, lack of resources across many areas, rapid change, material price hikes and delivery delays.
Delegates posed questions on extending the standards to all homes, the availability of passivhaus type metrics, the skills challenge and tree planting performance. This is only the start of an ongoing dialogue. If you would like to be part of this conversation, please get in touch with david.hedges@woodknowledgewales.co.uk.

Reality bites: confronting our progress and set-backs—An update on the Welsh Timber Windows project

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It all sounded so straight forward: Bring some interested joinery businesses together, agree a joint window specification based on the type of windows they currently manufacture to PAS24 standard, define protocols and processes, then get certification. Done.
From the outset, we knew it would be more complex than that, of course. There are the technical aspects, requirements for group assessments, questions of capacity, business terms and agreements and then there are aspects of human interaction, the notion of collaboration and change in an environment defined by competitiveness and relatively low margins. What we didn’t anticipate was Covid and the ensuing run on wooden windows. The high demand has not subsided since it first started in summer 2020 and is forecast to last at least until next spring. This has put our participating joiners under massive pressure and forced us to embrace a stop-and-go approach in our project progress.
Our project set out to support local joinery businesses as well as social housing landlords and developers in Wales by linking up the supply chain and resolving current barriers to adoption of low-carbon high quality timber windows. If local joinery businesses are already at capacity and our project is adding another burden to their work, then we need to challenge our approach.
How could we alter our current approach to suit the needs of existing manufacturers and clients? What could alternatives to our group scheme look like? Should we investigate options to set up a Welsh window manufacturing cooperative with investment from Welsh Government and/or Housing Associations which specifically supplies the social housing sector and integrates a training and employment programme for social housing tenants? Should we look at inward investment and joint ventures with Welsh timber frame manufacturers? How can we tap into the collective intelligence of our network to create a good solution?

A year has passed and still no window?

Our last public update on the project dates from about a year ago, so what happened since then?
Based on feedback from social housing landlords, we had agreed on specifications for a standard casement window fit for the current market, with a high-performance window in line with future demand to be further developed in a second step. The original specification, agreed in November 2020, has marginally changed through the collaboration of three vanguard joinery businesses who have benefited from the SMART Innovation programme support. While businesses are ready to manufacture a prototype for simulation and testing, we are now awaiting the publication of the latest standards – PAS24/2020 – as do our hardware suppliers. These will determine requirements for Secured by Design certification and specifically which hardware we can choose. Unfortunately, this causes another delay in the project.
In the meantime, we’re working with Welsh Government officials to find a suitable solution for group assessment and certification with Secured by Design.

Business matters – who coordinates tenders and contracts

Over the past few months, we had discussions with joinery businesses, housing associations and local authorities to establish how we could best organise the coordination of tenders and contracts between one client – developer/social landlord or their principal contractor – and a number of manufacturers supplying windows to the same project.

Given the three options above, both clients and manufacturers expressed a shared preference for the “neutral vendor”. The consortium model has very few takers among joiners and direct sales is not in the client’s interest where several manufacturers are involved in the windows supply. This is particularly interesting, given that the Neutral Vendor is a concept gleaned from the recruitment sector, and was suggested as an ‘out of the box’ option by a joinery business in our community. We are now working with a small group of manufacturers and clients to explore how the Neutral Vendor model can work in practice. We are considering all aspects including pricing, branding and marketing.

Managing material price and shortages

Another area of shared interest between clients and manufacturers is the potential for procurement efficiencies by establishing a buying group and reflecting such cost efficiencies in the window pricing. The focus of such joint procurement would be on types of material where price points can be achieved. In the current situation of material shortages, long lead times and price hikes, some manufacturers suggested to negotiate orders with price freezes with suppliers of timber, glazing or hardware for the period from bidding to actual purchase.
In this context, some clients requested manufacturers hold stock of any elements that might require replacing over the mid- to long term, such as hinges and handles. The client’s focus on whole-life-costs needs to be considered in procurement approaches and material choices by the window supplier. This prospective look on future costs is a question of quality and trust.

What ensures quality and trust?

Quality assurance is very important for clients and joinery manufacturers alike. This accounts as much for the relationship between the window suppliers and the client as it does for the relationship between the joiners in the group. Manufacturers are crucially aware that in a group scheme their commercial success and reputation ultimately depends on consistent quality of products and services across all businesses. If anyone fails, the impact will be felt by all.
In addition to Secured By Design auditing, joiners suggest making BWF membership a mandatory requirement for all manufacturers of the Welsh timber window. They would demand installers to be FENSA registered and to have proven experience installing timber windows. Guidance on all processes such as transport, storage on site and installation would be specified in writing. The same would apply to maintenance instructions. In the case of damage and defects, each manufacturer would be responsible for sorting issues within their scope for the goods they delivered. To facilitate this, each window would be traceable to the manufacturer.

Whole-Life approach: carbon, cost and maintenance

The whole life approach being championed in the new Welsh Development Quality Requirements (WDQR) introduced in October 2021 has an instant impact on how social housing developers and landlords consider building elements. We believe this is good news for the specification of high-quality timber windows but does increase the information requirements of the client. This includes relevant information on lifespan guaranteed, whole life costs and maintenance cycles, whole life carbon performance and Environmental Product Declarations (EPD).
Our discussions with housing asset managers have raised some concerns. Costs for scaffolding to re-coat upper-floor windows, potential for sagging in certain types of windows as a function of window weight against hinges, ease of cleaning and general need for regular maintenance rank at the top of the list. As part of this we are exploring the benefits of inward opening windows for cleaning, maintenance and repair. These types of windows are standard throughout continental Europe. However, like all building elements windows are part of a system and we need to clarify what else would need to change, e.g. in the way they are installed or positioned within the window reveal, to better accommodate timber windows in Welsh social housing.
While a number of recent housing developments in Wales and across the UK feature inward opening windows, we still encounter frequent concerns that windows won’t open when tenants choose to have blinds installed, that residents can no longer use the inside window sills for ornaments, that these European style windows look out of place in Welsh housing, that water will come in when windows are opened after rainfall etc. We are curious to learn from social housing landlords who have chosen inward opening windows, how they have dealt with these perceived issues in practice. Have outside shutters been installed to offer enhanced security and shading? How have blinds been installed to allow window opening? What were the tenants’ reactions?

Challenging our approach

This all may sound quite exciting, but the hard reality is that we have a project delay of over 12 months. More and more social housing developers ask us where they can get hold of SBD certified timber windows whilst most joinery businesses tell us they are continuously working beyond capacity and there is no end in sight. Clients confirm they struggle to get quotes from Welsh manufacturers.
There are a number of concerns from joiners regarding payment terms and expected turnaround of orders for commercial projects like social housing. Many small businesses pay weekly wages. Payment terms for commercial contracts are 60-90 days. Turnaround is often expected within 6 weeks. Material costs are volatile. This mix threatens smaller businesses’ cash flow. A larger project which appears lucrative on the surface may take a window manufacturer into administration if there are delays or unforeseen costs or it may not be financially feasible from the outset.
For most joinery businesses participation in the project is mostly not driven by commercial consideration but by community interest – it’s a good thing to do. Investment in tooling is driven by the prospect of demand for the ‘new’ windows but joiners are unsure how much demand there will actually be, all while trying to juggle full order books and staff shortages for the last 18 months. At some point they will need to breathe. Innovation and collaboration demand considerable time commitment and head space. Both seem not easily available at present or in the near future.
Our project set out to support local joinery businesses as well as social housing landlords and developers in Wales by linking up the supply chain and resolving current barriers to adoption of low-carbon high quality timber windows. If local joinery businesses are already at capacity and our project is adding another burden to their work, then we need to challenge our approach.
How could we alter our current approach to suit the needs of existing manufacturers and clients? What could we learn from community finance projects to help small businesses with temporary cash flow issues in larger commercial projects?
What could alternatives to our group scheme look like? Should we investigate options to set up a Welsh window manufacturing cooperative with investment from Welsh Government and/or Housing Associations which specifically supplies the social housing sector and integrates a training and employment programme for social housing tenants? Should we look at inward investment and joint ventures with Welsh timber frame manufacturers?
We’re not asking for answers on a postcard. Instead, we invite you to get in touch and share your thoughts and ideas on this matter with us. The only way we can create a good solution is by tapping into the collective intelligence of our network and beyond.
Find more about the Welsh Timber Windows project.

The new Welsh Government and reasons for optimism

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A comment by Gary Newman

Three months into the new legislative period, it’s time to look at the political implications for trees and timber of this year’s elections. With an effective majority, Labour now has a clear mandate to implement their stated commitments to forestry and timber. Which should mean a substantial increase in tree planting, a timber industrial strategy and the greater use of home-grown timber in social housing.

It’s easy to be cynical given past inertia, but I’m extremely optimistic about the next 5 years and here are three good reasons why:

1. The new climate change ‘super ministry’

Housing, forestry and other remits of Natural Resources Wales, building regulation and planning (and many other things besides) now fall within this ministry. This is an incredibly joined up approach. In 2013 I was part of a team advising Westminster on a forestry and timber development strategy and I witnessed first-hand the problem of the fragmented departmental nature of government. Climate change targets being held by one ministry, housing by another and forestry by another. Perhaps predictably nothing much came of it. However, with this new joined-up ‘super-ministry’ in Wales, the climate change minister does have the authority and means to drive change. Which leads me to the second reason to be optimistic – the ministers in charge.

2. Julie James MS and Lee Waters MS

If I could have picked two ministers from the previous administration to run the Climate change ministry, it would have been these two. Julie James has a clear and often expressed passion for forestry and timber construction and has been a big supporter of the Woodknowledge Wales agenda since our launch in 2016. I’m speculating but maybe Julie has been influenced by a period from her childhood living in Canada where she was surrounded by forests and presumably lived in a timber house.

And then there’s Lee Waters MS, her deputy. Lee has been a champion for the development of Foundational Economy thinking and doing. We set out the opportunity for trees and timber in the Foundational Economy agenda in our Serious About Green report. Within two months of the May election, Lee has thrown himself into the Welsh forestry and timber agenda. Which brings me to the third reason to be optimistic.

3. The Trees and Timber ‘Deep Dive’

Announced by Lee Waters in June and completed by 13th July, the ‘Trees and Timber Deep Dive’ was intense and exciting for all involved. It brought together stakeholders from the forestry and land-use sector including social housing experts and foundational economists. Nine 90-minute meetings, chaired by Lee Waters himself, took place over a three-week period. A series of round-tables ensured views and voices of other stakeholder groups (e.g. farmers, biodiversity NGOs and industry) were heard. Two additional meetings were scheduled to kick-off the development of the industrial strategy for timber, chaired by Foundational Economy champion and Serious about Green author, Karel Williams.

The result of this work is a verbal and written statement of intent in the Senedd. It provides the basis for the development of a purpose-driven Welsh wood economy starting now. We’re particularly pleased to see our work in the Home-Grown Homes Project getting a specific mention.

From words to action

Of course, we’re mindful of the fact that words do not plant trees, process timber or build homes. But it is clear to me, and hopefully others, that the joined-up Climate change super ministry is great news for forestry and timber and that Julie James and Lee Waters mean business.

The written statement includes both specific new policies as well as additional financial resources.

Its ‘call to arms’ and appeal to an ‘alliance for change’ makes me very confident that now is the time for us together with our growing and committed membership across the forestry, timber and housing supply chain to help turn political aspiration into tangible and lasting change.

Investing in Afforestation—Economic aspects of woodland creation for timber production | Briefing Papers

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The decision to invest in an afforestation project with the primary aim of producing timber may involve many personal and environmental factors alongside financial considerations. Adoption of a forestry enterprise within a farming unit represents a change in land use and a long-term investment of land, labour and resources. Financial evaluation provides a structured and objective means to inform the decision and allows comparison of afforestation with other economic uses of land.
Afforestation projects can take a number of forms, from planting steep areas or wet corners of a farm to integrating timber trees with agricultural production or establishing plantation woodlands. Some afforestation projects such as commercial plantation woodlands have the potential to produce quality timber products alongside diversifying farm incomes and providing other environmental benefits such as carbon sequestration and flood risk mitigation.
This series of guidance notes provides practical information for farmers and other landowners interested in investing in forestry. It is designed to help develop a first understanding of economic evaluation of afforestation projects. The six guidance notes of the series introduce the basic steps involved in the assessment of such projects to allow some preliminary due diligence when considering an investment in forestry. This does not replace a full assessment and advice by a chartered forest manager.
BRIEFING PAPERS →

Climate Change Mitigation Potential of Conifer Plantations

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Expanding commercial conifer forestry is the most efficient strategy for achieving climate change mitigation through woodland creation, according to a new study published in Nature Communications.
The ground-breaking research led by Bangor University, applied dynamic life cycle assessment to the UK’s national planting strategy of 30,000 ha yr-1 from 2020-2050. A total of 33 different future scenarios were modelled.
An essential feature of the research, which is one of the first and most rigorous studies of its kind worldwide, is the inclusion of the carbon flows in the whole system: soil, trees, forestry operations and harvested wood product value chain.
The research does not advocate one type of forest only. It merely concludes that where climate change mitigation is the main policy goal this is best delivered through a commercial conifer planting regime.
Our Forest Policy Briefing summarises policy implications deriving from this research.
DOWNLOAD POLICY BRIEFING

Top five alternative conifer tree species review

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Forests and woodlands are as much part of the mix of solutions for the Biodiversity and Climate Emergency as they are themselves under threat from it.
The UK Climate Change Committee have set out strong recommendations for 30,000 hectares of new woodland per annum by 2050 (UKCCC, 2020), of which a significant portion will likely be commercial plantation woodlands. Expansion and sustainable management of this new woodland will act as a mechanism for meeting UN Sustainable Development Goal 15, combatting climate change, improving home-grown timber supply for the construction sector, and providing a wide range of valuable public goods.
Plantations, alongside other forms of woodland creation, have an important role in carbon sequestration and biodiversity conservation, providing public amenity and recreational benefits and biodiversity conservation. The coniferous forest resource in Great Britain is increasingly expected to deliver a broad range of ecosystem services to society; this alongside the provision of timber and other forest products, through management for multiple objectives, often within a small geographical area.
Welsh Government commissioned Woodknowledge Wales to conduct a review to identify the top five alternative commercial tree species suitable to meet timber utilisation demands in light of increasing potential pest and disease pressures as a result of climate change.
Our approach to identifying the top five alternative tree species for GB has drawn on and collated the existing knowledge base through literature review and inputs from a broad range of stakeholders. It does not capture experience found on the ground which has not been published, yet. Results should be seen as a starting point for further investigation.
In this sense, we have set out on a journey of collaboration bringing together stakeholders to discuss potential ways forward. If you would like participate in our future stakeholder workshops, please get in touch.
Please note this an amended version of the report published on the 23rd June 2021 which now lists the top five ranked species in Table 3.6 in the correct order (Thuja plicata and Sequoiadendron giganteum were in the wrong order in previous versions).
English:
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