For built environment and forestry professionals, procurement teams, housing developers, designers, and anyone looking to deepen their understanding of timber as a construction material.
Our Timber 101 webinar series is now live and open for registration. This free CPD-friendly series is tailored for professionals across the built environment, procurement teams, housing developers, designers, and anyone aiming to expand their knowledge of timber as a contemporary construction material. It’s also a great opportunity for foresters interested in gaining deeper insight into the materials they supply.
Hosted by Woodknowledge Wales, the series explores the properties, performance, and specification of timber across the supply chain—from species selection through to durability, moisture management and material quality.
If you’re just starting to explore timber or want to deepen your understanding, Timber 101 offers straightforward, fact-based guidance to help you make informed choices for low-carbon building.
Register now for the 2026 Timber 101 webinars:
Click the title of the webinar to register for each webinar. You need to register separately for each session.
23 September 2026: Specifying and selecting timber – what’s the criteria?
7 October 2026: Trees to commercial timber species
21 October 2026: Wood material structure and properties
4 November 2026: Moisture in timber (Part 1)
18 November 2026: Moisture in Timber (Part 2) Understanding and accounting for moisture in wood
2 December 2026: Natural durability
9 December 2026: Quality of timber – perception and confusion
Why attend?
- Get up to speed on essential timber knowledge
- Understand how timber properties affect design and performance
- Learn from experts with real-world project experience
- Ask questions live during each interactive session
- Join a growing community of low-carbon construction professionals
Who should attend?
- Forestry professionals
- Architects, engineers, and specifiers
- Clients and developers
- Housing and procurement professionals
- Policy, research and sustainability leads
- Timber frame manufacturers and contractors
Speakers:
Phil O’Leary
Director, Filros Timber Consultancy
Phil is Director of Filros Timber Consultancy which provides specialist independent consultancy across the timber sector. Previously he was head of Timber Consultancy at BM TRADA, the technical authority behind TRADA. With over 30 years of post-qualifying experience working with timber across design, specification, structural grading and in-service performance, Phil has published in local and international journals about wood science.
Phil’s background combines formal wood science expertise, decades of applied industry experience, leadership in standards and organisations and specialises in:
- condition surveys of historic buildings, performance assessments and determining the structural strength of timber in many situations
- timber quality, performance characteristics, deterioration and preservation
- serving as an expert witness in establishing the causes of timber failures
- developing and presenting highly regarded topical and bespoke training courses on a range of timber subjects.
Phil is chairman of BSI’s Wood Preservation Committee and a member of the Wood Protection Association’s Technical, Environmental and Regulatory Affairs Committee. He is also Chair of the Woodknowledge Wales Board.
Dr Andy Pitman MSc, BSc, CTLHE, Fellow IOM3
Principal Timber Consultant, Filros Timber Consultancy
Wood scientist Andy Pitman specialises in understanding the performance of wood in service. He holds a Masters in Forest Industries Technology and completed his PhD with the Mary Rose Trust investigating the conservation archaeological timbers.
A Fellow of the IOM3 and past Chairman of the Wood Technology Society, Andy worked with BM TRADA in research, development and testing of timber products including modified woods and is author of TRADA’s Wood Information Sheet on Modified Wood. He is a member of the Wood Protection Association’s Technical Committee and was a member of the British Standards Committee dealing with British and European standards relating to wood protection.
Andy has worked across the supply chain, delivering CPD training to architects and engineers on behalf of the RIBA, Wood for Good and TRADA. Prior to working with Filros Timber Consultancy, he worked in R&D for a start-up LIGNIA for four years developing a resin impregnated modified timber which has provided experience in working with resin and adhesive providers and laminators in the UK and Europe, working with investors and commissioning testing services from Europe and North America.
Andy is trained to visually strength grade softwoods and hardwoods and CQI IRCA ISO 9001:2015, Forest Stewardship Council (FSC), and PEFC Lead Auditor. He also routinely undertakes visual inspections of the quality of timber products for UK timber merchants.
All sessions are free and delivered via Zoom. Book your place today and join us this autumn to explore the fundamentals of timber, from forest to frame.
NOTE: Please note that the content of each webinar is under copyright. Attendance must be live. No external recordings will be authorised or shared. Internal recording is for administrative purposes only. The use of AI bots will not be authorised and will be removed or blocked.
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