TTJ: HOW HAS THE CONNECTION OF THE BSW AND BINDERHOLZ OPERATIONS DEVELOPED SO FAR AND HOW ARE CUSTOMERS RESPONDING?
Tony Hackney: It is early days and the business has been very busy working on all aspects of a plan to grow further and strengthen the Binderholz business in the UK. We are now part of a major professionally run expert sawmilling and mass timber producer which has added a new dimension to our business. It’s exciting for both teams to work together following the acquisition and we are quickly getting to know our colleagues.
I feel our customers see the advantage of the firepower that we now have and hope to open up a whole range of new customer groups to complement our existing loyal customer network.
TTJ: WILL WE SEE BINDERHOLZ ENGINEERED WOOD CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS BECOME AN INTEGRATED PART OF THE BSW PRODUCT RANGE?
TH: Absolutely. We have already established the products we think will work and have stock in the UK. A more bespoke range of value-added products are available and we have a team of new technical sales advisers and very experienced mass timber experts.
TTJ: WILL BSW DEVELOP A UKBASED CONSTRUCTION ARM WITH BINDERHOLZ, TO GROW SUPPLY OF ENGINEERED TIMBER CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS IN THE UK AND DEVELOP THE MARKET?
TH: Binderholz already has a B Project division capable of designing and implementing very complex structures, headed up by Helmut Spiehs.
TTJ: ARE THERE PLANS FOR BSW ITSELF TO DEVELOP MORE TIMBER CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS, NOTABLY ENGINEERED WOOD PRODUCTS SUCH AS GLULAM AND CLT?
TH: It is inevitable that we will. We’ve already done a lot of work with drying and grading of home-grown materials and we have a much wider strategic plan which will be rolled out in due course.
TTJ: ARE THERE PLANS FOR UKGROWN TIMBER FROM BSW TO BE USED IN BINDERHOLZ CONSTRUCTION PRODUCTS ?
TH: Working with the CSIC in Glasgow we’ve gained great results with a home-grown panel which was used to build a house for COP 26. We will build on this.
TTJ: WHERE DOES BINDERHOLZ CURRENTLY SOURCE MOST OF ITS TIMBER?
TH: Binderholz is a truly global business and wherever it operates it sources locally. It is keen to promote the use of home-grown products and is really pleased with the BSW products.
TTJ: STATEMENTS MADE ON THE ACQUISITION OF BSW HIGHLIGHTED INVESTMENT PLANS AT BOTH BINDERHOLZ AND BSW SITES. CAN YOU ELABORATE?
TH: The main areas of investment will be efficiency and automation, as labour retention and availability becomes more important. We will also see mill infrastructure development, better stockyards and logyards and capacity improvements to achieve the lowest cost per m3. Energy and co-product utilisation will be an important medium term plan too.
TTJ: BINDERHOLZ CEO REINHARDT BINDER MENTIONED PLANNED “INVESTMENTS THAT GO FURTHER INTO THE DEPTH OF THE VALUE-ADDED CHAIN”. CAN YOU EXPLAIN?
TH: There has been a massive programme of investments into CLT, glulam, KVH and multiply panels. Binderholz is the expert and has industry leading know-how.
TTJ: OTHER BUILDING MATERIALS SECTORS ARE DEVELOPING THEIR OWN SUSTAINABILITY, LOW CARBON STORIES, BUT DO YOU FEEL THE TIMBER SECTOR IS ESPECIALLY WELL-PLACED TO CAPITALISE ON CONSTRUCTION DECARBONISATION?
TH: You will have seen our new campaign and rebrand of the BSW Group. ‘Seeing Timber in a New Light’ targets the very best practice in the forest industry. We will be relentless in demonstrating the benefits of timber and its increased use, especially home-grown timber, in construction – and let’s not forget fencing and landscaping.
TTJ: WHAT IS YOUR VISION FOR THE COMBINED BSW-BINDERHOLZ BUSINESS IN, SAY, FIVE YEARS FROM NOW?
TH: We will be a very strong influencer on the use of wood and will have further developed the UK and global footprint for the business. We all saw the effects of the ‘Covid tsunami’ on our sector. Now, against current difficult economic and political backdrops, we’re seeing a ‘Covid riptide’. But our group will prosper and come out of this activity downturn much stronger and well placed to serve our existing and new customer base.
Binderholz is a very well managed family business – family values and a strong market presence are essential parts of the culture and teamwork that drives the success of the Group. The fit between BSW and Binderholz is very good and will bring benefits to the stability of the whole sector.
