Pride, passion and confidence

It used to be said that our sector hid its light under a bushel and did not put its head sufficiently above the publicity parapet, at least not compared with rival material industries. But you can't say that any more.

Just a fortnight from now, the UK timber trade will gather at The Savoy in London for the 16th TTJ Awards presentations. This has become a flagship occasion, where the industry holds its head up high and declares to the world that it is delivering sustainable, high-performance products backed by truly excellent service. "We're the timber trade and we're proud of it", might be the event slogan, if we wanted to up the cheese factor.

This year, may be more than ever, the Awards highlight just how much the industry has to be proud about. A first for 2012 is the TRADA and Timber Expo-sponsored Timber Innovation Award, recognising companies that are pushing the boundaries of timber technology and helping to widen its market potential and impact. Despite the fact that it is a new category, it attracted an impressive number of entries, highlighting just what an inventive, creative business this is and underlining its faith in its future, in the form of continued investment in new product development, regardless of recession.

The number and quality of entries for the Excellence in Marketing and Website of the Year Award further emphasised the bullish forward-thinking nature of the sector today. And those for the Career Development Award, Environmental Achievement and Achievement in Engineered Timber show an industry advancing across a range of other key areas for future development and market share growth - and keen to broadcast the fact.

Hot on the heels of the Awards, of course, is Timber Expo. The debut show last year made a big impact, and this year it's promising to create even more of a wave. It will occupy a bigger area of the Ricoh Arena in Coventry and there will be more stands. More than that, it will include added attractions that are bound to stir market interest in timber's potential.

The seminars and presentation programme will feature over 100 speakers during the two days of the show; from timber importers and traders, to technicians, architects, timber frame suppliers, engineered wood specialists and environmental certification experts. A big draw will be an Olympics-focused discussion, examining the mould-breaking ways timber was procured and used by the London Games.

TTJ Timber Innovation Award entries will form yet another special presentation focus.

Following its success last year, Timber Expo also once more includes a Buyers' Forum, the business equivalent of speed dating, where timber suppliers and construction customers can court one another and match products to projects in short, sharp meetings. And it would be quicker to list top-flight developers, contractors and their leading customers not participating. You name them, they'll be there.

Showcased at Timber Expo too will be the stunning shortlisted entries for the Wood Awards. This annual competition for the use of wood in construction, furniture and interiors is another example of our industry in its widest sense, including end users, specifiers and customers, declaring with ever greater confidence just what timber can do - and this year it attracted an all-time record 362 category entries. A shrinking violet no more.