Where does our timber come from?
As the mainstay of our business is timber, we care about where it comes from. We know you may not have paid as much attention to this as us, but it’s our job to source quality products for you. So where does the timber you’re buying at George Hill come from? We can confidently say that we KNOW where all our structural timber comes from – that is, bonnie Scotland and Ireland. All our supply lines carry an FSC (Forestry Services Commission) chain of custody certificate that proves it’s from a sustainable source.
Our softwood timber mouldings come from a little further afield; they are machined out of Redwood sourced from Sweden.
Our hardwoods hail from even more diverse areas; American White Oak from North America, Cedar from Western Canada and Meranti from Southeast Asia. All from sustainable forests and ethically sourced of course.
But why does all this matter? Well, there are several reasons:
• If timber does not come from a renewable source that is carefully managed, then the industry will quickly decline, meaning less availability and increasing prices.
• By keeping it local we’re reducing transport costs and environmental damage.
• Using UK produced structural timber directly supports the UK economy.
• Increased demand for local timber has already had a positive impact on our countryside - Britain has gone from 5% woodland at the beginning of 20th century to 13% coverage by 2011*.
• Buying unprotected timber, in addition to destroying primary forests can have a knock on effect on endangered species and indigenous tribes and result in illegal smuggling.
• And crucially - it is becoming government policy for publicly funded buildings to be built with independently certified legal and sustainable timber to combat illegal logging. This policy is expected to be phased in across the UK over the coming years. While this is currently a policy and not yet a law, a ‘breach of contract’ is illegal.
We love timber – it is naturally low carbon (it absorbs and stores carbon dioxide from the atmosphere), it’s strong, it’s completely renewable, recyclable at the end of its purpose and it’s a thing of beauty.