Irish show a united front

Three Irish sawmills, a panel producer and Coillte joined together with the support of Enterprise Ireland to show a united front to Timber Expo visitors.

With a stand made of Irish construction timber, Glennon Brothers, Murray Timber Products, Graingers and Coillte Panel Products highlighted the importance of the UK market to their businesses.

Willie Fitzgerald, of Enterprise Ireland, told TTJ that in light of a poor Irish construction market, it was “critical” to get more and more product into the UK.

Traders on the stand said last year had been a good year for UK exports but an adverse exchange rate earlier this year had not helped 2011 volumes.

“We are delighted to be over here,” said Richard Lowe, head of sales and marketing at Coillte’s forest division. “We’ve had a lot of throughput here and the right sort of people.”