Sign up for WoodBUILD 2024 now and grab your opportunity to quiz three of the UK’s leading wood scientists at
‘Timber 101 – Making wood work in the built environment’
Edinburgh Napier University
Research Fellow at the BioComposites Centre,
Bangor University
Director,
Filros Timber Consultancy
Three of the UK’s top wood scientists Dr Dan Ridley-Ellis, Dr Morwenna Spear and Phil O’Leary, will be coming together in a presentation and discussion workshop at WoodBUILD 2024 at 14:00 on Tuesday 2 July at the IQ Building of the University of Wales Trinity St David Waterfront Campus in Swansea.
“I’m excited to be able to offer this workshop as a part of WoodBUILD 2024. The opportunity to come and engage with three of the UK’s top wood scientists is certainly one not to be missed. Dr Dan Ridley-Ellis’s wealth of knowledge on the properties of wood is second to none. Dr Morwenna Spear’s aptitude for research into novel timber treatments and wood-fibre technologies is unbeatable, and Phil O’Leary is considered one of the UK’s leading authorities for visual strength grading. What more could we want? Let’s crack on! Do come and join this interactive session about how best to use home-grown Welsh timber in construction in order to help decarbonise the built environment.” Anna Dauksta, Forestry and Timber Project Manager, Woodknowledge Wales.
The workshop will be hosted by Anna Dauksta, Forestry and Timber Project Manager, Woodknowledge Wales. As session chair, Rob Thomas, Director, Architect and Certified Passivhaus Designer from Hiraeth Architecture will give an introductory presentation about how great wood really can be in the built environment. This will be followed by short presentations from three of the UK’s leading wood scientists to discuss home-grown timber, its properties, opportunities, and limitations. Best practice tips and tricks for maximising the potential of using home-grown timber to help decarbonise the built environment will also be shared. This session will be interactive and provides a unique opportunity to engage with esteemed speakers of the wood science world.
“How amazing to get three such eminent wood scientists in a conference workshop together. Everyone seems to have an opinion on the properties of home-grown timber, but the facts are often hard to come by. This workshop will be a great opportunity to access quality information, ask questions of these experts who have spent their careers exploring wood properties, and challenge some of the prevailing misconceptions about fast-grown conifers.” Gary Newman, CEO, Woodknowledge Wales.
About our three speakers
Dr Dan Ridley-Ellis is head of the Centre for Wood Science and Technology at Edinburgh Napier University. He is one of the UK’s technical experts on guessing the strength of wood and can talk for hours on the topic – which he frequently does if nobody stops him. His main area of research is understanding the properties of wood, and how they are influenced by tree growth, forest management, and climate. He represents the UK at European Standards Committees for grading of construction timber, and the majority of structural sawn timber produced in the UK is now graded with settings he developed. He was named “woodland hero” for 2016 by Grown in Britain, and is also active in online learning, public engagement and science communication. He was the lead organiser of Bright Club Edinburgh from 2011 to 2023.
Dr Morwenna Spear has worked at the BioComposites Centre at Bangor University for over 15 years, conducting research into timber and a wide range of bio-based materials. She has worked with companies to scale up new technologies and processes, increase efficiency, reduce waste and to assess materials performance. She is a fellow of the IOM3, and Chair of the Wood Technology Society. Morwenna is active in research into novel timber treatments; the physical, thermal and chemical properties of wood. She is also working on energy efficient buildings and researching the environmental effects of materials and objects such as disposable and reusable facemasks.
Phil O’Leary 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, Phil has published in local and international journals about wood science. Phil is also chairman of BSI’s Wood Preservation Committee and a member of the Wood Protection Association’s Technical Committee. As one of the UK’s leading authorities for Visual Strength Grading, Phil specialises in condition surveys of historic buildings, performance assessments and determining the structural strength, quality, performance characteristics, deterioration and preservation of timber. He also serves as an expert witness and develops and presents bespoke timber training.
For the full programme, visit our events page.
