02/05/2025
The UK Government is considering some significant amendments to building regulations which will impact BWF Members and the wider woodworking and joinery manufacturing industry. A consultation of ...
David Pattenden, BWF President
If you hark back to the beginning of last year – and it seemed like a long time ago – you may remember my predecessor Roy Wakeman OBE heralding 2013 as a year of change – change in our businesses, change in our industry and change in our industry body.
And those changes came thick and fast! Early 2013 yielded something of a legislative landslide with the introduction of the EU timber regulation, changes in PAYE reporting, employment law, not to mention HSE’s Fee for Intervention kicking in. This was all set against a backdrop of difficult trading conditions for manufacturers as the economic recovery stuttered and uncertainty loomed over what would be in the new Part L.
Roy had spoken of the importance of the BWF being ready for these changes and I have to say ready we were – providing timely and effective advice and documentation.
Last year’s BWF Annual Conference was held in April and was our most successful yet including workshops on machinery, BIM, HSE inspections and CE Marking. We offered each manufacturing member a free place and this led to a number of new faces attending; this offer is set to continue in 2014 so don’t forget to put May 14th in your diary.
The Construction Products Regulation hit us in July.
The technical helpline was braced from May to deal with the deluge of calls, giving BWF a very busy summer as workshops across Britain woke up to the implications of the regulation – the mandatory CE Marking of windows and external doorsets. But again we were prepared and able to provide straightforward guidance to save members time and effort.
And it was this guidance and technical expertise that helped us exceed our membership target, bringing in over 150 new members in 2013 and making us an even stronger and more influential part of the construction sector.
BWF members and those involved with our schemes can share in number of successes such as the BWF Stair Scheme’s new Design Guide and the launch of Fire Door Safety Week in September 2013 which ensured that the vital message of effective Fire Door Safety reached one-in-ten people in the UK. The year also saw the launch of a new merchant partnering scheme with the BMF, a UK wide Fire Door Installers Register and notably a highly productive meeting with Brandon Lewis MP, the Minister with a portfolio for Fire Prevention.
As the year drew to a close, the BWF Annual Dinner and Awards saw Oakwrights Bath Ltd of Corsham, Wiltshire scooping both awards for technical excellence and innovation in joinery manufacture, and for the apprentice/trainee of the year – the first time that one company has won both awards together and a particularly notable achievement given the record number of award entries last year.
Looking forward to 2014
It is encouraging that in recent months, particularly for those of us serving the housing market, a real and tangible improvement has come to our trading. With the latest Joinery State of Trade Survey indicating that market conditions for the woodworking sector are improving, I am confident that this upturn will spread gradually across all customer sectors as we move through 2014 and beyond.
But as you are all aware, working in a joinery business is never as easy as simply sitting back and watching the money come in. Late payment, lack of available finance and restrictively tight margins remain ongoing industry issues, and even if the market share of wood products was to increase, a reduction in the UK manufacturing share could still act to negate this, as happened for wooden windows between 2007 and 2012.
The BWF is committed to helping members trade more profitably and improve their market share. One aspect of this is the new Marketing Toolkit that we’ve been working on to help you benchmark and develop your own marketing activities.
The Wood Window Alliance has also done fantastic work growing the market share of timber windows and as a member of both organisations I was delighted to announce the recent merger with the BWF which will enable it to be an even stronger force for good through its promotional work and industry-leading projects on LCA and BIM.
Growth brings its own problems and finding good, well trained people becomes harder. The WITForum will continue to lead the way for industry training, further developing its CPD programme – soon to be available online – and building on the TAF Award winning ‘Wow I Made That’ campaign to attract young talent into the sector.
As President I will continue to ensure that BWF goes from strength-to-strength, engaging with your businesses and providing the advice and support that your business needs. In addition to the Marketing Toolkit you can expect to see in the next few weeks:
– Our new ‘Health and Safety Hero’ initiative. Recent NSCC Accident Survey results have indicated that BWF members are among the safest in the industry. With HSE inspections earning hundreds of thousands of pounds from joinery manufacturers found to have breached the law, we’re helping members to introduce a zero tolerance culture on Health and Safety bad practice.
– Improvements to our CE Marking resources which will enable you to get your U-values even more cost effectively.
– Guidance to assist you in all the specifics of running a joinery business.
Wishing you all a safe and productive 2014!
