Industry sum is greater than its parts

These are challenging, but potentially rewarding times for the timber industry. Customer demand remains a moveable feast and compliance with ever more stringent legislation has become an integral part of the timber business today.

So while demand for timber and timber products continues to grow, we cannot afford to be complacent. We must continue to work together to promote their use as they compete against a raft of other products and materials in an increasingly diverse market place.

The emerging good news recently is the hint, at long last, of an economy moving into recovery mode. This can only further boost interest in timber products and, as an industry, we must be ready to meet the growing demand that follows. One thing that means in today's market, of course, is an ever greater dedication to meeting the highest environmental standards.

With over 70 years in the business, Timbmet has built a solid reputation for environmental commitment and today is dedicated to nurturing the supply of certified timbers from legally and sustainably managed forests.

Our policy is to support best practice models to maintain the regeneration capacity of forests and we continue to be proactive with due diligence trips to understand origin and sustainability issues in Africa.

This has resulted in our latest enterprise - a partnership with UK-based software development company Helveta, which has led the way in supply chain management and asset management software for extended global supply chains.

The aim is to develop a Digital Passport for issue at the point of timber export to enable EU first placers to assess more accurately the level of risk of non-compliance with the EU Timber Regulation - a major challenge for those occupying that position in the timber supply chain.

Sharing knowledge and platforms is key to growing the timber sector and meeting its challenges for use. We must also encourage fresh blood with vision and imagination into the trade, and continue to develop training opportunities both inside and outside the industry, making best use of university facilities to promote timber and its use in construction. We regard trade associations as key to helping achieve these goals. Working closely with them at all levels gives us a better insight and understanding of our changing market and its challenges. This is time and effort well invested as much is to be gained from networking in support of a common aim to promote the sustainability and performance of timber across the entire industry.

Two other challenges we face are an increasingly fragmented customer base and changing methods of sales and communication through new media. While these challenges open up more opportunities, face-to-face industry interaction remains by far the most effective route to establishing and maintaining strong business relationships. And what better place to meet, mingle and network than at an exhibition?

That is why Timbmet is also sponsoring the Accord Pavilion at Timber Expo, at Birmingham NEC next week. As broadcaster Huw Edwards commented at last week's TTJ Awards, there is limited knowledge of timber outside our immediate industry.

So let's pull together to actively promote timber, timber products and their use to the world at large. With our combined knowledge and skills, we are the best ambassadors to promote our industry to ensure its collective success.