Traditionally the UK hardwood market has known what it likes, and liked what it knows. A few more esoteric varieties have occasionally made an appearance, usually for specific end uses. But a handful of species has dominated business; sapele and US white and European oak topping the bill, with a supporting cast comprising mainly walnut, ash, cherry, maple, beech, tulipwood, iroko, idigbo, meranti, beech, with a few other bitpart players besides.
But there are signs the market may be set for greater diversity. It’s not a seismic shift, but importers and traders are talking about new products and a wider spread of species, and more to come.
One reason for this is a push from suppliers. A combination of the focus on sustainability and growing global demand is putting the pressure on them to sell a wider variety to lift the pressure on the big sellers and avoid depletion. Also, if you go to the expense of environmentally and/or legally certifying a forest, it makes commercial sense to extract as much from it as sustainably possible, which means cutting more species. It’s a tactic the NGOs support too to avoid over exploitation of particular varieties and the habitats they create.
"We’re definitely being offered a wider range from tropical suppliers," said Vicki Link at importers LDT. "And they include some weird and wonderful names." "And a knock-on from introducing new species is that specifiers and end-users get a taste for a wider range of colours, grains and characteristics and want more," said an importer.
There are also industry-wide moves to get the market to buy into greater choice. The European Sustainable Tropical Timber Coalition, an international initiative started by the Dutch sustainable trade development agency IDH, aims to revive European tropical timber sales through marketing and procurement policies, with backing from government private sector and NGOs EUwide (and its second international conference has just taken place in Valencia). One of its initiatives, to simultaneously boost sales and the sector’s environmental performance, is to promote lesser-known species. In fact, it’s just launched a website to that end (now in translation from Dutch to English) listing different varieties’ performance and aesthetic characteristics (www.houtdatabase.nl).
Belgian international importer Vandecasteele has added a range of new varieties to its portfolio recently, and one that’s picking up sales is red mandioquera from Brazil.
"It’s suitable for a range of applications, but often used for lorry flooring and is seen as an alternative to keruing and kapur," said the company’s Jeroen Platteau.
Other tropical newcomers, he added, are kiln-dried durability class II sucupira vermelha and durability class I-II piquia marfim. Both are from Brazil, FSC-certified and suited to a range of exterior uses; decking, cladding, garden products and buildings, and marine application.
LDT also sees market diversity growing, with another factor behind it being increasing availability of engineered tropical and temperate hardwoods, notably laminated and finger-jointed components. "They provide greater yield and reduce processing time, and also enhance the overall performance of the species," said Vicki Link.
A fresh addition to the WoodEx engineered range at LDT’s sister company James Latham is Grandis 690+ a new laminated form of its popular South American Grandis eucalyptus. It’s verified by TRADA and classed durable to moderately durable. And its density (690- 759kg/m3) and lengths (up to 5.9m finger jointed) suits it to joinery and structural use. Large dimension Ekki
Danzer has high hopes for its new large dimension azobe from its IFO operation in Congo Brazzaville, which has just come successfully through an FSC reaudit (and the timber is also TLTV legally verified). It’s not an entirely unfamiliar species of course, but IFO’s new heavyweight mill can supply outsize sections (processing logs up to 12m) that open up a range of applications. Danzer sees prospects in marine, structural and other exterior markets.
Fewer people will be acquainted with the new hardwood range offered by Timbmet and that’s largely because some of the species from Canadian underwater recovery specialist CoastEco have been beneath the surface of a Panamanian reservoir for 30 years. The often dramatically grained and coloured wood is unscathed by the experience and CoastEco earlier told TTJ that there are potentially 15 years’ supply in the reservoir.
To date Timbmet has offered the timber in slabs for worktops in five species, including exotic dragon wood and zapatero. "From February we’ll also have amargo amargo decking and sawn material for joinery in amargo amargo, cedro espino, white mahogany and espave," said commercial director Sean O’Sullivan.
Another factor driving diversity, say hardwood importers, is the EU Timber Regulation. As some suppliers – and indeed whole countries – have struggled to satisfy EUTR-standard due diligence illegality risk assessment, the hardwood supply base is reported to have shrunk further. As a result, the market has looked for alternative species to fill the gaps. With demand focused on fewer suppliers, they are also looking to sell a greater variety to meet it.
Framire/idigbo from Ivory Coast is seen as a particular EUTR casualty. It was already becoming scarcer and more difficult to get in key specifications, and the fact that few mills now seem able to come up to scratch on EUTR due diligence requirements has exacerbated the supply situation.
"We’re now looking at movingue as an alternative," said LDT’s Vicki Link. Following last year’s NGO and UK and Belgian EUTR enforcement agency probes into imports of Brazilian ipe, this is another species some feel is ripe for substitution.
After the scares, leading UK importers said they would only buy FSC-certified. This is not in over-supply, so alternatives are consequently also being offered. Brooks Bros sees this as another market opening for its modified Kebony range, notably for decking. "In fact, since the episodes last year with ipe, we have definitely seen an increase in interest and inquiries and expect that to continue to grow," said managing director Mark Fleming.
